On a recent flight, at almost every stop along the way, the airline I had chosen reminded me that I was flying with “the best” So can you over-compliment your CX team. Airport signage told me…the CEO appearing on the pre-flight safety video told me…the flight attendant announcements told me…well, you get the picture.
The problem was that I got a whiff of an attitude from the airline’s team that reeked a bit of, “You are so fortunate to be our customer and have the privilege of encountering the best team in the business.” It is an arrogant aroma that no customer finds pleasant.
I started wondering from a CX leadership perspective — can you compliment your team to such a degree that it becomes a detriment to the delivery of an Ultimate Customer Experience®?
I came away thinking, “Yes, you can.”
When customer-facing team members hear the same praise repeatedly to the point that they become immune to it or start to believe that they are infallible, your message gets lost. And when all the preaching about being “the best” starts to feel insincere, it can do more harm than good.
Think about how you react when someone gives you a compliment that feels forced or fake — it doesn’t make you feel good, does it? The same goes for your team. Over-the-top compliments can come across as disingenuous, which will not help anyone feel appreciated or motivated. It can also have an unintended consequence: you breed overconfidence in your team that separates them from the customer rather than inspiring them to superior performance.
THE KEY IS TO FIND A BALANCE IN YOUR PRAISE — GIVE SPECIFIC FEEDBACK THAT IS SINCERE. MIX THINGS UP, SO YOUR TEAM DOESN’T GET NUMB TO THE CREDIT.
Genuine feedback goes a long way, and your team will be much more receptive (and responsive) to feedback that feels real and comes from a place of genuine appreciation.
Here are three steps to providing effective positive feedback:
Avoid generalities and be specific in your compliments. “Great job” is vague and doesn’t tell your team member what they did that was great. “You handled that customer issue expertly” is much more effective.
Be sincere in your praise. If it sounds forced, your team will know it’s not genuine.
Mix things up, so your team doesn’t become immune to the praise. Compliment different aspects of their work, and ensure you’re providing feedback regularly, so they know what they’re doing well and where they can improve.
Praise can breed over-confidence and even arrogance. It can also create a sense of entitlement. As the customer experience leader, you need to know how your team is receiving your compliments and adjust accordingly.
The customer experience is constantly changing, and your team needs to be able to change with it. If they’re getting complacent because they always think they’re already “the best” and do not need to improve, problems will start to arise.
The youth organization 4-H has always said it correctly with its motto: “To make the best better.” Every business should aspire to the same. Even when rankings proclaim you’re at the top of the heap, you can still get better at serving your customers.
Keep the praise coming, but make sure it’s balanced and sincere, so your team stays focused on providing the Ultimate Customer Experience.®
ARTICLE WRITTEN BY SCOTT MCKAIN
AND, BY THE WAY, IF YOU ARE REALLY “THE BEST,” YOU DO NOT HAVE TO KEEP TELLING ME. I WILL KNOW IT FROM THE EXPERIENCE YOU DELIVER.
Contact us at Speakers Inc and view WeSpeak Global
How your company’s career page is deterring candidates from applying. Every employee at your company can make or break a customer’s experience. That’s why it’s so important to ensure employees not only understand your company’s story, but also how they fit into it. Why does your company exist? Is there alignment between your stated mission, vision, and […]
Michelle Curran: A Beacon of Leadership, Motivation, and Teamwork In the dynamic landscape of leadership and motivation, certain individuals emerge as beacons, guiding others through the intricacies of teamwork and motivation. Among these luminaries stands Michelle “Mace” Curran, a name synonymous with excellence in leadership, motivation, and teamwork. With a background steeped in military expertise […]
Controversial Industry Practices: A Look at Event Planning’s Dividing Lines which thrives on creativity, innovation, and collaboration. Yet, beneath its glamorous surface lies a layer of polarizing practices that spark debates and divide professionals. These issues, while uncomfortable to address, shape the industry and influence its future. In this blog, we’ll explore some of the most […]
“Technology is exponential but humans are not and can do great things, but it does not WANT to do great things – it does not want anything” says Apple’s CEO Tim Cook (a quote I have often used in my talks). Technology is a tool not a purpose – see my ‘carpenter and the hammer […]
My mind jumped from one random thought to the next, my heart raced, and my mouth went dry, Using stress to fuel performance. Radio calls were being made, but I wasn’t processing what was being said. I was behind the aircraft. I was experiencing a helmet fire. In reality, I was sitting securely in the […]
What are the warning signs of an empty resilience tank? HOW TO KNOW WHEN IT’S TIME TO PAUSE In my experience, there are four primary indicators that tend to show up each time my resilience tank is running low. They don’t always show up in the same order but, without fail, they will show up […]
Elyse Archer: The Sales Speaker Rewriting the Rules of Success In the ever-evolving landscape of sales, where trust, authenticity, and personal branding have become non-negotiables, event planners are constantly seeking voices that cut through the noise. Enter Elyse Archer—a globally recognized speaker whose magnetic stage presence and actionable strategies are redefining what it means to […]
10 Lessons Learned and the messages I want to share with all of you. At the end of last year, I made the awkward decision to leave the world that had given so much to me, to pursue something that wasn’t well defined, yet oddly was clearly the right path for me to take. After […]
Our Mission:
© All rights reserved 2026. Designed using Voxel
