As consumers, we deal with various customer support representatives every day. Those interactions do not always end with you walking away enjoying the experience. It's a shame really. Customer support is a key opportunity for a company to demonstrate to a customer just how important they are. Unfortunately that is not always the case.Take a recent interaction I had with my local dry cleaner - Primrose Cleaners for those of you keep score at home. Now, I've been taking my shirts to these guys for a couple of years. They've never been the most pleasant to deal with, but the work has been solid and it's in a convenient location so I let is slide. A few weeks ago, my wife picks up our dry cleaning and my favorite shirt - a $150 shirt no less - had huge ink stains on the front and back.
The shirt was not that way when I dropped it off. Whatever the case, when confronted with the issue, they completely refused to take any responsibility and basically told me that my business was not that important to them. Fine then, they'll no longer get it or any of that from my friends. A classic case of poor customer support costing a business a lifelong customer. Probably not a good business decision for them.
Now, let's focus on a company that gets it. My wife and I recently purchased a BOB stroller for our 3 month old. At first I was skeptical about dropping $300 for a stroller, but this thing is like driving a Cadillac. Anyhow, while putting the thing together, I lost a very small, but key part. It's the last time I try to put something together in a parking lot with the wrong tools. When I realized I was missing the part, I emailed BOB customer support asking how to purchase a new one.
Within 24 hours, a company representative sent me a note saying that a replacement was on the way free of charge. We're probably talking about a couple of bucks in parts and handling, but the fact that they would immediately send me a new part on their dime despite the entire issue being my fault is fantastic. And they didn't have to do it. Chances are, I will never buy another BOB stroller. Not because they don't make a great product, but BECAUSE they make a great product. This thing will last Zane until he's probably 18, so there's just no need. But because they get it, they succeeded in making me a life-long advocate of their company. Customer support is alive and well in Boise, ID.
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