Out Of Service

It seems like in today's world that there is no longer such a thing as service. If you manage to get service assistance it is usually poor quality or has the adherence of a lack of caring. There is still some good service to be found, admittedly rare, which is very refreshing when you get it. Today when you get service you sometimes get the feel that they think it is a favor to help, not realizing that it comes down to a basic respect. Often larger companies which already have a large customer base, high profits, or a monopoly are the worst. They are either not worried about losing some customers or don't have to worry about that. Some companies have such a high profit margin they don't really care about the benefits that really good quality service can do for business. Good service can really increase your business especially when we come to return business. It also gives you a really good reputation where there is a better chance of customers recommending you or your product. Quality service shows that you really care about customers, their experience, and that there patronage means something and is appreciated. It is also an indicator that your products are likely also high-quality. Of course complacency can bring about a downfall in what was once high quality customer service. Also I think that the stress and lack of job security today can contribute to employees that are simply trying to make a living at a job they don't really enjoy. Also many people feel they aren't being appreciated or being paid enough. Often overvaluing their importance or truly being undervalued and not rewarded for doing a better job than coworkers who are lackluster. If management doesn't demand quality customer service or is a poor example there is a good chance their employees won't be interested in it either. There was a time when every company seemed to always be trying to have better quality than the next company. They tried to be genuinely friendly and the customer was still always right. They would even often bend over backward to accommodate or would go above and beyond their job. Thankfully there are still some decent people who do more than just what is required.

Recently upon a change of address I further discovered how hard it is to get good service. To get TV hooked up was frustrating waiting around six days when all they had to do was simply connect the cable and enter an activation code. Unfortunately the company didn't really seem to know what was required or if where I now live was even outfitted for cable. Also the place where I now am also gave us conflicting and inaccurate information in the beginning. It wasn't clear which companies were the regular service providers and the providers acted like they weren't even aware how often they are here. TV was a smaller company so it wasn't terribly long of a wait. The Internet on the other hand has been a 30 day wait. For a very large corporation the initial two week wait was bad enough but further difficulties have proven that a company with a virtual monopoly doesn't really need to be a really good company. Some complaints to them did result in them saying they would reduce the wait to 11 days. Although it never came about really makes you wonder if it was just simply lipservice. A second appointment was also missed so a phone call was required where they weren't aware of much and couldn't really find any reference to appointments even after many other phone calls. The frustrating part is that they dispatched a crew but didn't make any arrangements with the complex and therefore couldn't do my job. Of course this was late on a Friday afternoon and we were forced to reschedule on our own on Monday. It would have been nice if the complex would have told them the hours they had to come during and asked if they could come back Monday. The other annoying part is that they are required to come only between 8 AM and 2 PM. It seems like nobody works nine to five anymore and on Fridays everybody is often gone by three o'clock. If they are even at work. You can start to wonder with how difficult it is to get an actual person on the phone and not get instantly sent to voicemail. Being perpetually told that they are not at your desk at the moment. When you do get through you are regularly redirected and put on hold numerous times. Nobody seems to be able to take care of something for you directly, resulting in a very long and frustrating call.

I have my own business ideas where I want to bring back service like in the days where you still greatly mattered and quality was very important. Even the smallest of things and details would be important and it would be stressed regularly to all employees. It would be expected to work for me. All of my businesses would have service that is extra friendly, efficient, quick, ultra professional, customer always right. My vision would be to have service that is legendary and would put other companies to shame. To me in business high expectations and extraordinary practices in every area are always how it was meant to be. Where the customer is not just happy and taken care of but also glad that they came to you.