Group of people, some with physical disabilities.
  • "May I help you?" Your customers with disabilities know if they need help and how you can provide it.
  • Speak directly to your customer.
  • Not everybody with the same disability experiences the same things. Don't make assumptions. Your customers are not required to tell you about their disabilities.
  • Take the time to get to know your customer's needs and focus on meeting those needs just like you would with any other customer. Some disabilities are not visible.
  • All customers have a range of needs and preferences and so do your customers with disabilities.
  • If you can't understand what your customer is saying, politely ask him or her to repeat it.
  • You may want to ask if the information you are conveying needs to be repeated. Ask: "Do you understand this?"
  • Exercise patience.

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    Transcript

    Here are some things to keep in mind when serving customers with disabilities:

    • If you're not sure what to do, ask your customer, "May I help you?" Your customers with disabilities know if they need help and how you can provide it.
    • Speak directly to your customer.
    • Not everybody with the same disability experiences the same things. Don't make assumptions about the types of disability a person has. Your customers are not required to tell you about their disabilities.
    • Take the time to get to know your customer's needs and focus on meeting those needs just like you would with any other customer. Some disabilities are not visible.
    • All customers have a range of needs and preferences and so do your customers with disabilities.
    • If you can't understand what your customer is saying, politely ask him or her to repeat it.
    • You may want to ask if the information you are conveying needs to be repeated. Ask: "Do you understand this?"
    • Exercise patience.