What is "world class" customer service to you?

[paxxus]

I sometimes read that this and that company has "world class" customer service (CS) without really understanding what is meant by that - sometimes I think people may confuse this with simply upholding a stated warranty (which you have implicitly paid for), but I'm not sure. What constitutes "world class" CS? I mean, as opposed to just normal CS where you expect someone will handle your problem in a timely manner and get it fixed, keeping warranty promises, etc.?

Let me tell a little story about CS:

Some years ago I bought an audio amplifier from a French company located in France, nothing super fancy but not cheap either - I think it was around $500. So, it arrived quickly (clue) and all was good, but I did discover a slight cosmetic imperfection on the volume knob. I debated whether it was worth even bothering about since it was such a small detail, but eventuality I shot them a mail asking what they thought about it and whether it would be possible for them to just send me a new knob and I could fix it myself no problem. Very quickly I got a response (clue), in fact a few hours later. The response was very polite (clue) and basically one big apology (clue) that I as a customer was not 100% satisfied with their product - I actually got the distinct impression that they were genuinely surprised and even shocked that something, however small, could possibly be wrong with my unit. They asked me to send it back immediately so they could rectify the problem, they would not accept my offer to just let them send me a new part. At this point I was somewhat embarrassed that I had started this avalanche over such a small issue (the mails were basically going back and forth in real time now) and I made it very clear that the issue was really very minor. They would not hear of that, I should send it back right away and they provided me with a FedEx number I could use for the shipping at their expense (clue). OK, no problem, there was a FedEx shop on my way to work so I dropped it off there Wednesday morning so it could go back to France for service. Friday afternoon I got a call from FedEx that they had tried to deliver a packet! You got that right, round-trip Denmark/France including repair and I get the unit back two days later! (clue) No problem, I would just pick it up at the FedEx shop on my way home from work. Inside the packet was the unit (the same one, same serial) with a new volume knob fitted and it has functioned flawlessly ever since. To this day I cannot understand how this was humanly possible, but I assume that the basic quality of the product (clue) ensures that the CS and technicians are not that busy and therefore ready to handle the few odd issues that might pop up.

I just read this at their site: "... quality, reliability and traceability are not targets only, but also effective and daily duties for the staff". Sounds like BS doesn't it? Well, you better believe it!

So there you have it.

1) Fast delivery of product.
2) Fast response to any issues the customer might have.
3) Kind and polite response.
4) The right attitude #1 "A customer is not satisfied? That's not right!"
5) The right attitude #2 " Our product has some kind of flaw!? That is unacceptable and must be rectified immediately!"
6) Shipping payed both ways.
7) Fast shipping.
8) Quick service and return of fixed product.
9) Overall high product quality ensuring very few problems in the first place.

This is what I would consider "world class" customer service.

So where should we set the bar of normal CS? What do you consider "normal", "above normal" and "world class" CS? I'm really only interested in positive stories since we can all easily imagine what bad CS is

 

[LukeA]

With Pelican:

1. I find a crack in the body of my 1900 Mitylite. I had it stored with alkalines inside, pressure must've built up and cracked the light.
2. I call Pelican. They give me an RMA# and tell me to mail them the broken light, a dollar, and a card with the RMA written on it in the same package.
3. Within a week, I got a brand new light in blister packaging.
So, I paid for shipping both ways (total: under $2) and got a free replacement for a $20 light that was bought a full decade earlier.

I also sent back an overdischarged 7060 battery on a different occasion, and I didn't have to put money with it for return shipping.

For products of MSRP $20 and $40 respectively, I think that's pretty good.

 

[Sub_Umbra]

When I read your Subject I thought of "Cross Shipping."

If there's a problem that's not my fault I'd appreciate it if they can ship the replacement right away -- without waiting for the faulty goods to fully return. You usually have to ask for cross shipping on a return. When that rare thing goes wrong, the willingness to cross ship goes a long way towards restoring my faith in a company.

Here's an example of "world class customer service" I'll probably never see again. True story. Back in the early 1970s I staked out a Homestead not far from the Kuskiquim river in Alaska's interior. My plan was to fly out there and build a cabin by myself at the start of September with the first snow. I had a great deal of winter gear at the time but I took the oportunity to order ~$380 worth of goose down gear from the old Eddie Bauer company. This was back when they were taken very seriously by climbers and those who lived 'in back of beyond.' Before they morphed into a 'Dude Store.'

I got the full order in plenty of time but there was an added note inside that said that although they had shipped the full order they had to inform me that I had made a mistake in my calculations and the money order I had sent them made me $20 short for the goods shipped. They said that they did a great deal of business with Alaskans and they understood how important deadlines were when dealing with the changing seasons in that even any slight delay may mean that an entire project may have to be put off for another year and they did not want that to happen to me.

I sent them the money right away. I was completely blown away. From then on they had me. I doubt I'll ever see anything like that again.

That is World Class customer service to me.

 

[Manzerick]

>Reserved for my soap box<< LOL

 

[e2x2e]

With Pelican:

1. I find a crack in the body of my 1900 Mitylite. I had it stored with alkalines inside, pressure must've built up and cracked the light.
2. I call Pelican. They give me an RMA# and tell me to mail them the broken light, a dollar, and a card with the RMA written on it in the same package.
3. Within a week, I got a brand new light in blister packaging.
So, I paid for shipping both ways (total: under $2) and got a free replacement for a $20 light that was bought a full decade earlier.

I also sent back an overdischarged 7060 battery on a different occasion, and I didn't have to put money with it for return shipping.

For products of MSRP $20 and $40 respectively, I think that's pretty good.

I had the same exact problem. They sent me a check though, not a new light. I think somebody else on this forum had the same problem also, must be common.

 

[fireboltr]

So far I would have to vote Surefire.....

I have (reads me) screwed up a couple of my lights from hard use/abuse and all i have ever had to do is call them and parts are on the way.....

Heck I wasnt happy with the pocket clip on the E1L and they sent me 2 E1B clips no questions asked....

They updated the G2l after my owning one for a couple of months...No problem the new "updated" (aluminum) bezel on the way....

Broken lens no problem new bezel on the way.....
I burned through a lens and damaged a reflector welding....no problem new parts on the way.


I have had absolutely no problems with Surefire c.s. as of this date.....

 

[LukeA]

I had the same exact problem. They sent me a check though, not a new light. I think somebody else on this forum had the same problem also, must be common.

I remember telling them that I knew the light's design had changed and that the different one was fine by me. Maybe that's the difference. :shrug:

 

[dudemar]

JSBurly's is an example of world class customer service. There are quite a few CPFers who can vouch for him. Last year I ordered a battery from Jon. It arrived in the mail, and upon inspection I found there was some rust on it. Seeing how it was a $20 battery, I kindly asked Jon if he could send me a new one (after I pay for it, of course). He shocked me by saying he would send me a replacement for free- NQA.

It doesn't stop there. A month or so later, the battery never came. Concerned, I asked Jon about it. He said he mailed it out 3 weeks ago, that it should've arrived at my doorstep by now. Obviously it was lost in USPS mail, and chances are it was never to be seen again. He said he would send me another replacement, again NQA. Amazing. Sure enough a week later the new battery arrived, and I was happier than ever.

Oh, and the battery that was lost by UPS? It finally arrived two and a half months later. When I told Jon about it, you wouldn't believe his answer: he said I could keep it. I wanted to send him some cash to compensate him for his loss, but he insisted it's free. All at a time when he was struggling with his business. As a businessman that is the most selfless thing you can do.

He is, quite frankly, the best. I guess it bears repeating, CS just doesn't get any better than that! We need more people like Jon. I salute you.:goodjob:

 

[NA8]

Gene Malkoff

http://www.malkoffdevices.com/shop2/

The kind of good service that you only get from an owner operated business, who has a passion for what he does, and the ability to pull it off.

 

[LuxLuthor]

World Class service is exceedingly rare. The French company fixing your knob was certainly great...even really great service. All I can say is when you experience "World Class Service" you know it, and most people will never experience it.

 

[binky]

Disney. Disney World anyway. I don't know what Disney Land is like these days. I hope it's the same way.

A bunch of years ago I left my Arc LSH-P in my hotel room. I called. The cleaning service searched & found it and asked me what address I'd like them to ship it to. They shipped it at their expense even though I suggested I pay.

That's the flashlight part of it. The rest was they smooth manner in which they cared for me & my sleepy & grumpy children, and another time when one of my guys gulped down a huge sugary chocolate milk when he was just way, way too hot (bad idea)... You get the picture. Instantaneously, cleanup people just appeared out of nowhere to help and the waitress assured us everything was fine (because my guy was just so embarassed about it).

 

[Robocop]

I believe that as far as lights are concerned many makers start out with good intentions. I have seen many here offer great products however they do so on the very edge of surviving as a small business. They may have an awesome product however as a struggling maker they simply can not compete with the giants out there for customer service.

Sure they start off replacing lights for any reason and build a reputation as having excellent customer service. In time they simply can not afford to replace many of the lights as once again they are working on a much smaller scale than someone such as SureFire or Pelican.

The giant companies out there can deal with the small percent of very picky customers or even a small percentage of defective products and still survive. They simply absorb the cost and replace almost anything for any reason. Now a custom maker or small dealer for example may be able to do this with say 5 lights before they go into the negative.....then they become much more strict and as such lose business to those who have better customer service.

As far as the bigger companies are concerned I will say SureFire suprised me several times with excellent customer service. I damaged my past SF duty lights several times and each time it was my fault. I simply phoned to ask if I could purchase replacement parts or a few times an entire light and each time they simply asked for my address and sent whatever I needed right away. They charged me zero for the parts and yes this made a huge impression on me and I can easily see why so many officers use this product.

I do remember the old days of Arc when the maker had a no hassle policy and simply did almost anything to make customers satisfied. This is a great example of a smaller company going overboard to build a good reputation on customer service. I am sure they lost money from time to time yet again their past efforts still ensure many loyal customers today......it also let them sell many lights for a very long time.

Excellent customer service is growing more rare these days however I feel it is simply a matter of competition, materials and up front costs. I also believe as far as we here are concerned that we are a very picky lot on the very edge of wanting perfection in every product. I am guilty of this as well and have been spoiled from the past dealers who gave that extra effort. Yes I gripe about tint and finish blemishes and will probably always do so however I can understand as to why a maker would go broke if they catered to every little thing.

If a maker can do it right the first time I still feel customer service will not be much of an issue however it costs much up front to do it right the first time. If I had to give an example of a smaller maker who now has excellent service and a great product it would be someone such as Orb. Not sure how he manages to make so many lights up front without pre-pays however he does just that. He also has great service however from what I see does not have many returns or even complaints at all. So he did it right all this time and now can afford to try and please the few who are very strict about their lights.

This is an interesting thread and we all know I can go on for hours and say nothing at all... So for now I will say we still have very many who offer world class customer service and for those I am thankful. I will also say we had many who tried hard to offer the same and went broke doing so. I am also thankful for them as well yet competition these days is tough. Lights are often so similiar in specs the deciding factor for many is based on service and warranty reputation.

 

[jzmtl]

I had an old Victorinox classic that's over ten years old and banged up from living on my keychain. The scissor spring finally broke and the logo fell off from the scale. I thought what the heck I'll send it in. Sometime later a brand new replacement was in my mailbox (can't remember how long it took because I wasn't expecting anything). I was so impressed with their warrenty I now have three more Victorinox knife and a swisstool spirit.

 

[DieselTech]

I've had lots of good or great customer service. I've walked into the Stihl dealer at five minutes before closing time to drop off my string trimmer for a repair, and they insisted that they stay late to fix it so I didn't have to leave it. That was great.

But thus far, the only 'world class' customer service was from Ham Radio Outlet in Atlanta, Georgia. Several years ago, I had just acquired my Technician license. I ordered a Yaesu FT8800, Diamond antenna, and several other things from HRO. My order arrived, and to my surprise it was incorrect. They simply pulled the wrong radio (A 7800, I believe) from the stock and shipped it to me. The package arrived during the week. I was disappointed to have received the wrong radio, but it wasn't too big of an issue. I posted on an amateur radio forum that evening about my experience, and stated that I would call HRO the next morning to sort it out.

Well, the next morning, HRO called me. A representative (Dale, I think. It's been a few years, my memory is rusty) had read my post on the forum, and wanted to be sure things got sorted out as soon as possible. They overnighted me the FT8800 I ordered, along with a shipping label to send the incorrect radio back. I was astonished. They contacted me, then just on my word that I'd received the wrong unit sent me what I stated was correct, along with a shipping label to return the incorrect one, in the same box as the correct one. A few months after that experience, I made a point to stop by their booth at a convention in Huntsville and thank them again for such excellent customer service.

That experience happened...gosh, probably six years ago. But I remember it to this day, and any new radio equipment that I purchase comes from them. Sometimes I pay a little more, but I don't mind because I know that should I ever need it, their customer service will be top notch.

 

[Crenshaw]

my best customer service as far as lights go has been from Gene Malkoff, and Fenix-store, aka 4sevens.com. Light hound is pretty dang good too. Gene Replaced a slightly faulty M60 that was from a bad batch, via express mail, to singapore, which would not have been cheap. the people at fenix store cross posted an L0DQ4 what arrived dead. Light hound correspondence is lightning fast!

and i know this may cause some dismay, but the earlier days of Deal extreme were pretty good too!

Crenshaw

 

[Diesel_Bomber]

I have a commercial account at a local Napa auto parts. When I walk in I'm greeted by name and most of the time the employee greeting me will come around the counter to shake my hand. Several times a client of mine has been broken down and I've needed a part RFN. I call NAPA ten minutes AFTER closing and someone always picks up. Even before I started the commercial account, they were willing to set the part in a special spot outside for me to pick up when I got there. Service like that, and complete confidence that if there's a problem they'll make it right, is well worth their extra cost.

:buddies:

 

[Monocrom]

Since the accident that totalled my car, I've been using a 16 year-old Mercury Sable sedan belonging to a relative. At the end of a 16 hour shift, I climb in; and the battery is dead. It was barely able to hold a charge. Had to get two jumpstarts at work.

Got the car to an Exxon station that also doubles as a repair shop. The mechanic was friendly and helpful. I knew the problem was likely the battery, and hoped it wasn't the alternator. The station was only a few blocks from work, and was recommended to me.

As I sat down and waited, the mechanic soon told me I was all set. The mechanic had checked the battery and alternator. Problem was the battery. Battery was replaced for a fair price, and I was on my way.

That's world class customer service right there. The mechanic could have easily said that it was the alternator, charged me a ton of money, and there'd be nothing I could do about it; especially since I was stuck in the neighborhood near my job. (Not close to home).

BTW, the mechanic was a young woman named Jennifer.

 

[dudemar]

Since the accident that totalled my car, I've been using a 16 year-old Mercury Sable sedan belonging to a relative. At the end of a 16 hour shift, I climb in; and the battery is dead. It was barely able to hold a charge. Had to get two jumpstarts at work.

Got the car to an Exxon station that also doubles as a repair shop. The mechanic was friendly and helpful. I knew the problem was likely the battery, and hoped it wasn't the alternator. The station was only a few blocks from work, and was recommended to me.

As I sat down and waited, the mechanic soon told me I was all set. The mechanic had checked the battery and alternator. Problem was the battery. Battery was replaced for a fair price, and I was on my way.

That's world class customer service right there. The mechanic could have easily said that it was the alternator, charged me a ton of money, and there'd be nothing I could do about it; especially since I was stuck in the neighborhood near my job. (Not close to home).

BTW, the mechanic was a young woman named Jennifer.

I like your story Mono, that's the kind of service everyone deserves.

 

[paxxus]

Since the accident that totalled my car, I've been using a 16 year-old Mercury Sable sedan belonging to a relative. At the end of a 16 hour shift, I climb in; and the battery is dead. It was barely able to hold a charge. Had to get two jumpstarts at work.

Got the car to an Exxon station that also doubles as a repair shop. The mechanic was friendly and helpful. I knew the problem was likely the battery, and hoped it wasn't the alternator. The station was only a few blocks from work, and was recommended to me.

As I sat down and waited, the mechanic soon told me I was all set. The mechanic had checked the battery and alternator. Problem was the battery. Battery was replaced for a fair price, and I was on my way.

That's world class customer service right there. The mechanic could have easily said that it was the alternator, charged me a ton of money, and there'd be nothing I could do about it; especially since I was stuck in the neighborhood near my job. (Not close to home).

BTW, the mechanic was a young woman named Jennifer.

That's what I'm trying to get at in this thread. While young Jennifer might in her own right have made your experience world class, not being a fraud (making you pay for stuff that does not need replacing) is not world class, that's normal (or at least I hope so).

Same thing with warranty. Let's say I buy a hammer with life time warranty and after 20 years the handle breaks. You then get the hammer replaced not questions asked. That's good service, but world class? No. You payed for that warranty when you bought that hammer, not honoring that warranty when it is needed would be fraud. And let's not forget that the hammer broke in the first place.

To me world class customer service is something special, something extra that you wouldn't expect.

A good test is to mentally remove the part from the experience which you think is "world class" and see if the resulting hypothetical experience is now what you would consider "normal" customer service. So, unless you think making you pay for parts that do not need replacing or not honoring a warranty you payed for is normal, something that would not disappoint you, then neither my hammer example or your mechanic experience passes this test. Of course, in your case you would also need to mentally replace young Jennifer with a big hairy dude

 

[Monocrom]

That's what I'm trying to get at in this thread. While young Jennifer might in her own right have made your experience world class, not being a fraud (making you pay for stuff that does not need replacing) is not world class, that's normal (or at least I hope so).

Nope. Not normal.

That's why I still have to call it world class customer service.