Thursday, December 15, 2011

Shopping

It's the shopping season, isn't it? Even if like me, you make most of your gifts, some shopping is inevitable. To get in the spirit of the season, I'm going to share some amazing shopping experiences I've been having lately. Because we've all heard the horror stories. We could use some good news.

I've been having a very good run of great companies taking good care of me. I think it started when I got a flat tire a few weeks ago. Used my Honda care to get a pleasant man to come out and put on the spare. Then I made my way to America's Tire. Now, I go to America's Tire because the first time I ever went there more than a decade ago, they fixed my tire for free. Fixed it with a smile and sent me on my way. Made a customer for life. It doesn't hurt that the people who work there are attentive and smile a lot. This time, I was told they didn't have my tire in stock. I was getting ready to limp home on the stumpy spare when the fellow's coworker suggested an alternative plan. They would drive down the street to a place that had my tire, put it on and get me on my way in less than an hour. And that's just what they did. With a smile.

Apple has been a continuous source of great customer service for me. I've taken advantage of their geniuses on more than one occasion. This time I dropped my beloved Ipad. On the asphalt. It cracked. I took it to the Apple store where they replaced it with a new one. For free. While I was there, I mentioned my laptop had a weird line down the middle of the screen. Told them it probably happened when I dropped it. (Yes, I am taking much better care of my electronics these days). But again, my fault. And again, they replaced the screen for free. With a smile. Great customer service.

And then there's Macy's. Where they are handing out Hershey kisses if you have to wait in line.

So there it is. The secret to customer loyalty. Smile, be nice. Fix things when you can. And chocolate.

Got any great stories?

2 comments:

Camille Minichino said...

What a great idea, Terri. I usually focus on that rude clerk or uncooperative vendor!

My local Peets has the best baristas -- perfect coffees and they dole out free coffee cards at the least inconvenience to the customer, even just a long wait in line.

And then there's the great, smiley UPS guy . . . thanks for reminding us, Terri.

Terri Thayer said...

And how about those legs on that UPS guy?

Happy Holidays, Camille. Thanks for the card.