View Full Version : Customer Service and good business practices
For the life of me I cannot understand why taking care of the customer is becoming a non-factor for companies.
For instance:
I've been a Dish Network customer for over 3 years. I signed on with them when they first came out with the DVR and I've had the same system ever since. It's a 40 hour, single tuner unit, so I have to watch what I'm recording instead of having the freedom to watch something and record something different.
3 years later everybody has the dual tuner units, including Dish. I'm looking at DirecTV, and they're offering a special right now that you get a free DVR upgrade, $150 cash, free installation, no hidden startup fees, and a free Ipod Nano.
I contacted Dish and told them I would like to stay with them and upgrade to their dual tuner DVR (which is now their standard unit). They told me it was a $120 charge to upgrade to the unit for existing customers. I told them what DirecTV is offering, and I also pointed out that they are offering this unit for free to new Dish customers. I tried explaining to the guy that it would be insane for them to lose me as a customer, when all they have to do is waive that $120 fee, and they'll have me as a customer for a long time to come, more than making up for that small one time charge. Homeboy says he doesn't have the authorization to waive it, and he can't find a supervisor. I gave him my info and he's supposed to have a supervisor call me.
What do you think are the chances of Dish doing the smart thing? I say slim to none. If it's outside of their "policy", most companies are unwilling to do it. People have no value for their existing customers, and they have no desire to build customer loyalty. Instead they just want to offer the latest and greatest in hopes of luring new people in (only to have them leave later on). That's the most boneheaded way of running a business, yet it's becoming the norm.
As a sales person, this thinking is completely foreign to me. Gitomer wrote a fantastic book "Customer Satisfaction is Worthless; Customer Loyalty is Priceless", and it really hits home to the many problems surrounding bad customer service today. "Policy" is a HUGE killer, and IMO the main one is all of the employees not recognizing who is putting food in their childrens stomachs and a roof over their head. It's not the company that is giving them the paycheck; it's the customer that puts in the money.
:mad: :mad:
olevetonahill
9/5/2006, 01:44 PM
I had been a dish customer since they took over primestar
They ****ed me off 1nce to many and I am now a happy direct customer ;)
JohnnyMack
9/5/2006, 01:51 PM
I thought this thread was gonna be about 85Sooner.
:texan:
One of the worst companies for customer service is ADT. They flat out suck balls.
Brinks has been pretty good for us.
olevetonahill
9/5/2006, 02:35 PM
I thought this thread was gonna be about 85Sooner.
:texan:
That baby is getting cuter every day
to bad stan aint here to see it ;)
BoogercountySooner
9/5/2006, 02:37 PM
I heart Dish especially the Voom HD chanells!
TheHumanAlphabet
9/5/2006, 03:53 PM
I contacted Dish and told them I would like to stay with them and upgrade to their dual tuner DVR. They told me it was a $120 charge to upgrade to the unit for existing customers. I told them what DirecTV is offering, and I also pointed out that they are offering this unit for free to new Dish customers. Homeboy says he doesn't have the authorization to waive it, and he can't find a supervisor. I gave him my info and he's supposed to have a supervisor call me.
Horse hockey! All the dood has to do is place you on hold and the super is in the same room. If you want to stay, call again, see if you get a better response, if not, ask to speak to the supervisor or ask to have the call "escalated" (use that word, it gets notice). If not, they don't want you and I would walk...
phead903
9/5/2006, 04:04 PM
so here's my customer service story:
This past weekend, my daughter was in a soccer tournament in Broken Arrow. We book a hotel room back in August for September 1, 2, and 3 because we didn't know the schedule. the schedule came out and didn't need to stay Friday night. I called the hotel directly on Tuesday, August 29 to cancel Friday night. Spoke to the desk clerk, explained everything, and she tells me it is cancelled. I asked her if I needed a new confirmation number adn she said no, she had made the change there. I asked if she needed my initial confirmation number to note the change and again she said everything was fine and "we'll see you on Saturday".
Of course, I get there to check in on Saturday and am told that because I hadn't cancelled, I was charged for Friday night as a no-show. I relayed my story to the clerk and she said there was nothing she could do about it. I asked to speak to the manager. The manager was not on the property until Monday. I asked for the manager's phone number - the clerk said she couldn't give that out. She then gave me the Best Western International Customer Service line. I called them, lodged my complaint, then went about my business that weekend
i receive a call today from Best Western Customer Service telling me that they can't do anything about the "policy" that the hotel had established and therefore I was out of luck receiving a refund. I have since contacted the Broken Arrow CofC, the BA Visistors and convention Bureau, along with writing a letter to the owner of this property.
I know that I have made decisions to placate a customer that cost my company money, but generated good will. If a business satisfies a customer, the customer may tell someone else. If a business angers a customer, the customer will tell everyone else.
So, long story short, don't stay at the Best Western Kenosha Inn at 1200 East Lansing in Broken Arrow, OK!!
There, I feel somewhat better..
Scott D
9/5/2006, 04:06 PM
no the moral of your story is not to stay in Broken Arrow ;)
So, long story short, don't stay at the Best Western Kenosha Inn at 1200 East Lansing in Broken Arrow, OK!!
There, I feel somewhat better..
Dude, your money has long since been funneled to the terrorists.
i receive a call today from Best Western Customer Service telling me that they can't do anything about the "policy" that the hotel had established and therefore I was out of luck receiving a refund. I have since contacted the Broken Arrow CofC, the BA Visistors and convention Bureau, along with writing a letter to the owner of this property.
All you have to do to get your money back is file a dispute with your credit card company for an unauthorized charge. I worked at a big Hotel in DFW for 5 years as the credit manager. I was over chargebacks (credit card disputes) and any time a no-show was disputed, we automatically refunded it. Refuting the no-show charges was futile b/c we didn't have a customer signature, imprint or a swipe of the card, therefore we could never win the chargeback with the CC companies.
Hopefully you didn't use the same CC when you checked in, b/c they might try to pull a fast one on you by sending in your sig or the imprint. Regardless if you did or not, you should still win the dispute pretty easily if you send over all the documentation as well as a thorough letter explaining the situation.
Your next task is already complete by informing everybody you know not to stay at this place. IMO, you should do everything possible to keep people from going there (neg reports on websites, contact their corporate office, etc). Any time I hear the word "policy" or get shafted like this, I go after them like the Spanish Inquisition.
NOBODY espects the Spanish Inquisition!!!
http://www.montypythonpages.com/pictures/spanish_inq.jpg
Horse hockey! All the dood has to do is place you on hold and the super is in the same room. If you want to stay, call again, see if you get a better response, if not, ask to speak to the supervisor or ask to have the call "escalated" (use that word, it gets notice). If not, they don't want you and I would walk...
Just tell them you will discontinue their service if you don't get a supervisor on the phone pronto.
JohnnyMack
9/5/2006, 05:26 PM
That baby is getting cuter every day
to bad stan aint here to see it ;)
Heh.
Thanks!
Who? ;)
hurricane'bone
9/5/2006, 05:44 PM
no the moral of your story is not to stay at a Best Western
Fixed.
The last one I stayed at, in Ahwatukee, was a steaming pile of dog crap.
SoonerAtKU
9/5/2006, 05:56 PM
...file a dispute with your credit card company for an unauthorized charge.
DING! I work for one of the larger players on the other side of this (credit cards) and this is the correct answer. Your credit card company will get the info for you and try to get the credit back from the hotel on your behalf. Threatening to decline a payment that the hotel already thought they had is a powerful tool.
BajaOklahoma
9/5/2006, 06:17 PM
One of the worst companies for customer service is ADT. They flat out suck balls.
We switched to ADT a couple of years ago. The guy writing up our order gave us all kinds of free stuff - extra control pads (we have 4), 5 remote keychains, low intro rate for the first year. If we have a problem, we just call him and it gets fixed right away.
(I confess - I work with the guy's wife :O ) :D
KsSooner
9/5/2006, 07:44 PM
My biggest complaint of late is the $35 charge Cingular tried to charge me for upgrading my cell phone. I asked them if this charge was for the privelege of being their customer, and that I had to pay to give them more business?
The customer service rep laughed and said they would waive it. What a racket!
OUHOMER
9/5/2006, 09:19 PM
I got a free receiver a few years ago from Dish. i told them just to disconnet service i was switching. the first guy like to **** his pants. He was like WAIT WAIT, got me to a supervisor, I explained i was swithing to get the new equipment upgrade from Direct... Next thing i know the guy was going to have a tech out with the new receiver and hook my old one up in the bedroom. only cost me $5.00 bucks more a month.
We both won, they got an extra $5 a month I got a free receiver and a hookup in the bedroom... smart on their part if you ask me.
OUinFLA
9/5/2006, 09:34 PM
I look at customers this way.
To say the customer is always right, is incorrect.
However to say the customer is always the customer, is correct.
It costs a lot of money to get a new customer, it is always cheaper to try to keep one.
DING! I work for one of the larger players on the other side of this (credit cards) and this is the correct answer. Your credit card company will get the info for you and try to get the credit back from the hotel on your behalf. Threatening to decline a payment that the hotel already thought they had is a powerful tool.
As you know, it's not just a threat. They will win that dispute every time, according to the law.
Just tell them you will discontinue their service if you don't get a supervisor on the phone pronto.
That was the basis for my rant. I told them I was going to leave and go to their only competitor, and that wasn't good enough, so obviously the schmo I was speaking to could care less about that threat. That's my whole point. These idiots don't place any value in their jobs and that reflects directly on how they view customers. We're seen as a nuisance instead of the source of their liveliehood.
SoonerInFla
9/6/2006, 01:00 AM
I had DirectTv for 7 years. I also wanted an updated receiver with DVR like the rest of civilization. I even went to the supervisor. He said $99.00. I said go bang yourself. Dish was hooked up within 2 days with local channels and DVR.
We switched to ADT a couple of years ago. The guy writing up our order gave us all kinds of free stuff - extra control pads (we have 4), 5 remote keychains, low intro rate for the first year. If we have a problem, we just call him and it gets fixed right away.
(I confess - I work with the guy's wife :O ) :D
Well, the Tulsa office still sucks balls.
I got the reply from them today. They're offering $50 off the $120, but they won't give me a full credit.
I guess this is just the way companies are doing it now. Bye Dish!!!
olevetonahill
9/7/2006, 01:24 AM
I got the reply from them today. They're offering $50 off the $120, but they won't give me a full credit.
I guess this is just the way companies are doing it now. Bye Dish!!!
No
wait
If your going to Direct tell em I sent ya !:D
olevetonahill
9/7/2006, 01:27 AM
I had DirectTv for 7 years. I also wanted an updated receiver with DVR like the rest of civilization. I even went to the supervisor. He said $99.00. I said go bang yourself. Dish was hooked up within 2 days with local channels and DVR.
Ditto but in Reverse !:eek: :eek: :eek: :eek:
I think Bill ( ouIn fla ) Hit the home run with his customer analogy :cool:
Frozen Sooner
9/7/2006, 01:41 AM
It seriously blows my mind how many clients I pick up simply because other brokers won't call them back or bother to do the homework.
Saved a dude $5200 a year today writing him more coverage with the same company he was already with simply because I did the homework and didn't just say "It'll come out in the wash."
I kid you not. His old agent said that they could have written the policy the way I did but that it would work out to approximately the same premium so they didn't check. Good thinking. You just lost an account that had been with you for 20 years earning you $7000 a year in commissions.
soonerboomer93
9/7/2006, 01:47 AM
For the life of me I cannot understand why taking care of the customer is becoming a non-factor for companies.
For instance:
I've been a Dish Network customer for over 3 years. I signed on with them when they first came out with the DVR and I've had the same system ever since. It's a 40 hour, single tuner unit, so I have to watch what I'm recording instead of having the freedom to watch something and record something different.
3 years later everybody has the dual tuner units, including Dish. I'm looking at DirecTV, and they're offering a special right now that you get a free DVR upgrade, $150 cash, free installation, no hidden startup fees, and a free Ipod Nano.
I contacted Dish and told them I would like to stay with them and upgrade to their dual tuner DVR (which is now their standard unit). They told me it was a $120 charge to upgrade to the unit for existing customers. I told them what DirecTV is offering, and I also pointed out that they are offering this unit for free to new Dish customers. I tried explaining to the guy that it would be insane for them to lose me as a customer, when all they have to do is waive that $120 fee, and they'll have me as a customer for a long time to come, more than making up for that small one time charge. Homeboy says he doesn't have the authorization to waive it, and he can't find a supervisor. I gave him my info and he's supposed to have a supervisor call me.
What do you think are the chances of Dish doing the smart thing? I say slim to none. If it's outside of their "policy", most companies are unwilling to do it. People have no value for their existing customers, and they have no desire to build customer loyalty. Instead they just want to offer the latest and greatest in hopes of luring new people in (only to have them leave later on). That's the most boneheaded way of running a business, yet it's becoming the norm.
As a sales person, this thinking is completely foreign to me. Gitomer wrote a fantastic book "Customer Satisfaction is Worthless; Customer Loyalty is Priceless", and it really hits home to the many problems surrounding bad customer service today. "Policy" is a HUGE killer, and IMO the main one is all of the employees not recognizing who is putting food in their childrens stomachs and a roof over their head. It's not the company that is giving them the paycheck; it's the customer that puts in the money.
:mad: :mad: :rolleyes:
Without even looking at your account, I can tell that there's a whole lot more to this story then you're telling. Now, I could be wrong, but the error that would cause this is pretty well, and the fact that you later posted a supervisor looked at your account indicates that it's most likely accurate.
People who bitch about customer service really need to stfu sometimes, and try dealing with it from the other side. Everybody and their brother expects something for free because they've been with a company 2 months and managed to pay their bill. You would not believe how many customers try to demand a month of free service because they have to wait 2 days for a new remote to be shipped out after they dropped it. This is normally on top of the fact that we agreed to waive the charge for the remote even though no warranty covers customer damage.
i think i'll end my rant before i go off even more......
Oh, and btw, I'll waive the upgrade fee all day everyday for a qualified customer, and most of my co-workers are the same way.
olevetonahill
9/7/2006, 01:48 AM
It seriously blows my mind how many clients I pick up simply because other brokers won't call them back or bother to do the homework.
Saved a dude $5200 a year today writing him more coverage with the same company he was already with simply because I did the homework and didn't just say "It'll come out in the wash."
I kid you not. His old agent said that they could have written the policy the way I did but that it would work out to approximately the same premium so they didn't check. Good thinking. You just lost an account that had been with you for 20 years earning you $7000 a year in commissions.
Good on you
You saved the customer money and EARNED a commission !:cool:
oh and spek
olevetonahill
9/7/2006, 01:56 AM
:rolleyes:
Without even looking at your account, I can tell that there's a whole lot more to this story then you're telling. Now, I could be wrong, but the error that would cause this is pretty well, and the fact that you later posted a supervisor looked at your account indicates that it's most likely accurate.
People who bitch about customer service really need to stfu and try dealing with it from the other side. Everybody and their brother expects something for free because they've been with a company 2 months and managed to pay their bill. You would not believe how many customers try to demand a month of free service because they have to wait 2 days for a new remote to be shipped out after they dropped it. This is normally on top of the fact that we agreed to waive the charge for the remote even though no warranty covers customer damage.
i think i'll end my rant before i go off even more......
Oh, and btw, I'll waive the upgrade fee all day everyday for a qualified customer, and most of my co-workers are the same way.
Me STFU ?
No way jose
I had been a Dish customer for years
After College Football season I had my dish put on pause 5 bucks a month
for 7 YEARS i had done that :mad:
Last year after the Bowl games I called em said Pause the DAMN thing .
In March I get a 200 buck bill saying I didnt ask em to put it it on "pause"
All hell whats the Use
If your On this side you see My point if your on that side you see thiers !
So
as My Daddy said one time " Rave on cat**** someone will cover you up "
soonerboomer93
9/7/2006, 01:57 AM
I got a free receiver a few years ago from Dish. i told them just to disconnet service i was switching. the first guy like to **** his pants. He was like WAIT WAIT, got me to a supervisor, I explained i was swithing to get the new equipment upgrade from Direct... Next thing i know the guy was going to have a tech out with the new receiver and hook my old one up in the bedroom. only cost me $5.00 bucks more a month.
We both won, they got an extra $5 a month I got a free receiver and a hookup in the bedroom... smart on their part if you ask me.
Hell, from this story I can tell what homer's account looks like. There's really only 1 thing you need to do to get good customer service with a lot of companies and threatening to cancel isn't it.
Frozen Sooner
9/7/2006, 01:57 AM
Thanks, olevet. What's priceless about the whole deal is that the old agent was feeding the guy a line about how unethical I was and how I had to be lying etcetera. I just kept telling him that his old agent was good at their job but that they just may not know as much about the garage and dealers form as I do and I just saw a better way to write things.
Hey, you own an auto repair business, right?
soonerboomer93
9/7/2006, 01:58 AM
Me STFU ?
No way jose
I had been a Dish customer for years
After College Football season I had my dish put on pause 5 bucks a month
for 7 YEARS i had done that :mad:
Last year after the Bowl games I called em said Pause the DAMN thing .
In March I get a 200 buck bill saying I didnt ask em to put it it on "pause"
All hell whats the Use
If your On this side you see My point if your on that side you see thiers !
So
as My Daddy said one time " Rave on cat**** someone will cover you up "
Nope, not to you at all. I have learned to see both sides. I'll send you a pm.
Frozen Sooner
9/7/2006, 02:03 AM
Hell, from this story I can tell what homer's account looks like. There's really only 1 thing you need to do to get good customer service with a lot of companies and threatening to cancel isn't it.
Dude, tell me what it is. I generally get good customer service but there's a couple of places where I just can't seem to catch a break.
I generally only demand a refund of service if I experience a serious disruption-like a week or more with no service through no fault of my own.
But man, when my phone went out at the beginning of the year, it took them two weeks to even tell me when they'd have someone look at it. From there, it was another week until it was fixed. Three full weeks without phone service in a major metropolitan area. Hell, it took them a week to even admit that I'd HAD a phone line for the last three years.
No refund of service was offered.
No service alternative was offered.
Nothing.
During week three I flipped my lid and demanded money off on my bill and money to pay for the extra usage of my cellular phone. They gave it to me, but I had to talk to a supervisor.
Man, I was torqued. I've been a phone, internet, and cable customer of these people for going on seven years, and my total bill with them is around $175-200 a month. Never so much as a day late on a payment.
olevetonahill
9/7/2006, 02:14 AM
Hell, from this story I can tell what homer's account looks like. There's really only 1 thing you need to do to get good customer service with a lot of companies and threatening to cancel isn't it.
Then what the hell is It?
Talking to a "supervisor " ( ya heheheh who wants to be supervisor today )
doesnt work
So F em, as long as there is a Competitor they need to Take the Customer seriously .
Or just lose Customers :P
Frozen Sooner
9/7/2006, 02:17 AM
olevet-
You've got a rather lengthy PM with some non-specific advice. :D
soonerboomer93
9/7/2006, 02:21 AM
Nope, talking to a supervisor doesn't work in most cases.
I'll reveal it in 7 days, in this thread, when my resignation takes effect (dependant on a meeting I have on Friday).
olevetonahill
9/7/2006, 02:40 AM
Nope, talking to a supervisor doesn't work in most cases.
I'll reveal it in 7 days, in this thread, when my resignation takes effect (dependant on a meeting I have on Friday).
lets see you are 1tc or the Lazy guy or other guy which is it ? :P
soonerboomer93
9/7/2006, 02:55 AM
I'm the guy who has to fly to Houston tomorrow, and then to South Korea the following Friday. He might be in the field as a MWD, I'll be working materials tracability on new platform constuction.
85Sooner
9/7/2006, 08:18 AM
I thought this thread was gonna be about 85Sooner.
:texan:
What , huh, whadImiss.:pop:
:rolleyes:
Without even looking at your account, I can tell that there's a whole lot more to this story then you're telling. Now, I could be wrong, but the error that would cause this is pretty well, and the fact that you later posted a supervisor looked at your account indicates that it's most likely accurate.
People who bitch about customer service really need to stfu sometimes, and try dealing with it from the other side. Everybody and their brother expects something for free because they've been with a company 2 months and managed to pay their bill. You would not believe how many customers try to demand a month of free service because they have to wait 2 days for a new remote to be shipped out after they dropped it. This is normally on top of the fact that we agreed to waive the charge for the remote even though no warranty covers customer damage.
i think i'll end my rant before i go off even more......
Oh, and btw, I'll waive the upgrade fee all day everyday for a qualified customer, and most of my co-workers are the same way.
Actually Rasputin, I don't think I could fit in any more details to this story. Like I said, I've been a customer for 3 years, not 2 months. Is 3 years not a long term customer? Before you decide to break out a rant, you need to stop trusting your psychic ability and instead read what I'm saying. Why the mess would I have a reason to hide something on a messageboard that I know not one single person outside of here???
What "error" would cause this? Did you even read the post???? It's all policy that they don't offer the promo's to their existing customers. They offer this promo all day to new customers, but they take a dump on their existing customers. It's really that simple, and both companies do it.
SBC had a promo for their new customers to sign on and get the DSL rate of $19.95 a month. Meanwhile I was paying $24.95. I called them, and they said they don't automatically change all their existing customers to the new rate, but if we call they would change it. They got wise on their next $14.95 promo and only made that deal available through online ordering so the phone agents didn't have access to it. Regardless, they took care of me the first time and did the right thing.
Instead of ranting about generalities, why don't you break down the reasons I might not get an upgrade since you seem to know the reason? I've never paid my bill late. I moved with Dish from DFW to Atlanta. I've been with them for over 3 years. I buy ppv instead of renting DVD's. Instead of cancelling Dish in DFW and signing on here as a new customer to get the new equipment (which you know they would not catch), I did the honest thing and moved my service. Boy I tell ya... I'm a HORRIBLE customer that Dish should have no problem losing. :rolleyes:
I understand what you're saying about some customers ranting about customer service when they're not good customers to a company. However I have been in sales for years and I KNOW what is good customer service, so don't accuse me of being some idiot that is being totally irrational in my request. I broke down the logic for you, but instead of noting the obvious, you try to dig for a hidden reason. :les:
opksooner
9/7/2006, 10:34 AM
Names, names, names........
It's amazing how co-operative phone answerers are when you know who they are. In the case of the hotel reservation, having the name of a "person" on their staff would have given credibility to the complaint.
Names, dates, times....... Document, folks!!
soonerboomer93
9/7/2006, 11:18 AM
Actually Rasputin, I don't think I could fit in any more details to this story. Like I said, I've been a customer for 3 years, not 2 months. Is 3 years not a long term customer? Before you decide to break out a rant, you need to stop trusting your psychic ability and instead read what I'm saying. Why the mess would I have a reason to hide something on a messageboard that I know not one single person outside of here???
What "error" would cause this? Did you even read the post???? It's all policy that they don't offer the promo's to their existing customers. They offer this promo all day to new customers, but they take a dump on their existing customers. It's really that simple, and both companies do it.
SBC had a promo for their new customers to sign on and get the DSL rate of $19.95 a month. Meanwhile I was paying $24.95. I called them, and they said they don't automatically change all their existing customers to the new rate, but if we call they would change it. They got wise on their next $14.95 promo and only made that deal available through online ordering so the phone agents didn't have access to it. Regardless, they took care of me the first time and did the right thing.
Instead of ranting about generalities, why don't you break down the reasons I might not get an upgrade since you seem to know the reason? I've never paid my bill late. I moved with Dish from DFW to Atlanta. I've been with them for over 3 years. I buy ppv instead of renting DVD's. Instead of cancelling Dish in DFW and signing on here as a new customer to get the new equipment (which you know they would not catch), I did the honest thing and moved my service. Boy I tell ya... I'm a HORRIBLE customer that Dish should have no problem losing. :rolleyes:
I understand what you're saying about some customers ranting about customer service when they're not good customers to a company. However I have been in sales for years and I KNOW what is good customer service, so don't accuse me of being some idiot that is being totally irrational in my request. I broke down the logic for you, but instead of noting the obvious, you try to dig for a hidden reason. :les:
I'm hardly Rasputin when it comes to dish customers. I've helped many people on this board who've had issues with dish. Based on the information you provided, you're not giving complete details.
I will send you a PM for clarification.
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