Customer Service at It’s Worst… or Was It?
My blood began to boil after experiencing multiple
mishaps with a product I purchased online that also took me over a month to
receive. Many of you will probably relate, so let me give you the quick story. I was listening to
the radio while running on the elliptical and I heard of a product that I
thought I needed. It was a high intensity flashlight. I mean who doesn’t need
one right?
The First Attempt
The product was supposed to be shipped to an address in
North Carolina which was a pit stop up to Michigan for the holidays from where
I reside in South Carolina. (Yes, I spent well over 40 hours on the road over
the holidays. Whoooohooo!) Needless to say, the package never made it to its
destination in North Carolina. I was seriously bummed as part of the package
was a gift for a family member in Michigan and I wasn’t looking forward to
seeing the long face as he wasn’t going to be able open the gift on Christmas
day. So I called the company only to find out that USPS couldn’t find the
address and they shipped it back. Eric, the guy from the manufacturer, put
himself in my shoes and genuinely apologized for the inconvenience and for the
poor experience. We talked it over and he was going to ship it to my residence
in South Carolina.
The Second Attempt
After spending 40+ hours in a car over the span of six
days, the only thing I was looking forward to was the intense flashlight and,
of course, my own bed. The excitement was getting to me making the last few
hours seem never ending, which was even worse because it wasn’t waiting for me
at my front door. At this point, I
wasn’t feeling very gregarious and I wanted to injure Eric. I picked up my
phone with all intention of either nullifying my order or coercing Eric into
giving me a large discount for my inconvenience. All I could think of while the
phone was ringing was angrily asking, “Where is my damn flashlight! This is
ridiculous!” Another associate picked up the phone and I asked for Eric. I
wanted a piece of him. I was placed on hold and shortly after Eric picked up
the call and before I could even get a word in, he said very eloquently,
“Chris, I am so sorry that you haven’t received your package. I misspoke to the
shipping department and they shipped it to the North Carolina address instead
of your South Carolina one. Here is what we will do if you would like. We are
going to ship you another flashlight to your home address overnight along with
a return shipping label. No rush, but once you make it to your North Carolina
address, whether that’s a week or month, just ship that one back to us.”
Wow! I was taken back with the proactive approach. My
temper was immediately diffused and I didn’t even demand my money back or a
discount.
Here are 4 steps on why:
1.
Empathize – Eric empathized with me and made me
feel like he was in my corner to help in every way possible.
2.
Options – each time Eric gave me options on how
I would like the situation remedied. And, most importantly, at least from a
business aspect, it was never me getting my money back!
3.
Responsibility – the buck always stopped at
Eric. He took responsibility through the entire process to ensure I was
satisfied and that I received my package.
4.
Passion – each time Eric and I talked, he showed
passion for his company. You could hear it in his voice he was disappointed the
package wasn’t successfully delivered. He also showed passion and excitement
that he would do ‘whatever it takes’ to make sure the package was received and
that his customer was happy.
In any customer service industry, the name of the game is
loyalty. Business’ success is based
on returning customers along with word of mouth. Even though I initially had
negative experiences, Eric made me a loyal customer. They have an excellent
product, but that is what made me loyal. It’s their care, passion, and customer
service that made me loyal. I would absolutely recommend them.
Chris Langlois
