Customer service

[dreadnut]

I love when I get good customer service these days because it seems so rare.

Case in point: I'm looking for a $10 co-pay coupon for one of my meds. I call the company. But you can't just talk to a person, you need to wade through all the options. Finally got to speak to an actual person. They said "Sure, we'll send that coupon to your mailing address."

2 weeks later, no coupon. I called them again and let them know I never received the coupon. "Oh, we'll send it right out to your email.'

2 days later...sound of crickets... still nothing. If I had hair, I'd be pulling it.

I'd like to know how that works, or doesn't work in this case.

 

[RBSinTo]

Dreadnut,
Your story is, sadly the rule today, rather than the exception.
Customer Service died at the hands of corporate greed years ago.
There was a time when companies took pride in providing it, but today, it is no longer considered to be an asset when weighed against cost-savings (profits).
In general, staff are paid less, given minimal training, and even aids such as physical directories in stores and malls are either inadequate or missing.
Websites are usually baffling to navigate with either no way to reach a live person, or that ability deliberately obscurred to deter customers from trying to do so.
In today's world, when one receives good service, rather than being the norm as one should expect, it is an exceptional occurrance, to be noted and celebrated.
Hope you mange to get some satisfaction with your problem.
RBSinTo

 

[Guildedagain]

Couple years ago, we/I were ranting that eBay's Customer Service was someone in the Philippines with a poor command of English, but those days are disappearing fast.

FedEx is the same, after telling you that "your item is on the way" the computer voice soundly says "Goodbye".


Enjoy the bad service while it lasts, and contemplate that it is better today that it will be tomorrow.

 

[dreadnut]

Can you hold for a second? NO...

 

[walrus]

So no improvement in the last year and a half?

https://letstalkguild.com/ltg/index.php?threads/so-sick-of-impersonal-service.205114/

walrus

 

[gjmalcyon]

I've experienced more than my share of customer service debacles.

Here are some examples of good customer service:

I wear mostly Dockers khaki pants to work. A pair that were at least 5 years old (and worn every couple of weeks) were exhibiting some length shrinkage, going from their original 30" inseam (yes, I have freakishly short legs), to something in "flood patrol" range.

Emailed the company, got an RMA number, sent them back, and in an email exchange with Dockers (a division of Levi Strauss) learned that those particular pants were known for doing that and Dockers was sending me a replacement pair in the next longer length. I replied thanks, but there was a different model that I have begun wearing and could you please send me those instead?

They did, and I ended up both pairs of replacements pants - all for an old pair of pants.

Had a similar experience with Columbia - I had one of their Interchange shell + fleece liner jackets where the breathable liner in the shell started disintegrating after 5 or so years. Emailed the company, sent the shell back, and received an upgraded current production jacket and liner in the mail.

 

[GAD]

So no improvement in the last year and a half?

https://letstalkguild.com/ltg/index.php?threads/so-sick-of-impersonal-service.205114/

walrus

To be fair, that was a complaint about automated phone systems which is only a subset of this wider complaint.

 

[dreadnut]

A few years back I bought a Fishman Loudbox Mini. The tolex or whatever started peeling off. They said "Send it back and we'll fix it for you." They sent me a brand new Loudbox Mini with Bluetooth!

 

[dreadnut]

So no improvement in the last year and a half?

https://letstalkguild.com/ltg/index.php?threads/so-sick-of-impersonal-service.205114/

walrus

Sadly, no.

 

[Brucebubs]

Gotta say with things guitar wise I've had outstanding customer service from US companies, they really set a very high standard.
Martin Guitars, Strings & Beyond, D'Addario, DR strings, Elderly Instruments, Music Nomad, Jim Dunlop ... all fantastic.

QANTAS getting an absolute grilling down here in the past week - up to 8 hours on hold trying to speak to someone on their customer service.

 

[steve488]

There are two plaques on my office wall that I "rescued" from the trash (this company has been defunct for many years).
One states - A customer is the most important visitor on our premises. He is not dependent on us - we are dependent on him. He is not an outsider in our business - he is part of it. We are not doing him a favor by serving him - he is doing us a favor by giving us the opportunity to do so.
The other states - Rule #1 If we don't take care of our customers, someone else will.
In many cases it does not take much to change a clients experience from average to exceptional and the positive "word of mouth" advertising is both free and priceless.

 

[dreadnut]

This was a good wall plaque: Thimk

 

[gjmalcyon]

Somewhere in my attic is this:



A hand-me-down reminder from and of my father, the aerospace then petroleum engineer.

 

[Teleguy61]

All too common these days.
I spent two hours talking to four different people at three different companies, trying to get a 1099 they owed me.
Two of them said, "Oh yes, I see what you need, I'll send it right out. Is there anything else you need." Click.
As the man said above, crickets.
The end result is that good customer service makes one stand up and cheer.

 

[GAD]

Somewhere in my attic is this:



A hand-me-down reminder from and of my father, the aerospace then petroleum engineer.

And Apple's response circa 1997:

 

[5thumbs]

This is totally non guitar related, but does involve customer service:

I thoroughly enjoyed the HBO mini-series "Band of Brothers" back in 2001, so when I learned of a similar series, "The Pacific" I had to see it.

I purchased the DVD set on eBay. But when I viewed it, disc 5 would not play. I tried it in multiple computers and DVD players, and decided it was a bad disk.

I e-mailed HBO Customer Service. I explained that I had bought the series used; it was not a warranty claim, but would like to purchase that one disk. I expected to pay and was fine with that.

I received instructions to send the defective disk to an address. That seemed reasonable, as they would not want to replace a bootleg disk.

I mailed it off, and fairly quickly received a new disk! Along with it was a hand written note apologizing for the problem and hoping I enjoyed the series.

That is customer service!

 

[matsickma]

I remember in the late 70's and 80's how bad customer service was in regards to returning things. This was especially true of store that were "in town" one off privatly owned stores. The bigger chain stores at the mall's were so much easier to deal with that I began shopping at those stores where return's weren't frowned upon. In todays day and age most stores don't blink an eye at a return. Classic example would be Guitar Center. But most don't give returns a thought. I heard with all the online orders something like 30% of the items are returned and if the packing material was opened it goes to a designated area for a gross markdown or a holding area where bulk purchase of items go to eventually be sold as a discounted grabbag of secondary retailers.
I occasionally have a problem but usually it gets worked out by a very polite person making minimum wage.

I've witnessed my entitled brother-in-law have a uncontrollable hissy fit when he can't get the world to respond to his complaint or issue with the obnoxious behavior of a child tantrum. Entitled. The minimum wage worker maintaines composure in spite of this behavior. If I was behind the counter and someone treated me like that I would dive over the counter and smack the crap out of him or any other wise guy. But I have been fortunate to get an education and a decent job so I have never had to need a job. But many aren't so fortunate. The pandemic may have given us all a new view of essential worker. The bulk of them were not getting paid a lot of money.
In most cases of poor service I suspect the work load and conditions impacts the service. I know when I'm at work and hear references that the "workers are the problem" I bristle and let it be known that when the workers aren't successful at performing their work it means leadership isn't removing the barriers that impeade successful work! Don't tell me the workers are the problem...without them nothing get accomplished.

My rant for the day!
M

 

[fronobulax]

As consumers shifted from buying in person to "mail order" the stigma about returns started to ease. Indeed there are many people who proudly announce that they order clothing and shoes in different sizes or colors with the intention of keeping one and returning the rest. Conceptually that is the same as trying something on in a store or looking at everything on the rack.

 

[GAD]

As consumers shifted from buying in person to "mail order" the stigma about returns started to ease. Indeed there are many people who proudly announce that they order clothing and shoes in different sizes or colors with the intention of keeping one and returning the rest. Conceptually that is the same as trying something on in a store or looking at everything on the rack.

I’ve seen people on forums do it with guitars and amps, too.