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Monday, August 21, 2017

Theme of the Day

Hello Friends! 

Life here on farm (ha don’t I wish I had a farm!) is going full speed ahead, in a direction other than planned of course!

I want to share a couple of experiences… I had this week which all have a theme.

#1. I have a vacuum cleaner, only 2 years old. As anyone with dogs or kids knows, they occasionally need to have some attention, especially the area of the brush roll. So I settled in to deal with this machine. Thinking like most vacuums I have had, I’ll just take the cover off and clean out the area brush roll/belt area. After removing the screws (9), and a Google search for the how to get the cover off, I finally called the company. First thing the guy says to me is, "if you have removed any screws you have voided your warranty". Big deal, it’s already out of warranty and needs attention. Next he says they don’t make them to come apart. That if you need to replace the brush roll or belt, they sell you a brand new head at $70 plus S/H! How is that good for me? For the landfill? Longevity of a vacuum? Would I recommend this product to friends and family or would I buy another-not a chance. I have a Hoover that is 15 and still works great and I can still buy just the parts I need for it.

#2. I bought a new phone about 4 or 5 weeks ago. Just recently released. It stopped working while charging. Like FROZE to a brick of unresponsiveness. Took it to the store… After more than an hour I came out with my old phone activated (the Sim Cards have gotten even smaller so the Sim Card from the new one would not fit old one, they waived the activation fee) while I wait for the replacement phone to be sent to me. The phone that died was inspected like I had done some damage to it and wanted something for nothing. You would think they might look up our record with the company…. And see that we don’t make complaints and pay the bill on time… We are the ones they want to keep not alienate with distrust and skepticism. We won’t even discuss the skipping me in the que for assistance. 

#3. I also had an issue with some food… coffee, the life blood of early risers. I like a particular brand and I get it from a big box store. For the last 6 months or so, I have asked, complained, suggested, or pointed out (to the powers that be) that the store is having a stock problem… Finally, in our house we were out… not a bean left in the jar, it was time for some coffee. At the store not a single bag of either blends we prefer were on hand. I stopped at Customer (no)Service, for a stock update, shipment expected on the 6th. I had to come home without coffee, and what is worse make a trip to another store for a bag of ‘make do’ until I figure out a new coffee. As I came in door I spied my computer and though… I wonder if the company knows that this store chain is having a problem, or if it is just my store, since I was getting nothing done from the bottom up… what about the top down. So I called them. It was an amazing conversation. I was promised 2 bags would be sent to me right away, and what is more…. The Operations Manager called later that evening from his personal cell to discuss the difficulty I was having and to try and figure out where the problem might be. He also told me to contact him back if I had any other issues or concerns. 10 days later I sent him a picture of the coffee display, stating that nothing had changed…. And the store was still out of the coffee.


So where was all this going? What is the theme? Do you have a guess? Did you say customer service? What makes a happy customer? Kelly knew and I am going to try to carry on in her tradition. Friendly Customer Service with a SMILE!

More Later- Beth

8 comments:

  1. My father worked out of our home, when I was really young. That meant that customers called the house phone. I was trained in 2nd grade on how to answer the phone properly, and take messages. When I got married (almost 30 years ago) hubby worked at a tire proving grounds. Hubby was the whole computer department back then. They were training drivers to input data in the computer (rare things back then). We'd get phone calls in the middle of the night, and hubby was always surprised that I'd wake from a dead sleep, and answer the phone like I was at work, professionally. Customers pay our wages. ALWAYS treat customers with respect, and help as much as possible. I've taught that to my son's too, and, they both work with the public, and use those things I've taught them. I spend $$ at places where I can get service, and skip the places where I don't get service. Worth every penny to me.

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  2. Sometime I wonder why companies cut off their nose to spite their face. They say it costs twice as much to gain a new customer as it does to retain a returning customer. Seems to me to be simple math.... the cost of a brush roll compared to a new head, a difference of $50 (too much for me- never mind the other things I pointed out) and a $10 bag of coffee and the company is bending over backward!!! Love them!!! and the coffee is pretty good too. If anyone is interested ... Barrie House coffee, also supplies the Wegmans store brand to Wegmans supermarkets. We've been enjoying it since returning stateside!!!

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  3. You dare not discuss SA costomer service here! Smiling.

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    Replies
    1. I will do my best to show you only the good customer 'service' while visiting!!!

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  4. People want to be listened to and have someone respond in a reasonable fashion. Imho, that would solve most problems people have with products. I know you'll provide great customer service Beth.

    Smiles,
    Kelly

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  5. Thanks Kelly!!! I am going give it my best shot!!!

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  6. In my book (speaking from a customer service point of view) service to the customers is the easiest thing to do. Even when I got the customers who were just naturally nasty, I just put that smile on my face and listened, asked appropriate questions and sought out the answer if I didn't know immediately. If there were further issues I would bring in my manager to help us along. It is as simple as, treat everyone as you would like to be treated! (It works the other way as well) If I need to call customer service, I keep in mind that there is a person on the other end of the phone and I 'try' to keep my anger or frustration at a minimum.

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  7. Claudia well said and we all need to remember the other side as well. I think companies need to look downstream as well as upstream (landfill, cost to the environment and pollution) too.

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Thank you for reading the IHAN Blog. I love getting and reading every comment that is left here; however I may not be able to respond to all comments left during giveaways. There are times when I am juggling many tasks at one time and may not reply to all comments. Please e-mail me at quiltnotions@gmail.com if you need a reply quickly. I thank you for your understanding and-
More Later-Beth

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