Last week I had a problem with my mobile internet connection when changing plans. Usually a simple process, something went array in the supplier, and I could not connect and as the “new improved” plan rolled into service, I had nothing, at a most inconvenient time.
I got onto the carrier, and their technical help desk fixed it quickly by stepping me through a process on my computer. All that is OK, but it seemed that the problem should never have been occurred, so fixing it quickly was good, but it was just bolting the stable door.
The following day I got a call from a researcher setting out to get my feedback on my experience with their techos. A very polite young lady, whose first language was not English took me though a series of 1-10 options ranging from outstanding to poor along a number of parameters, each sought measures of my experience with the technician. He scored very well. However, she did not have any questions about the cause of the problem, or how I felt about the fact that it happened, and when I tried to explain that my high marks for the tech assistance should not be confused with the dismay at having had the problem, it all got too much for her.
Customer service is all about preventing problems in the first place, when you cause them your customers are grateful that they were fixed, but will not necessarily forgive you for causing them. To be effective at improving service, they should have investigated the cause of the problem, so they could take steps to prevent it happening again, not check that an empty stable had been well cleaned.
