As my research agenda has turned lately to thinking more about business and how companies can maximize their profits, I’ve spent a lot of time pondering customer service.
So far, this is the single best example of customer service I have ever heard about, courtesy of Zappos.
The Zappos story will be difficult to beat, but I’m interested in hearing from readers about your best customer service experiences. I’ve written about one of mine.
What was yours? What made it so great?
and 
. You can also watch it on 
Wow, that Zappos story is pretty hard to beat! I will be (pleasantly) amazed if anyone can top it.
As for myself, just last week I ordered a laptop from Newegg online. I paid for 2-day shipping, which I estimated (including time to fulfill the order in their warehouse) meant I’d get it in 4 days, maybe 3 if I was lucky. Guess what … it arrived 2 days later! In the morning, no less! This means that both Newegg and the delivery company (UPS) had gone the extra mile for my order.
Anyway, my story seems meager and small next to the Zappos one … but there you go.
Not the first time I’ve read about Zappos and am most certainly a customer. Harvard wrote about their hiring practices a little while ago, very interesting…
http://discussionleader.hbsp.com/taylor/2008/05/wy_zappos_pays_new_employees_t.html
This is a great example of why smart long-term business decision (consistent with profit maximization) are usually those that are socially responsible. In the long-term, society only likes to do business with socially responsible companies. Companies that are socially irresponsible aren’t immoral (necessarily); they are short sighted.
Here’s an example of bad customer service:
Someone from the Boy’s and Girl’s Club of America tried to collect donations from me, and said “Sir, may I ask you a question.” I was in a rush, and my train was arriving, so I told him “sorry, I’m busy.” To which he replied, “we’ll f&*k you then.”
To be fair, I believe he was a high school student asking for donations, which the Boys’ and Girls’ Club of America frequently does. They should change their motto: “The Boys’ and Girls’ Club: Taking kids off the streets, then putting them back on to collect money.”
I’ve used Zappos quite a bit myself, never had any problems and it’s worth noting that they also have great prices. Probably because they’re so competative on a price scale that they can really nail in barriers to entry with great customer service. It’s really hard to be a second mover if nobody has a reason to leave the company they use already.
Yup. Zappos offers new trainees $1000 to quit if they aren’t totally onboard with the corporate mission of customer satisfaction. They empower their employees to be nice. And no amount of advertising dollars can generate the kind of positive feelings that free press like this does. If only more companies would follow their example…enriching themselves by enriching others.
Around 15 years ago, I worked in Customer Service for a major hotel chain. At the time, they had a corporate relationship with a national gift basket company which meant that, if I felt it appropriate, I was allowed to pick out a gift basket and send it to a customer. I was supposed to only do it if I felt it would help retain them as a customer, and I wasn’t supposed to tell the person to expect it. It was meant to be a surprise. A couple weeks later, they’d get a gift apologizing for their bad experience at our hotel, and wishing we could have done more to make their stay more pleasant. Of course, I always preferred to give them a full refund or whatever it was they asked for, but when policies kept my hands tied the least I could do was send a basket of fruit.
Wow! I’m in the industry and my company prides itself on “instinctive” service. We try hard, but I don’t think we come anywhere near this. Amazing.
Zappos always has been, I feel will continue (unlike some other newly established businesses) to lead the way in the Customer Experience.
SHOCKING how some just beginning to catch on.
I work with many IT Vendors, and have been an IT consultant in the past. I have learned, and this isn’t statement necessarily, “It’s not the current dollar you are earning, it’s the NEXT dollar”