The Importance of Customer Service

bysmokeywins

3.5K followers

6 years ago

Long before the internet and online shopping, brick and mortar shopping was the only method of shopping available. Back then, stores knew the importance of customer service. They knew that they had to treat customers properly in order to retain their business. But it seems like somewhere along the way, the act of delivering top-notch customer service has started to fall by the wayside.

Technology playing such a huge role in our day to day lives, the ability to shop one retailer over another has become as easy as the click of a mouse. The ability to research the best price, as well as read customer reviews, allows the consumer to be well-informed about a product or service before they ever click the buy now button.

With so much competition, your sales now depend on more than just having a great product. Your shipping time, price, and yes customer service can make or break your success.

In the past week, I have had two different experiences with customer service, one good, and the other, well not so good.

The Good:

My husband and I have been long time users of the Reynold's Wrap Non-Stick Tin-foil. But in the last few rolls we had purchased, there appeared to be a manufacturing issue, as there were chalky gray stripes on the tin-foil. The latest package had this on over 6 feet of the roll, leaving it unusable, so it had to be disposed of.

So I turned to the Facebook page of Reynold's Kitchens, and posted a complaint about the product. Within about 24 hrs time, I received a reply requesting I private message them with my address so they could send a replacement. Since the problem was different from what they had perceived it to be from my post, I explained in further detail the issue, and sent them a photo via PM.

They promptly replied, stating that they were not aware of that issue, and to contact them to discuss the issue further. Since I am still quite fuzzy from chemo brain, which affects my speech more than my typing, I had my husband call them when he got home from work.

He explained the issue, and was advised they were not aware of that issue, but thanked him for bringing it to their attention. As an apology for the problem, they would also send us two replacement rolls of the non-stick tin foil at no cost to us.

We received the package within a few days of our call to customer service and it included the two rolls, as well as an additional roll of parchment paper. I was so happy with their service that I took to Instagram (jenniferbedellbiz) as well as my Facebook Page (jenniferbedellbiz) to write a glowing thank you for their prompt attention in this matter. I also tagged them in my post, and of course within a few hours of writing it, they liked as well as replied to my IG post.

The Bad:

Now on the same day my husband had called the Reynold's company regarding the issue with the tin foil, I received a shipment in the mail from the Beterre Skin Care Company. Back when I first started my chemotherapy treatments for Breast Cancer, I came down with a horrible acne type rash from one of the medications I was given.

I first tried over the counter acne cleansers, which actually made the problem worse. So I turned to the internet to find a product that contained natural ingredients to help heal my skin. I came across Beterre on accident, and upon reading the information on their site, found that their products were created to help soothe the side affects commonly caused by cancer treatments. Their entire product line was all natural, and free from any toxins. They contained Arnica, a homeopathic remedy commonly used for healing, so I figured I had nothing to lose and placed an order.

Needless to say the products were a godsend for my skin. I used them throughout my entire cancer treatment, almost daily, and they kept the skin rash at bay. I placed probably about a half dozen or more orders from them in a years time, and they were always prompt to ship, usually within 48 hrs of an order being placed.

Now, you may be wondering why they are classified as the bad.

Well, my oncologist put me on a new chemotherapy pill, Nerlynx, that targets the HER2 aspect of my cancer. I have been on it for about three weeks so far, and, although not as severe, the acne style rash has started to return. Since I need to be on this medication for an entire year, I needed to place an order for two more bottles of the cleanser to take control of the situation before it got any worse.

As usual, the order shipped promptly, and arrived at my home as expected. All orders ship via UPS, and the box was in good shape. I opened the box, and proceeded to take the boxes out. One was perfectly fine, but the other felt wet and squishy. I opened the box to find the bottle utterly destroyed and cleanser all over the place. I now had a $36 bottle of cleanser that was completely useless to me.

I took photos, and immediately posted to Instagram that I was saddened by the damage in my latest shipment and I tagged the company. Then I went to their website and filled in the "contact us" page with the issue at hand, and requested a replacement. I also located their Facebook page, and sent them a PM since the ability for customers to post on their page had been disabled.

24 hours went by, and no reply. No response to the photo that was tagged on Instagram, no response to the email, and no response to my PM. This was a weekday, so I know there had to be someone in the office. I gave them a few more days, and still no reply. I tried again to contact them via Facebook PM, and the reply I got was to contact the company at their mailing address.

That threw me for a loop. My first thought was I have a customer service issue, with a broken product that I received from your company, and you can't even be bothered to address my issue, and just give me a canned response to contact them at their mailing address?!?

I was fuming at this point, but did my best to keep it in check. So I went back to their website, and located the "contact us" email address, and sent them a second message, specifying the issue, including my order number and requesting a replacement. Then I posted an update on my Facebook page explaining the issue to my followers, and included photos of the damage, as well as the email I sent to the company, I also tagged their Facebook page in my post. This went down on Thursday morning, and still no replies from the company.

Having spent over 10 years in IT technical support I know how important customer service is and how it can easily make or break your company. No matter how much I loved their products, I am very unhappy with the Beterre company right now, and I fear I may be out the $36 for the damaged product.

It is in no way my fault that I received a damaged product, but the fact that they have done ABSOLUTLEY ZERO to make it right, has turned me off from ever wanting to purchase from them again in the future.

So the moral of this is no matter what business you are in, always strive to deliver the best customer service you can. Whether the customer is right or wrong, at least make an effort to fix their problem. The Reynold's company didn't have to send us anything, but the way they handled the situation has earned them a customer for life. Then on the other end of the spectrum, the lack of customer service from Beterre has lost them a loyal customer, all because they couldn't be bothered to respond to my requests.

So the next time you receive a message from a customer, think twice about how you reply, and how your response could potentially have an effect on your business in the future.