Whatever business you are in -- manufacturing, retail, health care, travel, high tech -- you must realize that first and foremost, you are in the service business.

We all know how we like to be treated when we conduct a transaction. We also know how we do not like to be treated. There is no excuse not to render exceptional customer service.

But it has always amazed me that some organizations expect their customers to put up with disappointing service. It’s so much easier in the long run to expend a little more effort in putting your best foot forward.

So, based on personal experience and extensive research, I offer my ABCs for customer service.

A is for anticipate. Know what your customers need, what problems may arise, and how you can best serve them. Don’t just meet their needs; amaze them with your attention.

B is for business. Customer service is your business, no matter what you make or what service you provide. Keep repeating that mantra.

C is for commitments. You vouch for planned delivery dates, not random drop-off times. Businesses live on commitments, which lead to steady repeat sales.

D is for details. No detail is too small to a customer who has come to expect perfection from you. Little things make a big difference.

E is for empowerment. Every single person on your payroll must be empowered to make decisions on the spot that accommodate the customer first.

F is for fix the problem. When, despite your best efforts, something goes wrong, find out the reason and correct it immediately.

G is for give customers what they want. Many don’t really want their money back. They just want products or services that work the way they’re supposed to.

H is for hiring the right people to create and maintain a service culture. Recognize the skills and attitude you want, and make sure your staff supports that vision.

I is for the internet. Customer service has taken on a whole new meaning with the rise of social media and websites like Angie’s List and Yelp. Google your company and see what you find. Refer to letter F if you don’t like what you see.

J is for journey. Great service is not a onetime event. It’s an ongoing trek over weeks or years that comes with plenty of twists and turns to navigate.

K is for keep your word. Honesty and trust go hand in hand. Your word is your reputation, and your reputation is your future.

L is for long-term customer loyalty. It is not a hit-and-miss thing. You court it. You earn it. You cultivate it. You retain it.

M is for management, which needs to give employees the authority to help people before there is a problem, or be prepared to step in and handle the matter themselves.

N is for no customer service equals no customers.

O is for the other guys. What are they doing that you should be doing better?

P is for performance. If there was an award for best performance in a customer-service setting, you should be a shoo-in. Be aware of every opportunity to outperform your competition.

Q is for quick-witted. Be prepared to make adjustments to satisfy your customers.

R is for rebound, which is what you need to do to regain a customer’s business.

S is for service with a smile.

T is for take care of your customers or someone else will.

U is for under-promise and overdeliver. There has never been a sounder approach to customer service and sales.

V is for value. Customers need to value your product, your service and your relationship. Give them every reason to value you.

W is for wow, as in constantly finding ways to wow your customers. Make every encounter as special as you can because your customers will remember how you made them feel.

X is for express lane. There is no traffic jam in going the extra mile, and great customer service is your path to success.

Y is for years. Your goal is to have a customer for life.

Z is for zealous. If you want to set up and run a business with longevity in the form of long-term and repeating customers, you have to service those clients with zealous enthusiasm.

Mackay’s Moral: Customer service is not just another department; it’s everyone’s job.

I was struck by an article in Bits & Pieces magazine about how the Wright brothers fiercely argued over every decision -- so much so that acquaintances wondered how they could keep working together.

It is common knowledge that Orville and Wilbur Wright battled doubt, lack of money and gravity on their way to aviation history at Kitty Hawk, North Carolina. What is not widely known is that they succeeded precisely because they challenged each other.

Mark Eppler, in his book “The Wright Way,” writes that the key to the brothers' intense arguments was that they were not anger-driven.

As Wilbur Wright put it, “Honest argument is merely a process of mutually picking the beams and motes out of each other’s eyes so both can see clearly.”

Irish poet and playwright Oscar Wilde supported the Wright brothers’ logic when he said: “The well-bred contradict other people. The wise contradict themselves.”

In other words, it’s fine to change your mind after listening to all sides of an argument. There may be issues you didn’t consider, or information that you were unaware of. There may be a better way to deal with a problem that you hadn’t considered.

I’ve always felt that debate or argument is healthy. Whenever I’ve had two employees disagreeing over something, I’ve always tried to listen with an open mind and learn different viewpoints. It can be very helpful in decision-making.

One important thing I’ve learned is not to play favorites. You must give both sides a fair hearing. You cannot go into a situation with a predetermined outcome or you will lose your credibility. You must treat everyone and their viewpoint respectfully.

A study at the University of Michigan found that a little arguing now and then is actually good for you, if done for the right reasons. The results showed that when people experience tension with someone else -- whether their boss, spouse or child -- sidestepping confrontation could be bad for their health. Avoiding conflict was associated with more symptoms of physical problems the next day than was actually engaging in an argument.

A manager’s job is to provide the experiences that will develop his or her employees’ leadership skills. Experience is the best teacher for leadership development. Chief among them is learning to handle differing opinions.

One strategy might be to put the employee in charge of a work group whose members have strong, widely ranging opinions about how to handle a workplace issue. Tell your employee not to pick a “correct” course of action when opinions conflict, but to lead the group to a consensus that everyone can support.

Another challenge to prepare for is the difficult employee who produces good work, but doesn’t interact well with others. Discover what motivates that employee and help him or her channel their talents into better relationships. Reinforce the notion that differing opinions are welcome and even necessary, but need to be respectfully presented.

I read an article about how couples should fight for their relationship, not to win the argument. I think it also applies to the workforce. Every relationship, no matter how happy, suffers its share of conflict and argument. If it’s going to endure, both parties need to know how to fight fair. Follow these rules for arguments:

-- Address issues promptly. Don't let resentments simmer. If something bothers you, bring it up within a reasonable amount of time (48 hours or so).

-- Treat each other with respect. Refrain from name-calling, accusations and absolutes like “You always” and “You never.” Keep your voices calm, and make an effort to really listen to the other person’s point of view. Or as South African cleric Desmond Tutu put it, “Don’t raise your voice, improve your argument.”

-- Keep it private. Don't argue in front of others. If necessary, make an appointment to discuss the issue.

-- Don't let it drag on. Try to set a time limit for resolving the issue. Most arguments shouldn’t last more than 15 minutes.

So, the next time you find yourself in an argument or debate, treat your opponents the “Wright” way. Treat them like family.

Mackay’s Moral: Great minds don’t always think alike.

As everyone who is in business knows, the customer is always right. The customer who isn’t always right is also not your customer. I’ve yet to see a business that can survive without customers.

I often hear stories that go both ways on customer service -- the good experiences and the “what were they thinking?” moments. I’ve written and spoken extensively on the fundamental importance of stellar customer service, even when you’re not sure the person you are dealing with is ever going to be your customer. And I frequently use anecdotes to illustrate my points.

One of my favorites involves an animal, not a human, customer.

Elephants never forget, or so they say. A man who had gone to the circus as a small boy made a return visit years later. He was sitting in a cheap seat when an elephant came along, reached up into the stand, wrapped his trunk gently about the man and carried him over to deposit him gently in the best seat in the circus tent.

The man turned to his neighbor and said, “The elephant remembered that the last time I was here, years ago, I fed him peanuts.”

Just then the elephant came back, lifted his trunk, pointed it straight at the man and blew a stream of water in his face.

“Oh!” the man said. “I forgot I gave them to him in the bag.”

Elephants and customers both have long memories.

In that vein, I like to share this story of a local meat market that has three or four clerks waiting on customers. One of them always has a line of customers waiting for him -- even if one of the other clerks is available. One day, a visitor asked the always-busy clerk the reason for his popularity.

“The other clerks,” he said, “always put more meat on the scale and then take some away to arrive at what the customer ordered. I always put less on the scale and then add to it. It makes all the difference.”

Closer to home, my sister Margie shared an experience she had when flying with a veteran employee of Alaska Airlines. Not only does that company have (in my opinion) the coolest graphics on their aircraft, it is also consistently ranked highest in airline customer satisfaction among traditional carriers in by J.D. Power and Associates. Alaska's bragging rights include a long list of travel industry awards.

Margie’s seatmate explained that the airline “goes above and beyond to pick employees in all fields that can each be described as a ‘people person.'" Its philosophy is that it can train someone to do their job, but it can’t train them to be a true people person unless they already are.

This attitude even extends to when employees are flying on their airline: they request a middle seat so their customers can get the better aisle and window seats. Alaska was the first airline in North America to sell tickets online and the first in the world to allow customers to check in and print boarding passes via the Internet. Very customer friendly, don’t you agree?

The company website acknowledges this commitment to customer service: “Whenever the history of commercial aviation is written, people ask how an obscure little airline in America's hinterland has continued to survive and thrive while once-proud giants disappeared. Grit and determination will be part of the answer. However, more than that, it's our people. Their caring, their resourcefulness, their integrity, their professionalism, and their spirit.”

Back in Minneapolis, the Star Tribune recently featured Natalie Foltz, a Lyft and Uber driver who wanted to make a difference for her riders, “even if it was just getting them to crack a smile.”

So, she started giving handwritten notes to her passengers, inspirational quotes from famous authors and others she wrote herself. She even started a Facebook group for her riders that became an online community. One of the many messages said, “Thanks for the uplifting note today, and it was on green paper, my absolute favorite color. Thank you for taking time and brightening my day!”

Natalie says sharing the notes is the best part of her job. Make sure you and your employees share Natalie’s attitude.

Mackay’s Moral: It’s not about what you can do; it’s about what you will do.