The power of Customer Service

Have any stories of great customer service? Since Gustav knocked out my power, my internet connection is gone. And with one thing and another, I haven't pursued fixing it beyond following the troubleshooting on the company web site and sending in a complete description of the problem, what caused it, and everything I've done to try to fix it myself (all right before I leave work).

And I got a quick response, a "thanks" for the completeness of my description, and a clear, step-by-step listing of what to do to fix it. If they actually solve my problem, I'm going to send a "Thanks" in return for a speedy response and good instructions.

Because that just doesn't happen much anymore. I imagined an endless phone call where I'd wait until the vein was throbbing in my head to get someone that I couldn't understand to explain something to me that I really can't understand.

I've been on the other end of the email lately answering Leisure Arts' consumer letter/calls, mainly cross stitch.Every time I get an easy question or a "thanks" back, I'm so happy. For every "what does working over one thread mean" question, there are two "I'm looking for a daisy pattern from 1979" questions. Yes, I can search "daisy" and "1979"...but then what are we going to do? It's out of print. Or the frames that we used in that leaflet from 1987. Also discontinued, and since we didn't make them, I don't have any kept back in case someone wants 47 of them. I really wish I did. How frustrating to have a project that you can only almost finish! And the best ones are the calls regarding problems...with another company's book. Apparently, not every publisher has customer service.

So, the moral to the story: if you get good help, say "thanks." It's pretty rare these days. And really, if you want to buy it, we want to sell it to you or help you use it or answer questions to make things clearer. And we do make mistakes. Rarely but it happens. Just assume we want to fix them before you call. And be ready for the southern accent. There's nothing I can do about that.