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Your smile is hard to see if you are wearing a mask.

That's been a challenge for customer service employees in restaurants, retail stores, and other places that serve customers in-person. Employees wearing masks find themselves using exaggerated hand gestures or emphasizing a positive tone of voice to indicate good cheer.

There's another way to put on a welcoming face for customers: the smize.

The term, credited to Tyra Banks, means smile with your eyes. Here's why the eyes matter, a quick explanation from Banks on how to smize, and a little background on why the smile is so important.

Why the eyes matter when you smile

Psychologist Paul Ekman has done extensive research into the science of smiles. According to Ekman, a genuine smile engages two muscles. One is the zygomatic major, which controls the mouth. The other is the orbicularis oculi, which surrounds the eye and narrows our eyes a bit when we smile.

Fake smiles that do not communicate true happiness will still show in our mouth, but doesn't have the same effect on our eyes.

A 2019 study conducted by researchers Hassan Ugail and Ahmad Al-dahoud used computer software to map people's faces while they were smiling. The software cataloged both fake and authentic smiles to gauge the difference. The results showed that real smiles generate 10 percent more movement in our eyes.

How to smile with your eyes

Creator and host of America's Next Top Model, Tyra Banks, demonstrates the smize in this short video.

There's one small change I recommend for customer service.

The smize that Banks is referring to involves not actually smiling. While that might work on a fashion show runway, it's helpful to give a real smile in a customer service situation.

Even when customers can't see your face, it's easier to make a real smile show through your eyes.

Why authentic smiles matter

My book, Getting Service Right, explores hidden obstacles to outstanding customer service. One challenge, detailed in chapter 10, is emotional contagion.

The idea that people choose their own attitudes isn't entirely accurate. In the short term, we can "catch" an attitude from someone else. That's one reason it's so difficult to serve an upset customer—their negative attitude can influence ours before we're consciously aware of it!

This concept also works with positive attitudes. That gives a genuine smile simple, but extraordinary power to “infect” our customers with a more positive mood. Psychologist, Guy Winch, shared this explanation in an article for Psychology Today:

"Authentic smiles have the power to elicit a reflexive response in the recipient-they smile back. Consequently, we can induce a better mood in others simply by flashing them authentic smiles."

Smiling really works! Try smiling at another person, and you'll often see them smiling right back without.

Take action

Smizing can take a little practice. Fortunately, there are plenty of opportunities:

• Try it in a mirror at home

• Practice smizing with friends and family

• Work on your smize when you're a customer and wearing a mask

One thing that Banks suggests is to focus on something that gives you true joy. Hopefully, it's the customer you're serving, but sometimes we need to think of something else. When you are focusing on joy, your smize will come naturally.

Just for fun, can you tell a real smile from a fake one? Try this smile quiz to find out.