Comments

When you need an extra amount of caution dealing with some brands, it is telling you that the relationship is not an optimal one. You are the customer, they should be worried about your satisfaction, not about winning some more dollars with the first invoice. In this case, ther´s the additional point that you don´t change your cell phones day after day. You buy them for a period of time be it long or not so. They are losing a great opportunity to ask you how the relationship between you two ,you would like to be.

When you meet a new person and there´s a possibility of engaging in a mutual relationship you cannot suppose the other person shares your same assumptions or has the same biases. It´s the same with companies. There cannot be things left "in the air" that affect your pocket.

Posted by felix gerena at January 31, 2005 11:40 AM

talking of 'satisfaction', i have found Guitar Centre to be great at thinking of me the customer first, and doing pretty much whatever it takes to ensure that i'll come back again (and again).

Posted by kittymc at January 31, 2005 11:54 AM

I wonder if Ivan Seidenberg has EVER stepped into one of his stores in jeans and a pull-over to have an unshellac'd experience like the rest of us?

I recommend EVERY officer and director of every company I deal with to do what Sam Walton did and taught his teams to do... Go to your points of sale and scrutinize, optimize and realize. Or prepare to vaporize.

Posted by Gerald Buckley at January 31, 2005 12:10 PM

LUCKY FOR YOU THOUGH STEVE THAT YOU ARE WORTH 10'S OF MILLIONS - however, I understand the feeling - everyone tries to take your money - especially when you have a lot to shop around with.

Posted by John at January 31, 2005 12:53 PM

All the wireless carriers are troglodytes when it comes to customer service and transparency.

Here's my record of a recent encounter with Sprint (http://www.ratcliffeblog.com/archives/000318.html) and my open letter to the CEO (http://blog.redherring.com/MT/archives/main/000526.html?t=thenow) in response.

Posted by Mitch Ratcliffe at January 31, 2005 1:54 PM

Not to worry, Sprint is more than happy to reach into your pockets with little, to no warning as well. I recently upgraded my account since I was regularly going over my minutes. When I received my bill, there was an additional charge of $100. After waiting on hold for 15 minutes, I was finally able to talk with a customer service agent (heavy indian accent) to please explain. This is a "customer convenience" charge that will be credited back with my last bill. When asked how I would ultimately receive the cash I was given two separate answers. AT one point it would be credited back on my last bill, later on in the conversation I was told a check would be mailed to me. There were no answers to questions regarding automatic renewal of my contract and how many other 'credits' I have on my contract considering I have changed my plans over the 5 years I have been with Sprint.

Way to go!

Posted by Doug at January 31, 2005 3:17 PM

Even Vonage, the new broadband home phone service that competes with Verizon and other traditional home phone service providers, has additional charges when you sign up. Or worse, when/if you cancel. Sunrocket is supposed to have a "no gotchas" plan with no hidden fees, and an annual price option that's even lower than the monthly option.

Posted by Sally at January 31, 2005 4:01 PM

All Telco's seem that have this problem or what ??

We have a class action suite happening with a telcom in Canada. They have been charging a certain monly fee which is dubbed as some gov telelecommunication charges/taxes etc etc.. and this is not the fact. It was just a surcharge of the telco. !!

While People are talking about brands, my thought are directly into vertical segments now !!

Posted by /pd at January 31, 2005 4:01 PM

at what point do you begin to marginalize this site with comments that seem like so much whining...

we all manage to buy cell phone services...

Posted by jim at January 31, 2005 4:02 PM

pd - what is a vertical segment?

steve- what a consumer wants is to feel like they are important. what they don't want to feel like is that they have to pass a loyalty test every time the have a transaction. tests occur at SAT and drivers license time, not during relationships. continuous concencessions = hate and anger = reduced investment in the brand. steve's point in putting these everyday moments on the blog is that they are emotional every day events, the kind that impact behaviors; they aren't whining, they are the kind that will make or break your brand. it is a bigger context. maybe we just need to have a "what did we learn from it all" section.

Posted by Wendy at January 31, 2005 5:00 PM

Wendy :V-Segments are those industries which fall into a specifc Catogory. E.g Sprint, SBC,Cingluar, AT&T, are of the telecommuniction industry. Others like UPS/DHL/FEDEX are in the transport Industry..there are other V-segments like the electronics and computers etc etc..

In short, I have observed that all the major players in a specific segment, tend to behave in a paradoxial manner in their businss wisdoms !! Its, like-- if "they" can do it so can "we" attitude!!

Hello ?? Knock knock ..whose there ?? Where the heck has the sense of corporate values gone eh ?? and how in gawd's name did you ever think that such a strategy would bring about a harvest of ROI's (either along term or short term) eh ??

...now I'll degress this thought flick'r to forget ROI's and ROE...and now focus on the customer... poor Steve..he got sucker'ed.. LEGALLY !!

What a bunch of humanity we have become !!!

Posted by /pd at January 31, 2005 7:37 PM

It's all about the customer - customer as god. - If they ain't treatin' you like a god, go elsewhere.

I sometimes start out with a whinge about their competition and see if they squirm... the more they squirm the more I want to get out of there.

Have changed accountants three times (the latest one is starting to get up my nose), changed Telco's four times, got ready to scream when we moved house and had an argument with the phoe guy about why I didn't want broadband (not yet).

Just this morning had a shopping cart (web based) dilema that meant I called their toll free No: and got a slow girl untrained in how to handle a customer who had just spent 1/2 an hour tangling with their web stuff, to find she was not much better! Hope the product is worth it.

She finished off with "Will that be all?" Hell I did not even know they sold more than the one product and one book... I could have asked for details but I was already fuming, why the hell would I want to spend another moment more putting up with PAP... errrrgh...

Service, its still in the doldrums...

Posted by Steve Gray at January 31, 2005 9:52 PM

Steve,

Let's lay it all out there and post your bill and contract. My service with Cingular/ATT has been flawless. Exactly what I signed up for...online with no humans involved. And I'm dying to know if the fact that you let the salesperson put everything together had anything to do with this. I'm also curious to know how Verizon gets the lion's share of surcharges. That is inexcusable and fraudulent. The market will correct this a la Hughtrain.

Hoping that you only have a 1 year contract... Hang in there.

Posted by Paul Davidson at February 1, 2005 1:55 AM

Remember the old saying: "If an offer looks too good to be true, it probably is."

Posted by Mark JF at February 1, 2005 3:51 AM