The New York Times' Joe Nocera shares a fabulous personal story (Put Buyers First? What a Concept) about customer service. Nocera purchased a Playstation ($500) on Amazon.com as a Christmas present, discovering a few days before the big holiday that it hadn't arrived yet. After discovering it had been delivered to a neighbor, who signed for it, Nocera guessed the expensive and popular electronic game had been stolen from the hallway where the neighbor left it. So contacted Amazon to plea his case, knowing they had done nothing wrong, and here's what took place:
I got on the phone with an Amazon customer service representative, and explained what had happened: the PlayStation had been shipped, delivered and signed for. It just didn’t wind up in my hands. Would Amazon send me a replacement? In my heart of hearts, I knew I didn’t have a leg to stand on. I was pleading for mercy.
I shudder to think how this entreaty would have gone over at, say, Apple, where customer service is an oxymoron. But the Amazon customer service guy didn’t blink. After assuring himself that I had never actually touched or seen the PlayStation, he had a replacement on the way before the day was out. It arrived on Christmas Eve. Amazon didn’t even charge me for the shipping. My son was very happy. So, of course, was I.
Then Nocera ponders Amazon's performance in the stock market, how it gained about 140% in 2007. Analysts have their opinions as to why Amazon was and is so successful. And Nocera has his:
But I couldn’t help wondering if maybe there wasn’t something else at play here, something Wall Street never seems to take very seriously. Maybe, just maybe, taking care of customers is something worth doing when you are trying to create a lasting company. Maybe, in fact, it’s the best way to build a real business — even if it comes at the expense of short-term results.
It is almost impossible to read or see an interview with Mr. Bezos (Founder/CEO Jeff Bezos) in which he doesn’t, at some point, begin to wax on about what he likes to call “the customer experience.”
Nocera nails it. Amazon was under no obligation to send him another Playstation. Most businesses would balk at the thought of stepping in and doing a remarkable thing. Because they are stuck in a short term mindset, constantly worrying about every dime and nickle they might spend doing remarkable things. And by having this mindset, they are never going to be reamarkable in the mind of consumers. Author/speaker Seth Godin also nails it in a Jan. 3 post about word of mouth marketing:
It's very easy to overpromise. Tempting to shade the truth a little bit, deliver a little bit less to save a few bucks. Who will notice? The consumer notices.
If you need to overpromise to make the sale, don't bother. It's not worth it. The best way to generate word of mouth is simple: overdeliver.
Amazon consistently overdelivers. I remember the first time I purchased something from them. I bought two CDs for my wife for her birthday, and of course I was running out of time, as I procrastinated, and was concerned they wouldn't arrive on time. I chose a 'gift wrap' option, so they'd be ready to go when they arrived. And I'm not the greatest gift wrapper. Well, they arrived right on time, in two sharp looking gift boxes. And of course the price was attractive, as it always is on Amazon.
Lots of great products. Low prices. Easy to navigate web store. Affordable shipping. Great customer service. Lather, rinse, repeat. And when the opportunity arises to make Christmas, or any other day, really special - to save the day for someone - step in and do the remarkable thing. Sounds like a good business plan to me.
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