Bringing the Humanity Into Customer Service
By Carson Troutman, Project Manager
Why Empathy Matters in Roofing Services
Why should empathy matter when you’re thinking about hiring a roofer to work on your home? Isn't the quality of work and the price what ultimately matters? Well, yes. Quality and price are critically important. But on a more foundational level, when businesses dedicate themselves to empathy, they contribute to the flourishing of the community.
Empathy isn’t just about “being nice.” It’s about bringing humanity to the center of all business interactions. Without empathy, the business experience (often referred to as “customer service”) becomes overwhelmingly transactional - the customer seeing the contractor as a means to an end and the contractor seeing the customer as a paycheck.
When a business prioritizes empathy, they consider the customer’s perspective. They get to know the customer. As a result, these businesses are better equipped and more purely motivated to help their customers. When customer service takes on this form; it creates a ripple effect of mutual understanding, trust, and respect.
I’m not saying homeowners should get together with their roofers for a cookout before they get their roof replaced. You don’t need to be best friends. It’s simply about recognizing the humanity in one another and treating each other the way you’d want to be treated.
At Evergreen Construction & Roofing, we take on each project like we’re working on our own homes. We go out of our way to understand you and your expectations. We want to meet you where you are.
From Teacher & Pastor to Roofer
Before I started working in the roofing business, I was a teacher for 7 years. Each year, twice a year, I’d get about 100 new students in my classes. As I got to know more and more students over the years, I realized that the best way to do my job was to focus on really connecting with as many students as possible.
I could come up with amazing lessons. I could carry on enthusiastic presentations. But if I didn’t know my students, I wasn’t equipped to educate them and make an impact on them. And when my students didn’t know and trust me, they were unlikely to learn from me. Empathy enabled me to be a better teacher and maximize my positive contribution to the people I worked with. Now, as a roofer, I strive to do the same.
While I was teaching, I was also a pastor. In a similar way, I spent a lot of time connecting with people - trying to understand them, support them, and educate them. But, as is often common in small churches, I was also responsible for arranging a roof replacement at our church building.
In this case, we had filed an insurance claim after high winds damaged the roof, and I had to go through the process of getting the claim approved by my insurance company and hiring a contractor to do the work. I really knew nothing about the whole process, especially on the insurance side. I remember being overwhelmed and frustrated by how long it all took. There seemed to be so much involved, and it was easy to feel lost.
Now that I’m on the other side of the situation, working as a roofing contractor, I’m able to empathize with the feelings and concerns of the homeowners I serve. So when I walk someone through an insurance claim, I’m able to give them an overview of the process, anticipating their questions and concerns.
Empathy at Evergreen Construction & Roofing
Empathy isn't just a soft skill,—it's a cornerstone for businesses that provide both quality work and competitive prices.
The more you care about people, the more you put yourself in their shoes, the better you are able to serve them. It’s important to do quality work, but it’s even more important to infuse humanity into your business. People are not a means to an end. They are not a stepping stone to a successful career. They are your career, whether you’re a roofer, a teacher, an accountant, or a restaurant manager. When businesses build a culture of empathy with their customers, we progress towards a better way of life together.
At Evergreen, we want to contribute to a culture where businesses support their local communities, rather than exploiting them. We want to share what makes us valuable and we want to see the value in the people we work with.
We strive to communicate with our customers, understanding your unique hopes and concerns. We want to talk about your expectations. We want to make ourselves accessible.
We want to share our knowledge and experience with you, ensuring that you know all of your options for your roofing or construction project.
As local roofing contractors, our empathetic approach enables us to renovate and restore homes with care and quality - the kind of care and quality we want for our own homes.
To connect with us and schedule a free consultation for your roofing or construction project, book an appointment here.