It occurs to me that the reason companies use advertising to brag about awards, reviews and related accolades is to get prospects to do business with them and that when a prospect takes them up on their offer they ought to do their best to live up to the great expectations they have set up for themselves.
This weekend I was sorely disappointed with the service I received at a local furniture chain store here in CT. I purchased a rug at their Southern Fairfield County store where I happened to be in the area doing other things that day. I should have listened to the red lights going off in my head at the time of purchase when we practically had to beg to get a salesperson to take the rug down. I then brought the rug home to Northern Fairfield County where I live.
Once I got home I saw the size was all wrong and so I immediately called the store to ask if I could return the rug to the store that is located just 5 miles from my home (vs. their 20+ miles). After 2 minutes of insane button pushing & phone system gymnastics, I finally got a live person. He said 'no' I could not return it to the [much] more convenient store because it would mess up their inventory system. 'But you're a chain store' I say. To which the guy on the phone said this is 'their policy'. Hmmm...so the owner of the store who spends several hundred thousand dollars a year on local Cable TV ads bragging about their award winning #1 customer service is what - just kidding?!?!?
So...I haul the rug back 20+ miles the next day in the pouring rain. When I get there I see 5 or 6 salesmen standing in the front of the store. Not ONE of them held the door for us, or offered to help us carry this very heavy, bulky, awkward item into the store. NOT ONE OF THEM!
Finally we drag the rug to the customer service area (located in the BACK of the store, I might add) & was 'greeted' by a 'customer service' rep who proceeded to give us the 3rd degree about why the rug was being returned. 'Wrong size,' I say. This was greeted with a look of disgust by the rep who was annoyed that she had to process a return.
And a process it was. We stood there while what I guess took at least 1000 keystrokes to enter insane amounts of information into their computer system. And then FINALLY she asked for my card to process the credit which then took another 1000 keystrokes. Yikes! Are they kidding? To say she was gnarly is putting it mildly. This entire time all I'm thinking is how much of an inconvenience this all is. And how their service on all fronts is anything but award-winning.
Finally, we were released from the rug binds that tied us to the store. It's now deluging rain & I have to drive another 20+ miles to get home. On the way we stopped to return a movie at a Redbox location when it hits me -- Redbox allows you to rent a movie & return it at ANY of their locations. In other words, a vending machine can figure out the inventory process, but an award-winning chain store can't?!?!?!?
So, bottom line -- don't make promises in public you cannot keep & don't waste consumers' precious time. You never know who may have a blog.
