A Customer Service Rant From a Non-Ranter

by | Feb 10, 2011

Admit it – we all love a good rant now and then.

  • Normally, ranting is not my style
  • But, one event that revs my rant meter is —

Poor customer service.

Customer Service Gone Wrong

Allow me to share a recent customer service experience.

Sharing sounds so much better than ranting.

  • I ordered a gift for someone who just had surgery
  • I was thrilled because it was the perfect gift
  • I paid extra to have it delivered in two days

I then made the mistake of going to lunch.

  • I received an email from the online merchant
  • They tried to call me at the number I left, but couldn’t reach me
  • Funny, said number is my cell phone and it did not ring
  • Nor did it show a missed call…hmm…
  • The email said they could not deliver my order on the day selected
  • I was to call customer service

It Gets Better

  • I called customer service
  • I patiently listened to the message tree
  • I pressed “3 for customer service”
  • I provided my order #
  • I was put on hold
  • I provided my name and address
  • I was put on hold
  • I was taken off hold
  • I hear background noise and was disconnected

Okay, at this point, the patience is wearing thin.

  • I call back customer service
  • I immediately press 3 (who says you can’t teach an old dog new tricks?)
  • I get a new customer service representative
  • She apologizes for the disconnection
  • She asks for my order #
  • I am put on hold
  • She comes back on the line and says my file is locked
  • It will remain locked for 45 minutes because I was being helped – ? – by another representative
  • Can I call back in 45 minutes?

No, but I sure can cancel that order online in 2 minutes.

The Good News/Bad News

  • The bad news – my perfect gift is canceled
  • The good news – I have new content material for my blog

Once more I am in search of the perfect gift.

My positive nature believes I will find it —

and maybe some good customer service, too.

Thank you. I feel better now.

Was that too much of a rant? You be the judge.

BigStock Photo Credit

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3 Comments

  1. Cathy

    Thanks, Ivin. I think I just did. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by.

    Reply
  2. Paul Novak

    The single biggest bane of internet commerce, the customer service pit of despair. Seems many of these sellers put all their emphasis on making the sale and could care less once the transaction is complete. Been there done that and now make certain to keep names and incidents for future high ranking posts heehee;)

    Reply
  3. Cathy

    LOL, Paul! Isn’t it the truth? Drives me insane-maybe because I spent so many years in Corporate in service positions. It’s sad that we tend to be surprised when we receive good customer service.

    Thanks for stopping by, Paul.

    Reply

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