The more I deal with big business customer service, the more I realize they're there just for lip service. A company can claim they put their customers first, but many fail at living up to that statement.
In the past month I've had a great and a horrible customer service experience. I'll share them with you hoping to highlight the do's and don'ts from a service rep's perspective.
Hello? Umh, hello?
We recently received our internet and television bill in the mail, late as usual. I've called them previously to the correct the timing to no avail. I open the bill to see how much I owe this month and for what. I've become somewhat of an expert at reading these because I work in the industry and always seem to be overcharged.
Much to my dismay there are a few issues on the bill, so I circled them and hopped on the phone. (Their customer service number should be in my speed dial). As thirty minutes pass I'm convinced that I am in fact a valuable customer. Really. That heart-warming robotic Rebecca reminded me so a few dozen times.
When I finally get through to someone that sounded like a human, I was informed that I am connected to the wrong department and will have to be transferred. “Please hold”. Before I can respond, robotic Rebecca was back on the line paying homage to my patience for another 12 minutes. Wait, someone's there to help me…
… or so I thought. I ask this new service rep for some clarification on my billing. I point out the invalid charges and the corrections needed to be made. But no, she can't help me and insists that they are valid charges and emphasized my responsibility to pay them.
I asked to speak with a supervisor. With no effort to communicate with one, she states that none are available but kindly promises to pass my information on to her supervisor. I let her know how unsatisfied
I am with her suggestion. The last time they said they'd call me to resolve an issue they never did. Her response? “ I am not wasting any more time with you or your few dollars in extra charges� *click*. (Insert did she really just hang up on me thought here)
After several more calls I was finally able to speak with a supervisor who said they'd look into adjusting my billing. No apology or acknowledgment was offered for the service rep's actions or unprofessionalism.
Talk about a great way to ruin a day.
Merit badge worthy
We were getting our son Caden ready to go shopping one day for Christmas. He's six months old. While opening a bag of diapers for him we noticed the top 3 or 4 were damaged. We scrounged through the bag, found a good one, and set him up. We went about our business that day and agreed to call the diaper company later to let them know about the damaged product.
When we got home we called the diaper company and got straight through to a rep on the other end. We told her our plight and she agreed that it was unfortunate production issue. She informed us that she would send us something that would “more than make up for our loss”.
Two weeks later we receive a letter in the mail, it's from the diaper company. To our surprise it was an apology for the ruined diapers and three coupons for three new bags. Three bags for three defective singles. What service! We have been loyal to the company ever since.
Not that difficult, is it?
Is righting your wrongs with a customer, even if you're not wrong, that big an issue for conglomerates or small businesses? Understandably, if you're extremely lenient you're inviting consumers to take advantage of you, but the percentage that will is a write-off equal to your company bowling night budget.
If this mindset was emphasized through encouragement and rewards in organizations, we'd see a lot less of the first example, and plenty more of the second.
And thats my rant for this week.
RSS