Week 1 EOC: Great Customer Service

Customer service can make or break a business by gaining or losing customers. “Customer satisfaction depends on the product’s perceived performance relative to a buyer’s expectations. If the product’s performance falls short of expectations, the customer is dissatisfied. If performance matches expectations, the customer is satisfied. If performance exceeds expectations, the customer is highly satisfied or delighted.” (Marketing an Introduction Page 20)

From my own experiences I know that what is in the quote above stands true for business and their customer service relationships. I once had one of the best customer service experiences at a Target shopping center at Boca Park in Summerlin, Las Vegas. It was a year or two ago and I had purchased a two plain t-shirts that I pain $18.50 plus tax for each. The shirts were exactly what I was looking for that day and the fact that I found them while doing some other general shopping made my day a little bit easier. When I got home I threw the shirts in the wash and followed the care instructions so I would not damage the garments. While the shirts were washing, I put the rest my purchased items away and threw the bags away, which contained my sales receipt. The next day I pulled my shirts out of the dryer and the shirts had warped and shrunk, shifted and twisted, and everything else you don’t want to happen to your new favorite clothes. On my way into town I stopped back at my local target and showed them what happened and they told me that there wouldn’t be any problems and very nicely refunded my money onto a target gift card. I did not want to get the same shirts so an exact exchange was out of the question. When I went to the women’s clothing section there was the department manager waiting for me to help me find something else to wear that I absolutely loved. I tried on a couple of things and needed a different size so she went out on the sales floor to get me the correct size. I found something I liked and was ready to go on my way. The rest of my visit was full of kind and happy employees.

This experience at target could have easily gone bad if they had rejected my return request because I had lost my receipt, but it didn’t. The guidance of the managers and other employees made my experience enjoyable, which made up for the defective shirts. All in the end will make me a Target customer for life.