Tattoo's and Customer Service

Greetings from Portland, Oregon. An absolutely beautiful place to visit and from what I hear...to live too!

I have been surprised by the number of passengers on my flight and customer service people in the Portland area that have tattoo's and wear just enough clothing to let you see many, if not most of them.

For starters, I must admit that I have no interest in having a tattoo of my own. Here is my dilemma. I look at some of the body art work and am totally impressed (my daughter would have loved the dragons on the lady at the airport) yet I don't know that this is the image of a customer service person that I would want in my business. Now, if I owned a tattoo parlor or head shop, it might fit...at the airport, hotel, restaurant or getting a rental car...I really start questioning what's appropriate and what isn't.

Tattoo's are certainly an approach to expressing one's individual self. Companies tend to squash individualism by having employees wear uniforms and dress codes that might include suits and ties for men, and skirts and panty hose for women.

So what do you think? Are tattoo's acceptable in front line customer service? Or should they be covered up for the good of the customer? And what about tattoo's and internal customer service?

Let me now what you think...and join us on our radio show tonight at 10:00 pm est...I'm going to pose this question to Ned and our listeners.

Comments

[Kate Bell-Jennings]

I've thought abut this for a couple of days from both sides.

Personally I have no problem with some discreet tattoos. I have 2 of them, one visable but not obvious, and the other not. My partner, Chris, has a great tribal band on his upper arm. I love it, and find it to be very attractive. Both of us are very conservative, and that would be the extent of our body art. I have no odd body piercings, other than 2 holes in each ear. Chris has none.

As a customer I can find it uncomfortable in certain situations to be in front of someone that has pierced lips, eyebrows and a snake running up their neck. The person could have a PhD in something but you would always judge them as being somewhat off. I think that's definietly a cultural thing. Do we tend to see anyone that is that expressive as being not normal, or even not as intelligent, or as worthy of financial success? We accept it in the rock world, but it's not ok for your dentist to be self-expressive? Does that mean he's not a great dentist if he has tattoo's up and down his arms. Do we tend to view tattoo's as somewhat unclean? Even having one, that comes to mind.

That said, as an employer and team leader, I have to be aware of how my staff is viewed by our conservative customers. I lead a team of very talented interior industrial designers. Our clientele is mostly Asian. We do not allow any visable tattoo's in the office. Most everyone on our creative staff has at least one tattoo. (creative types tend to use any canvas) For the men it can be quite the challenge when purchasing a dress shirt, to make sure you can not see any traces through it. But of utmost importance is to respect the clients, and luckily my entire staff of 47 does. How they dress and act outside the office is up to them, but we demand their complete professionalism in the office at all times, and that does meaning covering it up.

[Terry]

I think that the tattoo's are disgusting and have no place in society...let alone customer service.

Take your "it's art work" comment and shove it Andrew. This is nothing more than a bunch of insecure people trying to get a life by "expressing themselves".

I have a great idea...express yourself by being more than a disgrace to yourself and others.

[Kate Bell-Jennings]

Terry, your comments are really narrow minded. Tattoo's are a work of art, and to have the steady hand to perform that on someone takes tremendous talent. But to have the nerve to call someone that has a tattoo insecure is way off the mark. I happen to be a very successful business woman, and I have no problem with my self-esteem or with being insecure. I travel extensively internationally, there are people all around the world that accept them as a work of art. Your comments make me laugh and also feel sorry for you. One of my tattoo's is a tribute to my son who died at the hands of a drunk driver. That's a disgrace, not my trying to remember him every second, and paying a small tribute to a young man who was amazing.

I agree that people that cover their bodies in tattoo's are going to the extreme's but not everyone is like that. My personal and professional partner, Chris is one of the most successful men I know. He has many ways that he expresses himself, and only one small one is a tattoo that he and both of his sons have as a common connection.

Why not open your mind to something that may be just a bit different than what you perceive to be normal. You'd be surprised what you may find.

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tattoos are something common in the culture of today, it is common to see people at large tattoos, the times when people saw how bad this art. excellent post thanks for sharing the information. in my opinion this is an art, and part of a new culture that comes from the ancient civilizations. Excellent item very interesting part of this thanks.

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Im having an addiction to tattoos...my questions.
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2. What kinda tattoo do you wanna get?!
3. Can you look up a tattoo that you really like?! and put it in here.
4. what is your dream tattoo?!
thts all....im just bored and was just asking. thank you!!

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