WEBVTT - How to get Great Customer Service (Bestie) #169 0:00:00.040 --> 0:00:03.360 Hello, how do money listeners? Matt here? So that means 0:00:03.520 --> 0:00:05.920 we've got another Bestie episode for you. It would be 0:00:05.920 --> 0:00:09.000 funny if I wasn't here and it was just you. Well, 0:00:09.360 --> 0:00:11.920 podcasters do that sometimes if like somebody's maybe at home 0:00:11.920 --> 0:00:13.440 with like a brand new baby or something like that, 0:00:13.480 --> 0:00:15.840 and they're gonna release maybe a live episode. I've I've 0:00:15.840 --> 0:00:18.000 heard folks do that before. Yeah, well we've never done 0:00:17.880 --> 0:00:19.760 not how we do it, but we've never done that. 0:00:19.920 --> 0:00:23.200 We're always together, maybe maybe too much. Some would say 0:00:23.360 --> 0:00:26.680 I would even say that maybe between work and place stop. Please, 0:00:27.160 --> 0:00:30.040 I think there's a level, there's a threshold at which 0:00:30.200 --> 0:00:32.800 I get tired of people. But you never have hit 0:00:32.840 --> 0:00:34.800 your threshold. Okay, I thought you were gonna say I 0:00:34.800 --> 0:00:37.839 occasionally get there, but that would have upset me. So well, 0:00:37.840 --> 0:00:39.600 you never get there. But I have to take time 0:00:39.640 --> 0:00:41.960 for myself a little bit, so I'm a little more introverted. 0:00:41.960 --> 0:00:44.960 I'm literally add percent extroverts. So more time with people 0:00:45.120 --> 0:00:48.160 never throws me off and always continues to fill your tank. 0:00:49.240 --> 0:00:51.640 And we all have different personalities exactly. All right, Well, 0:00:51.680 --> 0:00:53.960 let's talk about today's episode. Oh, this is gonna be 0:00:54.000 --> 0:00:57.160 the how to Get Great customer service episode and Joel, 0:00:57.320 --> 0:00:59.639 I've got a little customer service story to share with you. 0:00:59.760 --> 0:01:01.920 So you may have seen me reach out on Twitter 0:01:02.400 --> 0:01:07.160 to Whirlpool about our dishwasher that stopped working one month 0:01:07.200 --> 0:01:09.840 after the manufacturer warranty expired. Hey, you tagged me to 0:01:09.880 --> 0:01:11.200 your tweet. Man, I don't know what's going on. I 0:01:11.200 --> 0:01:14.039 wanted you to jump on the band wire. I wanted 0:01:14.080 --> 0:01:15.920 them to to see the activity and see the buzz, 0:01:15.959 --> 0:01:18.880 see the conversation. I wanted to strike up a conversation 0:01:19.280 --> 0:01:22.080 in case they didn't respond to me. But they did. 0:01:22.560 --> 0:01:24.480 And one of the things we talked about in this episode, 0:01:24.560 --> 0:01:26.920 Twitter is a great way to reach brands now if 0:01:26.920 --> 0:01:29.479 you've had an issue. Yeah, So, like in our case, 0:01:29.520 --> 0:01:31.759 the dishwasher stopped working, I reached out via Twitter because 0:01:31.800 --> 0:01:35.800 I saw that they had a Whirlpool Care account, sent 0:01:35.880 --> 0:01:37.720 them a message. I think maybe it was only a 0:01:37.760 --> 0:01:39.560 couple of hours later. They got back to me and 0:01:39.560 --> 0:01:41.240 said to hit us up in our d M s, 0:01:41.360 --> 0:01:44.039 you know, send along your name number, you know, model 0:01:44.080 --> 0:01:46.640 and serial number of your dishwasher. Slide to the Whirlpool 0:01:46.680 --> 0:01:50.040 Care d M exactly. Yeah, you had over there for 0:01:50.080 --> 0:01:53.280 that dish clean and talk, you know. So I sent 0:01:53.360 --> 0:01:56.240 them that information and I called them and I was 0:01:56.240 --> 0:01:58.080 on the phone with them for less than ten minutes. 0:01:58.480 --> 0:02:01.160 In that time, I was able to basically accomplished what 0:02:01.200 --> 0:02:04.000 I wanted, which is they're not going to replace the dishwasher, 0:02:04.040 --> 0:02:06.480 but they said that they would send somebody out, a 0:02:06.520 --> 0:02:10.560 certified Whirlpool person, you know, to work on it, and 0:02:10.639 --> 0:02:13.880 that all labor and parts are gonna be covered for free. 0:02:14.320 --> 0:02:15.800 And they did call it it was gonna be a 0:02:15.800 --> 0:02:18.639 one time good will kind of measure. So basically they're saying, 0:02:18.639 --> 0:02:22.040 we don't try this again, but it's a thing that exists. 0:02:22.120 --> 0:02:23.680 And so I wanted to share that with our listeners 0:02:23.680 --> 0:02:26.000 because it took twenty seconds to send out that tweet 0:02:26.360 --> 0:02:28.560 and then not even ten minutes on the phone. And 0:02:28.600 --> 0:02:30.720 we've got that scheduled for next Wednesday. Man, I'm looking 0:02:30.720 --> 0:02:34.720 forward to having a dishwasher that washes dishes and it's 0:02:34.800 --> 0:02:36.480 not just like right now we're just using it as 0:02:36.480 --> 0:02:39.239 a drying rack, which is pretty effective. That by the way, 0:02:39.320 --> 0:02:41.520 it looks good. All the door has to be open 0:02:41.600 --> 0:02:45.280 the entire time. Tripping hazard too, Yeah, well, I mean yeah, Twitter, 0:02:45.400 --> 0:02:47.040 social media, there are all sorts of ways that you 0:02:47.080 --> 0:02:49.600 can get a hold of companies that you do business 0:02:49.680 --> 0:02:51.679 with and it's a little more public and it helps 0:02:51.720 --> 0:02:53.840 keep them accountable. They are all sorts of ways that 0:02:53.919 --> 0:02:56.240 you can go about advocating for yourself and getting better 0:02:56.240 --> 0:02:59.760 customer service in your everyday life. That's what this episode covered, Matt. 0:02:59.840 --> 0:03:02.320 It's something I find really interesting and it's something we 0:03:02.360 --> 0:03:04.800 don't think about very often, and they're just these little 0:03:04.800 --> 0:03:07.320 subtle ways and in the way we go about our 0:03:07.360 --> 0:03:09.880 everyday lives that we can enjoy a greater level of 0:03:09.880 --> 0:03:12.080 customer service and it pays off in the end, right, 0:03:12.120 --> 0:03:14.840 it has huge effects. Yeah, Well, in our case, that's 0:03:14.880 --> 0:03:17.040 it's gonna save us at least four bucks. And you 0:03:17.120 --> 0:03:18.800 touched on something which is that we have to advocate 0:03:18.840 --> 0:03:20.560 for ourselves, and I agree we have to do that 0:03:20.600 --> 0:03:23.480 because so many businesses and corporations are so big and 0:03:23.680 --> 0:03:26.200 kind of corporate heavy that they're not necessarily looking to 0:03:26.280 --> 0:03:28.440 delight their customers and making sure that they're caring for 0:03:28.480 --> 0:03:30.799 them every step of the way, but they are trying 0:03:30.800 --> 0:03:34.079 to make customers that aren't happy happy, and they are 0:03:34.120 --> 0:03:37.040 trying to protect their reputation. Maybe that's a slightly more 0:03:37.040 --> 0:03:39.839 pessimistic view of customer service. But regardless, like you said, 0:03:39.880 --> 0:03:43.200 it's totally necessary for us to advocate for ourselves. Yeah, Matt, 0:03:43.280 --> 0:03:45.640 the subject that we covered on this episode is how 0:03:45.680 --> 0:03:48.880 to get great customer service. So here's that episode right now. 0:03:49.120 --> 0:03:51.840 Welcome to How the Money. I'm Joel and I'm Matt, 0:03:52.000 --> 0:04:14.160 and today we're discussing getting great customer service. That's right, Joel. 0:04:14.200 --> 0:04:17.679 We're talking about customer service today, and oftentimes folks think 0:04:18.000 --> 0:04:20.680 about customer service when it comes to getting something fixed, 0:04:20.800 --> 0:04:23.360 like when something has gone wrong. But yeah, we're gonna 0:04:23.440 --> 0:04:25.040 touch a little bit on what it means to get 0:04:25.080 --> 0:04:28.000 customer service even before things have gone wrong, even before 0:04:28.040 --> 0:04:31.120 something's broken or you've been offended. Yeah, but then what 0:04:31.240 --> 0:04:34.320 if you enter a worst case scenario customer service wise, 0:04:34.360 --> 0:04:36.000 We're going to kind of go into how you handle 0:04:36.040 --> 0:04:38.160 that as well. And customer service. Matt just kind of 0:04:38.160 --> 0:04:41.240 fascinates me. You're a total nerd. I am like I 0:04:41.279 --> 0:04:44.239 could geek out on customer service stories or just how 0:04:44.360 --> 0:04:47.640 companies that handle customer service particularly well, like a company 0:04:47.680 --> 0:04:50.599 like Zappos just known for customer service. I think that's 0:04:50.600 --> 0:04:52.800 so cool. So I'm really interested to dive into this 0:04:52.839 --> 0:04:55.440 today and Jeel on a recent episode that we did 0:04:55.480 --> 0:04:57.720 on Before You Buy a House, we had talked about 0:04:57.800 --> 0:04:59.719 doing the wave test when you when you drive around 0:04:59.720 --> 0:05:02.480 looking properties to uh. It was something you came up with, 0:05:02.560 --> 0:05:04.160 right that. Yeah, I've never heard of it before, and 0:05:04.279 --> 0:05:06.719 this was a Matt original. Yeah, can I have always 0:05:06.720 --> 0:05:08.360 done that. We always just wave at people and kind 0:05:08.360 --> 0:05:11.880 of gauge how friendly folks are. But some folks wrote 0:05:11.880 --> 0:05:14.600 in from the Pacific Northwest, or our friend Katie up 0:05:14.600 --> 0:05:16.560 there in Portland, and then a couple of other folks 0:05:16.600 --> 0:05:18.320 as well up in the Northeast, like I think it 0:05:18.360 --> 0:05:20.560 was in New York and in Jersey. We're saying, man, 0:05:20.560 --> 0:05:22.360 if you were to wave at somebody that you didn't know, 0:05:22.480 --> 0:05:25.680 you would just get stairs at best, you know. So 0:05:25.720 --> 0:05:28.680 maybe that's our Southern biased shining through. I don't know, 0:05:28.720 --> 0:05:31.120 but even still, I think that folks should try to 0:05:31.160 --> 0:05:33.479 be a little more friendly, and if that's not something 0:05:33.520 --> 0:05:35.680 that you're used to seeing, give it a shot because 0:05:35.680 --> 0:05:37.800 you might be in a neighborhood that is extra friendly. 0:05:37.839 --> 0:05:39.800 And who doesn't want to live in a friendly neighborhood 0:05:39.839 --> 0:05:41.440 where everyone's happy to see you? I know, I do 0:05:41.600 --> 0:05:42.800 totally Matt, I mean, I want to live in a 0:05:42.800 --> 0:05:45.200 friendly neighborhood. I feel like we live in a friendly neighborhood. 0:05:45.520 --> 0:05:48.000 Some of our neighbors have reference to where we live 0:05:48.240 --> 0:05:50.839 as kind of like Mayberry Like, that's kind of true, 0:05:50.839 --> 0:05:52.280 and that's kind of what That's what I love about 0:05:52.279 --> 0:05:55.400 living here. There are always neighbors walking down the sidewalks, 0:05:55.440 --> 0:05:57.400 interacting with one another. People just kind of know each 0:05:57.400 --> 0:05:58.760 other and look out for each other, hanging out in 0:05:58.760 --> 0:06:00.480 the front yards. Now that's getting warm. But what it 0:06:00.520 --> 0:06:02.520 takes is being intentional. You have to foster that as 0:06:02.520 --> 0:06:04.640 an individual. And even though it might go against the 0:06:04.640 --> 0:06:07.159 grain a little bit, maybe worth where you live, you 0:06:07.160 --> 0:06:09.720 can be that weirdo like you can be that friendly person. 0:06:09.880 --> 0:06:11.560 You have to be the wave in this world. Do 0:06:11.560 --> 0:06:13.560 you want the wave to wave back? Right? But I 0:06:13.560 --> 0:06:15.479 think there is a good point that maybe that is 0:06:15.520 --> 0:06:17.760 also kind of a distinctly Southern thing. We're a little 0:06:17.760 --> 0:06:20.599 overtly friendly down here. And actually we had a listener, 0:06:20.680 --> 0:06:23.080 Darren who wrote in and he said, maybe instead of 0:06:23.120 --> 0:06:25.640 the wave test, consider asking a mail carrier. And I 0:06:25.640 --> 0:06:28.200 thought that was just the perfect suggestion. I didn't see that. 0:06:28.200 --> 0:06:30.040 What did you say asking a mail carrier what they 0:06:30.040 --> 0:06:32.880 think of the area. Yeah, exactly, Like so asking about, hey, 0:06:32.920 --> 0:06:35.280 what happens on this street? They're like literally boots on 0:06:35.320 --> 0:06:37.400 the ground right eyes on the street, and so they're 0:06:37.400 --> 0:06:40.400 a perfect person to ask suggestions about what the neighborhood 0:06:40.400 --> 0:06:42.799 actually looks like day to day and that specific street, 0:06:42.800 --> 0:06:45.119 that specific house, what sort of activity are you seeing? 0:06:45.400 --> 0:06:47.320 And so I think, Yeah, Darren's point is well taken. 0:06:47.400 --> 0:06:49.360 If you are looking to buy a home, hanging out 0:06:49.440 --> 0:06:51.440 and waiting for the mail to come by is not 0:06:51.520 --> 0:06:54.320 a terrible idea. You might get some great suggestions and 0:06:54.360 --> 0:06:57.000 some really great thoughts from a mail carrier before you 0:06:57.080 --> 0:06:58.880 go all in and buy a home. Yeah, I like it. 0:06:59.040 --> 0:07:00.800 And Jel I'm gonna go ahead and introduces beer. I 0:07:00.839 --> 0:07:03.680 just sniffed the bottle yet again, because this is one 0:07:03.720 --> 0:07:06.599 of the most delicious, fruity smelling beers I have ever 0:07:07.080 --> 0:07:09.880 sniffed in my entire life. We have a beer, our 0:07:09.920 --> 0:07:12.320 second beer now from our listener Jared out in Texas, 0:07:12.640 --> 0:07:15.080 and this is an at real rubisite from Jester King, 0:07:15.200 --> 0:07:18.280 which they make some amazing beers out in Texas. I 0:07:18.320 --> 0:07:20.440 have never had any Jester King, so I am very 0:07:20.440 --> 0:07:22.480 excited about this one. Yeah. I think I've only had 0:07:22.520 --> 0:07:24.840 one beer from Jester King before in my life, and 0:07:24.880 --> 0:07:27.640 their reputation totally perceides them. They've got this amazing kind 0:07:27.640 --> 0:07:30.520 of farmhouse style brewery down there in Austin, uh, and 0:07:30.600 --> 0:07:33.280 it's definitely one of those that I wanna visit for 0:07:33.400 --> 0:07:36.480 sure in my life, and atro Rubiside in particular. This 0:07:36.560 --> 0:07:38.920 beer is probably on like my top five beers I 0:07:39.000 --> 0:07:42.200 want to drink before I die list. So I'm so 0:07:42.280 --> 0:07:44.440 excited to drink this beer today. I told him you 0:07:44.480 --> 0:07:47.760 were pumped. He gave a thumbs up or something. Yeah, 0:07:47.800 --> 0:07:50.480 So thank you, Jared, seriously so much for donating this beer. 0:07:50.720 --> 0:07:53.480 I can't tell you how happy it makes me. Yeah, Austin, 0:07:53.520 --> 0:07:55.560 They didn't. They just have a south By Southwest or something. 0:07:55.560 --> 0:07:56.840 I don't know. I've never been, but I want to 0:07:56.880 --> 0:07:58.720 check it out. Yeah here, it's a great town. By 0:07:58.720 --> 0:08:00.520 the way, I just had my first ship. Can't wait 0:08:00.520 --> 0:08:02.520 to tell everyone what we think about the beer at 0:08:02.520 --> 0:08:04.760 the end of the show. Quick hot take though tastes 0:08:04.800 --> 0:08:08.160 like raspberry jam you know, beautiful way Okay, Joe, let's 0:08:08.320 --> 0:08:10.880 let's get nerdy. Let's talk about some customer service. Let's 0:08:10.920 --> 0:08:12.680 do it okay. So part of the reason that we 0:08:12.720 --> 0:08:14.520 felt like we needed to tackle this topic on the 0:08:14.520 --> 0:08:18.160 show was so many people take what companies give them 0:08:18.200 --> 0:08:21.600 they fail to advocate for themselves. This can often result 0:08:21.720 --> 0:08:24.920 in you paying more than you need to unnecessary fees. 0:08:25.320 --> 0:08:27.600 And let's just take this upfront. Not every company is 0:08:27.640 --> 0:08:30.480 going to deliver great customer service, and doing business with 0:08:30.520 --> 0:08:33.040 well reviewed companies is gonna nip a lot of customer 0:08:33.120 --> 0:08:35.560 service issues in the bud. But at times also you're 0:08:35.600 --> 0:08:39.400 gonna have to do business with companies based on other factors. 0:08:39.440 --> 0:08:41.560 Potentially they're the only one close by where you can 0:08:41.559 --> 0:08:43.240 get the item you need. There are all sorts of 0:08:43.280 --> 0:08:45.080 reasons you might have to do business with a company 0:08:45.120 --> 0:08:48.200 that isn't well known for customer service. And because so 0:08:48.240 --> 0:08:50.040 many times in our lives we have to do business 0:08:50.040 --> 0:08:52.600 with companies that might not necessarily be well known for 0:08:52.640 --> 0:08:55.800 customer service, it's really helpful to know how to advocate 0:08:55.800 --> 0:08:58.120 for yourself and how to get good customer service in 0:08:58.280 --> 0:09:00.640 light of that. So this podcast going to cover a 0:09:00.640 --> 0:09:03.640 lot of tips for how to get good customer service 0:09:03.800 --> 0:09:06.280 and specific avenues that you need to take in order 0:09:06.320 --> 0:09:08.679 to make that happen. Yeah, Joe, it's worth mentioning that 0:09:08.760 --> 0:09:12.400 not all businesses need to have really great customer service 0:09:12.400 --> 0:09:14.200 all the time, right, Like I think of Zenny, and 0:09:14.200 --> 0:09:16.319 we talked about them all the time, but I wouldn't 0:09:16.360 --> 0:09:18.600 really expect them to have great customer service because they 0:09:18.640 --> 0:09:21.360 just sell cheap eyeglasses. They're the cheapest out there. You 0:09:21.400 --> 0:09:23.360 can't win it everything, right, Like they're gonna win the 0:09:23.360 --> 0:09:26.360 game when it comes to getting really really affordable glasses. Yeah, 0:09:26.400 --> 0:09:27.640 it's kind of like when if you've been in a 0:09:27.640 --> 0:09:29.400 mechanic shop and they've got the sign that says you 0:09:29.400 --> 0:09:31.160 can get it two out of three ways, good, fast 0:09:31.200 --> 0:09:34.360 and cheap, right, And Zenny, it's hitting two of those right. 0:09:34.400 --> 0:09:38.000 It's pretty fast, definitely cheap, and you know they're solid eyeglasses, 0:09:38.040 --> 0:09:40.800 but you're not getting great customer service at the same time, right. Exactly. 0:09:41.000 --> 0:09:43.240 The more expensive a product is, or if there's a 0:09:43.280 --> 0:09:46.400 service that's more personal, certainly that would require a higher 0:09:46.480 --> 0:09:49.280 level of customer service. Like I think about realtors, you're 0:09:49.280 --> 0:09:51.800 spending close to maybe two months of your life if 0:09:51.840 --> 0:09:54.440 not more, with them talking to them on the phone, texting, 0:09:54.800 --> 0:09:56.680 meeting with them in person while you're looking at properties. 0:09:56.720 --> 0:09:58.199 Like you really get to know them, and so you 0:09:58.240 --> 0:10:00.960 want to make sure instances like that that that you 0:10:01.000 --> 0:10:03.040 do have a high level of customer service. I think 0:10:03.120 --> 0:10:06.040 of wedding photography, like that's something that I do. Weddings 0:10:06.080 --> 0:10:09.760 in general, very high levels of customer service are expected, 0:10:10.120 --> 0:10:12.560 and so I think that's certainly worth noting because there's 0:10:12.559 --> 0:10:16.000 gonna be companies out there that don't provide good customer service. 0:10:16.480 --> 0:10:18.040 You just want to make sure that they've got other 0:10:18.360 --> 0:10:20.840 great things going for them. In that vein Matt, let's 0:10:20.920 --> 0:10:23.679 kind of give a loose definition of customer service. It's 0:10:23.679 --> 0:10:25.760 going to depend on the company, right, what getting good 0:10:25.760 --> 0:10:28.920 customer service from that company means. You mentioned Zenny Optical 0:10:29.080 --> 0:10:31.920 getting your product quickly in not being broken. It's like 0:10:31.960 --> 0:10:35.440 the only requirement, right, That's really the only requirement from Zenny. 0:10:35.640 --> 0:10:38.120 You're not going to have this amazing personal interaction with 0:10:38.200 --> 0:10:40.320 somebody from Zenny. That's just not how they do it. 0:10:40.600 --> 0:10:42.240 If you go with the company like Warwie Parker to 0:10:42.240 --> 0:10:44.679 get your eyeglasses, you can expect a higher level of 0:10:44.720 --> 0:10:47.439 customer service. You should also just expect to pay more 0:10:47.520 --> 0:10:49.360 at the same time, right, Yeah, it's a fine balance 0:10:49.360 --> 0:10:51.160 because Oftentimes we talk about trying to get the best 0:10:51.160 --> 0:10:53.360 deal and try not to be cheap. You know, we're 0:10:53.400 --> 0:10:55.400 trying to be frugal, But a lot of times with 0:10:55.440 --> 0:10:58.160 that price tag comes a level of customer service that 0:10:58.200 --> 0:11:00.280 they're trade offs, and so you know that sure with 0:11:00.400 --> 0:11:02.760 in this example we're talking about Any, buts Any, there's 0:11:02.760 --> 0:11:04.439 not gonna be someone standing there showing you the different 0:11:04.440 --> 0:11:06.600 frames and kind of fitting it to your face. However, 0:11:06.880 --> 0:11:09.959 they're gonna be significantly cheaper than they are with Warby Parker. Yes, 0:11:10.000 --> 0:11:13.320 so I feel like my reaction from not getting the 0:11:13.440 --> 0:11:17.240 product as desired from Zenny and from Warby Parker, I 0:11:17.240 --> 0:11:19.600 would have two different reactions honestly, you know, I would 0:11:19.600 --> 0:11:22.120 try to get the situation rectified in both cases, but 0:11:22.240 --> 0:11:23.640 my way of going about it might just be a 0:11:23.679 --> 0:11:26.319 little bit different based on their reputation, based on their 0:11:26.320 --> 0:11:29.760 price point, and based on how they interact with customers today. 0:11:29.840 --> 0:11:32.199 But ultimately, you want someone to treat you with respect 0:11:32.200 --> 0:11:34.400 and kindness. You want help when you have an issue, 0:11:34.559 --> 0:11:36.480 and you want that company to to make it easy 0:11:36.559 --> 0:11:38.040 on you too, so that you don't have to jump 0:11:38.080 --> 0:11:41.400 through a million hoops in order to get your problem solved. 0:11:41.760 --> 0:11:44.319 That's right, you know. And when there is a problem 0:11:44.520 --> 0:11:47.640 a company being able to provide great customer service, that 0:11:47.679 --> 0:11:50.079 comes down to the individual, like the individual that you're 0:11:50.080 --> 0:11:52.360 talking to or that you're meeting with, because honestly, so 0:11:52.440 --> 0:11:55.360 much is up to them as an employee to figure 0:11:55.400 --> 0:11:57.080 out what it is that you need or what it 0:11:57.120 --> 0:11:59.160 is that you're looking for, because in one instance, getting 0:11:59.200 --> 0:12:01.640 great customer service might be getting your money back, getting 0:12:01.640 --> 0:12:03.920 a refund, or if you really love the product, it 0:12:04.000 --> 0:12:06.760 might be getting that replacement because hey, I really like 0:12:06.840 --> 0:12:08.319 the product, I just want a replacement this one was 0:12:08.360 --> 0:12:11.360 ship damaged. In other instances, man, it might be up 0:12:11.360 --> 0:12:13.840 to that person to understand that the customer is just 0:12:13.880 --> 0:12:16.400 looking to vent, like they're just mad about something, and 0:12:16.440 --> 0:12:19.200 there may not be anything hard or tangible that the 0:12:19.240 --> 0:12:22.800 customer service representative might be able to provide. Great customer 0:12:22.840 --> 0:12:26.280 service doesn't always come down to what can be monetarily 0:12:26.280 --> 0:12:28.360 given or what product can be given to a customer. 0:12:28.880 --> 0:12:31.679 Sometimes it can be just listening to the customer. I 0:12:31.720 --> 0:12:34.120 think that's a huge part of it. And in some instances, 0:12:34.160 --> 0:12:36.640 I think it might be the customer looking for answers 0:12:36.679 --> 0:12:39.600 they might want to learn, they might have some questions 0:12:39.640 --> 0:12:41.480 as to you, like why the product behaves this way, 0:12:41.559 --> 0:12:43.920 or you know, why does this service include this? There 0:12:44.000 --> 0:12:46.000 might be things that weren't explained on the front end, 0:12:46.240 --> 0:12:48.400 which is also customer service, right, like the sort of 0:12:48.400 --> 0:12:50.599 the sales process. But when there is a problem, it 0:12:50.679 --> 0:12:53.520 might be up to the customer service representative to figure 0:12:53.520 --> 0:12:55.360 out what it is that's wrong and make sure that 0:12:55.400 --> 0:12:58.480 the customer understands and that they are educated on the product. Yeah, 0:12:58.480 --> 0:13:00.280 and so many of us Snowmatt too, that the worst 0:13:00.320 --> 0:13:03.040 part of not getting good customer service can be the 0:13:03.080 --> 0:13:05.720 time that we waste trying to get the problem solved, 0:13:05.920 --> 0:13:07.679 whether it's time spent on hold with the cable or 0:13:07.720 --> 0:13:12.480 internet company with that terrible hold music, how does it 0:13:12.559 --> 0:13:17.000 go something exactly like that, Yeah, you've got the Melanie down. Yeah, 0:13:17.240 --> 0:13:19.560 so there's totally that. I've totally heard that before. We've 0:13:19.600 --> 0:13:22.640 all been there music. Yeah, And so it's that's one 0:13:22.640 --> 0:13:25.480 of the toughest parts of a bad customer service is 0:13:25.559 --> 0:13:27.760 waiting to even talk to somebody, and we're going to 0:13:27.840 --> 0:13:30.079 get into that in this show too. Basically, it can 0:13:30.120 --> 0:13:32.880 be emotionally draining as well as draining on your time. 0:13:33.120 --> 0:13:35.920 Potentially draining on your finances at the same time. So 0:13:36.040 --> 0:13:38.400 when we do take steps to have a problem fixed, 0:13:38.760 --> 0:13:40.520 it's helpful if we can find the easiest route to 0:13:40.520 --> 0:13:43.560 take that's going to eliminate some of that emotional and 0:13:43.600 --> 0:13:46.040 time drainage and just kind of the annoyance that comes 0:13:46.040 --> 0:13:47.880 with trying to get good customer service. Yeah, I think 0:13:47.880 --> 0:13:50.480 that that's honestly the biggest reason why I don't advocate 0:13:50.480 --> 0:13:52.320 for myself. Like when there's times when I know that 0:13:52.400 --> 0:13:54.480 something's wrong, but I don't do anything about it, it's 0:13:54.480 --> 0:13:56.160 because I just don't have the time for it, or 0:13:56.200 --> 0:13:57.959 I just don't have the patience because I'm thinking, what 0:13:58.000 --> 0:14:00.240 are the chances of this getting fixed? And a lot 0:14:00.240 --> 0:14:01.959 of times you know, it may not get fixed, or 0:14:02.000 --> 0:14:03.559 you might get a discount code for the next time 0:14:03.559 --> 0:14:05.880 you placed an order with him. There's the thought that 0:14:05.960 --> 0:14:08.000 with larger companies that that may not work out in 0:14:08.000 --> 0:14:10.000 your favor. But yeah, like you said, when when you 0:14:10.040 --> 0:14:12.280 do take the steps, you advocate for yourself and to 0:14:12.400 --> 0:14:15.040 try to have a problem fixed, like you wanted to work, 0:14:15.600 --> 0:14:17.520 if I want to dedicate any part of my day 0:14:17.600 --> 0:14:20.520 towards getting something replaced or getting a discount because something 0:14:20.520 --> 0:14:23.640 showed up scratched. You want to know that it's gonna work, right, Like, 0:14:23.720 --> 0:14:25.360 you want to know that the steps you take are 0:14:25.360 --> 0:14:27.840 going to be worth your time, worth your energy, that 0:14:27.880 --> 0:14:29.560 it's going to be an efficient use of your time, 0:14:29.640 --> 0:14:31.760 and that in the end, Yeah, you're gonna get results, 0:14:32.160 --> 0:14:34.440 totally true, Matt. Results are what it's all about at 0:14:34.440 --> 0:14:36.080 the end of the day when it comes to getting 0:14:36.080 --> 0:14:38.400 good customer service. And so let's talk about the strategies 0:14:38.480 --> 0:14:41.040 that you can implement into your life in order to 0:14:41.040 --> 0:14:43.960 get better customer service on the regular. Right after the break, 0:14:53.240 --> 0:14:55.520 all right, Joel, And now the first step to get 0:14:55.680 --> 0:14:58.520 great customer services make sure that you're doing business with 0:14:58.720 --> 0:15:01.440 great companies whenever are possible, right, Yeah, all the time, 0:15:01.600 --> 0:15:02.960 you want to read reviews. You want to make sure 0:15:03.000 --> 0:15:05.160 that you're doing research, and even better, hopefully you've heard 0:15:05.160 --> 0:15:07.880 about that company or that retailer from someone else who's 0:15:07.960 --> 0:15:09.960 used them. Both of those. Uh, those are two great 0:15:09.960 --> 0:15:12.000 steps that you can take when you're vetting a company 0:15:12.080 --> 0:15:14.760 or service. Yeah, there's some companies in particular, they just 0:15:14.800 --> 0:15:18.360 have great reputations for stellar customer service locally in your 0:15:18.400 --> 0:15:21.080 area and then nationally as well. So, for instance, Matt. 0:15:21.120 --> 0:15:23.560 We've talked about Aldi before as being a great grocery store, 0:15:23.680 --> 0:15:25.400 not just because they have some of the lowest prices, 0:15:25.440 --> 0:15:28.320 but guess what. Aldi has the sweet double guarantee, which 0:15:28.360 --> 0:15:30.520 means if you buy an Aldi product and you don't 0:15:30.560 --> 0:15:33.080 like it, you can return it and not only do 0:15:33.160 --> 0:15:34.960 you get your money back, but you also get a 0:15:34.960 --> 0:15:37.840 replacement item. So that's like great customer service right there. Well, 0:15:37.840 --> 0:15:39.640 on top of that, I think they just retitled it, 0:15:39.760 --> 0:15:42.520 or they renamed it. I think it's called twice as Nice, 0:15:42.520 --> 0:15:44.600 Twice as Nice. Maybe I don't know. That's cute. Yeah, 0:15:44.640 --> 0:15:48.680 that's cute. Aldi just also treats their employees really well, 0:15:48.960 --> 0:15:51.200 so you're bound to get better customer service at and 0:15:51.240 --> 0:15:53.320 Aldi than you are at one of the other major 0:15:53.360 --> 0:15:55.800 grocery chains. The people are just nicer and more helpful, 0:15:55.840 --> 0:15:58.040 and and that's because their company treats them well. There 0:15:58.080 --> 0:15:59.680 are so many other companies like I can't list them 0:15:59.720 --> 0:16:02.600 all that great reputations for customer service, but just a 0:16:02.600 --> 0:16:05.640 couple of real quick costco ll being those are companies 0:16:05.680 --> 0:16:08.680 that have great return policies that treat customers well. Have 0:16:08.760 --> 0:16:10.480 you ever made a return man at like an electronic 0:16:10.520 --> 0:16:13.520 store and they're asking for all sorts of identification. They 0:16:13.520 --> 0:16:16.280 don't trust you. It's just a huge pain to do that. 0:16:16.720 --> 0:16:18.080 It makes you not want to go shop there. It 0:16:18.120 --> 0:16:20.480 makes it makes you feel like that company thinks that 0:16:20.560 --> 0:16:24.320 you're a criminal, and that sucks. That's bad customer service. 0:16:24.480 --> 0:16:26.160 So anytime you can do a little bit of research 0:16:26.200 --> 0:16:28.200 about a company before you do business with them and 0:16:28.280 --> 0:16:31.720 kind of know their customer service patterns, obviously not applicable 0:16:31.760 --> 0:16:33.920 in every scenario, but any time that you can, it's 0:16:33.920 --> 0:16:35.760 really helpful. That's part of why I shop at Aldi, 0:16:35.800 --> 0:16:38.880 why shop at Costco. Their reputation for customer service just 0:16:39.000 --> 0:16:42.160 precedes them. Jel And you mentioned like companies treating their 0:16:42.160 --> 0:16:45.360 employees well. Good customer service I think is indicative of 0:16:45.440 --> 0:16:48.480 how an employee feels about the company. Because if you 0:16:48.520 --> 0:16:51.040 have an employee who's excited to help you, or they're 0:16:51.040 --> 0:16:53.200 talking about the product right even like the customer service 0:16:53.240 --> 0:16:55.160 even before the sale, because they just want to help 0:16:55.200 --> 0:16:57.160 you out, Like that's customer service as well, not just 0:16:57.200 --> 0:16:59.640 fixing the problem, but on the front end, just chatting 0:16:59.640 --> 0:17:01.560 you up, talking about your needs. What is it that 0:17:01.560 --> 0:17:04.120 you're looking for? When you have someone that's really pumped 0:17:04.160 --> 0:17:05.879 to be there. It makes you feel good about the 0:17:05.880 --> 0:17:08.960 company because clearly they do care. And if they hated 0:17:09.000 --> 0:17:11.359 their job, if they hated the company, I think the 0:17:11.400 --> 0:17:13.520 chances are that they would be you know, going above 0:17:13.520 --> 0:17:16.360 and beyond for you, the customer would be slim. Yeah. 0:17:16.400 --> 0:17:19.600 I think anytime a company offers their employees a sense 0:17:19.640 --> 0:17:22.480 of autonomy and a sense of buy into the company, 0:17:22.680 --> 0:17:25.720 I think that person, that individual, that employee is going 0:17:25.760 --> 0:17:27.840