DISCOVERING A COMPANY’S TRUE COLORS

Customer Service seems to be a lost art in business these days.  That is not to say it doesn’t exist but it has lost a great deal of importance among many businesses.  Maybe that is a price that we pay for having a country run by major corporations.  Customer Service at its roots is respect for the consumer; it is respect for the individuals who make it possible to do business. 

I am currently working with a company who provides my agency an internet service.  We have been contracted with them for only a couple of months and our experience thus far has been miserable, to say the least.  The product we were sold is exciting and could really change the way we serve our community.  We were excited.  They have not delivered. 

Their system has been down more than it has been up.  The consistency of the reports is highly questionable when it is up.  Some features work, others do not.   The customer service representative has been active.  She has given great effort to meet our requirements, but often has come up short.  When walking through the product with us in a conference today, she acknowledged that their product is not acceptable, to us or to them.

I understand that things happen in business that makes things difficult and sometimes impossible.  The technological age has created a dependency on this technology to get almost anything done, and when there is a problem its impact is far reaching.  These inconveniences are understood by most of us.  It is in these times when a company’s true colors are seen.  Are their representatives respectful of us?  Are they understanding of the difficulties that their company has created?  Are they being proactive or merely reacting to you only when they must.   Are they okay with a mediocre product?

We will continue to work with this company because of their customer service.  We have spoken with many other groups all across the country who have worked with this group for the past several years and we have yet to hear any negative remarks.  The reports we receive are that this company and their product have far exceeded expectations.  They have also experienced difficult setbacks due to the current situation, but they are confident the product of the future will be worth the hassle.  For a customer who has experienced nothing but disappointment, this is enough for me.

Do you have any outstanding customer service experiences that may help another consumer?  What do you expect from others when problems arise?  What do you expect of yourself or your employees?