[pct-l] bad customer service experience with Froggtoggs

[CHUCK CHELIN]

Good morning, All,

As someone who enjoyed a long and successful career managing the improvement
of customer support at a large corporation, already well-reputed for
excellent service, I believe the reply Nina received was inappropriate --
even grim.

In touchy-feely education there is a malapropism to the effect, “There’s no
such thing as a dumb question.”  Sorry, boys and girls, but indeed there are
lots of dumb questions; it’s just that while customers are allowed to ask
them, responsible firms must always respond politely, professionally, and as
completely as possible because we need customers more than customers need
us.

A terse, impolite answer – regardless of the theoretical correctness of its
content – says to the customer, “I don’t have time for you, and I will
devote only the bare minimum of keystrokes to this reply.”  This attitude,
believed by some to be “efficient”, is fed by writing practices in the
current trends of e-mail, texting, and Tweeting, but that doesn’t make it
right in a business atmosphere.  Such replies provide a small pyrrhic
victory at a cost of losing the customer.  To a responsible business manager
the thought of such grim replies is maddening – absolutely maddening.  That’s
why the communication from so many customer contact centers is regularly
monitored by management.

It’s said that customers remember such slights, “forever, plus 7 years”, and
indeed I have my own short, personal, excrement-list where such companies’
names are not written, but engraved.  I will never again willingly do
business with them.  Did they “win”?

Steel-Eye

-Hiking the Pct since before it was the PCT – 1965

-http://www.trailjournals.com/steel-eye

-http://www.trailjournals.com/SteelEye09


On Thu, Aug 11, 2011 at 6:06 PM, nina white <nina.white at gmail.com> wrote:

>  By writing to Froggtoggs to inquire about the weight of various items they
> sell, I've had one of the worst email-based customer service experiences of
> my life. I include my exchange with them below, reformatted, but
> _verbatim_-- including capitalization and lack of salutation or signature.
> They have made me feel like I was wasting their time by trying to buy their
> products.
>
> I still want to know the weight of the jacket part of the ultralite rain
> suit, but I'm pretty sure I'll just buy the jacket from O2, given this
> complete lack of common courtesy from Froggtoggs.
>
> Nina
>
> **************
>
> (Me)
>
> I was wondering how much the DriDucks® Ultra-Lite2™ Rain Suit in a size
> medium or large weighs.
>
> thanks,
> Nina White
>
> *********
>
> (Froggtoggs)
>
> 10.4oz
>
>
> *********
>
>
> (Me)
>
>
> Julie,
>
> thanks for your reply. Another question: do you have the weight breakdown
> for the pants vs. the jacket? Also, how much does the ultralite poncho
> weight?
>
> thanks again,
> Nina
>
>
> ************
>
>
> (Froggtoggs)
>
>
> That poncho weighs 9oz. I do not have a breakdown for pants via jacket.
>
> *************
>
> (Me)
>
>
> Julie,
>
> your products are very popular with ultra lite hikers (which is how I found
> out about your website). It would be nice for that segment of your customer
> base if the weights were listed on your website.
>
> I was wondering about the jacket weight because I'm deciding between buying
> your jacket or a jacket made by o2, and the weight is very important to me.
> I won't pack the pants, so their weight is irrelevant (for my purposes).
>
> Thanks for your replies,
> Nina
>
>
> *************
>
>
> (Froggtoggs)
>
>
> WHICH JACKET DO YOU NEED THE WEIGHT ON?
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