PR At Your Service

Watching your son or daughter spill their drink at dinner is frustrating. Watching them spill an $8.95 gimmick drink at a theme restaurant is even more so. Watching your server witness spilled drink and not offer to refill it? Frustrating enough to dampen the whole night out – in addition to some 50-odd napkins.

I’m the type of person who stays quiet but has a long memory when it comes to customer service, which for me continues to be among the most crucial elements of public relations. Get it right, and I’ll be back. Screw it up, and I’m like most of you: I’m moving on.

The vacation episode above made me think of some of the ways companies have gone above and beyond for me lately, bolstering my trust in them and their brands, and three tips that serve as great reminders:

  • Be on the Lookout – On Memorial Day, I tweeted, “In ongoing battle between me and my computer, Dell gets this round.” Truth is, I’ve always been happy with my Dell computers. Most times, it’s user-error, but that day, I was having power issues (ended up being user-error) and lost the fight. The next business day, @dellcares tweeted back asking if I needed any help. Social customer service… awesome.
  • Make it Right – Delta called on a Sunday afternoon. My flight early the next morning was canceled and I was rebooked a few hours later. A question…could I keep my original times and fly out of and into Richmond, which would be more convenient (yet more expensive)? Done. And with no extra fees.
  • Have a Heart – Not paying attention (again, user-error) when I checked in at Enterprise, I said yes to whatever was said about fuel. I thought I agreed to pay a premium to top off the tank. Apparently, I agreed to pay for a whole tank of gas. After putting a whopping 68 miles on my Fiat, I asked the attendant, who also had checked me in, about my mistake. He offered to cut the $36 charge in half.

You don’t find companies or brands striving to be terrible at customer service, but there are those who clearly make it a priority. That’s paramount in today’s marketplace. For some of us, one mistake might be all it takes.

Sean Ryan

A former print journalist, Sean joined The Hodges Partnership in 2003 and leads Hodges’ media relations team. He manages media relations strategy and helps place client subject matter experts on CNN, Fox News, MSNBC and more. Sean regularly helps place op-eds in top-tier papers like the New York Times, Washington Post and USA Today.

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