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Customer Service Blog
| Wednesday, Jun 25, 2008 |
| My Nightmare Trip to the Airport |
| By Wendy Gillett |
| Wednesday, Jun 25, 2008 11:56 |
| So, who wants to hear about my worst trip to the airport ever and how customer service came to my rescue?
Ok last week my husband and I took a trip to Seattle to visit family and the drive to the airport was one of the worst car experiences of my life.
First of all it was one of the hottest days in Southern California history (a record high of 113 degrees) as we dove through Los Angeles. It was this day that our car decided to create havoc under the hood in the way of overheating. That meant no air conditioning as we inched our way down the freeway. And when I say inched I mean inched. A drive that should have taken 90 minutes took us 4 hours. We arrived literally within minutes of our departure and ended our nightmare by running through the airport to our gate.
Now here is the part where customer service saved me.
After this long, sweaty drive that seemed to take forever I thought I would never get comfortable again. Then I met Noelle.
Noelle was our stewardess on JetBlue airlines and she took a miserable day and turned it around in an instant with a smile.
The minute we sat in our seats she offered us her kindness (not to mention some really yummy snacks) and changed our day for the better.
Thats all it takes. A kind smile. A positive attitude. A friendly demeanor and she changed our whole day around and made us feel welcome.
Thanks to Noelle for making the whole experience end on a positive note.
You know it only takes one employee to change a life! |
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| Wednesday, Jun 11, 2008 |
| Now that's How to Do It! |
| By Wendy Gillett |
| Wednesday, Jun 11, 2008 01:03 |
| Since customer service is my thing I am keenly aware of when good service happens and when, well lets just say, not so good service happens. I get all kinds to be sure but I am still overjoyed when I get WOW service. Tonight I was coming home from the radio show and I realized I had to stop at the drug store to pick up some odds and ends. At check out the employee behind the counter advised me that there was a coupon available for one of my items in the basket. He then pointed me to the little money saver and held my place in line while I retrieved it. WOW! I thanked him for looking out for me with the coupon tip. And then he said something so wise, so smart and yet so simple. He said "Well we have the coupons, we want you to save money so you keep coming back".
Yes that is the point of coupons. For me to use them, save money and then come back.
Sometimes as businesses we forget that we put systems in place to encourage our customers to spend with us.
Now compare this to an experience my cohost had just last week while stopping by his favorite donut shop. He asked the kid behind the counter why the signature sign was not on out front letting customers know about the fresh hot donuts that were ready for consumption. "Well" replied the employee "whenever I put on the sign so many customers come in that it gets crazy in here so I don't use it" Um ... wow. |
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| Tuesday, May 27, 2008 |
| What has happened to service? |
| By Wendy Gillett |
| Tuesday, May 27, 2008 12:41 |
| I have one question: When did I become the enemy? I was at the grocery store yesterday just picking up a few things. As I was walking out with my filled cart I realized I made an extra unnecessary purchase. I ventured to the"Customer Care" desk with trepidation and approached the employee behind the desk. I explained that I needed to return an item I had just purchased, which to me seemed reasonable and normal. However, she looked at me with the perplexed blank stare employees save for just such an occasion. She took the item and rang up my return. She made no small talk. She didn't smile. She did her best to make me feel like I had done something horribly wrong by daring to approach her. I kept wondering "who pooped in her cheerios"?
As she gave me my money back for the item I noticed that she had refunded me too much money. So I once again entered the den of despair to let her know. Once again no smile. No thank you. Nothing.
So I ask again: When did I become the enemy?
I would love to hear your thoughts on this topic. Please email me at wendy@extraordinarycustomerservice.com |
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| Tuesday, May 20, 2008 |
| Welcome to my Blog! |
| By Wendy Gillett |
| Tuesday, May 20, 2008 02:28 |
| Well, it had to happen eventually.
I tried to fight it.
But I knew technology would soon invite me to join in on the future. So here I am writing my blog.
You see I love to write articles, converse on my radio show and even talk in front of hundreds of people during my seminars but for some reason I resisted the notion of a blog because I thought the medium was not for me. But now that I am here I must say; I am hooked! So get ready to be bombarded with my concerns about customer service, my nominations for the business "big dogs" and even my current complaints. I have pulled out my virtual soap box to give you my thoughts on customer service. I will bring you current events in the news as it pertains to your customers and give you my ideas on how you can change your life and your business through a different philosophy that centers around service.
So here it goes.
What happened to customer service? There was a time when you could not walk into a business without being bathed in courtesy. There was a time when employees went out of their way to make you feel welcome and wanted. I have seen evidence of it in movies so I know it wasn't that long ago. But somewhere along the way our society decided that it was unnecessary to focus on the customer and offer extraordinary service.
Last week I was looking for a gift for someone which caused me to go from store to store while on the search. It is amazing how jaded you can become about customer service when you see it up close and personal like that in a concentrated way. This shopping spree reminded me how depressing it can be to spend time in a business. I came home feeling unwelcome and unwanted. Several places I entered never even gave me a hello. One employee in particular spent the entire time on the telephone with her boyfriend and then there was the place that made me leave because I was carrying a cup of coffee... with a lid. But really how hard would it have been to simply show me some kindness. Pay attention to me when I walk in the door. And maybe, just maybe allow me to walk around the store with my coffee without making me feel like a criminal. When did we decide customer service was not needed?
Well I am here to tell you that the companies that remember the importance of service are the ones who will win the almighty dollar.
Today while I was searching the internet for the newest information I came across this interesting article regarding some advice from the Better Business Bureau on the importance of customer service. Check it out.
http://www.thestarpress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080518/BUSINESS/805180315/1046
With a Smile,
Wendy Gillett www.ExtraordinaryCustomerService.com
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