GOOD customer service experiences?

[I talk to the trees]

We (well, me anyway) are always so quick to whine and complain when we have negative experiences with a company's customer service. How about a thread where we can post our positive customer service stories? I'll go first!

 

Think Geek's customer service rocks. I ordered a few things for dd's stocking. They arrived last Saturday, but one of the items was damaged/missing a part. I jumped on their live online chat support, and spoke with a very nice representative who apologized for the problem, and sent out a new item (no returns necessary!), which arrived yesterday.

 

Anyone else?

[Word Nerd]

I was at a Kroger store a few years ago (King Soopers), and the bagger forgot to load a bag of potatoes in my cart. I didn't notice until I after got home and put everything away, and it was blowing snow so I didn't want to drag the kids back out in it. I sent an email asking if I could just get a coupon or something for the difference so I wouldn't have to drive back across town. A few hours later, a delivery person rang my doorbell and handed me a bag of potatoes (the store had a delivery truck for online orders in that town). I was amazed! I sent a glowing email of thanks, told everyone I knew about their great service, and never even bothered going to a competitor's grocery store after that even though it was closer to home.

[Annie Laurie]

I ordered 3 photo books from Shutterfly for the grandparents. I made them in a rush in the middle of the night because that's the only stretch of uninterrupted time I get, and I was trying to make a sale before it ended. They arrived and I realized that in my hurry, I had put a photo on the cover that had my ds blinking. And a few other issues that were bothering me. They let me fix the books and reprinted them for free, I only had to pay shipping. Amazing, considering most of the issues were my own fault.

 

I ordered some little mind benders and games from Thinkfun for stockings. One came in a bag with an unraveled drawstring. I contacted them and they immediately mailed me a new one.

[butterflymommy]

We recently splurged and bought a high end stainless steel dishwasher at Sears. I usually buy el cheapo appliances but it was on sale and the saleslady was kind of pushy. Well the entire top rack module/ gear has fallen apart and the washer is unusable (if the top rack isn't level the thing attached to it doesn't spin). We called Sears about the warranty and that lady could not have been nicer! She said parts would be mailed out immediately and we have to wait just over a week for the repair guy.

[elegantlion]

Better World Books was great the one time I had an issue. I ordered two books in a series. They were non-fiction, out of print, and older (from the 70s). I got them and they were musty, but bad musty, not good old book musty. There were no visible signs of damage or mildew, but I couldn't even handle them without choking up. I even aired them out for days. Finally I e-mailed and they sent out replacement copies without a fuss or asking me to return the other books.

 

I have good customer service with Amazon, even though it took a few go rounds before I got resolution.

 

Kohls also provided some good customer service. My parents gave us a coffee pot for dh's birthday last year. After about 9 months it died. It was not a cheap one, it was Cuisinart. My mom still had her receipt, so we boxed it up and they took it back without issue.

 

Staples courier is also great. I ordered a desk (it was boxed) and I live in a small rural town, the closest Staples is an hour away. The desk came by courier and he even carried it up the steps for me. I thought it would come freight and I'd be hauling it up the stairs myself.

[Spryte]

Vermont Nut Free shipped out an order to us last week, but forgot to include one item. They immediately mailed the missing item, and threw in several other items I'd forgotten to order so I didn't pay shipping on those.

 

Sur Le Table will always be on my good list, since they caught on to credit card fraud using our card, called us rather than shipping the item, and had us alert the credit card company.

 

Harris Teeter (grocery chain) has twice saved an item I left at the store. Once they even called to let me know about it, as they know me, and have my contact info for their shopping service. Oh! And their personal shoppers rock!!!! They know our families allergies, what's okay to substitute and what's not, and they even figured out an allergen free treat to give DS when we pick up our order.

 

Jura - espresso maker company - that company's customer service is amazing. :)

 

Can I add our tiny mechanic? He's not a big company, but wow, has he done a lot for our family - often free of charge! Oh, and VW - our dealership is pretty fantastic, too.

 

I love finding good service. :)

[Joshin]

I've had a ton of good experiences over the years, but two companies really stand out:

 

Elenco (makers of Snap Circuits) rocks! Our first set was used and missing one or two key components. I called them, explained it was used, and they still sent out the missing components for free. A couple years later they replaced some pieces that were short circuited, also for free. They are so helpful and prompt!

 

Orion telescopes also shines as great customer service. They patiently answered all our questions when we were thinking of buying a scope from them. Later, they walked us through adjusting the mirrors and focusing the scope. I've had to call them a couple of times and the experience is always top notch.

 

Our locally owned HobbyTown also has impressive service. They even let us use their gaming room, no charge, for our weekly Odyssey of the Mind meetings. The owner sometimes saves some of the free swag companies send him to give a little something to the kids on the team when we're there. I did a lot of my Christmas shopping there this year just because I wanted to support such a great business, even though I could have gotten a few things for less at a box store or online.

[*********]

Earlier today, I had to exchange a pair of shoes at Kohls. I bought my dh the wrong size. They didn't have the size I needed out on the shelf, so I found the associate working in the shoe department. She went to the back and got me the size I needed.

 

I realize that should be normal, but I find it rare. Usually no one wants to bother with checking, so you get the ol' "We only have what's out" line.

[VeteranMom]

Chipotle is great. We order takeout from them and if they don't have the order ready when we arrive they will give us free chips, drinks, or a free burrito for our next visit.

[momtoamiracle]

I've also had good customer service with Amazon.

 

I bought a face cream that upon arrival I could not stand the smell. They have a no return policy on that type of thing but I wrote them anyway explaining the situation. They returned my money and said to give the cream to someone else, that they were very sorry I couldn't use it. I gave it to my sister in law and used the money to buy something else on Amazon.

 

I've had two kindle screens to crack and both were replaced within a few days.

 

I love Amazon!

[sparrow]

I've had very few experiences of bad customer service.

 

I find that Amazon and American Girl offer great CS, for my online purchases, and surprise, surprise, our local Wal-Mart has fantastic CS! :001_smile:

[mamajag]

Amazon's customer service has always been really good. I have numerous returns without ever the slightest difficulty.

 

Apple has been fantastic to our family. Their phone support is really polite, American, and you never have to give an account number or email. They know you by the caller ID, and if you don't want to be on hold they will call you when it's your turn. We've had to have my original iPad replaced due to a defective video card and it took maybe 5 minutes to do in the Apple store. They were willing to replace it via UPS, but I wanted it done faster. I've also had them replace two of my kids' iPods that were destroyed for a good deal less than a new one. We're all Apple here because of our experiences with their support.

[Caroline]

We are renovating our powder room. We went to Lowes yesterday to get the vanity and toilet since the tile guy is coming tomorrow. The nicest young man helped DH get everything into the back of our Odyssey.

[HollyDay]

Lego has consistantly offered great customer service. I've been pleased with Rainbow Resource. So far, I'm happy with Better World Books, but my latest shipment is taking FOREVER to get here and I might be speaking with them again soon (more to follow :)) CVS has always been amazingly good to me. The pharmacy staff has gone above and beyond to be helpful. In fact, I was just in there picking up dd's OTC shampoo and lotions and stopped by to say hi to the pharmacy staff. They knew my name and asked about my dc.

[Walking-Iris]

P'Kolino is one of the best customer service experiences I have had so far. We ordered a wooden toy from Amazon and it arrived cracked. Since it was a discontinued toy Amazon could do nothing. I contacted P'Kolino and received a very nice personal email, complete with a list of toys, some more expensive than the original toy, and told to choose one. No proof of purchase or returning the broken toy. I picked one and it was shipped to us fast. After I picked the replacement toy they sent another personal email about what a great choice it was and sorry for inconvenience.

 

I was impressed because even though it was obviously Amazon's fault they still took the time to fix it.I have been a fan of P'Kolino ever since and have come to realize that the cracked toy was an apparent anomaly because the wooden toys we have from them since have always been great quality.

[nd293]

Honestly, I can't think of many negative customer service experiences. I never managed to get sense out of Amazon's customer service people on the one occasion I contacted them. My bank doesn't phone me back if we get cut off and you can never get back to the same rep, which drives me scatty. On the other hand I have had very positive experiences with Rainbow Resources (adding items to an order and lost order), Book Depository (lost book), and a host of e-bay, etsy type sellers. I got cut off on a call to Malaysia Air, and by the time I had managed to get online to contact one of their customer service people to complete the transaction someone was calling me. I phoned someone the other day to ask if I was allowed to change a booking, and at the end of my conversation I said "Would you like my details now?" to which she replied, "It's all completed" - my cell number had appeared on her screen, she had called up my account and made the changes as we were discussing whether it was allowed. I was incredibly impressed - but have completely forgotten what company it was, or what booking I was changing!

[melbotoast]

We've had good experiences with Melissa and Doug (several damaged toys replaced), Joovy, and Carol's Affordable Curriculum.

[Jeannie in NJ]

ok we have had many good customer service experiences at Disney World but I will just mention one. Two years ago, we went to Disney in Dec during the coldest winter that Orlando had had in 40 years. I had left my jacket in our car at our airport here in NJ. I was freezing so we went into a Disney store at Epcot. I told them I needed a warm jacket but all they had were lightweight ones. A cast member said "we will find you something" she put in a cental call and not too much later, a very warm heavy fleece lined jacket with a hood in my size arrived from another store somewhere in Disney. I still wear it all the time as it is so warm plus I love the pink Mickey Mouse on the back.

[caroljenn]

Nordstrom is the best at customer service. You can buy a pair of shoes there, wear them religiously for 6 months, and then of they get a hole in them, or even just become uncomfortable and they will take me back, no questions asked, and give you 100% of what you paid for them. They're amazing. I never took back shoes after such a long time, but I have taken a pair of shoes back after a week or two when I realized that they were uncomfortable and they've taken them back. I also took back a couple of garments, with tags still on them, that were FOUR years old and they gave me cash back!

[LaxMom]

Home Depot - When we were renovating our kitchen, I found the perfect LG French door refrigerator online at HD, for an outstanding price. We wanted to look at it in person before buying, though, so we went to the local(ish) HD store, where it was over $1000 more. It was exactly what we wanted so we came home to order it and... same price as the store. My husband called and the customer service guy put him on hold and walked down to their IT department, confirmed that they'd had an online pricing error that they'd corrected, and honored the price we'd first seen. Our house is old and renovation is an ongoing thing, so I'm sure they've made the money back and then some on our loyalty. ;)

 

LG provided great customer service on the one occasion we needed to call them. They called every appliance repair place within a 50 mile radius of us and still couldn't get anyone to come out and do warranty work to replace a stuck dispenser drawer on the washer. Finally, they just sent it to us and told my husband to break the old one out any way he had to. It was crazy how unwilling the local places were to touch the drawer of a front loader or, in the case of the ONE LG repair place even remotely close, to drive out to where we live. My husband passes them on his way to work. It's not THAT far. :huh:

 

I've had an associate at Nordstrom get me shoes from the back room, only to discover she wasn't working and had just come in on a personal errand. But Nordstrom is a cross-industry model for customer service, so it's not really shocking. (It is worthy of comment, though)

 

Amazon has replaced products or adjusted prices (our Roku went on sale while our order was still in transit, and they credited our account with a 5 minute phone call) with no hassle at all.

 

And, yes, our local (within walking distance of our house) mechanic is sweet, reliable and cheap.

[kalanamak]

Elenco, Amazon, thriftbooks, and the winner is: Vanguard. Perfect and perfectly clear, grammatically correct, succinct emails and honey tones on the phone. Where do they get all these bright young men and women?

[violamama]

 

We've had a lot of good experiences with Costco. Most recently, my kid tipped backwards off of a plastic bench onto the cement floor behind him in the snack area (he's 6) and an associate brought over a cloth with ice for the small knot on the back of his head. She was so kind about it, very sweet with him and with me.

 

This summer I bought a $200 pop-up shade canopy for my summer music camp and it was frankly a piece of junk. Even though the rolling case had shredded itself to bits in one use, they took it back no questions asked.

 

Another time they had overcharged me slightly for something at the register (my mistake, really) and the manager person went over to the returns desk while I got my boys their hot dogs, and walked my refund over to me in person. It was above and beyond, and much appreciated that she noticed my hands were full.

[RoughCollie]

I bought a Mr. Coffee iced tea maker. It leaked. I called. The company sent a new one immediately, and the customer service rep was very nice. I expected to go through an ordeal, but it was a pleasant experience.

[Farrar]

Home Depot - I had an issue, we went back and forth and I dealt with a few people I didn't find very pleasant, but it was eventually resolved at a higher level and I was happy with it. And then out of the blue, they sent us a gift card for a semi-large amount for the trouble, which, honestly, I know places do that, but I was surprised and pleased.

 

Amazon - There are several things I don't love about Amazon, but when you get a real person on the line, they're very nice.

 

Paypal - Ditto Amazon.

 

My all time worst customer service experience was with Sears. If they were the last store on earth, I would start making all my own things to avoid shopping there.

[Joker]

We have a new place to eat called Newk's (I think it's a chain). They've screwed up twice and the manager has always been awesome. It's been quite a change from other places.

 

Also, I had a great experience with BCBS. I know many hate all insurance companies but they were awesome. The local hospital was keeping $40 that I had overpaid up front for a procedure. Every time I called they told me it was still under review - for over two months. I finally called BCBS and they put me on hold and called the hospital. The rep told me they were issuing my refund that very day and I received it in the mail five days later.

[carriede]

Had some great phone conversations in the recent past, including Old Navy, Geico, and my kids' pediatrician's billing office (believe it or not!).

[kitten18]

I've had some really great service over the years. This is just my most recent.

 

Last Monday I placed and order at Vitacost for some GF mixes, pasta, pretzels, etc. I placed order about 10pm. I received an email on Tuesday that the order had been shipped and that they had upgraded the shipping (was free because it was over $49). I received the order by UPS on WEDNESDAY!!! I was so pleased.

[redsquirrel]

Wegmans is always amazing.

 

I just bought from two small online businesses and am really happy.

 

The first is a company called Boys Dance Too. I need a dance belt for my 12 year old son and they are not to be found locally. We even have a dance store, but it doesn't have a boys dept. They do have black shoes, but that is it. Anyway, this place shipped quickly and sent a nice note along thanking me for the business. I got each boy a cute t-shirt that says 'Boys Dance Too' for Christmas. I can't wait for them to wear the shirts to ballet class.

 

I also bought some gifts for the boys from Medieval Fantasy Company. They were great to work with. We exchanged a couple emails to make sure everything was clear and to my specifications. She was super fast to reply and we got everything squared away in an evening. I can't wait to see the finished product.

[Tap]

I was at Best Buy last week to pick up an order that I placed on line. After I had thought about the order, I wished that I had placed it for a Wii game instead of the Xbox version that I ordered (we have both systems). When I order it, it was more than 1/2 off either version, but since it was a 'cyber monday' price they couldn't just switch them out. The manager used his own personal phone to go online to Amazon to check thier price to see if he could price match them for me. I didn't ask him to do it, he just offered and did it with a kindness in his heart. The Amazon price was higher than what I had paid, a girl who was helping us kept looking on line for more prices to match until she could get it low enough.

[happypamama]

Right now, I am super pleased with my home/auto insurance company. Within four hours or so of reporting an accident, I had a claim adjuster contact me to see how she could help, and they've been fantastic. When everything's all resolved, I may send a letter to thank that specific adjuster.

 

Last Christmas, we got DD a Lego set, but unfortunately, DS2 lost a few of the pieces not long afterward, including a few of the minifig's parts. So I went on Lego's site and requested a quote for the missing pieces. I fully expected to pay for the replacements, but I wasn't able to do a direct order. Instead of sending me an email with the quote (which they've done before, so that's what I was expecting), I got an email saying that they were sending the pieces to me right away, free of charge. And they did. Hurray for Lego customer service.

 

My bank recently merged with another small branch, and wow, they made the change-over SO easy for the customers. Plenty of communication about what to expect and what would happen, pleasant answers to any questions, and just a really smooth change-over. I expected a little confusion and frustration, but there was absolutely none.

[violamama]

I thought of another one: an Etsy store called iheartbricks which made us custom screen printed lego shirts. They answered all my questions really quickly and I got my custom tie dyed ninjago tees with my boys initials on them (!) in like 3 days.

Here they are, in case there are others looking for lego swag.

 

http://www.etsy.com/listing/96543271/ninjago-tie-dye-screen-printed-t-shirt?ref=v1_other_1

[SFM]

Amazon, hands down, one time we even got a package that was not their fault at all that had water damage from the postal people letting it sit in the rain. They paid for us to ship it back and gave us a partial refund and sent up new books. AMAZING. They ship EVERYTHING, living in Japan, I really appreciate that. :) AMAZON!

[Lily_Grace]

Lakeshore Learning. I ordered a rathe expensive paper/craft supply organizer and it arrived damaged. When I contacted the company they sent me out a replacement and asked that, if the other was still usable, to give it to someone who could use it. It was - and now has a happy home. :)

 

Learning Adventures. Within a few hours of ordering our curriculum I not only had a shipping notice, but they also sent an email with a day by day scope and sequence so I could start preparing immediately.

 

 

 

I have a lot of company horror stories, so the ones who try to do their best really shine in my book. I know when I order from Jackdaw I"m going to get the same person emailing me back, and he knows my name and has developed a rapport. It's the little things like that which will keep me coming back.

[MamaAkins]

Lands End....their customer service has been outstanding on the occasions that I've needed to return, exchange, or even order something that was not easily found online.

 

Groupon....I had purchased a pet bed for our dog on a recent groupon deal. It arrived and I was not as impressed as I had thought I would be. I emailed, requesting a refund. They promptly emailed me a return shipping authorization (they covered the cost of shipping back) and were very polite.

 

Delta Airlines....my 15 year old recently flew unaccompanied (but with a group of people that she knew). They were very helpful in making sure she was seated with people she knew and made sure that I could accompany her to the gate.

[Jess4879]

AAS/AAR has been my best experience by far. I've contacted them before purchase, after purchase and sometimes during. :laugh: I have had a lot of good customer service experiences when I am purchasing something, but that service doesn't always extend once I walk out the door, so I think it speaks volumes when the company cares even after the transaction clears! We have also had really good service from Future Shop...strangely enough.

[somo_chickenlady]

We were grocery shopping at Hy-Vee yesterday, and the woman that bagged our groceries, I think a manager, was SO nice. She looked me in the eye, and with honest kindness thanked me for coming in and told me to have a good day. :) You don't get that kindness much around here.

[astrid]

WEBS (yarn store) has AMAZING customer service. I'm lucky enough to live an hour away, and it's one of my favorite places to shop. The salespeople on the floor are SO helpful, patient and knowledgeable. I've also ordered from the via the telephone and website and had the same great experience.

 

astrid

[BugsMama]

Logic of English- the first time I tried to order they had some trouble sorting out my APO address and shipping, but they were super nice on the phone, and had it sorted out in no time, without every changing their pleasant tone.

[Farrar]

You know, I was thinking more... I've had some great customer service experiences with most Etsy shops. Nothing says good customer service like getting your stuff all packed up in a cute way. :)

 

Also, there's something about the cheesy sticker on the Rainbow Resources box that makes me happy.

[Acorn]

Lego and Kohls are the top two that come to mind.

 

The most amazing story was when my son had a strap break on a pair of sneakers. The shoes were only 3 weeks old but he had played soccer in them a few times and they were filthy and beat up. I didn't have the box or receipt but bought them on a Kohls credit card. I was really hoping for a 20% coupon for another pair. Kohl's did an even exchange on a new pair.

[jelbe5]

For me, Amazon's cs has always been great!

[melissamomof5]

Kitchen Aid - I had a counter-top mixer that broke after a couple uses and they sent me a new one, no questions asked, and picked up the old one!

 

Lowes - Has a great price matching policy. We ended up getting our dishwasher there because not only was it already cheaper than the same model at Sears, but they took an extra 10% off. :)

 

Bigby Coffee - Always the greatest service!

 

I could go on. I've had WAY more positive experiences than negative.

[Jess4879]

Just remembered - Fisher Price has been awesome, as well! Twice we had batteries leak -- once in a swing and once in an exersaucer -- both times were due to our basement being too humid and when I called for replacement parts they refunded my purchase in FULL even though it was my own fault! Can't get much better than that. :)

[HomeschoolMamaOfTwo]

Amazon, Disney Store/World, Publix, Ecomom, Crocs, LeapFrog, Kohl's, Ju-Ju-Be, eBags, Vitacost, Best Buy, Progressive and Geico insurance have been awesome any time I've ever needed anything. Target, for the most part, too, though some of their policies are weird.

 

I just had a horrible experience with Totsy, and after checking their facebook page, it doesn't seem like I am the only one. :-/ Toys R Us is also awful.

 

This is making me realize how many times I have problems with orders, that is crazy! At least most companies are great about fixing them.

[Tree Frog]

My excellent service was with HuskerHeaven. I'd ordered 2 sweatshirts, one for dh and a size small for dd. Kathy sent me an e-mail letting me know there was only one size small and it was damaged, so she wondered if I could wait for the new shipment of sweatshirts. The sweatshirt she sent is much nicer than the one I purchased, but she price matched it and sent it priority on Sat. I received it today. Whenever I've purchased items from Husker Heaven, they have been right on top of the orders. They are the company to purchase Nebraska Cornhusker items from!

[Tess in the Burbs]

Aero garden today sent me replacement plant pods. I was on the phone all of 2 minutes :-)

[theYoungerMrsWarde]

When you call Zaner-Bloser customer service you actually get a real person! I was kind of thrown when a real person answered at my second ring instead of a "press * for _____" situation. And you know how you can tell if someone is smiling by how they sound? That's what she sounded like.

 

A year before I had called about a question about their handwriting curriculum and the customer service lady I talked to then had no clue. But when I posted on my blog about my positive customer service experience a ZB representative contacted me we e-mailed back and forth and the result was a guest post by one of their experts for my blog that answered the question I had had a year ago.

 

Also, I don't remember the company, but we bought bookshelves to put together from Walmart over two years ago. We got several and we ended up losing the hardware for one. It just stood in the box in a closet for over 2 years before I remembered about it and called. They weren't making that model anymore but she found a set of the hardware for it and sent it free of charge.

[SpecialClassical]

Our local Meijer in west Michigan is awesome. They always have lanes open and often have an employee walking up and down to help people find the shortest line. If you need to find something in the store they get on it immediately. At Halloween the lady even told me where to go to buy pumpkins since theirs had run out. Returns are a breeze as well!

[TeachingTwins]

My excellent service was with HuskerHeaven. I'd ordered 2 sweatshirts, one for dh and a size small for dd. Kathy sent me an e-mail letting me know there was only one size small and it was damaged, so she wondered if I could wait for the new shipment of sweatshirts. The sweatshirt she sent is much nicer than the one I purchased, but she price matched it and sent it priority on Sat. I received it today. Whenever I've purchased items from Husker Heaven, they have been right on top of the orders. They are the company to purchase Nebraska Cornhusker items from!

 

Off topic, but you just made me homesick talking about Husker Heaven. I remember going in that store in Omaha back in 1995 the day after the Huskers won the National Championship, and buying a Championship embroidered sweatshirt. I still have it, and love to wear it once in awhile. The quality of their products is also great!