Why can't all companies be like this??? (1 Viewer)

Wasn't sure where to post... hope it's OK here!

By all means call me a cynical dog, but over my 50 odd years I have been frequently disappointed, if not totally incensed and disgusted, by the average company’s Customer Service.

Here, for those who chose to read it, is a genuine (no I don’t work for them, or have shares) experience of what Customer Service SHOULD be –

About 3 years ago I received a gift of a Logitech cordless keyboard and mouse. It’s been great, no problems until the other day when the mouse stopped charging its internal batteries.
I looked on-line for a replacement, but wasn’t sure which new model would work with my keyboard, so with that instant expectation you get of wasted time and money, I decided to phone the help desk number. And this is where my story really starts…
No ringing for ages, it was answered in 2 rings! No Indians or Pakistanis that I couldn’t understand or couldn’t understand me (like Dell or AOL)– I think he was Swiss but with perfect English. No 3 to 4 minute wait while you work your way through an automated system (like BT or Sky) – just a real person, straight away, that we could each understand. And it just got better…

Although I wasn’t sure of an exact purchase date, and although I had no receipt, I was told I’d get a free replacement – it was still covered by warranty!!
Better yet, they wouldn’t just replace the mouse but the whole system (keboard included) and it’s here – it arrived within 3 days!!!

I know what company I’ll use for my next purchase – if Logitech make it, I’ll buy that brand in future.

Thanks for listening, and I hope it helps your decision making process sometime.

OK, who invited the Logitech shill to the party? It's bad enough we have the SVS gang posting false stories, now Logitech?

Seriously, I've bought a few things from them over the years and the CS is great. My Harmony remote is flawless and the online service was a great help.

M&K has good customer service as well, even though they are small I realize they don't get 50,000 calls a day from angry customers.

What really shocks me is how friendly my auto insurance providers are, normally insurance providers are always crap, but Progressive doesn't do a bad job. They have always helped with my problems, and when I joke with them they don't give me the fake laugh.

I've always said: Bad companies don't create bad customer service, BAD CUSTOMERS create bad customer service. Perhaps Logitech hasn't gotten to that point......yet

If I had to deal with the HORDES of dumbass calls from AOL and Dell, I wouldn't be providing top notch service either.

Case in point, I went to the Adobe knowledgebase and I'm AMAZED at the dumbass questions being asked!!! No wonder the company doesn't provide free customer service calls anymore. Most of these idiots shouldn't even be running computers, much less highly advanced software. :rolleyes

A few weeks worth of people calling me to ask how to create a table (in Dreamweaver) and I'd be saying "F** YOU ALL! No more free service!!"

Delta faucets have pretty impressive service. I got one of their faucets recently that had a bad O-ring on the "squirter on a hose" thingie. I called them up and they FedEx'ed me a new assembly immediately.

What's that phone number stewart. I've got a cordless logitech combo that won't charge for shit.

Depending where you are this may not be the right one, but if you look on their web page there's cover in most countries -

United Kingdom
Logi (U.K.) LTD
Units 9/10, Shaftsbury Court
18 Chalvey Park
UK - Berkshire, SL1 2ER, Slough
+44 (0)1753-870 900 Trade Sales Enquires
+44 (0)207-3090127 Product Information
+44 (0)207-3090126 Technical Help

Good luck,

Interesting point Mark, not sure I agree, but interesting point. Do you work in Customer Services and have to handle all the crap?

Well, I'm sure a lot also has to do with making a profit and finding the cheapest way to handle support...but there it is again...the more uneducated people you have using the products, the more questions they are going to have - the more questions they have, the more support you'll need - the more support you need, the more profit you're going to lose in order to pay that support - the more profit you lose, the more you'll seek 'overseas' help.

Overseas help is cheap because these people just read from a computer and have no idea what they are talking about. They just go through the motions. I can't blame a company like Dell or AOL for using them. How else are they going to handle the idiots who don't know what an ethernet connection is????

I tend to agree, though it's probably not limited to overseas. I recently had a problem with my Quicken online updates. For some reason, my accounts were not updating. I went through the Quicken help desk, and could tell the person on the other side was basically going off a script. I had given a detailed description of what I had already tried (powering off, turning off anti-virus, firewalls, deleting/creating test accounts, etc. etc.) yet I was advised to try each of these steps again. After an hour of waiting and useless advice, I hung up and called Charles Schwab.

Within two minutes, the Schwab guy had pinpointed the issue. (I had upgraded to Internet Explorer 7 Beta fairly recently and was told to check the "Use SSL 2.0" box in my browser settings.) Problem fixed.

I had a problem with a CD drive on my Dell desktop and the service guy was definitely reading from a script, but he was actually cool about it. At first he said "I want you to reboot the system...." etc. etc. - I told him I had already troubleshooted as much as I could and did everything (from re-installing drivers to pulling the system apart and swapping IDE cables, etc.) - It was funny because you knew he HAD to go through each of his troubleshooting steps before he could get to the real support area, so I humored him (which he totally knew) and he'd say "Ok, reboot the computer" and I'd immediately say "Ok, I just did and I'm back to the desktop" then he'd tell me to take apart the computer and swap IDE cables. I immediately said "Ok - it still doesn't work"

finally he said "Ok, we need you to send us the drive back"

I had some quick support from Dell when the light burned out on a notebook LCD. I had the replacement in 2 days. Same with a notebook keyboard issue. I didn't have to jump through any hoops to get the problem solved.

And with Logitech, the battery cover latch on my Harmony remote broke. I sent in a support request asking how to get a replacement, and in the reply they just asked for a mailing address and shipped a new cover for free.

And even at companies with perceived bad customer service, there's always the gem of a service rep that will get the job done without all the BS. You just have to be the lucky SOB that gets connected to him or her.

And sometimes, the problem isn't the people, but the over-complexity of the customer service system they have in place.

I've never had a problem with dell once I've waded through the automated stuff and then the troubleshooting steps I've already taken. But all of that wading can take 40 minutes!

People want cheap products but spectacular service. The two don't go hand in hand.

$399 Dell deal != top-notch customer service

Seems simple to me anyway.

Ever wonder why Dell support is bad?

I assume this is real, but if so, THIS is exactly why customer service is so poor. Like I said, BAD customers make for bad support. Try dealing with these people all day long and you'll know why Dell outcources support.

WARNING: Bad language in the link above!

To briefly follow up on this, I finally got off my ass and called Logitech tech support. My problem was also eratic charging plus I had problems like the 'buttons' sticking so that it would issue multiple clicks. Taking it apart and attempting to clean things didn't help. After taking a bunch of information from me regarding part numbers and such for all the things (keyboard, charger, wall wart, mouse) and running through things on the computer, I was told that I'd be receiving their MX-3200 setup. My older set was the MX-300. They asked that I simply black out any numbers on the devices if I intended to keep using it which I won't since it's going in the trash. No charge. 7-10 days till I get it. Good job Logitech. Now about all those folks who buy receivers that get buggy...

I had the exact same experience with Logitech. My keyboard quit, they sent me a replacement after a quick call. No fuss, no muss.

Also great customer service experiences:

KOSS (head phones). Lifetime warranty on some models. Don't even have to call them, just send in the phones (with $6 for shipping) and you get a new pair in the mail in no time.

Best CS experience ever:

Kingston (computer memory, camera memory, computer components): I was having some difficulty getting my two Kingston memory modules working in what's called "dual configuration" (memory works faster, for the non tech-savvy) after buying a new motherboard for my computer (I'd had the memory for two years). The motherboard manufacturer suggested I contact Kingston to try to get some information about settings for the memory.

So I email Kingston to ask about memory timings. I get a response within a half hour(!), asking me for serial numbers from the memory so they can determine if my two modules are identical (as required for dual channel use). I email them, they determine that the modules are not identical and ask me to call them so they can arrange to replace them with two identical ones. I call, no fighting through a dozen menus, no holding, talk to a friendly, English-speaking woman who quickly makes all the arrangements, including paying for me to ship my memory to Kingston. Now, keep in mind that this is memory which has been working flawlessly for two years, as I told them. They sent out the new memory that same day. Needless to say, I was floored.

That's what I did w/ HP.
I found HP's service excellent. My turnaround on a hard drive exchange was 4 days. That's impressive.

Dell Desktop support. Crappy. Took 3 hours to convince I had troubleshooted the hard drive as beginning to fail in month 2 of having the PC.

I always joke w/ the Mike, Chris, Laura, Not Krishna and Wendy's and ask that they don't sound like any Wendy I know.
I don't have an issue w/ the accent as long as I can get some sort of resolving action going promptly.

4 months ago, I booked a trip thru Expedia.com to Las Vegas for me, my gf and her 2 friends. Less than 48 hours before the departure, my gf called and asked to postpone the trip as her mother was ill. Well, I think all of you know how much penalty will be charged if the dates get changed for the hotel rooms, flights, and the rental car....especially for 4 people. I was looking potentially at almost $1,000 in penalties To cut a long story short, I spoke with a Expedia rep out of the Philippines and he ended up not charging us any of the penalties other than for the flights (the penalties for the flights were charged by the airline). We even got credit back since we postponed the trip, not cancelling it. I was so impressed with the customer service I received that I asked to speak with his supervisor, who then gave me another $25.00 credit for my next trip booked through Expedia. Well, I am going to Las Vegas again, and guess what? Booked the trip thru Expedia again and received the $25.00 credit.

Having been a call-center CS rep myself for GTE Wireless (now Verizon), I understand the importance of providing good CS. The rep is an important part of good CS, but the company's management should also empower its reps to satisfy the customers. Unfortunately, most companies have no idea what the heck they are doing on the CS front.

Sorry Danny, I didn't read your entire post - I sort of went into a daze after your first sentence about going to Las Vegas with your girlfriend and two other girls.