Category Archives: Customer Service

USPS (Non-)Tracking Service

Last week I ordered a laser pointer an online retailer.  I received an email from them on Sep 1st that my package had shipped via the United States Postal Service (USPS), and a tracking number was provided.  I tracked the … Continue reading

Posted in Customer Service, USPS | 13 Comments

XM Radio Customer Service Failure

I have (well, had) two XM radios.  I hadn’t used my original radio in quite some time, so I wanted to take it off my account. I pulled up XM Radio’s website and logged into my account.  I looked, looked, … Continue reading

Posted in Customer Service, XM | 9 Comments

Exceptions Should Never be Permanent

I love this post by Seth Godin: http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2009/08/spare-no-expense.html In his chart, (c) are the exceptional cases.  You’re always going to have them in the world of customer service, but the solutions to exceptional cases should always be temporary one-offs, never … Continue reading

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An Ounce of Prevention

A problem I inherited:  My company had installed some important, if not critical, software on a client’s computer.  The client owned the computer (not the bad part) and was also used a general office computer (the bad part). We had … Continue reading

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From Bitter Customer to Champion

This post from Aaron Brazell over at Technosailor.com is a great story that demonstrates how easy it is to provide bar-setting customer service.  Aaron had a very annoying experience with his bank and “went ballistic” (his words) on Twitter.  The … Continue reading

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Proactive, Reactive, and the Importance of Communication

I dislike most corporate-speak, but two words I do use on a fairly regular basis are ‘proactive’ and ‘reactive.’ You might think these words are opposites, but they are not. In fact, when you’re acting proactively you’re also acting reactively … Continue reading

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Customer Service Failure – Online Banking

Like many people, I have an account with an online bank. Not long after I’d opened the account, I had to reset my online PIN. I wasn’t yet used to using the website very frequently and managed to forget my … Continue reading

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Bar-Setting Customer Service is the Easiest Thing in the World

Every company, from the neighborhood bar to a taxi service to Microsoft to the latest internet startup, has the same two-pronged approach to success: Bringing a product or service to market, and supporting the customers that use that product or … Continue reading

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