Why I was willing to waste 8 hours with my new cell phone company

     What is your biggest pet peeve when it comes to customer service?  Mine is being ignored or disrespected (I guess that is two).   I recently left my local cell phone company that we had been with for over 10 years.  This was not an easy decision.  I did not know if our  business cell phone numbers would  be lost in the process  but I was willing to risk it.  I had to pick out a new phone (pay for a new phone), and the worst part, I had to convince my husband that we should change and then get him down to the cell store to pick out a new phone.  If you knew my husband  you would understand what a difficult task this was.

     Why would I be willing to leave a 10 year relationship with a company?  They ignored me. They did not want to take responsibility for dropped calls , (I  called the main company), and when I went into the local stores  I was ignored.

     After much research I decided I would switch to Verizon. I called the local corporate store of Verizon to make an appointment and was told " I will look for you then” and “ I will make sure I am available."  Even though he was not available we got there (as he was finishing up with another client), he checked in with us several times.  Other employees checked with us to make sure we were being helped as well.  We may have waited 15 minutes, but we were being acknowledged over and over again so it did not seem to bother us. 

     To make a long story short, we spent several hours in the Verizon store.  We picked out cell phones, talked about service, purchased phones, ported numbers...etc.  I now know the man who was helping us on a first name basis, his family situation and past job.  He knows much of the same about me.  This was not just a transaction, it was time spent developing a relationship to best help the customer.

    Two days after getting my phone I found out I was not receiving texts from a couple of people who were still customers of my old cell phone service provider.  I spent about an hour and a half on the phone with tech support, went into the store, did internet research and still could not fix the problem. Off to the store again,  I went to ask for help.  I think half the staff that day, along with tech support, tried to fix the issue to no avail.  So, they gave me a new phone and new sim card.  I spent 3.5 hours in the store just on this issue.  I should be really upset, but I'm not.  The employee's apologized for the wait, engaged me in conversation and kept trying new things to fix the issue.  A manager came over and apologized again saying "I am really sorry, this is not the experience we want you to have your first two weeks with Verizon."  The crazy thing is, even though I spent so much time dealing with "technical difficulties" I knew that they were trying to help me and I felt taken care of.  

     EVERYONE makes mistakes.  Everyone has a bad day now and then. Technical or other difficulties are going to happen.  It is how we respond to those mistakes and difficulties that count.  Because the local Verizon store took the time to acknowledge that this was indeed a problem, their fault or not, they were not willing to stop until I was happy.  Eight hours, in total, on this issue (I don't have 8 hours to give up) and I am still a happy Verizon customer. 

The moral of my story? Acknowledge your customers!  Let them know you care and step up when there is an issue.  You will be surprised at the loyal advocates you develop for your business.  Heck, they may even write a blog about you!  :)

Waiting on Perfection

 I can't do that....I am not skinny enough yet. I can't teach that class, I don't 

know absolutely everything. I can't post that...my grammar is not always 

perfect. These are the things that run through my head.....constantly. 

 The things I let my inner critic hold me back from is sometimes mind 

boggling. The amount of weight I give to what other people think and what 

they say about what I do, is even more mind boggling. 

 I have avoided (and probably will continue to avoid) being in videos, 

pictures and television commercials because I don't like the way I look. I 

have turned down opportunities to teach classes and take on clients until I 

am so over loaded with information that I could almost start a new business 

just on that subject. I am an over learner, which at times can come in handy. 

However, in the meantime I am depriving others of information that could 

help them while I am waiting on perfection. 

 I have avoided posting things on facebook and writing blogs because my 

grammar, no matter how hard I try, never seems to be perfect enough for 

what I call the grammar police. 

 So, here are my choices. Curl up in the fetal position and sink into 

obscurity (my first and most comfortable inclination) or continue to try and 

push myself to do the things that make me uncomfortable. I can continue 

to let shame run who I am or I can continue to be my imperfect, flawed but 

worthy of love and respect self. 

 This was a big vulnerable blog for me. I hope, that with my stepping out 

it encourages someone else who needs to hear this message. What you have 

to contribute could be the one thing that could change someones business, 

relationship or life. 

Waiting on perfection is a losing battle.

"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out 

how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds 

could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man 

who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and 

sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes 

short again and again, because there is no effort without 

error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the 

deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; 

who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows 

in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the 

worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that 

his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who 

neither know victory nor defeat"

Theodore Roosevelt