Hey Fortune Magazine, Screw-Off

From an email just sent to Fortune Magazine Customer Service:

Hey Fortune Customer Service - ever since I downloaded the iPad app you've bombarded me with these crap emails that my subscription is ending. It is false, misleading and surprisingly unprofessional considering you are a business publication. Instead of trying to scare into prematurely subscribing why don't you remind me nicely at the appropriate time. Until then, please go away.

Why would Fortune resort to such unprofessional tactics?

The email itself is addressed to "J". Nice personal touch.

There is no indication of when my subscription actually ends. I think it's April??

These emails have been coming for four or five months now!

This is a nice way to mess with a brand. The writers and editors and lots of others are probably merrily working away at building a good product. And the distribution guys are working hard to piss customers like me off. Nice.

Future Shop Customer Service – Fail

via johnarobb.com

Here's a blog post from my frustrated buddy John.

John if it's any consolation I was in an empty Staples around 6:30 and waited 20 minutes for the (only) nice counter lady to figure out how the chip card reader works (the stripe goes to the left. LEFT. Dammit). On Saturday Tim Hortons managed to lose yet another one of my orders because the manager serving me got embroiled in a brawl with an angry customer who was questioning the available options (lettuce or tomatoe and/or lettuce and tomatoe or/and/or nothing) on one of those BELT sandwiches (I'm pretty sure the L stands for lettuce and the T for tomatoe?). When it was all said and done, I was out my coffee and donut. I stayed VERY calm.

See John, apparently you're new to this. Not me. I'm a veteran. Happens to me all the time.

And like you, I've tried blogging and tweeting away my frustrations. Without much luck.

The first time Tim Hortons messed me up I tweeted my pain and got a response from some dude in the US. To this day I'm pretty certain he was just absolving the US of any responsibility. Do they even have bagels in the US?

When Westjet kept us all waiting for almost an hour to self check our bags, I sent out a flock of tweets - then sat next to the hot Westjet marketing lady on my flight to Miami. I showed her my tweets (she's dropping the charges). For three weeks those tweets sat on my twitter profile and on my blog. I never heard a thing from Westjet. I'm not even sure they're still in business?

So on Saturday I stayed calm. No tweeting or blogging. Same tonight with Staples.

John, I recognize that like you, I am doomed to be check-out/check-in challenged and to just grin and bear it. Besides, you think Future Shop is following your blog? Come on. Like Westjet, their customer service is probably still living in the past. Off-line.

Posted via web from Jim's posterous

General Motors Value of a Customer Update

General Motors gets the value of a customer.

I'm a loyal GM customer. I've done the Honda, Toyota, BMW, Volvo thing but discovered years ago that GM had finally figured out how to make cars and value-wise they were difficult to beat (too bad about the business model and the terrible public perception).

Yesterday I posted that the car I brought home last week had hail damage. Not that I noticed it, but someone else did.

My meeting with the dealer's General Manager went exactly as any valued customer would have hoped: "you're a loyal customer. we'll look after you fully".

It's that simple. It's what I hoped. I'm happy. Again.

Jim Crocker
CEO, Boardroom Metrics
Blackberry: 416-573-9396
Email: crockbiz@gmail.com
Website: Boardroom Metrics

Contact Me:

Posted via email from Jim's posterous

On-line Customer Service Learning from Tim Hortons?

Earlier I posted about a simple, frustrating service glitch that left me bageless at Tim Horton's.

It's wasn't a huge thing. But operational excellence means non-stop learning and I always find these things fascinating for the lessons they provide.

I've already described what happened - with some thoughts. Here's the follow-up.

When I posted to my blog it got posted to Twitter. The Twitter post caught the attention of @timhortonsus - a Twitter account whose profile is described as 'Tim Hortons USA PR'.

They responded with this reply:

@jimcrocker We apologize for your experience at one of the Canadian stores. We are available for further follow up.

I was impressed. And confused.

First impressed. It was Sunday. And someone at Tim Hortons was on the ball enough to both be following Twitter for mentions of their brand - outstanding, good for them - and actually got back to me. That is very cool. When companies think about how Twitter might be used THIS IS EXACTLY ONE OF THE WAYS.

Now. Confused.

I'm in Canada. And I'm getting a response from the US Tim Horton's operation - maybe even their PR people. Why them? Do they speak for Canada? Are they the Tim Horton's Twitter monitoring service dudes for North America?

It's not clear. The very direct reference to 'at one of our Canadian stores' can easily be read as 'that stuff you're blogging about didn't happen here in the US'. Yet, there is lots of Canadian content that suggests this is Tim Hortons official North American Twitter account.

For a second or two I wondered if Tim Horton's really had it's act together. Would the US 'PR' guys tip someone in Canada to take a look at Twitter and may I'd hear from someone closer to home. I wasn't expecting it and it never happened. Further, I had already replied, saying I was cool, so why would they?

Are there lessons here? If there are, they're simple (is there anything new here?):

1. People are talking about brands on-line all the time. Tuning into Twitter and other social networking services is a good, timely way to keep abreast of - and respond to - what's being said.

2. I got reminded, that whatever the service, having a an appropriate user name and descriptive profile can be helpful. I'm assuming @timhortonsus, the "USA PR" people are exactly that - so being a little confused about why they're responding to a Canadian issue is ok - however, if that's what they do, then their user name may be inappropriate and indicating their broader role in their user profile would be clearer and more helpful.

3. Services like Twitter are about interacting, not just messaging. I checked to see if Tim Hortons Canada has a Twitter account and they appear to - @timhortonsnews. It has the look and feel of a corporate experiment - no user profile; few posts; all outbound marketing messages, eg "exclusive Sydney Crosby merchandise...". However, they do point to their Facebook page which includes customer discussions on good and bad service.

4. Finally, I also got reminded that great service is about overachieving customer expectations - and that generally expectations are pretty low. I wasn't sure what to expect when I originally posted to my blog. Getting a response seemed very professional but it was still within my 'possibility' range. Linking me from the US to Canadian operations would have blown me away.

5. There are other lessons here that need some thought:

• the challenge of cross-border brands and who has responsibility given there are no borders on the internet?
• the challenge of actually 'listening to customers' and figuring what to do with it - the Tim Horton's Facebook page is a mish-mash of customer rants. What does a company do with that noise (here's a suggestion: post store surveys on-line).

Bottom line I remain a big Tim Horton's fan. Being ubiquitous and busy, they provide a fascinating fish bowl operation for observing and learning about operating well - and better. How their on-line presence is managed and evolves will be just as fascinating.

Lesson from a Service Debacle (ok it was only a bagel)

On Friday I tweeted about getting my money back from a Tim Horton's that couldn't make a bagel with butter. Actually it was a 12 grain bagel.

What happened is pretty simple. I went to the counter. Ordered a 12 grain bagel with butter. Handed over my cash. And walked 3 feet to the counter where they make/deliver the coffee/food.

Sounds crazy but I sensed trouble the minute I didn't also include coffee in my order. I could see the nice counter lady was kind of confused by that. However, her job is to plug the order into the computer system - so assuming she did that ok (which isn't necessarily what happened), then I should have been alright.

The second trouble indicator I got was standing at the 'delivery' counter. There wasn't actually any staff member manning the output end of the computer system - the person who watches for food orders and makes them up. Maybe she was in the washroom (something you really don't want to contemplate at a food counter I discovered)? Don't know. Just know that after a minute or four a confused looking person emerged from the kitchen - and immediately got to work serving people who'd come in five minutes after me.

After watching for another minute or two I finally inquired about my bagel with butter - and got the 'wtf are you talking about?' and 'wtf do you think you are?' looks.

This caught the attention of the nice cashier lady who agreed I really had ordered a a bagel with butter. Which lead to a heated conversation about where it had gone. Which lead to the other staff person telling me she'd given it away to someone else. Which is complete BS because I'd been watching the whole time and a 12 grain bagel had never gone through the slicer, the toaster or seen the flat side of a butter knife.

So I asked for my money back - which didn't seem to impress anyone - and left.

Here's my take away from that experience:

1. Tim Horton's is in the coffee business. NEVER order food without also ordering a coffee - even a small. It's confusing to the staff and potentially also the computer system.

2. Sh#*t happens. Especially to me. Regardless of how good a system is supposed to be, timing and other factors can collaborate to throw even the simplest execution into disarray.

3. Sh*#t happens even more when people are involved. I was watching the toaster. It was warmed up and ready to go, it's little mesh conveyer belt just waiting for a 12 grain bagel to track through. I can't speak for the computer system but I'm betting if the human operator actually put the order in properly, it was ready to display it properly.

4. Just because the customer is right, doesn't make them happy. I was in a rush and hungry. It was counting on Tim's to do what they do. They failed and I left hungrier and p'd off. Getting my money back wasn't really what I wanted (a bagel with butter would have been better).

5. Remember the line about happy customers tell like 3 people and unhappy customers tell like 3 million? Well, with technology that is way simpler now. I wonder how many companies get that? I left Tim Horton's and immediately tweeted it from by Blackberry. That got posted to Twitter, my blog, Friend Feed, and Facebook (probably other places too but I'm a little confused right now where everything goes). Given the gazillions of followers I have, I'm sure at least 6 people saw it and Tim's business that day came off by several Timbits and a small coffee.....ok, that's a joke, but just saying....

6. When things do go wrong, having on-site, visible management seems like a good thing. I could have used some help. And watching the staff fight over you isn't particularly satisfying. However, with no one around to take control it actually got left up to me. Getting my money back seemed like the only safe option.

7. Location is everything. Being a slow learner, the bread I normally use to make my toast in the morning was still mouldy Saturday (actually even more mouldy) so I got left again seeking fast food options. Guess what, there is only one choice for me. Tim Horton's.

But I'm going to wait a day until my picture comes off the staff bulletin board before showing my face again.

Out of Touch in the Boardroom

You just knew this story was going to get a bad reaction: 'Air Canada pins hopes on service'. From today's Globe and Mail.

I checked the date. It's not April Fool's Day.

Then I checked the comments section of the story. 170 and still growing (the Globe has a nasty habit of shutting down comments on juicy topics - who knows how long this one will stay open). In the first 50 comments, one person actually suggested AC isn't the worst airline in the world....then ended with 'go Westjet go'.

As a modest AC fan, even I had to admit that if this is AC's plan to avoid their second bankruptcy in a few years - they're done.

How does a management group get so out of touch over so many years? Westjet - their prime competition has made their name on service. As AC's market share declines, Westjet's (and Porter's) continues to grow.

One has to wonder what management was thinking. Maybe they thought it didn't matter?

Pardon the pun, but crap just doesn't fly.

It never did.

But today with on-line rating systems, comment sections, travel advisory sites, blogs and Facebook death is swift, obvious and brutal. I got stuck in a Westjet scew-up a while ago and participated with other passengers in berating their service site from our Blackberries - WHILE WE WERE STILL IN LINE (I even got a response)!

The other day I saw an airport rating site. You don't want to know what the word in the air is about YYZ.

So, poor Air Canada. It seems unlikely that years of creating a bad reputation will be undone in time to save them (although if they're looking for some clues Jeff Jarvis' Dell service story would be a good place to start). It's too bad.

It's not like a Westjet monopoly is a terrific outcome.

For a sampling of some heartfelt thought on AC, check some of these out:

You do NOT have a superior product. Start with a big bowl of reality soup and then talk to reporters. You airline is overrun with mediocre people doing a sub-par job. Deal with it.

Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha.......Service? Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha.... Really? Service?

Arrogant SOB's huh?

GO WESTJET!!!

'Air Canada reported Friday that it lost $1-billion last year.'

“It is small comfort that our loss was the result of factors outside of our control – soaring oil prices, foreign exchange losses due to a drop in the Canadian dollar, and the slowing economy,” Mr. Brewer said.'

Yet.... under those same conditions, Westjet was profitable. Strange isn't it. Those condtions weren't under Westjet's control, yet they made money... hmm.....

GM....Just Wondering?

Last week I got an interesting email from my GM dealer. All it had was the title: Polite Service Reminder. My reaction: what a nice, polite service reminder. I was impressed...although given how polite it was, I naturally chose to ignore it.

Then, yesterday something happened that's never happened before. The information center in the middle of my Enclave's dash was ablaze with warnings that my left rear...and right front, tire pressures needed checking.

You know if it had been one or the other, I might have fallen for it - but both at once, out of the blue....hmmmm. I checked. They were both fine.

And when I drove home in the evening, the warnings had stopped.

Then, last night I got a VOICE MAIL FROM GM telling me to take my car in for service.

You'd have to be in a coma to know GM is likely only days away from going down - which is probably as good a reason as any for getting my car serviced - but has it come to this? Is GM attempting to force its customers into dealers for service so they can pick up a bit of extra cash?

I never thought about it, but given that OnStar sends me monthly emails with my tire pressure and lots of other information, I presume manipulating my tire pressure warning system isn't too far fetched? Is that possible?

Will I take GM down if I don't get my car serviced?

If they do go down, will I ever be able to get my car serviced again?

Just wondering.

Tim Hortons 101. Why?

Tim Horton was a hockey player. Before he died a bunch of years ago he and a partner started a chain of Canadian coffee shops that are now a Canadian icon. Gazillions of dollars and millions of idling cars later, it's all good stuff.

A Tim Horton's customer has a simple vision - get my stuff...and go. Personally that means avoiding the drive-through. Parents with kids share the same vision - they're just oblivious to the fact that when you order 7 sandwiches at the drive-through, the visions of the 27 drivers behind you are blinkered in shades of red.

But I digress.

Fast service - get my stuff and go - at a Tim Hortons counter is easy to execute. Staffing.

The nice lady takes the order. The super-efficient kid loads the toaster. The trainee pours the coffee. Stand to the side. Gone in sixty seconds. Easy.

Little crappy Tims in strip malls understand and execute this concept easily. Painlessly. It's a thing of simple, customer service beauty.

So how come THE BIGGEST, BUSIEST TIM'S - LIKE THE ONES ON HIGHWAYS 401 AND 400, OR IN ANY OF CANADA'S BIG SHOPPING MALLS OPERATE LIKE THE CONCEPT IS SOME SORT OF YET-TO-BE-INVENTED BRAIN SURGERY TECHNIQUE? WHY?

DID THEY MISS THE MEMO?

AND WHY ARE CANADIANS SO GD'D POLITE? IT'S ANNOYING. RISE UP. STRAY OVER TO THE NICHOLBY'S. SURE IT SUCKS BUT HERE'S THE GOOD NEWS - NO LINE UP. ENOUGH PEOPLE DO IT, VOILA! GREAT SERVICE AT TIM HORTON'S.