The customer service hall of shame
Posted
Jun 10 2009, 12:08 PM
by
Kim Peterson
Rating:
I love MSN Money's annual "customer service hall of shame" survey. The newest survey is out today, and all the usual suspects are on it: Comcast, Citigroup, Qwest, Sprint and Bank of America.
I also see my No. 1 pick for worst-ever customer service: AOL. When my father-in-law's Alzheimer's disease had progressed to the point where he couldn't remember anything, or even speak coherently, his wife called AOL to cancel his account. But AOL refused because she wasn't the primary account holder, and continued billing for years despite numerous phone calls, letters and threats of legal action. Nice one, AOL.
I'm glad MSN gives people a place to share these kinds of experiences, because these companies deserve to be talked about. Bad customer service should not be rewarded with silence and inaction. And some companies do change after being pummeled for the way they treat customers.
Sprint, for all its flaws, is trying hard to improve. Comcast is working with customers affected in the economic downturn, offering discounted packages and other compromises to hold on to subscribers.
MSN Money's Karen Aho writes that discount retailers and grocers are getting higher customer service marks in the recession. Even Wal-Mart received better grades. We rave about Wal-Mart's management here on Top Stocks, so the improvement in customer service is no surprise.
Times like these are a true test of corporate customer service. The companies that step up now will keep customer loyalty even when the economy improves.
Image credit: Tom Grill/Corbis
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