Cable companies are notorious for having the worst customer service of any industry. So, how about I blow your mind with a customer service story about Spectrum that will leave you smiling? A colleague shared the following story with me.
Real World Story: “We are in the process of moving. We’ll be living in both our old place and our new home for about a week. So we contacted our cable company to install new cable and internet service at our new place; however, we also needed to keep our current service, especially our internet access, at our current home because we would be bouncing back and forth for a week.
“Long story short, our internet service at our current place was transferred to our new home. No more internet at our old place. We called customer service, and after talking with three different service reps, we were promised restored internet at our old place without interrupting the new service at our new home. Sadly, whatever they did on their end did not work. But, believe it or not, it didn’t bother us in the least because the customer service throughout our interaction was exceptional!
“Every single Spectrum service agent we spoke with was genuinely apologetic, sincerely caring, and extremely polite. The first agent apologized for the error and tried to help as best as he could. When he needed to transfer us to a different department, he did so professionally, letting us know he had limited access to help us with our problem, needed to transfer us, and would we please give him a telephone number in case he disconnected us. The second agent also apologized for the problem and then warmly asked how our move was going. She was engaging and treated us like we had been friends for years. The third agent was also apologetic, empathetic and caring. She also asked how the move was going and asked about our new home.
“While talking with Spectrum, we were also in the midst of continuing to pack, making dinner, and helping our son with his homework. When the third agent was done helping us, she said, ‘We again apologize for the error and hope we have been of service to you. Thank you for being a loyal customer. I do want to take the opportunity to say what a pleasure it has been talking with you. I’ve been hearing you in the background with your son, and I see that you’ve been helping him with his homework. You guys seem like such great parents, very engaged with your son. We need more people like you in this world.’
“Wow! It truly felt like we had a friend on the inside helping us. This was perhaps the best customer service experience we have ever had.”
Strategies that Turn it Around:
- Be a professional: If you come across obstacles when helping a customer, let them know what they are, tell them what the next steps are, and ensure you don’t lose them on the line.
- Be a friend: Not everyone is going to be your friend, obviously. But you sure can treat them like they are. Being friendly will go a long way to winning over customers, especially if they are irate.
- Just be a decent human. When you take the time to ask your customers how their day is going, how they are liking their new home or any probing question that lets them know you are paying attention will show customers you are a decent human being. And THAT will win you customers for life.
Remember: Customers want to feel heard and cared for, especially during stressful times like moving, a death in the family, loss of a job, etc. By paying attention to your customers’ individual situations, you can make a human-to-human connection that they can brag about—like in a blog post.
Does your organization emphasize human-to-human connections?