Is good customer service so rare today that when it happens, it's news?
Certainly, that would seem the case, judging by the number of and interest in stories about bad service with large corporations.
My own hard-luck story starts with a last-minute Christmas-Eve purchase of Logitech speakers for our computer.
They worked beautifully for two weeks and then went silent for ever. No power. At a cost of $99, after tax, I expected more.
I hefted the set back to the independent east-end Toronto shop where I bought them, and was politely informed I had to deal directly with the manufacturer because they only had a seven-day return/exchange policy.
The guy asked me if I'd kept my receipt and the original packaging and I told him, no. He printed off a new receipt and wished me luck.
I was seeing red. I had visions of having to repackage the speakers in Styrofoam whittled by hand to form a secure cushion for the trip back to California, where Logitech is based. I imagined paying for that shipping and then being accused of packaging it badly and thereby voiding the warranty.
I saw red over the sheer inconvenience of the whole thing. So when I called the Logitech I was armed with rage.
What followed was a shocker. I got terrific service.
The call-centre guy, based in Halifax of all places, requested the model number of the speakers and details of the problem. I didn't have the model number, as I calling from work, so he set up an account and gave me a reference number to use for my next call.
When I got home, there was an email my Logitech call-centre guy. His computer had frozen before he could process the request, so he had to create a new file. The email was to inform me of my new reference number.
On my second call, the next call-centre guy listened patiently and without hesitation said Logitech would send a replacement immediately because that was the cheapest way.
When he discovered the model was out of stock, he sent another slightly better model.
The speakers arrived two days ago. They work beautifully.
Most computer parts and accessories companies (well, the well known ones anyways) would do a free replacement rather than fixing it.
However, after the first replacement, you're on your own.
Wonderful and unexpected, sad to say that, but it should be a norm!Pay for you items on your visa card.....they have a better warranty on just about everthing from lost sunglasses, to broken laptops!
Quote: Personally, I'm tired of getting ripped off having to bring computer parts and other electronics in for repairs when the warranty has expired. It's incredibly expensive for minutes of work, if you know what you're doing.
=============
I have almost $100,000 invested in my education to be able to fix things in a few minutes. Should I not be compensated for this skill?
I work in the service industry. In a computer shop for what its worth. I would love nothing more than to be able to service my customers every need.
If I sell a computer to someone, and it fails, they need to deal with the manufacturer, because they system is registered to them. The manufacturer will not talk to me, because it is not my system, even tho I am trying my hardest to serve my customer.
Since the store cannot deal with the manufacturer, they have to deal with their supplier. This involves an often far too long RMA process that exceeds the time it would take for the customer to follow the product warranty agreement.
Most stores offer a 14 day warranty on products that are defective. Ask the question when you are at the counter if you are unsure.
I want my customers to come back, so I do what I can to accommodate them within reason.
Most companies for computer parts & accessories work like that. At least it has been my experience.
Typically when I call in a warranty, they take my credit card number and send me the new replacement, I put the defective part in the box and ship it back to them - at no cost to me. So long as they get the defective part within a few weeks, there is no charge on my CC.
When you call, you always have to:
a) be kind - it is not the fault of the guy at the other end of the phone that your equipment broke.
b) don't act like you know everything - if they ask for troubleshooting steps, at least pretend like you are doing them... or if you already did it, respectfully mention it without an 'attitude', even for mundane thing like power cycling the device.
c) always say thank-you.
It is kind of sad that this is news, although I'm happy to hear that maybe with the rising tide of upset consumers companies are starting to take customer service seriously again.
Personally, I'm tired of getting ripped off having to bring computer parts and other electronics in for repairs when the warranty has expired. It's incredibly expensive for minutes of work, if you know what you're doing. The only other option is to throw it out, right? Like all those people with 7 iPods.
So my suggestion for your extra broken speakers, if you still have them and I understood correctly, is to give it to a neighbourhood kid to tinker around with. He or she might be able to figure it out and get some decent speakers out of the mix or at least start learning enough about electronics to fix their own stuff. My friend has been helping me out fixing my rundown laptop. (One of the few laptop repair shops in Ottawa taped the power supply into place when it broke. Nice job guys. Solder really must cost more than the $100 bucks they charged.) It makes me want to start taking some courses.
I agree with your comments. I had to exchange a keyboard with them and it was a pleasure to deal with Logitech. My only complaint with the company is really a fault of the economy. For review on my blog, they would send me many products and never expect a return. Now, unfortunately, they are less forthcoming - can't blame them really.