So... it's been a while since I last put fingers to keyboard and uploaded my thoughts for the world (or at least a few people, maybe) to see. Not sure why I took the hiatus... perhaps the creative side of my brain just shriveled up around the end of 2009, or, more likely, perhaps with a new baby in the house, I've decided to focus more time on him.
But whatever the case, I'm back. At least for now.
It's also been a while since I shopped at LL Bean. Admittedly, I am a big fan of this store, but I haven't bought much from them in the past couple of years because I felt that their selection has gone a little flat. Seems like the same stuff year in and year out. Nice clothes and other goodies, all of great quality, but not much in the way of new and exciting.
I decided yesterday to stop by my local LL Bean store to check things out and do some shopping. But not only that, I brought back two long sleeve shirts that I bought there at least a couple of years ago because both shirts developed holes in them from wear and tear. The store took them back, no questions asked, and I got store credit in exchange.
That's really tremendous. Those shirts didn't owe me anything, though I did find it quite odd that they both gave out around the same time. At any rate, I am very appreciative that LL Bean took them back and gave me credit towards my purchase yesterday, which wound up covering about half of what I spent on new clothes. That, my friends, is true customer service and an honorable way of doing business, and I will certainly continue to stop by in the future. Hopefully it won't be a long while till the next time...
Showing posts with label customer service. Show all posts
Showing posts with label customer service. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
More Crabby Customer Service
Today I had the privilege of having lunch with my lovely wife after she went for an ultrasound for our overdue baby (41 weeks and counting!). Being in Northeast Philly, we decided to go to an old haunt that we haven't visited in a while-- Chickie's & Pete's on Roosevelt Boulevard. For those of you who have never been there, it's a sports bar that specializes in sandwiches like hot roast pork, as well as crab legs, and crab fries with cheese dipping sauce. Good food, plenty of booze, and always a packed house during any weekend or televised local sporting event, but pretty quiet for a weekday lunch.
So we opened the menus and found a lunch special page. For $8.99 you can get a sandwich, a choice of one side (e.g. fries), and a beverage. Without specifically asking for the lunch special, I ordered a soda, a sandwich, and fries, which I said I would split with my wife since the baskets of fries are quite large. My wife got a sandwich and soda. (Okay, so we didn't fare too well on the healthy eating options scale, but hey, we might not get back there for ages, so why not splurge today, right?)
The meal is served, we scarf it down and enjoy it all. Then we get the bill. Now, mind you, I/we probably could have been more specific when ordering, but the receipt listed each individual item we ordered separately, as opposed to it showing one (or arguably two) lunch specials. As a result, the total cost came out to about $21, rather than $18 ($8.99 x 2). So we pointed this out to the waiter and he says "since you split the fries it doesn't count as a lunch special," or something to that effect, and that if we had specified the lunch specials, we actually would have gotten two baskets of fries (which would have been way to much for us). In sum, we paid more for less.
I wasn't in the mood to argue over a couple of bucks, or call over the manager and make a big scene, so I just let it be. But common sense, or a customer-first attitude, would have sparked one of two options in this young man's brain:
1. When we ordered, he saw that we were looking at the lunch specials page, so he should have asked if we wanted the lunch specials, or he should have said, since you're both ordering sandwiches and sodas and one basket of fries, you can get another basket of fries added on, all for about equal or less money.
2. Or, that not having had happened, he could have said, "Yes, you are correct, let me fix that bill for you."
Neither logical situation crossed through his head, so instead we wound up leaving annoyed, and he wound up with a less generous tip than he otherwise would have earned. So it goes with customer service.
Next time, when I take my wife AND soon-to-be son there, I hope it will work out better!
So we opened the menus and found a lunch special page. For $8.99 you can get a sandwich, a choice of one side (e.g. fries), and a beverage. Without specifically asking for the lunch special, I ordered a soda, a sandwich, and fries, which I said I would split with my wife since the baskets of fries are quite large. My wife got a sandwich and soda. (Okay, so we didn't fare too well on the healthy eating options scale, but hey, we might not get back there for ages, so why not splurge today, right?)
The meal is served, we scarf it down and enjoy it all. Then we get the bill. Now, mind you, I/we probably could have been more specific when ordering, but the receipt listed each individual item we ordered separately, as opposed to it showing one (or arguably two) lunch specials. As a result, the total cost came out to about $21, rather than $18 ($8.99 x 2). So we pointed this out to the waiter and he says "since you split the fries it doesn't count as a lunch special," or something to that effect, and that if we had specified the lunch specials, we actually would have gotten two baskets of fries (which would have been way to much for us). In sum, we paid more for less.
I wasn't in the mood to argue over a couple of bucks, or call over the manager and make a big scene, so I just let it be. But common sense, or a customer-first attitude, would have sparked one of two options in this young man's brain:
1. When we ordered, he saw that we were looking at the lunch specials page, so he should have asked if we wanted the lunch specials, or he should have said, since you're both ordering sandwiches and sodas and one basket of fries, you can get another basket of fries added on, all for about equal or less money.
2. Or, that not having had happened, he could have said, "Yes, you are correct, let me fix that bill for you."
Neither logical situation crossed through his head, so instead we wound up leaving annoyed, and he wound up with a less generous tip than he otherwise would have earned. So it goes with customer service.
Next time, when I take my wife AND soon-to-be son there, I hope it will work out better!
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Good Customer Service Is All Bark AND All Bite
Today I had an interesting chat on IM with my friend who had a negative customer service experience, and we discussed just how important it is get good customer service in order to be happy with a what you're buying.
Here's his scenario, briefly:
My friend's wife signed up for a dog training class and, despite what it said on their website that the trainer would follow up within a week of ordering a class, the trainer never called them to confirm the order. So right off the bat, the company didn't make good on their promise to reach out to the customer. Meanwhile, they were scrambling to find out whether or not the class was still on, or get any other information they might need in order to attend. Two months went by and not a word from the dog trainer left them too far in the dark about the class. A simple phone call would have put them at ease and made all the difference in the world.
To me, when my initial interaction with a company, non-profit, or other organization is negative, I get extremely down on them, and they have a long, uphill battle to win me back. In our chat today, I likened my friend's situation to that of meeting the first salesperson you talk to at a car dealer. If he or she greets me with a frown, or pressures me into buying, or doesn't know the product line, or just generally ignores me, you can bet I'll take my business elsewhere if at all possible, even if it was just a bad moment for that salesperson who is otherwise dynamite. I easily get turned off by poor customer service, and it's tough to win me back, and I suspect that most customers feel the same way.
On the flip side, this past week I've been shopping for a new car insurance provider in order to save some money on my current auto policy. I communicated with three different companies, and each person I dealt with at each company was extremely friendly, knowledgeable, and interested in helping me through the buying process. One would think that this kind of positive attitude would be commonplace for a business when dealing with a customer that is looking to spend money, but unfortunately, it's often anything but.
Even though good marketing or word-of-mouth can bring a person to the door, a good customer service representative is crucial to bringing along and potentially closing the sale, whether it's for a dog training class, a new car, or a new auto insurance policy. It's really the engine that keeps the sale going.
Gregg, if you're reading this, good chatting with you today, and I hope the dog training class turned out to be a success in spite of an *ahem* ruff start.
Here's his scenario, briefly:
My friend's wife signed up for a dog training class and, despite what it said on their website that the trainer would follow up within a week of ordering a class, the trainer never called them to confirm the order. So right off the bat, the company didn't make good on their promise to reach out to the customer. Meanwhile, they were scrambling to find out whether or not the class was still on, or get any other information they might need in order to attend. Two months went by and not a word from the dog trainer left them too far in the dark about the class. A simple phone call would have put them at ease and made all the difference in the world.
To me, when my initial interaction with a company, non-profit, or other organization is negative, I get extremely down on them, and they have a long, uphill battle to win me back. In our chat today, I likened my friend's situation to that of meeting the first salesperson you talk to at a car dealer. If he or she greets me with a frown, or pressures me into buying, or doesn't know the product line, or just generally ignores me, you can bet I'll take my business elsewhere if at all possible, even if it was just a bad moment for that salesperson who is otherwise dynamite. I easily get turned off by poor customer service, and it's tough to win me back, and I suspect that most customers feel the same way.
On the flip side, this past week I've been shopping for a new car insurance provider in order to save some money on my current auto policy. I communicated with three different companies, and each person I dealt with at each company was extremely friendly, knowledgeable, and interested in helping me through the buying process. One would think that this kind of positive attitude would be commonplace for a business when dealing with a customer that is looking to spend money, but unfortunately, it's often anything but.
Even though good marketing or word-of-mouth can bring a person to the door, a good customer service representative is crucial to bringing along and potentially closing the sale, whether it's for a dog training class, a new car, or a new auto insurance policy. It's really the engine that keeps the sale going.
Gregg, if you're reading this, good chatting with you today, and I hope the dog training class turned out to be a success in spite of an *ahem* ruff start.
Saturday, March 21, 2009
A Simple Way to Improve On-Hold Messages
If you've been stuck on hold waiting to talk to a customer service rep, you've undoubtedly been mentally numbed by patronizing pre-recorded sales pitches or rendered temporarily deaf by blaring muzak or told repeatedly that somebody will be with you in just a moment. One choice is worse than the next.
Couldn't this be a chance, instead, for the company to put the customer at ease?
With all the creative folks in this world, one would hope that a better option would be made available.
Here's one simple idea to start the brainstorming:
A selection of classic, clean comic bits such as Abbott & Costello's "Who's on First?" or virtually any Jerry Seinfeld clip or even a clip from the Cosby Show.
Let the customer get comfortable and have a laugh. Is that such a bad thing?
Couldn't this be a chance, instead, for the company to put the customer at ease?
With all the creative folks in this world, one would hope that a better option would be made available.
Here's one simple idea to start the brainstorming:
A selection of classic, clean comic bits such as Abbott & Costello's "Who's on First?" or virtually any Jerry Seinfeld clip or even a clip from the Cosby Show.
Let the customer get comfortable and have a laugh. Is that such a bad thing?
Saturday, February 14, 2009
The Ups and Downs of Electric Service
The winds were a-whippin' around on Thursday morning. And at about 6:00am the power in our house blacked out here in South Jersey.
I called PSE&G, our power service company, and was sent to an automated system. At first I was annoyed because I wanted to speak to a person to find out what was going on. But in the end this system was quite helpful and easy to use as it let me know within a minute what the status was (there were many reports of outages in the area) and when power should be back up (around 8:30am).
So I went about my business and got ready for work--in the dark-- and left for work around 8:30 with the power still out.
Around 10am I called PSE&G back to see if I could get a status update since I would go home at lunch to check on things if it was still out. This time, instead of an automated system I got a customer service representative right off the bat. Unfortunately, this rep was rather curt with me but let me know that power had been restored around 9:30. So I was quite disappointed that I would have rather dealt with an automated system instead of this rep. In this economy, there's no excuse to be rude to customers when there's most certainly 100 other people out there who would take your job in a heartbeat.
Hopefully this was just a one time thing with PSE&G... not just the power outage, which happens and is understandable, but also the unfriendly customer service, which is not.
I called PSE&G, our power service company, and was sent to an automated system. At first I was annoyed because I wanted to speak to a person to find out what was going on. But in the end this system was quite helpful and easy to use as it let me know within a minute what the status was (there were many reports of outages in the area) and when power should be back up (around 8:30am).
So I went about my business and got ready for work--in the dark-- and left for work around 8:30 with the power still out.
Around 10am I called PSE&G back to see if I could get a status update since I would go home at lunch to check on things if it was still out. This time, instead of an automated system I got a customer service representative right off the bat. Unfortunately, this rep was rather curt with me but let me know that power had been restored around 9:30. So I was quite disappointed that I would have rather dealt with an automated system instead of this rep. In this economy, there's no excuse to be rude to customers when there's most certainly 100 other people out there who would take your job in a heartbeat.
Hopefully this was just a one time thing with PSE&G... not just the power outage, which happens and is understandable, but also the unfriendly customer service, which is not.
Monday, December 15, 2008
A Thanks to n:vision for brightening my day...
Give credit where credit is due...
About a year or two ago, I bought compact fluorescent light bulbs made by n:vision for my bathroom vanity. The light bulbs have worked great, helping to cut down on my energy bills and also helping my peace of mind by using up less pollution-causing electricity.
Interestingly, however, two of the bulbs blew out over a month ago, after a short life. I still happened to have the packaging (where I was safely storing the old incandescent bulbs in the event I still needed them) so I checked the info on there. Indeed, n:vision guarantees the bulbs to last for nine years, so I thought it was odd that the bulbs burned out so soon. To check on this fact, I called the company, spoke to a representative right away (not having to wait on hold), and she said that I was entitled to new bulbs. And guess what? I got them. After a few weeks, I received the new bulbs in the mail, and things are back to normal.
This, to me, is excellent customer service and the perfect example of ensuring tremendous customer satisfaction.
So, thank you to n:vision and I highly encourage others to change their bulbs as well. Consider yourself... enlightened!
About a year or two ago, I bought compact fluorescent light bulbs made by n:vision for my bathroom vanity. The light bulbs have worked great, helping to cut down on my energy bills and also helping my peace of mind by using up less pollution-causing electricity.
Interestingly, however, two of the bulbs blew out over a month ago, after a short life. I still happened to have the packaging (where I was safely storing the old incandescent bulbs in the event I still needed them) so I checked the info on there. Indeed, n:vision guarantees the bulbs to last for nine years, so I thought it was odd that the bulbs burned out so soon. To check on this fact, I called the company, spoke to a representative right away (not having to wait on hold), and she said that I was entitled to new bulbs. And guess what? I got them. After a few weeks, I received the new bulbs in the mail, and things are back to normal.
This, to me, is excellent customer service and the perfect example of ensuring tremendous customer satisfaction.
So, thank you to n:vision and I highly encourage others to change their bulbs as well. Consider yourself... enlightened!
Friday, August 10, 2007
Poor Customer Service at Wi-Fi Aruba
After a week being away from the warm glow of the Internet (the horror!), my better half and I were in the Aruba Airport, 2 hours before our takeoff, and ready to fire up our laptop. To log onto the Wi-Fi Internet at the airport, we had to purchase Wi-Fi time from Wi-Fi Aruba, the local internet provider. Seeing as how we had a few hours to catch up on e-mail, news, and other connected activities, we went ahead and bought a $10 pass for 24 hours of use, else we would have paid $5/hr.
The internet connection worked beautifully for the first hour we used it in one spot in the airport. We then shut down and relocated to the gate. We opened up the laptop again, and... Wi-Fi Aruba wanted our password to log on. What password you ask? The one that was e-mailed to us. Well, here's a dumb question... how were we supposed to access the password if we couldn't get onto the Internet? I suppose the assumption is that one would sign up for the service, immediately check for an e-mail message from Wi-Fi Aruba, write it down, and then have it handy to access at any time. That's quite ridiculous.
I went on Wi-Fi Aruba's site, the only one accessible from the airport without being signed-in to their service, and tried to call the company's support phone number posted, but my cell phone would not allow the call to go through, nor would my wife's. I sent an e-mail to the company to request them to refund our money because we didn't get what we paid for... 24 hours of internet service. We never heard back from them.
So you're probably asking yourself-- is $10 really worth all this aggravation? Just let it go, right? Well, it'd be nice to get a refund or even an apology from the poorly managed Wi-Fi Aruba, but it's really more of a warning to all of my loyal reader(s) out there... buyer beware! And to share a lesson--good customer service still goes a long way.
The internet connection worked beautifully for the first hour we used it in one spot in the airport. We then shut down and relocated to the gate. We opened up the laptop again, and... Wi-Fi Aruba wanted our password to log on. What password you ask? The one that was e-mailed to us. Well, here's a dumb question... how were we supposed to access the password if we couldn't get onto the Internet? I suppose the assumption is that one would sign up for the service, immediately check for an e-mail message from Wi-Fi Aruba, write it down, and then have it handy to access at any time. That's quite ridiculous.
I went on Wi-Fi Aruba's site, the only one accessible from the airport without being signed-in to their service, and tried to call the company's support phone number posted, but my cell phone would not allow the call to go through, nor would my wife's. I sent an e-mail to the company to request them to refund our money because we didn't get what we paid for... 24 hours of internet service. We never heard back from them.
So you're probably asking yourself-- is $10 really worth all this aggravation? Just let it go, right? Well, it'd be nice to get a refund or even an apology from the poorly managed Wi-Fi Aruba, but it's really more of a warning to all of my loyal reader(s) out there... buyer beware! And to share a lesson--good customer service still goes a long way.
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