Perhaps it's the change of weather or mayhaps the solar flares are acting up.
But it seems as of late that anything to do with customer service and the Web has taken a turn for the worse.
Latest Example:
I subscribe to a couple of sites that send me information from time to time about copywriting issues.
Two weeks ago I got an offer from one of them: Take our survey and download some great information.
Why not. I took their survey. Then tried to download the files. "ERROR! File not found on the server."
Hmmmm. Tried again. Same message. Tried again an hour later. No dice.
Called the number on the original e-mail. All I got was an infomercial telling me how good they were. Left a voice message. Sent an e-mail.
Nothing.
Sent another e-mail. Nada.
Responses Came
Then I got two (!) e-mails thanking me for taking the survey – and giving me an address to download the files.
I tried the address.
Guess what? You guessed right. "ERROR! Files not found on this server."
Now ... what are the chances that this company will ever get another penny from me? (Yea – I ordered something a while back from them.)
Well – I can tell you that for nothing. There "ain't" no way, no how on this man's planet that I'll do business with them again.
Why?
First and Foremost:
I felt taken.
Second – their office phone number was just a ploy to send off another commercial.
Third – they didn't respond to either my voice mail or e-mails.
Take heed! If you offer an incentive for performing a task – make damn sure that everything works beforehand. In this case – check the download for problems before the mailing is sent out!
Simple? Yes! But how many times does a company rely upon others to do their job without making sure it's done right?
Way too often.
So the Moral to This Missive:
If you offer an incentive – make sure you can deliver.
If it's a download – try it yourself beforehand!
Don't add insult to injury by having telephone numbers that don't connect to a live office.
And please – if it's a customer complaint – answer your e-mails!
This is Basic 101 Common Sense.
But for many companies, common sense has seemingly taken the year off.
