dog geek Posted August 20, 2010 Share Posted August 20, 2010 How sad... that merely being polite and understanding when mistakes are made is apparently the exception to the usual experience... Having purchased various items from this company, I thought the staff provided exceptionally efficient service. They were very pleasant to deal with over the phone, took great pains to assess my needs and make sure I would be happy with my purchases - good, I thought, they seem reliable; and certainly pride themselves on quality of service. So I recently invested a couple of thousands dollars in a dog-related item from them, and when it arrived it was not as ordered. Naturally, I contacted them to inform them of the mistake - from previous contact with them I knew they would not deliberately provide less than their best, and I was confident that they would be happy to work with me to rectify the problem. Having only previously had wonderful experiences with them, I am flabbergasted that being merely being polite about a mistake in my order was appreciated to the extent that I received an extremely generous freebie in recognition! I do realise that the mistake in my order was a fairly significant one - however once I had drawn it to their attention, as I anticipated the staff were mortified and immediately made strenuous efforts to find a solution that satisfied me. What leaves me saddened is that just being 'normally' polite about it was so gratefully received by the poor people I had contact with. Honestly - if the norm is for people to be abusive and over-the-top when mistakes happen, then I really hope reading this lets us all remember to chill out a little next time (and yes, I include myself in this lol!) something is not as expected. So, next time I feel myself getting wound up at someone, I must remember how relieved a little politeness made my 'service providers' feel. If cutting someone a little slack brought such a heartfelt reaction of appreciation, then there really is not enough graciousness in the world; and I must do my best to broadcast politeness as I bumble through my life... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daisy Posted August 20, 2010 Share Posted August 20, 2010 Yep, working in retail I can understand where they are coming from, I have been shouted at, sworn at, my staff have had things thrown at them... and quite often it is for something that is not our mistake, not our fault, and often not even something we can do anything about Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linda K Posted August 20, 2010 Share Posted August 20, 2010 Having worked in customer service for over 10 years (out of there now thank goodness), I know how often it was that people rang up to complain and even if the error was 100% their fault, they would so often be so abusive demanding a fix, that the rare ones who were gracious about it were indeed treated like gold (and their complaints went to the top of the pile to be dealt with first, I can tell you). I also remember treasuring a lady who sent me a bunch of flowers when we had an error (our fault, nothing to do with her) that meant she had accidentally received money in her account that was meant for someone else, and not only did she return it, she also sent me the flowers & apologised that it took a couple of days for her to send it back but she had to wait until her son came over so she could get to the bank. Made a difference from the one who deliberately emptied his account, then told us he would pay it back at $1 a month for the next 10 years, and if we did not like that, would go to all the current affairs shows about another bank bashing story. So glad that your faith in this company was justified, and no doubt they now have a customer for life as with service like this looking after a client, they are the sort you would be certainly be more than happy to use Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Agility Dogs Posted August 20, 2010 Share Posted August 20, 2010 What you say is so true. The minute people realise they have done something wrong they get ready for a blast. I get it here - not in retail, but it is a high pressure sales environment (the pressure is on our staff, not on our customers). If they make a mistake their customers are rarely understanding or even polite. Old story - more flies with honey than with vinegar. People don't go out of their way to annoy others - for the most part. Why get all up tight when something goes wrong..... Good on you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tdierikx Posted August 20, 2010 Share Posted August 20, 2010 I got out of a significant speeding ticket (school zone) by being very polite to the lady at the infringement bureau... *grin* I work PC tech support - and computers behaving badly can have a really nasty effect on some people... but... if you are really wanting me to enthusiastically assist you with your problem, then swearing at me in your opening sentence doesn't start you off on the best foot, does it? T. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danois Posted August 20, 2010 Share Posted August 20, 2010 I got out of a significant speeding ticket (school zone) by being very polite to the lady at the infringement bureau... *grin* Not really something to be proud of I would have thought... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tdierikx Posted August 20, 2010 Share Posted August 20, 2010 I got out of a significant speeding ticket (school zone) by being very polite to the lady at the infringement bureau... *grin* Not really something to be proud of I would have thought... Actually it was a school zone that has a ridiculously early start time - they tagged a large number cars there at exactly the same time as they got me, and I was doing exactly 60kph, which is what the normal speed for that road is. I wasn't speeding per se... and considering that I had a spotless driving record up to that point (some 20 years worth), the nice lady at the infringement bureau decided to make the ticket into a warning instead of a fine and demerit points. I thought that was very nice of her, considering that I was fully ready to actually pay the darned thing and cop my penalty. At no point did I deny that I was doing 60kph in that spot at that time... T. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sebastion 2 Posted August 20, 2010 Share Posted August 20, 2010 It is most definately not the norm unfortunately and yes I work in a retail business that bend over backwards for customer service. It smarts that a customer can threaten to kill you and is given a $50 gift card for their effort. We are all human and yes we make mistakes I am so pleased that the OP got such a great response to her problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whiskedaway Posted August 20, 2010 Share Posted August 20, 2010 It is most definately not the norm unfortunately and yes I work in a retail business that bend over backwards for customer service. It smarts that a customer can threaten to kill you and is given a $50 gift card for their effort. We are all human and yes we make mistakes I am so pleased that the OP got such a great response to her problem. I HATE that. I used to get so angry when my work would do that for someone who was a right pig and shouldn't have gotten anything. I'm so glad that I'm out of retail. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
emery Posted August 20, 2010 Share Posted August 20, 2010 It is most definately not the norm unfortunately and yes I work in a retail business that bend over backwards for customer service. It smarts that a customer can threaten to kill you and is given a $50 gift card for their effort. We are all human and yes we make mistakes I am so pleased that the OP got such a great response to her problem. I HATE that. I used to get so angry when my work would do that for someone who was a right pig and shouldn't have gotten anything. I'm so glad that I'm out of retail. People areso rude to customer service operators. i had a lady abuse me that i hadn't given her her cash out. boss goes off to check camera's goes you gave her 5 instead of 20 give her the 20 as well as the biggest box of chocolates and a heart felt apology i do this he looks at camera's properly realises i was right not her i never even got a sorry from the boss or a thankyou from the customer for the extra 20 bucks and free chocolates Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maddy Posted August 20, 2010 Share Posted August 20, 2010 I've worked customer service before and honestly, I'd rather eat my own legs (raw, with fish sauce and peanut butter smeared over them) than ever have to deal with the general public like that again. Even dealing with the public for GAP was shocking. You'd be horrified by the number of people who treated adopting a new family member as if they were ordering a product and then got upset when I had to inform them we didn't have the model they were after* in stock *You know.. the small, pretty, blue and white female that was cat safe, small animal (read, rabbit) safe, great with kids who were very rough with animals, totally quiet (but very friendly when affection was wanted), would die of a ruptured bladder before toileting in the house, tolerant of everything imaginable and also trained to vacuum up her own hair while mixing you drinks- that's perhaps a bit of an exaggeration but the sad reality is.. only a bit (from some of my experiences). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
becks Posted August 20, 2010 Share Posted August 20, 2010 i say name the company in the OP and let others enjoy the great customer service! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dog geek Posted August 20, 2010 Author Share Posted August 20, 2010 i say name the company in the OP and let others enjoy the great customer service! Well, I would, but I wasn't sure that it would be fair to identify them... I mean, they might not appreciate me publicising the fact that they had made a mistake. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Narcissa Posted August 21, 2010 Share Posted August 21, 2010 I should take your cue, dog geek. Lately, my online purchases have been a little disappointing. Even writing to an online company to ask which kibble size is the smallest (as they do repackaging services, in order to keep the dog food fresh), they won't reply except when I make an order and simply skimp over the question I asked before. Some stuff from eBay I did not receive, but most eBay sellers are happy to resend/reinmburse, but on one occasion, it didn't really help as I ordered 1.5 months in advance for a present for my niece's birthday and I still got it late (despite paying AU$40 for "expedited international shipping"). You'd be horrified by the number of people who treated adopting a new family member as if they were ordering a product and then got upset when I had to inform them we didn't have the model they were after* in stock This is soooo true! When I foster kittens and place their pictures/videos online for adoption, I get all sorts of "requests", like "all white ragdoll", "persians", "long haired with blue eyes", "bushy-tailed", etc. I get so annoyed because we rarely have pure breed kittens (in Singapore anyway) and my post is obviously for a DSH so I have no idea what sort of "service" people think I run! When I write back politely to tell them a kitten has been adopted, I get flamed and told that they are doing me a favour by taking the cats off the street and they have soooo much money, they can own all sorts of pure bred cats but chose my scraggly cat instead, so how can I possibly refuse them because they have such big, generous hearts? This is why I really empathise with breeders getting all sorts of strange emails and responses! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
persephone Posted August 21, 2010 Share Posted August 21, 2010 Here may be a spot for my little story ,from yesterday Our supermarket has a new checkout operator- a young man , perhaps from India? Not sure. He is conscientious, he thinks, and is very polite and cheerful Today I told him how much I appreciate all his effort .His immediate reply? "Thank you, May your God bless you". It made my day . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Genabee Posted August 21, 2010 Share Posted August 21, 2010 I work in retail. For every nice customer that comes in the doors, there are about ten pain in the butts.... So it is very refreshing to hear a 'thank you' every now and then. At the end of a long day, with one rude or disgruntled customer after the other, it can be hard... especially when you put a smile on your face and do whatever you need to do to make the customer feel comfortable.... even when you are nursing a broken heart, feeling sick, lost a pet, grumpy, tired etc. Unfortunately, because I work hard to deliver customer service (I have been known to personally deliver things to people's homes, after hours), I do expect a level of customer service in return, even if it is just at Woolies. That is a rare commodity too. We now find ourselves going out of our way, to shop at places where we know we can get that service. I will even pay more for basic items, if I know I can get it from a friendly sales rep. That is such a nice story to hear OP. I too think you should share the company. Mistakes happen to the best of us (anything that can go wrong on an EFTPOS machine - I have done it!!!). The fact they can own their mistakes and rectify them says a whole lot more about their character (as a company) than the initial mistake does. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
becks Posted August 21, 2010 Share Posted August 21, 2010 I agree, mistakes happen - it is what happens after the mistake they tells us more about a company. Name them and let them get more business! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dog geek Posted August 21, 2010 Author Share Posted August 21, 2010 I agree, mistakes happen - it is what happens after the mistake they tells us more about a company. Name them and let them get more business! Well, on the understanding that I have had several business interactions with them previously that were models of 'best practice'... The Barf Shop deserve credit for being so downright fabulous! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cordelia Posted August 22, 2010 Share Posted August 22, 2010 Actually it was a school zone that has a ridiculously early start time - they tagged a large number cars there at exactly the same time as they got me, and I was doing exactly 60kph, which is what the normal speed for that road is. I wasn't speeding per se... and considering that I had a spotless driving record up to that point (some 20 years worth), the nice lady at the infringement bureau decided to make the ticket into a warning instead of a fine and demerit points. I thought that was very nice of her, considering that I was fully ready to actually pay the darned thing and cop my penalty. Ummm how does some telephonist at the infringement place change your ticket to a warning instead of a fine?? That can only happen in court as far as I was aware?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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