Archive for November 2009
Battling with Customer Service: How to Win the War
Customer service, how I loathe thee. Let me count the ways. The never-ending loop of obnoxious hold music. The pressure to buy new products and services. The poor-quality, outsourced call to a distant land.
A call to customer service can be an infuriating ending to a frustrating experience. You’re upset and looking for empathy, but all you encounter is disappointment. Could Company X have done something differently? Probably, but if you follow these tips when dealing with customer service, you’ll be in the driver’s seat for the next dispute.
1. Be prepared.
Seems basic, right? Unless you’ve called Company X several times, you’re probably not familiar with their required information. Have every tracking number, account number, itemized statement, and order number before you call. Customer service representatives are held responsible for torturous call-handling metrics designed by masochistic management. Length of call, resolution (if the customer calls back to the company within an allocated amount of time), and randomly monitored calls are measured stringently. Bottom line: they want to help you quickly and completely, lest a superior crack a whip.
2. Be nice.
Customer service representatives speak with upset, irritated, and/or irate people all day. Every day. You may not agree with a credit denial, but screaming “the customer is always right, (expletive)!” will not help. Be pleasant and the rules may be malleable. Be another unpleasant customer and the guidelines will be set in stone.
3. Know when to call, know when to write.
If you need to request a price quote, add/remove a feature, or ask for explanation of a bill, e-mail is the most efficient route for your correspondence. For repair concerns or credit requests, call customer service. Repair specialists will need to troubleshoot and get access information should a technician need to be dispatched. Credit requests can be handled via e-mail, however, it is easier to reply with a “credit denied” form letter than to deny credit to a real, live person.
4. Get on record.
If something is not working properly, call the company immediately. If there is a cable, satellite, or phone outage, Company X will only be able to diagnose and correct the problem if they are notified a problem exists. This also establishes a record of communication should you need to request a credit or refund at a later date.
5. Be persistent, but not obnoxious.
A Catering Directory Helps You Find Local Caterers
Catering is one service where you are likely to prefer a local supplier. Very few persons would want to bring a caterer from some other country and risk a party disaster. Corporate parties might go for specialized and reputed catering organizations headquartered elsewhere. Even they might often find it necessary to go for local caterers when time is short.
Catering directories generally focus on the final consumers, listing vendors by food categories such as beverages, chocolate fountain, fruit, juice, etc; and by supplier categories like food vendors, caterers, mobile vendors, party organizers, restaurants, party shops, etc. There might also be sections on Health & Safety and Catering Tips.
Another catering directory might arrange vendors by such categories as caterers, event venues, entertainment, photography, transportation, wedding, event planners, florists, etc.
All are likely to provide the option to narrow down the lists to locations you select, such as a city or area.
Some might collect information such as number of guests, event type, services required (such as food, servers, liquor, chocolate fountain, decorations, tables/chairs, tents, etc), date and time, location and so on, and give you a quote based on your requirements.
Caterers might even help you select a menu depending on your budget per person or an event venue or other related matters. Services offered could include sit-in, food station and buffet type serving options, and also clean-ups, drop offs, beverages only service, etc.
<b>Detailed Catering Directory Categories</b>
A brief look at some detailed catering directory categories would help you understand what you could expect. A selection is listed below:
<ul>
<li>Corporate catering</li>
<li>Personal Chefs</li>
<li>Banquet Halls</li>
<li>Yachts/Boats</li>
<li>DJs</li>
<li>Live Music/Bands</li>
<li>Videographers</li>
<li>Limousines</li>
<li>Wedding Planners</li>
<li>Wedding Financing</li>
<li>Equipment Hire</li>
</ul>
<b>Catering Directories Are Not Only for Party Hosts</b>
Another kind of catering directory focuses on the requirements of caterers by listing suppliers of catering requirements. The following sample list provides a look at the kind of requirements caterers typically have:
<ul>
<li>Refrigeration: Chilled display cabinets, Ice makers,…</li>
<li>Beverages: Coffee Equipment, Beverage Jugs,…</li>
<li>Bar supplies: Spirit measures, Bottle openers, Blenders,…</li>
<li>Cookware: Pots & Pans, Cooks Knives, Chefs Clothing,…</li>
<li>Tableware: Cutlery, Napkins, Tablemats,…</li>
<li>Furniture: Bar stools, Tables, Outdoor furniture,…</li>
<li>Kitchen planning: Assessing requirements, design, advice,…</li>
</ul>
<b>Regional Directories</b>