Another Customer Service Rant

(I originally posted this at Absolute Write, but decided to repost this here. Two reasons: One, it's been a while since my original post on customer service...and two, to break up the monotony of weekly writing goals posts)

Long ago, I stopped visiting Kinko's because of really bizarre fees they would charge for a person to bring in digital files to print. I could go to other print shops in town and get it done for no additional charge, so why bother spending money I didn't have to.

Somewhere along the line, I decided to go back there, simply because of the 24-hour convenience (so I could stop and get copies made before work). I found out they no longer charged extra to print digital files.

Last Saturday, I went to my regular Kinko's early in the morning to avoid Christmas traffic. I had a Word document I needed to print out for some final hand-edits, and my printer has some issues which makes a 30-page document a pain-in-the-butt to print off at home. So, I went in...everything went quick and I was out with nary a problem.

Today, I was planning to go to the same Kinko's with the updated Word document. Long story short, between some other appointments and post-Christmas price hunting, I ended up near another Kinko's. To avoid making the long drive out of the way, I decided to go in and get the file printed. They took the flash drive and printed it off for me, and then gave me the bill...twice as much as the other Kinko's.

Needless to say, I was a little confused, so asked what the extra charge was for.

Apparently, they do digital files, but if it's not in PDF format, they charge you an extra fee???

When I mentioned the other store had not charged me, the clerk basically stated they were supposed to charge for it, but sometimes clerks didn't, depending on the clerk.

Not to mention, it would have been nice for the clerk to mention there would be an extra fee for printing the Word document, and was I fine with that?

So, unfortunately for them, I think I'll stick with the other print shops, where I've never been charged extra, regardless of the file types I use...the clerks stick to a predetermined system of charges...and the clerks communicate with me any extra fees that may or may not be involved before processing the order.

Doing a Great Dis-Service

Is it merely me, or has the customer service industry really gone to s--- in the past few years?

I began to notice small things, like heading through the drive thru at several fast food restaurants. I used to work drive-thru back in the day, and generally we'd wait for the customer to make a long pause, indicating they were finished ordering. Of course, then we'd try to get them to make an additional purchase, but that was pushed on us by managers.

Nowadays, I can barely get one part of an order out before they ask "Is that it?"

This is especially entertaining when I (apparently an adult, since I'm driving a car) order a Happy Meal first thing...

Okay, so that's a minor rant...and easily attributable to people becoming more rude in current times.

A few weeks ago, our couch began to make squeaking noises when we sat down. Since it was still under the one-year warranty, we called up the store to get it fixed. They came over and picked it up, then took it back to the store. Days went by, and finally they called to tell us that they'd be bringing it back. So, once we got it back and the truck had left, we finally got a chance to sit.

Lo and behold, the couch still made the same noise.

So, we called them up and explained the situation to them, and they agreed to come back out and get it. The manager we spoke with assured us that he would "personally" make sure the couch got fixed. We'll see.

Fast forward to just yesterday...

Our (American) car, less than 2 years old, begins to make rubbing noises when turning right. Obviously, this shouldn't be happening, even though it has just under 36,000 miles on it.

So, we take it back to the dealer to get it fixed under warranty. At first, they tell us that they won't be able to get it in for a few days. We find out through our original saleswoman that the dealer foots the bill for a rental when you bring cars in for warranty work, so we take them up on it.

Now, one would expect that since we have a four-door vehicle, with two small children, they would pony up for a similar vehicle. Instead, we get stuck with a two-door with limited room to navigate in the back seats. Not much fun with car seats and booster seats...

So, it was with much jubilation that we received a call later that evening telling us that they'd been able to get our car in and fix the problem (We discovered later that it was because the dealer only pays for a rental for one day). We drove back to the dealer, swapped cars, and everything seemed okay. The problem was apparently fixed and all was well with the world again.

Then, we drove about two miles down the road, and the problem popped back up. (Have I mentioned my disgust with American vehicles?)

I only hope that they didn't try a quick fix so that we wouldn't be able to get the car back in before it topped the 36,000 warranty limit (yes, it's that close). Even if that happens, I'll be rather forceful when explaining to them the meaning of true customer service...