Canadian Marketing Blog

When Customer Service sells. And when it doesn't.

I'm going to forget that I'm a marketer for a moment and pretend that I'm only a consumer. I think it's important to do that every now and then (or whenever I'm not at work) because consumers don't think like marketers. They think like my Dad who doesn't understand what I do for a living.

My internet service provider used to be a company well known for its pitchbeavers. One day, that internet service crashed and said company could not seem to figure out why or how to get me back up to high speed. So I switched to Rogers for my home internet connection. Then, about a year later, I needed a new cell phone, so I naturally switched to Rogers Wireless. Then my wife and children needed cell phones. Rogers was the first place I thought of. Then I got telemarketed one day and was asked to switch my home phone to Rogers. So I did. Now, when Rogers goes into the dog walking business, I'll be there with my two labs and a leash.

The reason I've become one of Rogers' best customers isn't necessarily because they have better phones, or faster high speed access. It's not even that they put everything on one bill. Even beavers can do all of that.

It's simply that I have had excellent customer service experiences with them each and every time I've needed to deal with someone at Rogers. Now, I'll be the first to admit that I hate their Interactive Voice Recognition (IVR) system. (Please get rid of that thing!!!) But once I get a real person, they're always helpful, patient, kind and results-oriented.

Then I happened to walk in to a Rogers retail outlet about a month ago for a superficial issue with my Treo 650. The store's sales representative, Alex, told me I was eligible for an upgrade to the new 680. I bit. (Love a new gadget.)

Over the following week, I realized that the 680's battery didn't seem to hold a charge. By 9:30 pm, I'd be out of battery. I contacted the store and spoke to Alex. He emailed me back with an online solution which I tried right away. Didn't work. He suggested I come in to the store (not convenient since it's located at Queen's Quay and I live in North Toronto) for a new battery. So I did. He wasn't there but the other rep had the battery for me. The new battery didn't fit the new Treo. Not impressed.

Later that day, I got an email from Alex saying he would replace the whole Treo, that he was sorry for any inconvenience, and that his goal was to be sure I was happy with my purchase.

I couldn't believe that the customer service I experience whenever I call Rogers extended right down to store level.

All of this to say, why doesn't Rogers differentiate itself from everyone else by advertising something that is NOT a commodity in their very commoditized business? Customer Service. Their advertising is all about fewer dropped calls, the Fave Five, and everyone in the family wanting an internet connection. I don't get it. Any number of telco's can make the exact same claims, and are.

Rogers, you have an opportunity to differentiate yourself in your advertising. I'm doing my part as a consumer with this posting. Now it's your turn.

While I'm on the topic of customer service, I have to ask, is WestJet for real? Seriously. Their advertising shows flight attendants chasing people down in the street to return cell phones and giving the sweaters off their backs to passengers returning to a cold climate from a sunny vacation. Maybe they really can fulfill on those promises. But as a viewer of those commercials, I'm not buying or believing it.

If an advertiser has a valid point of difference (like stellar customer service), and they go so far over the top with their advertising campaign that it stretches credibility in the consumer's mind, they're wasting their money.

Got any amazing customer service stories? Share them with those of us who would be more than happy to put our faith (and hard earned money) into companies who think like marketers -- and consumers.

Lately I've been thinking a lot about customer service and it's impact on a company's reputation, and even it's impact on marketing messages. I think there are many instances where marketing fails not because it's off target but because of lousy customer service. Consumers make associations with how good a company or product is based on how good their customer service is... and rightly so.

You have given us a great example of that... and in this instance for the good of the company’s reputation.

As far as pushing customer service as a position. It makes sense because consumers value customer service very highly. However it is hard to present customer service as a key benefit, because it's hard to believe, even when it's shown in a more believable way than WestJet has shown us.

Touting customer service is sure to be effective in the long term, but only if you truly provide excellent customer service.

Bryan
excellent points
it comes down to delivering the brand promise and making your customers FEEL your thanks/appreciation (not just see or hear the words)

People remember their feelings about a situation long after the facts.
The hard part is consistency - and therein lies the dilema we all face. I think we understand the power of what you noted - its just that we can't guarantee that kind of experience for 99.9% of our customers.
(and lets not delude ourselves the actual number is probably a lot smaller)

The person to come up with that solution will make $10B in half the time that FaceBook did.

Ask yourself how many retailers have their full time senior/experienced staff working as close to a regular M-F, 9-5 schedule as they can, leaving the inexperienced and part-timers to deal with the heaviest shopper traffic on the weekends and evenings.

As they say - you can't fill a bucket with holes in it.

Cheers
Miro

About 6 years ago I was in Hamilton on business. I was dropped at the airport by the person I was meeting. Without realizing I left my wallet in the restaurant I proceded to the check in counter at WestJet.

Of course ID is required to fly so I thought I was screwed!

To make the story short, the WestJet employee drove me in her car to the restaurant (which I could only vaguely describe - name and location) and brought me back to the airport. I made my flight on time!