After two and a half years of some heavy use and abuse, the battery on my Macbook is slowly but surely dying.
I called Apple to see if they could send me a replacement battery, as my computer is still under warranty, but the man on the other end of the line assured me my battery was no longer covered. He said I could order a replacement from their website online or I could look online somewhere else because he knew that Apple.com would be the most expensive.
And that was that.
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I was disappointed, but a warranty is a warranty, right? He was just doing his job, and he gave me a nice tip on going somewhere else to get a battery.
But couldn’t he have done more for a loyal customer?
I had already gone online, registered my computer, set up an appointment, described my problem, and waited for him to call. And when the call was finished, I was right back where I started.
What’s the point of offering a suggestion that forces me to jump through more hoops to solve the problem? What if he would have ordered a replacement battery from a reliable third-party he knew, or at least pointed me in that direction, emailed me the link, or connected me to one of their representatives? I would have been elated. Instead, he sent me into the search alone, and without any more direction than I started with.
When you’re in the business (or lifestyle) of helping people, are you just making suggestions, or are you truly serving?
Are you offering help, but not making yourself readily available?
Are you a “customer-focused” business that doesn’t have an email or phone number on a website?
Are you asking a friend to sit with you, or are you physically pulling up a chair for them?
Are you going out of your way, forgetting about the costs, and serving to the point that people call you crazy?
Inconvenience yourself. Go one more step. Step beyond what’s expected to shock someone in the best way possible.
Loved the last line for sure! Shock someone who needs it! We were just commenting on how no one cares if you need help or not. The last people working are left doing the job of two people. Hard to motivate them to be excited. What is the solution? I love to thank people who give great customer service. We had dinner last night and had a fabulous waitress! Their are still great workers out there. Kudos to all of them. You know who you are…..In just being a great person in general your point is strong. Be great all the time and go the extra mile. Kindness and good manners never go out of style.
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I loved the line about about whether you’re just making suggestions, or really serving people. I feel like I can ask myself that question about so many areas of my life. I’m definitely going to try to think about more ways to serve my small group, rather than just leading them. Great post!
Well if he suggested you to go to Apple.com then he did what his jobbed said to do. Apple doesn’t want you to buy from a third party so he wasn’t supposed to tell you to go somewhere else. They most likely monitored that call so that he can be evaluated at any time. If you were Mr. Apple, you wouldn’t tell your customers to go elsewhere for the merchandise you sell. That’s how capitalism works my friend.
Is his job to sell me something right now, or keep me as a customer long term?
Let’s look at it this way. I’ve already spent roughly $2,500 on Apple products in the last three years. Let’s say that pattern continued over the next 10 years, and I spent another$7,500 at Apple if they continued to provide superior products AND customer service.
Now, what if he sold me the battery for $130, and then I found it cheaper somewhere else. They would have potentially lost a customer (and one who will certainly tell others about the poor experience, thus potentially losing more customers) over something that they aren’t even making much of a profit on.
Now, if he sold me that battery, was he doing his job? Do you think Steve Jobs would rather have sold a battery or maintained a happy, high-spending customer?
Oh my gosh, please forward this post to Warner Cable! I have been trying to put our service on vacation mode since Decemeber. I have bills over 600.00 for that service. I call every two weeks, and get the promise they will fix it! All I can say is Uggggggh! Will try again next week….I wish I could talk to my son as much as I have spent on the phone with these people:)