Getting what I ask for, or what I need

Today I was buying hardware. I needed to buy a bracket that was similar to, but shorter than the bracket sample I took in.  I needed a centre bracket for some curtains, as the curtain pole was sagging in the middle. But the middle bracket needed to be shorter because it would be installed on the window frame, whereas the end brackets were attached to the wall.

The staff went out of their way to get me what I asked for.  They didn't become enrolled in my problem. With great regret, I was told that there were longer brackets, but not shorter ones than the sample I had with me.

I thought for a moment, then said, "I know, I'll use these longer brackets to replace the ends, and use the one I already have as the 'short' one in the middle." The staff tried to stop me, "But the one you're buying is longer than the one you have. I thought you said you wanted a shorter one."

"Yes," I said, "but it solves the problem just as well." They were so busy giving me what I asked for, they weren't giving me what I needed.

Metcard Customer Service: is this an oxymoron?

I recently damaged - accidentally - my 10 x 2 hour trips Met ticket. It got a bit squashed in my bag, then a validation machine chewed it up a bit more. I'd only used 5 trips, and then it didn't work any more.

Today I trotted off to the Camberwell Station, to arrange a replacement or refund of the unused portion of the ticket.  The gentleman behind the counter responded to my enquiry by barking,

"Refund?! We don't give refunds!"

I told him I was surprised to hear that, as had I checked online, where Metlink website said there was a procedure.  Before I finished the sentence, the Metlink employee had reached into a filing cabinet behind him, and pulled out the relevant form. He shoved it - I use the term advisedly - through the grille and glowered at me the while. I thanked him politely. If I had not done my homework, I would have walked away convinced he was right. Cheeky blighter. That's the oxymoron.

The form is was designed by a schizophrenic committee. It comes with a reply paid envelope attached, so that we customers can make our application free of charge (good customer service).  It also requires us to list a variety of details such as exactly where we bought the ticket, for what price, at what time of day and write the ticket serial number even though we enclose the ticket (bad customer service - this is not relevant, surely).  It offered a refund for situations such as illness or injury, not merely from accidental damage (good customer service). It states that if the magnetic strip cannot be read, there will be no refund (bad customer service).  It insisted that we keep a tear-off receipt of our ticket claim, which made me wonder how often such claims are "lost" (ostensibly good customer service which is in reality bad customer service).

I wonder how many people actually claim refunds or replacement? The process is discouraging, even without helpful Metlink staff attempting to 'protect' their employer's interest.

It remains to be seen how long it takes to obtain my refund or replacement ticket. My best guess is a month. Which is fine, because I'm on my high horse and my soap box now.

I can't help wondering why it wasn't possible to simply pay half the purchase price of a new 10x2hr ticket, provided I "cashed in" my damaged ticket. That seems simpler, and wouldn't leave the Metlink company out of pocket in any meaningful sense. Certainly less out-of-pocket than they will be by the time their department receives and processes my claim and posts me out a response.

EDIT: a couple of weeks later I received my replacement tickets in the post, with a polite form letter. Four 2 hour tickets and one Daily ticket.

That's what I call customer service

TPG are our new wireless adsl2+ provider. It's been an eye-opening experience.

When we signed up we got an email explaining the necessary steps to implement the service. This is a low-cost service, it's not sold with a promise of hugs and kisses. The service limitations - the optional phoneline is VoIP and it won't work during power outages - are clearly set out in unambiguous plain English. Already I approved.

As each step was completed, we got an email update. There is also a website where you can check the up-to-the-minute status of your implementation. (In case the hour-or-so delay is stressing you out!) To our chagrin, Telstra had to come and resuscitate a line to the house. It was booked in yesterday. TPG both emailed and rang to confirm we were definitely available and it was convenient for us to sit at home between 9-12. The Telstra chap came at 10 and left by 11. (That alone is astonishing based on my previous experiences with the T-word.)

When we hadn't configured the modem and logged on by 9am this morning, TPG sent an email and then rang to ensure everything was going ok and see if we needed help.

Most of this service is done by automated emails based on triggers. It doesn't feel impersonal, it feels efficient. This is what the world could be like if every large organisation cared enough to design the customer process with the customers' needs in front of mind.

I'm a bit in shock. Also full of admiration.

This is post 28 of 43 posts.

Interval at the concert has more dramas than on stage

I attended a concert this afternoon. It was lovely. Great chamber ensemble, great bass baritone, interesting program of short works. Good concert companion. Check.
The bar at interval was insane. I sane as in 'insanely busy' but also just insane. For the rest of this post I am channeling my inner old trout, so please avert your eyes if you are easily distressed.
At a large concert You have hundreds of people needing a drink in just 20 minutes. The bars are stuck down the end of a corridor and not big enough - when the venue was built the gentleman of the party took refreshments out to his ladies. It was Bedlam.
The menu is limited but there are four varieties of wine plus beer and soft drink, ice-cream and chocolates. There are three (maybe four) staff in a very cramped space only one of whom is capable - or perhaps allowed? - to run the till. One chap required more than five minutes to fail to pour some bubbles. All drinks are poured on request rather than being pre-poured. Perhaps it theoretically saves on waste but not when offset against lost customer revenue. The coffee, at least has been brewed and is in those catering thermoset thingies. Few souls were so hardy or desperate.
The icecreams are in a fridge the servers cannot reach, and many patrons are confused to be told to go fetch their over-priced icecreams themselves. As this is the Sunday matinee, several patrons have limited mobility with which to do so (and they've yet to visit the facilities in the few minutes that remain of interval, so its a bit of a worry and this turns them Bolshie).
Surely the profits are greater the more items you sell? Especially at $9 for a very small plastic flute of vin ordinaire bubbly from chateau iffy. I would like to say the staff rose to the challenge with some show of resourcefulness or even forethought or willingness, but I'm afraid there was no evidence of this. Only the senior on the till attempted to get things moving, the others looked to be enduring the twenty minutes until it was over. With a total absence of work pride and an excess of helplessness, I image the time went even slower for them than it did for those of us stuck in the queue. I imagine they are all casuals and have no training. The venue is only used for concerts on occasion. But still... It didn't have to be like that. Talk about Moments of Truth!
This is post 26 of 43 posts.
Sent from my iPhone

The case of the offensive pastry

Today I had a positive customer service experience. I was at a Laurent Patisserie where I ordered a pain au chocolat to have with my cafe latte (there's nothing like a healthy breakfast, is there?)

Taking a bite from one end (luckily a small one) I found it was tough and chewy rather than light and flaky. I attracted the attention of a staff-member and quietly explained the problem. I find it bad manners as a customer to be extra-loud in complaining, unless you've been given the brush-off in which case you're left with little choice.

The staff member apologised and whisked the offensive pastry away. She was new, so she offered me a replacement, which I declined (being a bit put-off) and then she vaguely wondered, "did I want my money back?" I said, "No, that's fine, I just thought you should know." I only declined because I didn't feel up to fighting for a couple of dollars.

I continued to sip my latte while the staff member took the pastry to the manager. A low voiced discussion ensued. The staff member returned with my money and said, "Really, we have to return your money" she apologised again and explained that the problem seemed to be that the pastries had not risen properly during baking, so although they were inedible, I was in no danger. All the pain au chocolat was being pulled from sale, and a complaint would be registered with the central bakery.

I was impressed, and even more so when I saw the staff look around the cafe and discover another customer about to eat a pain au chocolat which had been served moments before I made the complaint. They rushed out and stopped the customer, who happily enough chose a different pastry.

I did wonder how the inadequate pastry had slipped through. I have never had a bad baked-goods experience at a Laurent. It appears to be a problem of success, the staff are so used to making and selling a good product, that they missed the subtle signs that there was a problem.

Did the baker not notice? There was nothing egregiously bad about the appearance of the pastry, but the sales staff later assured me it was "undersized" probably because it had not risen properly. I wonder if it is protocol to actually taste-test one of each "batch" of product, and the protocol was not done, or if they just eyeball the goods.

Then there's Gordon Ramsay's dictum, that if you wouldn't want to eat it, don't serve it. I wondered how the staff at the cafe had failed to notice a problem while putting the pastries out when they opened, and it was the same thing. Probably they start out being very careful to check, but after weeks - months? - of problem-free pastry, complacency kicks in, and no doubt waistlines kick out offering a double disincentive.

Good work overall, Laurent. I was respected as a customer, and left feeling that you care about the quality of your product. It is true that a well-resolved customer complaint can leave the customer more loyal than before. There's food for thought in that, eh Watson?

This is post 48 of 100 posts in 100 days.