What’s that old adage? A happy customer will tell one person while an unhappy customer will tell 100? I’m going to do my best to blow the curve and share two positive customer service stories. It’s probably a sign of the state of customer service today that any customer service experience that makes my life easier is such a pleasant surprise.
Citibank
I’ve had a Citibank credit card since college. I’m one of those rare people who always pays their bill in full and on time. Last month, due to some sort of snafu with my online bill pay vendor, my Citibank bill was paid late. I was hit with the interest cost on the delayed payment, plus a flat rate penalty, not an insignificant amount of money.
While I had already called my bill pay vendor to figure out what had happened on their end, I also wanted to call Citibank and make sure that the delayed payment wasn’t going to appear on my credit report. Ryan at Citibank customer service assured me that it would not, but also took the time to review my account, acknowledge that this late payment was an anomaly, and immediately get the charges reversed.
I was so pleasantly surprised by the fact that a customer service rep – a customer service rep for a bank, no less! – was willing to go above and beyond what I asked for to keep me happy.
FedEx
Unfortunately for us, the airlines’ policies of charging for checked baggage coincided with having a child. While I still pack in a carry-on suitcase, there’s just no way that I can make it through the airport with a toddler, stroller, car seat, diaper bag and suitcase. Something has to give, and the bag gets handed over at check-in, a choice that has so far left me with long waits at baggage claim and a broken suitcase handle.
We’re planning a trip to Florida at Christmastime, and it occurred to me that rather than paying the airline $30 to check two bags with the airline, wouldn’t it be easier to just send along two suitcases’ worth of stuff ahead of time via FedEx? I assumed that it would cost more, but I decided that the convenience factor was worth it, even if it cost double.
Yesterday, I boxed everything up and weighed it. Through FedEx.com I entered my package dimensions, weight and insured value, and printed out a shipping label right from my computer. Total cost: $38.25, a mere $8.25 more than what it would cost to haul the extra stuff to the airport.
Even better, FedEx came to my door to pick up the box, at no additional charge. No driving to a Kinkos or FedEx shipping center, no lugging heavy boxes in and out of the car. I put it on the porch and the lovely FedEx man took it away this morning. This may very well be the best way to pack for travel.