More and more, customer service isn't 'service with a smile' or 'the customer is always right'...it's just a warm body there to give you your money back or make a return. I got a La-z-boy recliner as a Christmas gift. This thing was the most comfortable chair I've ever sat in. As soon as I got it home (I picked it out, so I took it home), the back fell apart. I took it back, and the guy I bought it from had left for the day. I started talking to another salesperson who didn't even make a comission on me. He was incredibly helpful and polite. When I couldn't find another recliner I liked, he found a store across Houston that had it, but it was going to be a week before I could get it delivered. I wasn't too happy with that, so he went that night in his own car and picked it up, and called me in the morning for a pickup. You just don't get service like that any more. I'll certainly buy from them again.
I used to give that kinda service, until I started getting alot of a-holes as customers. Now I hate customer service.
when i was younger i worked at a marble slab. i thought the prices were ridiculous so i made sure to give large servings and be really nice. i got great tips! customer service sucks these days. especially dealing w/ utilities companies. im sick and tired of recordings. when your signing up, there is no wait. when you have problems or want to cancel, you have to wait FOREVER!
I recently called T-Mobile about re-downloading some stuff onto my phone, and while I was talking to the service person, she informed me that I had almost $21.00 in texting charges. She suggested that I sign up for the texting package to avoid having charges like that in the future. After discussing this option further, she said she'd backdate it for me so that it would apply to the 21 bucks I'd racked up and saved me all that cash. She could have kept her mouth shut and just let me get the bill and made the company more money, but she didn't. That's the nicest thing anyone in customer service has done for me.
Maybe she was scared of being penalized by her QA dept for having dead air so she just found things to talk about...it was either the TXT msg charges or the weather
from experience, i have to agree that t-mobile has THE BEST customer service compared to other cellphone providers they were always so nice when i needed to download my old stuff after getting a new phone
i have to give props to the guy at the foleys/macys in the galleria who sells luggage on the third floor. his name is shaka and he has helped my husband and i a WHOLE lot with the pieces we wanted-holding the items, telling us ways to get them cheaper, super polite!!! just really good. when i found out they get commission and he was off at break when i got there to pay for it, i waited around the store for 40 min til he got back just to make sure the commission went to him and not the other guy. def deserved it.
I have to agree with this. I have had every single major carrier in the US and the two gsm network companies are the best (Cingular AT&T and T-mobile). AT&T more so for their coverage and phone options. T-mobile more so for their customer service and their rate plans. When I stupidly canceled my subscription to T-Mobile for Sprint (big mistake I should of listened to Jeremiah, Xerobull) T-Mobile customer service was even very friendly during this process. I have to say I have never been treated so nicely when canceling anything at all that was subscription based then by the people at T-Mobile. By the way the only reason I canceled was because my company got a discount with Sprint and their data network is very fast. I was using blackberry data all day long. Now I'm not with the company and I don't have as much of a need for my Blackberry. Anyway to the point T-Mobile customer service is way better then all the rest of the carriers. I should know, because I've had them all.
If people get good customer service, they don't talk about it as much as when they get bad customer service. Toyota Center has the most incompetent people in Guest Services!! I am trying to get a certain accommodation for George Lopez Show and I can't even buy tickets until I get that accommodation. I requested one mid January and the show is in two weeks! The guy keeps saying that he's looking into it. WTF, the lady before him did it within a week or two. GRRRRRRRRRRRRR! Back to the subject, I got some good customer service last night at El Patio after the waiter got too touchy feeling with my hand after he handed me the receipt and got my card. Now, that is a great customer service.
Super props to Enterprise car rentals. I always had a great experience, no hard upselling and always friendly. Once they mis-charged me for 2 weeks when I had rented a car for less then 24 hrs. I called, described the situation, put me on hold for 2 minutes, done! No complicated back-and-forth arguing or anything. After some other lame experiences w/ other car rentals, I'm sticking w/ Enterprise as long as the price is comparatively reasonable.
I worked there for 3 years and yes, they put customer service ahead of EVERYTHING else. Their philosphy is that is that they would rather have repeat customers more than any amount of upselling etc. Upselling is great, but the question is - will this customer come back next time he needs to rent a car? Be sure to fill out the survey they send you in the mail (or call you about) because they are the main reason people get promoted. And not just once, but every time you rent. Los Cucos in Kingwood has a waitress there that treats us like royalty. First time we went there, I tipped her like 35% because she was so nice. So now, she sees us coming in, grabs us and tells us to follow her (before the people in line ahead of us) and sits us immediately. She started by comping us a drink every now and then. But now, every time we go in, she comps us ALL our drinks. We had 2 meals and 4 large margaritas for $20 last time we were there! Of course, I make up the difference with her tip. Moral of the story is, always tip well at a restaurant you go to a lot.
I'm always pleased with the customer service I get at most Pappas owned restaurants, usually better than equally priced places around town. I was also VERY happy with DeMontrond customer service on my wife's new H3 when she had to get a couple warranty items taken care of. The receptionist actually gave her a lift over to and from the park and ride. (its not very far, but that's nice) Its amazing that a huge amount of our jobs and economy are based on the service industry, yet good service is more the exception than the rule these days.
...unless it's a phone-in takeout order NOT from a bartender and NOT from someone you regularly deal with.
Mom & pop shops have the best customer service. It's their business so they are really going to go all out to keep the customers happy. Some random guy at a cooperate store like a Wal-Mart or Blockbuster could care less about losing customers over bad service. Thats' why I hate it when those guys would open a store right across from a mom & pop shop that sells the same exact thing. The more cooperations take over, the less good personal service that we get.
I've noticed that, at least in my case, when calling places like banks, insurance providers, and satellite providers during off-hours (which most provide 24 hour support but can't always do all the things you request because it is off-hours)...they appear to sit there and ramble on and on...repeating themselves constantly...while seemingly just trying to keep you on the phone. I don't know if their bored or what but telling me the same stuff over and over again is freaking lame. It just happened to me last night when I called my insurance company. I felt like I was being talked to like a small child with a short attention span...when in actuality I got it all the first time. Then, they go into this closing spiel and all this after they repeat themselves two or three times. I just thought it was ridiculous how they seem to want to keep you on the phone as long as possible. I almost hung up and/or blew up on her. Towards the end, I resorted to grunts as confirmation to what the person was saying. You could tell I was getting snippy there at the end. I know...not the good story...but I just wanted to get it off my chest.
I have to agree with T-Mobile. Every time I call there the person who handles me is so friendly and helpful. Kudos to T-Mobile. Also, I always have great experiences at HEB whenever I go. The cashiers and workers wandering the store always seem to be eager to help out or talk to me about my day, ask me about a product I'm buying, etc. Maybe it's because I've shopped at Wal-Mart for so long and I'm used to the cashiers ignoring me and scowling when I greet them.
