Resolve To Give Props

Flogging this resolution thing until the momentum runs out, estimating in about four more days . . .

A while back, I blogged about bad customer service and revenge fantasies. In the interest of thinking positive for 2019, let's turn that on its head and discuss instances of individuals and businesses CBG (Caught Being Good). Taking a page from elementary school teachers, when someone does something great, resolve this year to give props. Let no good service go un-noticed!

This topic is on my mind because recently when we got home, there was a mysterious package on the porch. Dontcha love when that happens??  I could not figure out what it could be until my hubs reminded me about the pickles.

Recently I tweeted about some amazing pickles I found at a local health food shop, how hot they were, and another company that cranks out some pretty hot stuff.

Both companies are on top of their social networking and responded to my tweet right away. The pickle guy took it to the next level and offered to send me a sampler of some of their other offerings. It would have been rude of me to refuse! And today, here they were on my front porch, expertly packed so that they arrived in great condition and even perfectly chilled thanks to Mother Nature's recent hijinx. Raise your hand if you think I will be patronizing (in a good way) this company in future. For an investment of about $10, this guy just made a lifelong loyal fan who is going to promote the heck out of him and his products. For free. Smart business move! Even better news: the pickles are Out Freakin Standing.

It is indeed a sad state of affairs when I had to really dig and ponder to come up with additional examples of outstanding customer service that did not occur before most of you were born. I fear we will soon need to file that skill under 'Lost Arts' along with driving a stick shift and operating a rotary phone. But I do have a couple:

• It pains me to say this on account of some of their corporate policies, but Props to Hobby Lobby, the DIY craft store. Recently, filled with the worst combination of hubris and cheapskatery, I presumed to cut a double mat for a picture. I had a yardstick and an Exacto - how hard can it be? Folks, I am here to tell you: possession of a yardstick and an Exacto does not guarantee a quality mat will be the end product - quite the opposite. After a half-hearted attempt with a disastrous result, I admitted defeat and took the picture back to Hobby Lobby along with the remains of the mat boards that I had not mangled beyond recognition. The very kind, understanding staff person took pity on me. She not only took my mat board scraps in trade; she only charged me for the cutting service, and cut the mats while I waited. Ba Da Boom, Ba Da Bing, I was in and out of there in 10 minutes and under $10 for a 20 x 30 finished product. If you have had anything framed lately, you know this is a screamin' deal. Usually it's the kind of purchase you sneak home in the trunk of the car and wait until the hubs is gone to smuggle it into the house. I tweeted my props and am now a more-or-less loyal fan. I guess.

• Anyone who has visited one of the Disney properties has experience with their superior customer service. They pride themselves on setting the bar high for their employees. The parks are clean. The employees are pleasant and presentable. There is a refreshing absence of sullen, slovenly, tattooed/pierced misfits ignoring you while they thumb their cell phones during their smoke breaks. I think of Disney often when I am submitting myself to customer service abominations elsewhere in the consumer world, standing in a line steaming while the knuckleheads behind the counter answer random phone calls and practice avoiding eye contact, feeling no pressure whatsoever to deal with the living, breathing, cash-carrying customer in front of them. Oh-so-tempted to stray into the many examples of poor customer service that come to mind (Great Clips! Cost Cutters! Maybe I should stop going to cut-rate hair salons! See what I did there!) but in the interest of giving props, I will not be that blogger. Today.

Think of good customer service as an endangered species. Give props and help preserve this valuable skill. With our love and recognition and props, we may be able to save it from extinction.

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