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Tony did exactly as he was trained. He greeted his customer warmly by name. However, the customer seemed to get more and more distant every time he heard Tony say his name.

How could something as well intentioned as using a customer’s name create such a negative reaction? As it turns out, Tony’s customer was a very formal person and when Tony referred to him as “Bob” instead of Mr. Zizka, he felt disrespected.

This is a common occurrence in business these days. The American work place includes a wide scope of individuals who have a variety of preferences. People don’t all want to be treated the same way. It isn’t easy for even the best intentioned service person to know how to treat all of the people he or she interacts with.

There are many companies that train employees to follow certain rules for how to treat customers. However, many employers do not understand the subtleties and contexts involved in interpersonal communications. Companies that don’t fully understand the complexities involved in customer service run the risk of sending the wrong messages.

Here are some rules that will meet the expectations of the vast majority of people that a vending or coffee service route driver will come into contact with, as well as some pointers about when to break these rules and use alternative best practices.

Rule 1: Always use the customer’s name

Human relations author Dale Carnegie said, “The sweetest sound in any language is the sound of one’s own name.” Although it may be true that using a customer’s name can create a sense of intimacy, it can also have the opposite effect, as it did in Tony’s case.

Watch out for the following mistakes:

1) Using the customer’s name too often. “Well Bob, you can see that this is the perfect solution for your business, don’t you agree Bob? After all, Bob, studies have shown this to be true. And Bob...”

Overusing the customer’s name may make them uncomfortable. It can seem like an insincere gimmick rather than a true connection.

2) Mispronouncing the customer’s name. Some people have names that are hard to pronounce or have an unusual pronunciation.