Customer Service ( a general response to the Eric Lin saga)
I wonder sometimes why the members of these forums seem to feel that customer service for the wireless industry has a right to play by different rules than any other industry.
I have been a carpenter's assistant, a restaurant cashier, a retail cashier, a tutor, a teacher, a cook, a research assistant, and wireless salesperson.
In any of those other positions, there was one rule for customer service- perception matters, the facts do not. That is what the aphorism 'the customer is always right' means.
If someone in my restaurant ordered a sandwich, and despite a clear menu description, they sent it back with a declaration that it was not what they expected, guess what? I took it back. I had to. I made fun of them to my co-worke...
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I have been a carpenter's assistant, a restaurant cashier, a retail cashier, a tutor, a teacher, a cook, a research assistant, and wireless salesperson.
In any of those other positions, there was one rule for customer service- perception matters, the facts do not. That is what the aphorism 'the customer is always right' means.
If someone in my restaurant ordered a sandwich, and despite a clear menu description, they sent it back with a declaration that it was not what they expected, guess what? I took it back. I had to. I made fun of them to my co-worke...
(continues)
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This is the best post I have read in at least the last 6 months on here. I whole heartedly agree with what you have said!
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razrhead said:
This is the best post I have read in at least the last 6 months on here. I whole heartedly agree with what you have said!
Aw, shucks. ðŸ¤
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spectator said:
This belief is completely inane. Guess what? If you do everything perfectly and your customer is unhappy, you have failed that customer. Not only that, but unhappy customers are much more likely to talk about their experience than satisfied customers, so you have also failed your business.
I beg to differ. If I do everything perfectly and the customer is unhappy, that is then the customer's problem and they need to go get a life. Some people just will not be pleased, no matter what you do. I will go above and beyond for a deserving customer. But one who just choosed to be unhappy, no matter what? Not my problem. Not any good rep's problem.
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There are caveats to his post, this is true. That said, considering how far things swung in the opposite direction in Eric's post, I would say Spectator's post is a welcome one.
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You are right, to a degree- there are definitely customers whom you will never choose to satisfy. (I'll explain my use of 'choose' in a moment). There are people who seem to think each opportunity to interact with a retail clerk is a chance to therapuetically vent their frustrations with their unhappy lives.
However, that customer is still unhappy, and unfair as it is, that customer will still tell everyone they know (it's always the unstable ones who love to complain) that you have terrible customer service skills, so it IS your problem.
Listen, I am lauded frequently for my dedication to customer service, but I also had an empty blackberry box (ah, if only it was a firefly box instead) thrown at my head by a frustrated customer...
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However, that customer is still unhappy, and unfair as it is, that customer will still tell everyone they know (it's always the unstable ones who love to complain) that you have terrible customer service skills, so it IS your problem.
Listen, I am lauded frequently for my dedication to customer service, but I also had an empty blackberry box (ah, if only it was a firefly box instead) thrown at my head by a frustrated customer...
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huh.
I agree with you on the cost-benefit analysis. People just don't believe that dropping a phone in a toilet, or wearing a BT headset in the rain, is their fault. I've had a customer threaten my job because I wouldn't exchange a water-damaged BT headset. Funny thing was, they told me how they damaged it, then expected me to say that it was the manufacturer's fault.
Perception is paramount, sadly.
I agree with you on the cost-benefit analysis. People just don't believe that dropping a phone in a toilet, or wearing a BT headset in the rain, is their fault. I've had a customer threaten my job because I wouldn't exchange a water-damaged BT headset. Funny thing was, they told me how they damaged it, then expected me to say that it was the manufacturer's fault.
Perception is paramount, sadly.
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I think its so funny how customers think they can get you fired. Honestly, what do they know about what goes on inside?
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All of that is all good except in my universe there are no "customers" only "people". And sadly, most people operate under the rules they figureed out during second grade. Just look at how people vote for proof of that. Now, we can all agree about how things should be, but sometimes you have to return to the real world. My advantage over most other reps is that I spent three years tutoring handicapped kids. So while the text book answer is great, in a text book, you need to be a little more flexibile.
It is sad that Eric ran into poor company performance. Perhaps if Cingular hadn't lost millions of dollars due to fraud the system would not have been set up to fail. Now, that isn't Eric's problem, it's Cingular's. And as far as we know, t...
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It is sad that Eric ran into poor company performance. Perhaps if Cingular hadn't lost millions of dollars due to fraud the system would not have been set up to fail. Now, that isn't Eric's problem, it's Cingular's. And as far as we know, t...
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Customer Service or not, Eric had reasons to go with Cingular. It sounds like he prefers a GSM carrier and appreciates their coverage.
It's the uniqueness of the product that brings him to Cingular, not a measure of customer service.
It's the uniqueness of the product that brings him to Cingular, not a measure of customer service.
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Not really, if you have a customer who is unhappy no matter what you do, it is not their problem. That is a problem for you, and as long as they are your customer they will be your problem because they will be a problem customer. Beyond that statement "getting a life" is just a childish insult.
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