These Days, Outstanding Customer Service Wins

 

If you’re like me, you’ve learned to accept mediocre customer service as the new standard. That’s why when I receive excellent customer service it can literally make my day — maybe even my week. This week, I had two outstanding customer service experiences that many other companies could learn from.

 

The first was with J&L Television. On Saturday night, the picture on my two-year-old Westinghouse LCD TV went black. The sound was still on, but there was no picture. I checked the Internet and discovered that the inverter board was probably the culprit. So, I Googled Omaha TV repair and wrote down the names and numbers of two shops to call on Monday.

 

I called the one that was farther than I wanted to drive first, thinking I’d get an estimate from them and then if the shop in my part of town was the same or less, I’d just go to that one. However, when I called J&L Television, the man on the other end — who later identified himself as John — was so nice and professional, that I never called the second shop. He told me the problem was a common one with my brand and model, and that it was a same-day job. He even told me the cost. Best of all, John delivered: I brought my TV in over my lunch hour, picked it up after work that day, and paid what he said it would cost. He’d even said that if I couldn’t make it back to the shop by 5:30 to just call and he’d wait for me.

 

Here’s an example of awesome customer service over the telephone that can win customers. Treat callers nicely, take a little time with them, know what you’re talking about and convey a bit of professionalism, and they will trust you and want to do business with you.

 

My second superb experience was at Markel Automotive. On Saturday (before the TV broke), my mom noticed a tiny chip in the paint on the door of my three-month-old MINI Cooper, probably from a rock. I looked for touch-up paint online, but how could I be sure it would match? Finally, I decided to just call Markel and find out if they would sell me some touch-up paint.

 

The woman on the phone at Markel’s body shop was friendly and nice and told me just to bring my car to the body shop and they’d touch it up for me. So, after I dropped off the TV, I figured I had time to stop at Markel. They not only touched up the spot, but they also washed my car and gave me a bottle of touch-up paint. And they didn’t charge me a penny. I fully expected to pay for their service and the paint — which sold for up to $40 a bottle online — but the body tech said, “No, no. It really didn’t take any time.”

 

Now, I can tell you from my experience with Markel that they pride themselves on consistently providing incredible customer service, and it’s one of the things that differentiates the company. In every experience I’ve had with Markel, the employees have reached a high level of customer care and service that is tough to find these days, and my experience at the body shop was no different.

Markel has won me as a MINI customer for life. I’ll be quick to recommend J&L Television and Markel to anyone looking for the services they offer. Moreover, my experiences put me in a great mood with renewed faith in customer service. In fact, I’m still riding the high from being treated so well.