The Good, The Bad & The Redeemed

Stories about customer service...

The Bad

Back in January, my friend and her fiance came to Canada for a visit. I threw her an engagement party. There was some last minute drama and change of location, but it all worked out and was a really lovely evening. I had planned to get a custom made calendar with pictures of her and her fiance that will start in 2011 (because that's when she's getting married). I had put in an order and it would be ready on the day of the engagement party. I would be bringing it to the party and getting the guests to sign it and add important dates or messages on the calendar for the bride and groom to discover as they went throughout their year.

A cute idea, non?

So when I hadn't heard from the photo lab that my calendar was in, I decided to call them.

There was much running around when the calendar couldn't be found. I spoke to a lovely girl and she figured out that somehow there was a mix up and it never got printed. I was disappointed and frustrated. I told her that my friend was going back to England on Monday (it was a Friday) and now I would have to mail it to her without all the special notes from people. I told her I still wanted the calendar but that I would like it for free due to the fact that they did not fulfill their guarantee that the calendar would be ready within 5 days.

I was told to call the manager on Monday.

So I did.

She was NOT the most helpful person.

In fact, she went on to blame other departments and was very rude and short with me, telling me that if they (the photo lab) were getting charged, then I would be too!

When I asked when she'd hear back from whoever it was that she was waiting to hear back from, she snarkily told me that she had emailed him and email may take a day or two and it's not immediate. Um, I know what email is. Pick up a phone and call the guy! So she said I'd hear back by the end of the week.

I never heard back from her.

So when I got a call last week (approximately 1.5 months LATER) from their printing department in Toronto asking me about the year I had dated the calendar for, I told her I did not want the calendar anymore due to bad customer service and was not interested in it being printed anymore.

The Redeemed

On Friday, I got a call from Zehrs (the photo lab) and a girl told me my calendar was in.

ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?!?

I laughed a little and said I wasn't interested in it anymore and went on to explain what had happened. She asked the person's name and I told her and she paused and said, "Oooh." (I'm guessing the old manager was fired.) And then she proceeded to offer me the calendar for free because of my trouble.

THANK YOU!

She's the new manager at the photo lab. Of course she is.

The Good

A couple weeks ago I checked out an online store called Storks and Berries. They were having a sale on AppleCheeks diapers and I wanted to try them out.
So I ordered a couple and thought about how cute my boys would look in the Cherry Tomato Red and Eucalyptus Green diapers! :)

Oh and I chose the cheapest (but longest) postal option - because I'm cheap and I figured I'd just wait a bit longer for my diapers.

That same day I got an email from Dawn who owns the company saying that her husband would be in my area later that week and that he could bring my diapers and mail them from Toronto or even drop them off at my place instead of mailing them from Alberta and taking an additional week or two!

I was SO IMPRESSED with her thoughtfulness and told her I'd blog about her. :)

Sure enough, later that week I got my diapers in the mail and they were perfect! My boys love them and so do I!

She emailed to follow up to make sure I was happy with my diapers and that I had received them okay.

Great job, Dawn! THIS is what customer service should be all about.

I definitely recommend Storks and Berries for any diaper or baby/kid stuff you need!

While I am pleased with the eventual outcome of my calendar experience with Zerhs Photolab, I am not likely to order a calendar from them anytime soon.