Cathy vs ATT, you decide the winner

Ahhhh...the weekend. I was supposed to take my daughter to the City today without any plans or destinations. Just spend the day, wherever we ended up. Maybe go to a museum, do some shopping..who knows. But Mon/Tue she was home with 102 temp and cough. The temps gone, but the cough is still around, still has the potential to turn into bronchitis. Today's not the prettiest day to hop a train and schlep through the streets of New York anyways. Needless to say, my daughter was ready, willing and able to beat feet out of Danbury head off on our adventure. I hate it when you have to disappoint your kids. I promised her we'll go another day when she's not coughing. No kid likes a raincheck (heck they don't even like raincoats - lol) She was bummed. I feel bad. We'll hop a train another day soon, promise.

I have 2 situations that I experienced this week. Today's blog is a little different for me because I need to do some venting. I guess sometimes I just feel strongly enough about something, and this week there happened to be 2 different situations. So here goes...

Something really bothered me this week. What did I do? I took action. I called Ma Bell. That's right, I got on my Comcast phone and dialed the big one...ATT. I was able to get connected right through to marketing. I am very in tune with advertising. I think most commercials are just plain stupid and non-memorable. A good one shines. A bad one....is just BAD. Well, ATT, in my opinion hit a lower than low point. They aired a commercial that showed a family in their "tv" room. They're all fighting over watching tv. They each had their OWN remote and proceeded to point the remote at each other as if they were guns. The youngest child in the family enters the room, points the "gun" at either the brother or mother and says something like "I have this and I'm not afraid to use it". THIS IS FUNNY? And to top it off...the commercial ends with poor old grandma (did you ever notice it's always a grandma and not a grandpa, unless they show them as a couple - just a little side note). I can't even remember how the commercial ended. Did the family turn on poor ole gram? I don't know. I was so taken back by the whole lousy concept of the ad. It festered in me for 2 days. What are we showing our kids??? Then I took the initiative to voice my opinion. I did it in a nice, calm way. The woman from ATT told me she knew which commercial I was talking about and that she had taken 2 other calls from women with the same concerns. She said she would bring it to the VP of Mktg as she had done with the other calls (I believe she really did take my complaint to the VP). She told me she hadn't seen the commercial personally. She also said the other callers, like me, were just so affected by it that they had to call and say something. I said I couldn't believe they actually paid someone to produce such a digusting commercial, and that if ATT ever wanted some real creativity behind their commercials that would sell their products to call me (LOL -- no....I didn't really say that, but looking back, damn it, I should have -- it could have been my big break!). I thanked her. That was it. One voice in Connecticut. Probably brushed off as some "mom" who can't take a joke. What kool-aid were these people drinking when they wrote the spot? I' mean come one...did someone say "Hey, I got a great idea, lets have a show-down with a family. Won't that be a crack-up to see the bitter wife point the object square between her husbands eyes. And to really get them rolling on the floor lets have the son come into room and put the object right up to the back of mom's head. My sides are splitting this is so funny. NOT! Disgusting. Stupid. The creators should be fired!

Vent #2. My next experience of this week continues on the foundation of taking a stand. Keep in mind, that taking a stand doesn't always mean that you'll get something for your efforts. Most times its the personal satisfaction that you tried to hopefully correct a situation that is potentially hurting a business. Will ATT pull that ad? Maybe, maybe not, but I feel better knowing that I voiced my opinion and hopefully they'll take what I had to say into account. But I'm at peace with it. I did my part.

I think customer service rates at the top of the scale for a successful business. When I really feel that something's wrong I speak up. Do you? I don't want to paint a picture that I walk around finding fault with everything either. And I do want to make note that I will take the extra effort to extend a compliment for a job well done too. I'll give a store or company several chances to give me a good experience doing business with them. But if I'm not "feeling the love" I walk, and very seldom return. Business needs to remember perception is reality.

Case and point. There's a store in the mall that caters to the teen/20's market. The store LOOKS like it caters to teens/20 somethings and could pass as any teen's bedroom. Clothes EVERYWHERE. Over loaded, no organization, very messy. Hence, I don't shop there too often (heck I can stay home and look at bedrooms like that if I want to). Out of desperation, I purchased 2 different outfits for my daughter to wear, the next day, at her Confirmation (it's very hard to find suitable clothing for a church affair, everything is way too grown up and seductive for a 14 year old girl. We had been to at least 6 other stores). I brought them home. She picked the outfit she liked. I went to return the other. I manuvered through the mess with my bag and receipt in hand. Handed everything to the cashier, with a smile ready to get my $29 back. She proceeds to inform me that they don't offer cash back only store credit. Just who do they think they are? I paid cash. My cash. Clothes..no like...return..money back. Simple. I contained myself, as I know it's not the poor cashier's stupid policy its the company's. I asked her where that little tid bit of important information was posted. And there, in about a 6 font, single spaced on an 8.5 x 11 piece of paper shoved into a frame on the counter...was the fine print. Are you kidding me???? I don't want store credit for your sloppy mess. I want my cash back! I called their corporate #. The person on the phone (who seemed to care less about my dissatisfaction) simply told me to go to the website and email my complaint. That I did. Three days ago. No reply. This store is DONE in my books. My daughter will spend her $29 credit and not a penny more or less. And we wonder why American businesses aren't succeeding? It's not the economy. Nice excuse though. It's the lack of customer satisfaction.

Customer service my friends is what the gig's all about. Stew Leonards has it right
Rule #1: "The customer's always right" Rule #2: If the customer isn't right, see rule #1"

Customer Service = credibility (hmmm..there's that credibility score thing again)
credibility = loyalty. YES there is still customer loyalty. When was the last time you lost a customer because you were great to work with, did a super job and always had terrific customer service?

As you're out and about doing business. See what customer service is being presented to you, and visa versa. Happy staff? Knowledgeable staff? Store looks clean. Well lit parking? Sparkling bathrooms that don't have a 2' board attached to the key ring? And the simplest of simple customer service...perhaps the most important. Do they say "thank you". Watch for it. Be in tune with it. Let me know what you see. Thank you!