Thrifty Foods: Good Response to a Bad Situation

Posted on March 29, 2013 Written by 1 Comment

GoodBadcustomerservice 300x199 Thrifty Foods: Good Response to a Bad SituationI see customer service as how a company engages with its customers, and I think we can agree that branding plays an integral role in that. Branding isn’t what you say about your company, it’s what your customers believe about your company (not sure who said that but if you know, let me know). So these two things go hand in hand. Nic Hume contacted me recently to guest blog about the recent incidents regarding a Letter to the Editor in a local island newspaper and the actions taken by one of it’s online advertisers. Here’s his story, in his words: 

Some time on March 27, 2013 the Nanaimo Daily News (NDN) published a letter from a reader containing some extremely hateful commentary about Canadian First Nations people. The specifics of that letter aren’t important right now, but what happened afterwards is.

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Guest Reviews, The UpSOLD! - Customer Service Kudos Tagged: , , , , , ,

Coast Capital Savings: Bank Services Down, Customer Service Up

Posted on January 30, 2013 Written by Leave a Comment

You need to upgrade your bank system. You can’t avoid it. You can’t do it in “phases” and you need to shut down your banking services for 2.5 days. Keeping people from their money…this can’t go well. And this is exactly the situation Coast Capital Savings find themselves in as they look to move to a new banking system. What’s a financial institution to do?

HOW WE GOT HERE:

On January 24th, the face of Coast Capital’s customer service, Julie, let the Twitterverse know that work to improve their banking services would impact their customers over a period of 4 days. This Twitter is used almost strictly to respond to customer queries, doesn’t tweet on the weekends and, during the work week, isn’t overly active either (some days, a single tweet. Average, I’d say 3 tweets). Were they up to the challenge?

Over on Facebook, on the same day, the news was shared as well. As of this writing (Jan. 29th evening), the post has been shared 85 times 47 people LIKE it and 48 comments. The good customer service news is half of those comments were from the bank responding to the the other comments, including a quarter of which were either negative or critical. As an organization, you have to take the good with the bad, and see it as an opportunity rather than something to shy away from. Did Coast Capital respond to all comments? Nope. But for those sharing their thoughts, sometimes there wasn’t anything to respond to. Instead, they just let them speak and left it on their Facebook wall. Nice.

CoastCapital 541x1024 Coast Capital Savings: Bank Services Down, Customer Service Up

And back on Twitter, the account has been a lot more active since the news of next weekend’s service disruption. Could they be more active? Sure, but they seem to be addressing any tweets mentioning them. They even went further to comment on my previous blog which was where I was originally alerted to this whole thing. Really good to see the outreach goes to not only their social platforms, but also where the discussions are.

Photo1 6 225x300 Coast Capital Savings: Bank Services Down, Customer Service UpWell, I should mention that I am a member of Coast Capital Savings and the first I heard of this was a comment from a reader on The Upsell. Is that my fault? A little. I did receive a pamphlet in the mail explaining all the details. But, I found the information readily available once I started digging (it’s right there, clear as day on their homepage). So, whether old school or new school…they were pretty covered in their communications. Sure it sucks that they’ll be cutting services for 2.5 days, but they did a fairly good job of making sure we all knew about it and have any questions answered. Insert something here about lemons and lemonade.

THE CONCLUSION: Going steady – This could be the beginning of something major.
You’re good Coast Capital…oh you’re good. All that listening and engaging and being accessible, all the ingredients to proper customer service, especially during crisis communications. Could you share a little more, connect a little more, during peace time? Sure. But when it came down to when I really needed you…you…you were there for me.

Service Rating System:

Friend Zone - I just don’t like you in “that way.”
Booty Call - If I don’t have anything else better going on, I’ll stop by.
2nd Date – I’ll give you a second chance.
Going steady – This could be the beginning of something major.

Filed Under: My Reviews, The UpSOLD! - Customer Service Kudos Tagged: , , , , , , ,

The UpSOLD!: Humanity Trumps Customer Humiliation

Posted on August 11, 2012 Written by Leave a Comment

So I’m casually, minding my own business when I was approached by Skye Overall to share a customer service blog post. She had a story to tell and was hoping I could provide the outlet. Well, tada. I’m always happy to showcase a great experience when it seems the ones we always hear…well…suck. Over to you Skye. 

superheroservice 235x300 The UpSOLD!: Humanity Trumps Customer Humiliation

The “S” is for Service…cape might be a bit much.

I just had one of the best customer service experiences ever, and I knew that I needed to share it with you all. My own blog is mostly about running, but Russel kindly allowed me to invade his blog, so I could pass on this story.

First, I need to share something a bit embarrassing, so you can get the full picture. Due to some unexpected bills this month, I ended up having just enough from my paycheque to cover them, with literally less than $5 left in my bank account right after payday. This made me uncomfortable because it has not happened to me since I was a student.

However, I was only a couple of days from my next paycheque, and I still had a credit card. I really wanted Thai food, but I didn’t want to wait until payday because I worked nights that night. So, after checking my credit card balance, I ordered dinner from my local Thai restaurant, Zap Thai in Esquimalt on my way home from work. I’m not a regular, but I do order dinner from there every month or so (the food is awesome, by the way, especially the spring rolls).

I went to pick up my order and gave the girl at the counter my credit card. Declined. I tried again. Declined. I knew I had money on that card; I checked 20 minutes ago. Baffled, and embarrassed beyond belief, I told the girl that I would have to leave the order because I didn’t have enough in my account to cover it. I felt bad because it’s a small business and they probably can’t afford to throw whole orders out. I would NEVER order from anywhere without intending to pay, especially a small local business like this. I headed to my car, almost in tears from humiliation.

Just as I was getting into my car, the girl came out and said that her boss was making her ask me to come back in. I thought for sure that she wanted to yell at me for wasting her time and food. I was thinking of how I was going to apologize as well as I could, but was also resigning myself to the fact that I might not be able to order from here anymore.

I walked back in, and the owner asked if I didn’t have any money. I explained that I checked my credit card balance just before I called the order in, and it said that there was money. I said I was very sorry and that I would never have ordered the food if I didn’t think I could pay for it. Then she asked me if she put my bill on the board behind the counter if I could take the food and pay her tomorrow. Wait, what? She was going to let me take the food home without paying, if I promised to pay her tomorrow? She didn’t know me, she had no reason to trust me, but she was willing to do this? I was absolutely stunned.

Of course, I said yes. I was still hungry, after all, and I knew that I would be able to pay her somehow. I looked her in the eye and assured her that I would be back by the same time the next day (as it turns out, my husband got a cheque in the mail, so I took the bus to work so he could drive to the bank and get some money for her). I thanked her profusely and took the food home.

So, rather than me losing a favorite take-out restaurant, the owner gained a loyal customer (although I will be paying cash for awhile). It helps that the food is delicious, but even if it wasn’t the best, I would still give this place preference over a chain. I know that this would never have happened in a chain restaurant. It might not have even happened at some of the larger local places. In all likelihood, I would have been treated like someone who didn’t intend to pay, if I wasn’t accused of it outright. But by treating me like a human being, this little place has guaranteed that I will be back again.

And seriously. Try the spring rolls.

Filed Under: Guest Reviews, The UpSOLD! - Customer Service Kudos Tagged: , , , , ,

Customer service, Just for the Sake of Customer Service – Guest Post from Lisa Tees

Posted on December 15, 2010 Written by 1 Comment

It’s time again to hear from an Upsell reader on their customer service experience. Thankfully, the guest blog is an UPSOLD!, all about the kudos. This  one comes from Lisa Tees (@listee on Twitter. Really have to get a photo on your profile, Lisa).

My husband is a landscaper – in Victoria that’s a 12 month a year job – regardless of the weather. Given that it’s been raining enough to make me seriously think about building an ark, he needed a good, breathable, waterproof jacket. So on Sunday, we trekked over to MEC (or Mountain Equipment Co-op for those of you who prefer experiencing outside by looking at it from the inside) to see what they had as I’ve always had great success with their products.

allwet 150x150 Customer service, Just for the Sake of Customer Service Guest Post from Lisa Tees

MEC customer service won't leave you all wet. See how I tied it in?

We were debating between two jackets – one at a price point of $100 and one at $200 – big difference, but was it worth it? Not sure, but we must have looked like we needed help, which came in a knowledgeable employee named Melissa. She asked what it was for, explained the difference between the two jackets, gave her honest opinion about why it was worth it to spend more and then explained to us how to make it last twice as long as it should – so the $200 jacket would actually outlast the $100 jacket by 5 years. I should mention here that MEC staff are not on commission – she was just doing her job to the best of her ability. She took the time to answer all our questions without looking rushed at all.

I’ve always liked MEC but now I remember why – great products and great service – can’t go wrong with that. I’ll definitely be back and make it my first choice for all my outdoor needs.

Thanks Lisa. I had a pretty good experience at MEC myself (Click here). So it’s great to hear that they not only provide great customer service, but are consistent.

Filed Under: The UpSOLD! - Customer Service Kudos

Weber Grills: Don’t Know You But I Might Love You

Posted on November 1, 2010 Written by 1 Comment

I’ve never heard of Weber Grills. I’ve never used any one of their products to my knowledge. But I’d buy one.

This will the second time I bring up my dad in as many weeks but since that last blog wasn’t on the greatest customer service experience…I thought it would be nice to get out a more positive business story. Hello, Weber.

BBQ 150x150 Weber Grills: Don’t Know You But I Might Love You

Customer relationship building? That's hot.

If you’re part of a business looking to keep customers and possibly make them fanatics of your products (there might be a few), check this out: My dad hates dealing with you. He will not give out his email address. Hell, he’ll rarely even give his name if a business asks for any of his information because he “doesn’t want to be spammed.” He doesn’t want anything to do with you.

But every week, he gets an email from Weber about their latest barbecue recipe. He opens every single one of them and looks forward to getting them because he’s getting something he wants without a mention of the product. “Recipes” also happens to be the first category on Weber’s website, a very extensive catalogue. (My dad visits their site a lot).

And because of this, my dad will tell anyone who listens how great Weber products are because he’s a fan. He has built a relationship with a company because they talk to him about things he loves, rather than talking at him about things he can get anywhere.

My dad is a member of the Weber tribe and, because I trust his opinion, I could be a convert. When was the last time a business talked with you and added value rather than sounding like a needy ex. (I’m here, love me)

Weber Grills: Don’t Know You But I Might Love You
Filed Under: My Reviews, The UpSOLD! - Customer Service Kudos Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , ,

The UpSOLD!: TELUS, Like Rock N Roll Dreams, Comes Through

Posted on September 10, 2010 Written by 1 Comment

Brennan from the Largley The Truth blog had a recent customer service experience with TELUS that he wanted to share. We hear so much of the bad, here’s a little of the good:

TELUS, and TELUS Mobility in particular, takes a lot of stick from its customer base; some of it is deserved (“Your call-center wait times are atrocious”), some of it is nitpicking (“You charged me 30 cents for data roaming because I took a walk on Dallas Road”), some of it is bizarre (“Last night you broke into my grandmother’s house and re-arranged her throw pillows”).  Personally, after nine years of service TELUS has yet to bring me to any serious grief but until this past Tuesday, they hadn’t exactly wowed me, either.

Over the months of September and October I’ll be burning up dinosaur bones as I drive across parts of the U.S.A., and so, prior to my departure, I purchased a mobile package that would allow for unlimited texting while south of the 49th.  My coverage disappeared soon after crossing into Montana from southern Alberta, and stayed that way as far south as Butte, making my unlimited texts as useful as a chocolate teapot.

telus 150x150 The UpSOLD!: TELUS, Like Rock N Roll Dreams, Comes Through

Service like this, you'll get more anniversaries.

Like any good twenty-something, I vented my middle-class rage on a social media platform, Twitter in this case, and within an hour I had a message from someone named @TELUSsupport.  I learned that @TELUSsupport is Telus’ effort to reach out to the Twitter community and their representative, Anthony, took my details and said he would look into my problem.

Anthony produced the relevant information in less than fifteen minutes:  TELUS has no roaming agreements in Montana, so I was sunk until I worked my way further west.  Since I had a direct line to someone who could apparently get things done, something you normally wait six days on the phone for, I pitched him another question regarding my inability to receive picture messages via MMS.  This answer took even less time and, once identified, the problem was fixed immediately.

They may have their problems, throw-pillow related or otherwise, but by pursuing customer complaints through new mediums and by addressing those complaints without having them specifically brought to their attention, TELUS has made an impression.  They’ll be keeping my business.

Thanks for the UpSOLD! contribution Brennan. Nice to see company’s being flexing their listening skills, whether on Twitter or any social media platform. Any experiences like this you could share? Please do.

The UpSOLD!: TELUS, Like Rock N Roll Dreams, Comes Through
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