Here’s a Hint- Don’t Whisper

GMAC in their infinite wisdom! ;-)

Another great example of customer service becoming a lost art. The best part about these experiences we have all had is it creates an opportunity for a bank or any business to win us as customers. The next time you go out make that purchase especially if it's a large item where you might be dealing with a bank or vendor for three to five years consider your options. I know many small banks and credit unions in San Diego which would love your business! The difference is when you forget to pay your bill you might just get a call from your personal banker instead of a jumbled call from someone in another country who really can't help you!

Chris - you're right that you (probably) won't move your car loan but that's not the only risk GMAC faces. Remember customer loyalty includes not just retention but also share of wallet AND word of mouth. And, as you've shown here with your post, GMAC gets one more ding in the negative karma column. It all ads up.

A year ago I worked as Marketing Manager for a newspaper and the new "powers that be" wanted to outsource our customer service department to India. The customer service dept. had people call them to chat because they loved our product so much, why on earth would a dying industry think that now was the time to skimp on customer service?

I left because I didn't want to be on the ship as it went down, and it has. The whole community is in an uproar, they were even picketed.

People get so focused on "the bottom line" they forget to think about their business holistically.

I really hope that companies realise how important usability as a service is and sooner rather than later. We would stop suffering earlier, and they could save themselves from failure. There are enough companies out there who do know how to provide good service, and people know how to find them.

It makes no sense to annoy your own customers.

Chris:

Sure GMAC handled this badly...bad customer service is the rule rather than the exception.

But couldn't this whole thing been avoided if you'd paid your bill on time in the first place?

The truth of the matter is that in the big picture no one cares. I don't want to talk bad about the company where I work, but we added a $10 gas surcharge to our billing over the summer when gas prices went up, and I asked my boss the other day if we were gonna stop doing it now that prices are down. "No-why would we do that?"
I worked at Nordstrom in the 90's when many other companies were learning from us about how to provide great customer service, but it seems like it might have just been a passing fad.

Brilliant, Chris! And, I "hear" what Peter's saying in his comment yet realize that ANY INTERACTION is a chance for a company to excel at customer service or fail. In this day and age, no one "has to" do business with anyone anymore. The choices are vast and the mentality of "jump through our hoops" will leave you high and dry. Wonder if all the companies begging for bailout realize this or do they think it's business as usual from the 1970s? I think the market, through natural attrition, gets rid of those who are not competitive or "up to par" and brings in the new who are responsive.

@Peter - absolutely right. If I'd paid my bill on time, I wouldn't have had crappy customer service.

Now, stop and think.

Do you EVER use customer service when things are going as planned? No. Thus, no post if there isn't something outside of plan.

@Chris I understood the point from the get go.

Regarding CS, the vicious circle of developing technology to make our lives easier results in the cost of developing trained talent to serve which when combined with peoples inability or indifference to learn the technology before crying for help (that might be me) etc., means that customer service in almost ever sector is going to suck.

As customers, we can't or won't learn the technology or even read the directions. And as for companies - they will always serve share holders first and see service as an after thought- in fact, an EXPENSIVE afterthought, public statements or mottos about CS notwithstanding.

We should all save our old complaint letters and emails (or blog posts)...we'll soon see them as archaic wastes of of time and effort.

Boy I hope I'm wrong but I don't think I am.

Best always,
- Peter

Do these companies not care as much because they realize that people like you may not go through the trouble to move your car loan? Companies seem to be taking advantage of this and realize they're able to cut costs at the expense of their customers. Sad really.

I understand cutting costs may be needed but throw the rulebook out the window and give your customers some sort of positive experience at the least.

Going the extra mile is what's gone out the proverbial window.

I have believed for some time that the overseas CS solution would eventually be the proverbial sword that companies employing this cost-cutting methodology would throw themselves upon unwittingly. I've had countless conversations with clients frustrated with the communication gap at these call centers. When will large organizations learn that good CS is not scripted! I believe that the American consumer would embrace a higher priced product if it included support from CS reps that you can actually understand. I don't mean to cast aspersions at the hard-working men and women in these call centers as I am sure that they are just doing the same thing we are: trying to survive in a global economy.

Exactly; you go to CS when something goes wrong - and the experience rarely leaves a good taste in your mouth (unless you go in person and they give you chocolate, which almost never happens).

And that's a great reason to automate payments and minimize the chance that things can go wrong.

(Some simple tips are in this little post
http://www.getorganizedwizard.com/blog/2008/11/...)

Now, where are we on that chocolate?

Moving your car loan? If GMAC goes under, it might be moved for you!

Bryan Person | @BryanPerson

How about CS as the new business model? Isn't MySql's entire business model basically customer service contracts? And didn't Sun Micro buy them out for $1 billion last Jan?

I think every product company in the world (literally) should have a pay-per-minute help option available online. Even if it were $0.50 per minute, that could be a win-win for everyone.

Chris,

It's great that you tackle this story from the angle of poor customer service and not the outsourcing of jobs, as is commonplace, because the customer service/communications angle is ABSOLUTELY the number one reason why outsourcing to call centers where communication suffers is the main reason why people complain.

Other than the poor line connection and ill-prepared 1st line workers, there is also a huge cultural difference in the way other societies view and understand the American need for understanding and a little bit of give-and-take when we place a call to a customer service line. To me, this is one of the big issues as well.

In the US, we're accustomed to expecting a little bit of "love" on the other end of the line. . .a little bit of "sure, I get it. . .you want a refund?", or "you're not happy with us, let me see what we can do. . .". That type of response is often absent when dealing with overseas call centers.

The other thing is, companies and leaders need to be sure to experience their own products and services more often. It's like the trains in Chicago. I have long felt that if our public officials had to ride the trains at rush hour every day, we'd have a lot of problems fixed immediately. Having the mayor stand shoulder-to-shoulder day in and day out, with 200 of his new best friends (with their iPods jamming, and backpacks thrust all about) he'd understand the complaints.

Because companies too often take the Ron Popeil "Set it, and forget it" Rotisserie chicken mantra as gospel, a lot of great customers fly the coop and never come back.

Good post.

Cheers,
Doc

I say move your loan. If they don't care enough to serve you properly you shouldn't be giving them business

Had the same experience just today. Running behind due to a death in the family. I Answered, tried to pay, and after five times couldn't get my SSN over to Mangalore- "No, I Said 123" " That Was 023?" "No, 123" "Sorry, 0123?"

I Finally hung up. I'm taking care of it right now in the other window-

Ugh, ugh, ugh. Lisa, I really like what you said about looking at your business "holistically." Because, really, what could be more important to your bottom line than satisfied customers???

@Peter

Shouldering the blame for poor customer service on customers because they didn't RTFM is wrong.

Sure, as a customer maybe I didn't open the directions or really try to understand the product before calling. Shame on me.

However, the first action that I took which hurtled me down the path of poor customer service, buying that company's product, is all that really matters.

Without me, customer service reps wouldn't have jobs. Neither would the call center managers, nor the executives that run the company. Without me, the shareholders wouldn't have any shares to look after. In fact, the company exists because of me.

Is a little hand-holding and courtesy too much to ask?

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