An affable guy named Bruce from my old repair shop favorite, A&E Factory Service, showed up to fix my dryer. He was not from Colorado Springs like the competent Norman of old, which makes me wonder if the A&E repair guys are semi-independent contractors, perhaps. I believe Bruce is from Arvada.
Regardless, he got straight to work in my messy washroom. After about half an hour of tinkering with the dryer, he told me the element had burnt out. I now have a new element, a working dryer and boundless gratitude for Bruce. He refused any remuneration, so here's to you, Bruce, wherever you are. Thank you. You restored my faith in Sears.
I highly recommend A&E for your appliance repairs, in Colorado at least, because they have now fixed my broken dryer twice. They've done so quickly and efficiently both times. They're just all around good guys. And Sears? Well,
1. Sears customer service has cut the block of time one has to allocate from all day to a four hour period.
2. They rescheduled just once this time.
3. They called ahead to let me know they needed to change the time- a huge improvement.
4. Yet again, the repair guy was competent, professional and pleasant.
So, thank you, Sears and A&E. This was a much better experience than last year. I am glad I am still a customer.
Showing posts with label Sears customer service. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sears customer service. Show all posts
Friday, October 16, 2009
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Sears puts the "cuss" in customer service, part two
Over a year ago, I did a series of posts about Sears' awful customer service. My clothes dryer ceased to work. After a series of unfortunate events caused by Sears' absolute determination to place multiple layers of contact between the customer and the service person, the dryer eventually got fixed. It took something like twelve calls over eleven days to get a technician to darken my door. But Norman from A&E eventually showed up, fixed the dryer, and I was a happy woman.
This week, my dryer broke again. No heat. Drat.
Ironically, I had called Sears last Saturday, despite my vow to avoid them. They sent a coupon in a direct mail piece offering carpet cleaning. Our carpets really needed cleaning, their prices were terrific, so, what the heck.
I called that Saturday, they scheduled the cleaning for Monday afternoon at 1:00 - and they showed up three hours early. But they called first to make sure it was okay. The guy did a fantastic job. Since we were luckily ready for him, the early showing was not a problem.
That afternoon, the dryer ceased to heat. Feeling warm and fuzzy about Sears, the next day, I called for an appointment. They asked if I had run a load without clothes (me: "no") or cleaned the duct (me: "I don't know how, can you walk me through that on the phone?" Them: "No. We will make an appointment instead, since your dryer is under warranty.")
The very pleasant phone rep then made an appointment for my still-under-warranty dryer for today between 1:00 and 5:00. Last night, they called around 6:30 to remind me they were coming.
Today, the technician called around 11:00, ahead of his 1:00-5:00 appointment, and the conversation went like this:
Me: "Hello?"
Technician:" Hello, this is Sears. We have a service call scheduled for your house today between 1:00 and 5:00."
Me" "Yes - for the dryer. I'll be here. "
Technician: "Well, we're not coming."
Me: "What?"
Technician: "We're not coming. Can you be there tomorrow between 1:00 and 5:00?"
Me (steaming, because we are so clearly, again, not a priority for them): "Someone.will.be.here."
Of course, it is Friday, and we do have plans for Friday night, so we shall see if Sears and their local representatives FUBAR this repair like they did last time. I find it jaw-dropping that service guys think that customers find it easy to set four hour blocks of time on hold for them multiple times, on short notice. As a consultant, I bill by the hour, and even though I can do *some* work at home, their disdain disrupts my business.
I guess Sears doesn't care whether we continue to purchase Sears appliances or the warranties - or the local guys they use don't care. Either way, I am interested to see what happens tomorrow. But I am going to blog this again, with hopes it has a happier ending than the last marathon.
PS: I checked to see if Sears has a Twitter account. I found one with 102 followers and no tweets. If you know of a way to get in touch with them besides their tortuous phone service, let me know.
This week, my dryer broke again. No heat. Drat.
Ironically, I had called Sears last Saturday, despite my vow to avoid them. They sent a coupon in a direct mail piece offering carpet cleaning. Our carpets really needed cleaning, their prices were terrific, so, what the heck.
I called that Saturday, they scheduled the cleaning for Monday afternoon at 1:00 - and they showed up three hours early. But they called first to make sure it was okay. The guy did a fantastic job. Since we were luckily ready for him, the early showing was not a problem.
That afternoon, the dryer ceased to heat. Feeling warm and fuzzy about Sears, the next day, I called for an appointment. They asked if I had run a load without clothes (me: "no") or cleaned the duct (me: "I don't know how, can you walk me through that on the phone?" Them: "No. We will make an appointment instead, since your dryer is under warranty.")
The very pleasant phone rep then made an appointment for my still-under-warranty dryer for today between 1:00 and 5:00. Last night, they called around 6:30 to remind me they were coming.
Today, the technician called around 11:00, ahead of his 1:00-5:00 appointment, and the conversation went like this:
Me: "Hello?"
Technician:" Hello, this is Sears. We have a service call scheduled for your house today between 1:00 and 5:00."
Me" "Yes - for the dryer. I'll be here. "
Technician: "Well, we're not coming."
Me: "What?"
Technician: "We're not coming. Can you be there tomorrow between 1:00 and 5:00?"
Me (steaming, because we are so clearly, again, not a priority for them): "Someone.will.be.here."
Of course, it is Friday, and we do have plans for Friday night, so we shall see if Sears and their local representatives FUBAR this repair like they did last time. I find it jaw-dropping that service guys think that customers find it easy to set four hour blocks of time on hold for them multiple times, on short notice. As a consultant, I bill by the hour, and even though I can do *some* work at home, their disdain disrupts my business.
I guess Sears doesn't care whether we continue to purchase Sears appliances or the warranties - or the local guys they use don't care. Either way, I am interested to see what happens tomorrow. But I am going to blog this again, with hopes it has a happier ending than the last marathon.
PS: I checked to see if Sears has a Twitter account. I found one with 102 followers and no tweets. If you know of a way to get in touch with them besides their tortuous phone service, let me know.
Tuesday, July 22, 2008
Norman from A&E knows his stuff
If you ever need your Sears appliances repaired, call Norman from A&E in Colorado Springs.
1. He called ahead and let me know when he would arrive, and then he arrived on time.
2. He fixed my dryer in half an hour.
3. He found enough small change in the lint area that I can take Nic for a steak dinner tonight.
4. He offered to de-oderize my washing machine.
5. He told me the ratio for front loading washers to top loading is 3:1, so I should not be able to overload my front loader. (I elect not to take that as a challenge, but it contradicts the last guy to visit, who told me to run small loads.)
6. He told me the phone support team should always be able to see the routing and send the tech a message.
It is entirely possible he is the repair guy who stood me up before, but I choose not to believe that. My dryer is fixed, Norman is wonderful, and this story is at an end, with a happy ending. I am still not going to buy any more Sears appliances, but at least the one I have is fixed.
1. He called ahead and let me know when he would arrive, and then he arrived on time.
2. He fixed my dryer in half an hour.
3. He found enough small change in the lint area that I can take Nic for a steak dinner tonight.
4. He offered to de-oderize my washing machine.
5. He told me the ratio for front loading washers to top loading is 3:1, so I should not be able to overload my front loader. (I elect not to take that as a challenge, but it contradicts the last guy to visit, who told me to run small loads.)
6. He told me the phone support team should always be able to see the routing and send the tech a message.
It is entirely possible he is the repair guy who stood me up before, but I choose not to believe that. My dryer is fixed, Norman is wonderful, and this story is at an end, with a happy ending. I am still not going to buy any more Sears appliances, but at least the one I have is fixed.
It is 11:00 and "Norman" from Sears just called
He is from Colorado Springs, and he says this is not his normal territory. He added he had a note that said I had called -- "a couple of times," heh - to check on my scheduled time. I am the next house on his list. Glorious. It's likely a real, live repair person will be at my house in the next hour or so.
Call #11 to Sears customer service: "Michael" has helpful information!!
8:26. By the way, they ask you to take a short customer service survey to let them know how they are doing. I took it last night.
8:26: ...please hold
8:27: ...please hold
8:28: ...please hold
8:29: ...please hold
I tell "Alex" I need to talk to someone who can see the routing for my service call today. He says, a little reproachfully, that he will forward me to the "correct" department. He is gone before I can ask him what that is.
"Michael" picks up. I tell him I need to know where I am on my technician's route. He asks me for my phone number, checks whatever he checks, and tells me I am #4 on the schedule and the repairman is estimated to arrive at 2:00.
WOW. An estimate. This feels good. Thanks, Michael.
8:26: ...please hold
8:27: ...please hold
8:28: ...please hold
8:29: ...please hold
I tell "Alex" I need to talk to someone who can see the routing for my service call today. He says, a little reproachfully, that he will forward me to the "correct" department. He is gone before I can ask him what that is.
"Michael" picks up. I tell him I need to know where I am on my technician's route. He asks me for my phone number, checks whatever he checks, and tells me I am #4 on the schedule and the repairman is estimated to arrive at 2:00.
WOW. An estimate. This feels good. Thanks, Michael.
Sears bad customer service, call #10, day 11
I called at 8:18 this morning, was on hold until 8:24, and was abruptly disconnected without ever talking to a human.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Sears puts the cuss in customer service - day 10
Tonight I spoke with Marco of Sears' truly, putridly, execrably bad customer service. As you'll recall, ol' Bob with the Texas twang told me that if I called the night before service was scheduled, anyone on the Sears phone support team would be able to see the routing and tell me what number I would be in line. Kai also affirmed that when she told me she would call me back after 6:00, when she could see the routing. Of course, she never called back and anything Sears phone reps say is suspect, but I decide to press on.
Alas, Marco denied that he could see the routing. Senor Marco, of Sears' incredibly cavalier and cruddy customer service, told me that he could only commit to the technician being here between 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. When I mildly inquired why two other people told me he would be able to see the routing, Marco told me that "In really weird cases we can do that. But,normally, we can't see the routes."
I asked if he was in "kitchen," since Bob implied he was in a special group. Marco says "I am in phone service. That is all there is."
I politely asked for customer relations. Marco informed me that they closed two hours ago. Now, when I called last week, I spoke to customer service at 8:20 p.m. Apparently, their hours have changed.
I say, "So, you cannot see the routing, and there is no way to escalate my call so I might be able to narrow this down?" According to Marco, there is nothing I - or he - can do.
Perhaps Sears' support does have new hours. Perhaps Marco is just riffing, because there is clearly no script for Sears' woefully decrepit customer service.
I have to admit, I love the "we can only see the routing in really weird cases" line. That is surreal both for its lack of logic and the utter disdain for me, the soon-not-to-be-a-Sears customer.
Alas, Marco denied that he could see the routing. Senor Marco, of Sears' incredibly cavalier and cruddy customer service, told me that he could only commit to the technician being here between 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. When I mildly inquired why two other people told me he would be able to see the routing, Marco told me that "In really weird cases we can do that. But,normally, we can't see the routes."
I asked if he was in "kitchen," since Bob implied he was in a special group. Marco says "I am in phone service. That is all there is."
I politely asked for customer relations. Marco informed me that they closed two hours ago. Now, when I called last week, I spoke to customer service at 8:20 p.m. Apparently, their hours have changed.
I say, "So, you cannot see the routing, and there is no way to escalate my call so I might be able to narrow this down?" According to Marco, there is nothing I - or he - can do.
Perhaps Sears' support does have new hours. Perhaps Marco is just riffing, because there is clearly no script for Sears' woefully decrepit customer service.
I have to admit, I love the "we can only see the routing in really weird cases" line. That is surreal both for its lack of logic and the utter disdain for me, the soon-not-to-be-a-Sears customer.
Thursday, July 17, 2008
One week and eight calls later, no repairman has darkened my door
I called Sears at 4:20 p.m. today to see what the status of my repair was. They've changed their login procedure so it took me two calls to get through. Now when you call and say "repair" it asks you if you want to know what time your repairman is coming. If you reply "yes," it will tell you your repair job is scheduled between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. So, since I already knew that and there were 23 minutes until my window expired, I had to call back.
On the second call, I was forwarded to "Randy." He told me that the repairman was at site six and I was site seven. He hastened to add that he did not know how long it would take the repairman to get through at site six. I asked him why I was last on the list yesterday and last again today. (Perhaps those who complain are booted to the end of the line - at this point, I'd believe anything.) He said he did not know, but he did inform me that the repairman had two more stops after mine, which mean there are two other unfortunates with spiraling blood pressure and non-working Sears appliances on the Front Range tonight.
I explained to Randy that, just like yesterday, I had to go pick my son up from camp and so I would not be here when the mythological Sears repairman arrived. I told him that we would have to reschedule since I had plans. He told me that the repairman might appear any time, which, by implication, means I'd have to leave my son in camp until the repair was complete. Unlikely.
I asked again to change the appointment, and he told me he would have to send me to the "clothes dryer" department. That was another new wrinkle in the endless hunt for the mythological repairman to honor the worthless extended warranty. So, off I went into hold land.
This time, I apparently landed in North America somewhere near Texas, and I spoke with a retired guy named "Bob." He had a reassuring twang and a folksy way of calming down irate customers like myself. He told me that if I would just hang on, the repairman would arrive. No can do - I love my son, and don't want to pay late fees to the camp for a lackadaisical Sears repairman who is apparently entranced with site 6 each day.
Bob then said the repairman could come back after I picked my son - late tonight. Now that is new - why was that not on the table last night, when I did not have plans? I had to turn it down tonight, because I did have plans, and, unlike the nonexistent Sears repairman who may never visit my house, I honor my commitments.
So, Bob offered to send him tomorrow. I said no, I had pre-existing commitments I was no longer willing to cancel for the whimsical Sears repairman. Ditto Monday. So, Tuesday, we will begin again. The same repairman - I did ask for another, but was turned down- will come out to my house between --- all together now -- 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. I will get a call narrowing the time frame down the night before. The technician will call the morning of to make sure we have a firm time. Oh, Bob. You had me going with that down home accent, but you're selling the same KoolAid as the rest.
I patiently explained how my very recent experience differed from his idealistic outline. Bob insists that the technicians can see the routing the night before. I said that may be true for some, but I could give him the names of the ones who could not, both in line management and in customer relations. He was puzzled, he said, since he had old-timers familiar with the system calling him starting about seven every night to ask him when they could expect their repairs the next day. He added all he could tell them was what number they were, but that gave them enough of a general idea that they could plan their day.
So, if you are silly enough to buy Sears appliances after reading all of this, and you somehow decide that an extended warranty makes more sense than lighting your money on fire and enjoying the glow, call Bob in "Kitchen" when things inevitably go sideways and your repairman is delayed by the desperate housewife at house 6. Bob says you cannot ask for him, but Sears folks say you cannot do lots of things - and the things they say you can do never materialize. So, ask for Bob and give him my regards if you get through.
On the second call, I was forwarded to "Randy." He told me that the repairman was at site six and I was site seven. He hastened to add that he did not know how long it would take the repairman to get through at site six. I asked him why I was last on the list yesterday and last again today. (Perhaps those who complain are booted to the end of the line - at this point, I'd believe anything.) He said he did not know, but he did inform me that the repairman had two more stops after mine, which mean there are two other unfortunates with spiraling blood pressure and non-working Sears appliances on the Front Range tonight.
I explained to Randy that, just like yesterday, I had to go pick my son up from camp and so I would not be here when the mythological Sears repairman arrived. I told him that we would have to reschedule since I had plans. He told me that the repairman might appear any time, which, by implication, means I'd have to leave my son in camp until the repair was complete. Unlikely.
I asked again to change the appointment, and he told me he would have to send me to the "clothes dryer" department. That was another new wrinkle in the endless hunt for the mythological repairman to honor the worthless extended warranty. So, off I went into hold land.
This time, I apparently landed in North America somewhere near Texas, and I spoke with a retired guy named "Bob." He had a reassuring twang and a folksy way of calming down irate customers like myself. He told me that if I would just hang on, the repairman would arrive. No can do - I love my son, and don't want to pay late fees to the camp for a lackadaisical Sears repairman who is apparently entranced with site 6 each day.
Bob then said the repairman could come back after I picked my son - late tonight. Now that is new - why was that not on the table last night, when I did not have plans? I had to turn it down tonight, because I did have plans, and, unlike the nonexistent Sears repairman who may never visit my house, I honor my commitments.
So, Bob offered to send him tomorrow. I said no, I had pre-existing commitments I was no longer willing to cancel for the whimsical Sears repairman. Ditto Monday. So, Tuesday, we will begin again. The same repairman - I did ask for another, but was turned down- will come out to my house between --- all together now -- 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. I will get a call narrowing the time frame down the night before. The technician will call the morning of to make sure we have a firm time. Oh, Bob. You had me going with that down home accent, but you're selling the same KoolAid as the rest.
I patiently explained how my very recent experience differed from his idealistic outline. Bob insists that the technicians can see the routing the night before. I said that may be true for some, but I could give him the names of the ones who could not, both in line management and in customer relations. He was puzzled, he said, since he had old-timers familiar with the system calling him starting about seven every night to ask him when they could expect their repairs the next day. He added all he could tell them was what number they were, but that gave them enough of a general idea that they could plan their day.
So, if you are silly enough to buy Sears appliances after reading all of this, and you somehow decide that an extended warranty makes more sense than lighting your money on fire and enjoying the glow, call Bob in "Kitchen" when things inevitably go sideways and your repairman is delayed by the desperate housewife at house 6. Bob says you cannot ask for him, but Sears folks say you cannot do lots of things - and the things they say you can do never materialize. So, ask for Bob and give him my regards if you get through.
Other complaints about Sears' bad customer service
Since I am stuck at home, I thought I'd Google "Sears bad customer service." There are 39 stories that use that phrase, from sites like ripoffreport, blogasm, epinions, and my3cents.com.
Shockingly Bad Customer Service - Appliance Repair - My Home
Posted By: Darwyn on My3cents.com on 4/22/2008; Location: CA
More Bad Customer Service: Sears Seriously S**ks June, 2008
This article claims the individual tried to call Sears' CEO and was told he has neither voice mail nor email. Their issue is that they ordered an item online and were sent a damaged floor model. The hoops they're jumping through are much more frustrating than my relatively small issue.
They provide an Executive Customer Service number: 1-800-549-4505. Someone says in a follow up post that Sears' CEO has been ousted.
Sears customer service information from an employee (from 2004) and a complaint from a customer about the relentless calls to extend the warranty Location: CA
(Incidentally, we have extended warranties on all our Sears appliances. That was clearly a mistake)
In fairness, here is a positive story about Sears' customer service, although the theme seems to be keep going until you get to the right executive to fix your problem.
I think this guy sums it up, though. Here is a teaser:
Shockingly Bad Customer Service - Appliance Repair - My Home
Posted By: Darwyn on My3cents.com on 4/22/2008; Location: CA
More Bad Customer Service: Sears Seriously S**ks June, 2008
This article claims the individual tried to call Sears' CEO and was told he has neither voice mail nor email. Their issue is that they ordered an item online and were sent a damaged floor model. The hoops they're jumping through are much more frustrating than my relatively small issue.
They provide an Executive Customer Service number: 1-800-549-4505. Someone says in a follow up post that Sears' CEO has been ousted.
Sears customer service information from an employee (from 2004) and a complaint from a customer about the relentless calls to extend the warranty Location: CA
(Incidentally, we have extended warranties on all our Sears appliances. That was clearly a mistake)
In fairness, here is a positive story about Sears' customer service, although the theme seems to be keep going until you get to the right executive to fix your problem.
I think this guy sums it up, though. Here is a teaser:
"What really sets Sears apart, however, is their ability to be so consistently bad at customer service up and down the line. Recall that at this point I have had bad service from a service technician, a saleswoman, a manager, and a customer service rep. But Sears was just getting warmed up."
Sears brand, the old reliable, is certainly not what it used to be.
Sears bad customer service, part four
It is 8:20 in the morning. I forwarded my home phone to my cell while I took our son to camp. Unsurprisingly, Sears did not call as promised first thing this morning.
"Lloyd" takes my information again. I am intrigued that their process requires me to give my name, phone and address every time I speak with them. He asks me for my zip code and informs me helpfully that I live in Castle Rock, Colorado.
He sends a message to the technician telling him I have called six times and asking him to contact me. We shall see what transpires today. I did, against my better judgment, cancel all my appointments today, because I have to get this clothes dryer fixed.
"Lloyd" takes my information again. I am intrigued that their process requires me to give my name, phone and address every time I speak with them. He asks me for my zip code and informs me helpfully that I live in Castle Rock, Colorado.
He sends a message to the technician telling him I have called six times and asking him to contact me. We shall see what transpires today. I did, against my better judgment, cancel all my appointments today, because I have to get this clothes dryer fixed.
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Sears bad customer support, part three
The manager did not call, so it is now 8:10 and I am calling customer support again. The automated customer service system told me I was asking about the appointment scheduled from 8:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m. tomorrow. Uh, I guess so.
I spoke with Ellie and asked for customer relations.
8:10...Please wait...
8:11...Please wait...
8:12...Please wait...
8:13...Please wait...
8:14...Angelina answers. She says she cannot see the routing to see when the technician will be here. She asked if I could stay home tomorrow from 8:00 until 5:00. I told her I could not cancel my business appointments at 8:00 at night, and that I did not have a lot of faith that the repairman was going to show up. I added that I had asked Kia to find out if the technician could be here between 2:00 and 5:00 when I would be here. She asked if I could wait until someone called me first thing in the morning to tell me when the repairman would arrive (sound familiar?). I told her that was the fourth time someone promised to call me from Sears and I had little faith I would receive a call.
She said that all they could do was email the service person. (I am sure the support center is not located in Denver) So I cannot contact the local technician directly, and customer service cannot contact the local technician directly.
So, at 8:26, the sagae for today is at an end. The support guy is probably finished with dinner at his house, ignoring his email, and enjoying a cold one. Tomorrow, I suspect I will begin the battle to get my worthless Sears warranty refunded and find a competent, responsive local repair person who communicates with his customers. In the meantime, there are wet clothes strewn all over my house ,and my opinion of Sears, a company where I used to really love to shop, is severely diminished.
I spoke with Ellie and asked for customer relations.
8:10...Please wait...
8:11...Please wait...
8:12...Please wait...
8:13...Please wait...
8:14...Angelina answers. She says she cannot see the routing to see when the technician will be here. She asked if I could stay home tomorrow from 8:00 until 5:00. I told her I could not cancel my business appointments at 8:00 at night, and that I did not have a lot of faith that the repairman was going to show up. I added that I had asked Kia to find out if the technician could be here between 2:00 and 5:00 when I would be here. She asked if I could wait until someone called me first thing in the morning to tell me when the repairman would arrive (sound familiar?). I told her that was the fourth time someone promised to call me from Sears and I had little faith I would receive a call.
She said that all they could do was email the service person. (I am sure the support center is not located in Denver) So I cannot contact the local technician directly, and customer service cannot contact the local technician directly.
So, at 8:26, the sagae for today is at an end. The support guy is probably finished with dinner at his house, ignoring his email, and enjoying a cold one. Tomorrow, I suspect I will begin the battle to get my worthless Sears warranty refunded and find a competent, responsive local repair person who communicates with his customers. In the meantime, there are wet clothes strewn all over my house ,and my opinion of Sears, a company where I used to really love to shop, is severely diminished.
Sears update: technician cancelled appointment, no one called
So, I called Sears at 4:30 to see when the repair person was coming. The customer support person said. "He is running late so he canceled your appointment." I asked, calmly enough, "How would I have found that out if I did not call you?" he responded, "Uhhh...I don't know."
I asked for management and explained how poor this experience has been. She said we were scheduled for tomorrow, but she could not tell me what time we were schedule for until after 6:00 this evening. She promised to call.
I asked for management and explained how poor this experience has been. She said we were scheduled for tomorrow, but she could not tell me what time we were schedule for until after 6:00 this evening. She promised to call.
Sears: Bad Customer Service, Status Quo, or Both?
Sears is a revered brand. It stands for reliability, solid products, longevity and responsiveness to customers. We buy almost all of our appliances from them, and we have always thought they were the gold standard for customer support and service.
Until now. While trying to get our clothes dryer fixed, I've experienced a series of miss-set expectations, which is the single greatest cause of a bad customer experience, regardless of the eventual expertise of the repair or technical person.
Background: our clothes dryer broke Friday. When I turned it on, something smelled like it was burning and it made an awful racket as the drum rotated. So, since we have an extended warranty, I called Sears.
They said they could come on Wednesday (today) between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Foolishly, I asked if they could narrow the time frame down. The customer service person blithely said the technician would call the day before the service and provide a more specific time.
Yesterday, about 7:30 p.m., I received an automated message from Sears. They narrowed the time down by a half hour. The repairman would be here between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
My husband immediately called Sears to ask if they could provide a little more precision, since we both work and our son had a class and then camp in the morning. They assured him the repairman would call "first thing in the morning" to narrow down the time frame.
Next, my husband called his office to arrange to be late for a meeting this morning. He stayed home while I took our son to his class and camp. I came home and waited. And waited. And waited.
It is 3:00 p.m. and no repairman has appeared or called. I've gotten no work done, skipped my workout, not walked my dogs, and my dryer is still not fixed. Plus, I have no reliable source of information to call to see if the repair person will show up today.
I just called Sears and they told me I am the last repair on the technician's route. I asked why I was not told this before and they said they did not know. I explained that each time we spoke, we asked for a more specific time frame, and no one could provide one. They are going to call the technician and call me back to tell me when he will be here.
If they don't call me back and no one arrives before 4:30, I will have to go pick up my son, secure in the knowledge the repair person will arrive while I am gone. It is a needlessly bad experience.
I suspect anyone reading this has been through the same wasted day I just spent. It's the way home-related business is done, whether repairs, cable installation, appliance delivery or installation, landscaping services, or anything else requiring someone to come to your house. It should not be so time-consuming and uncommunicative.
In a world as connected as ours is, customers should be able to go online, see a reliable window of time in which the repair person is likely to arrive, contact the company if necessary, and not spend eight or nine hours waiting. Most of all, if you tell a customer that something is going to happen - someone will call, someone will be at a certain place, whatever - make sure it happens the way you set the expectation it will. Sears did not follow through today.
Until now. While trying to get our clothes dryer fixed, I've experienced a series of miss-set expectations, which is the single greatest cause of a bad customer experience, regardless of the eventual expertise of the repair or technical person.
Background: our clothes dryer broke Friday. When I turned it on, something smelled like it was burning and it made an awful racket as the drum rotated. So, since we have an extended warranty, I called Sears.
They said they could come on Wednesday (today) between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. Foolishly, I asked if they could narrow the time frame down. The customer service person blithely said the technician would call the day before the service and provide a more specific time.
Yesterday, about 7:30 p.m., I received an automated message from Sears. They narrowed the time down by a half hour. The repairman would be here between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.
My husband immediately called Sears to ask if they could provide a little more precision, since we both work and our son had a class and then camp in the morning. They assured him the repairman would call "first thing in the morning" to narrow down the time frame.
Next, my husband called his office to arrange to be late for a meeting this morning. He stayed home while I took our son to his class and camp. I came home and waited. And waited. And waited.
It is 3:00 p.m. and no repairman has appeared or called. I've gotten no work done, skipped my workout, not walked my dogs, and my dryer is still not fixed. Plus, I have no reliable source of information to call to see if the repair person will show up today.
I just called Sears and they told me I am the last repair on the technician's route. I asked why I was not told this before and they said they did not know. I explained that each time we spoke, we asked for a more specific time frame, and no one could provide one. They are going to call the technician and call me back to tell me when he will be here.
If they don't call me back and no one arrives before 4:30, I will have to go pick up my son, secure in the knowledge the repair person will arrive while I am gone. It is a needlessly bad experience.
I suspect anyone reading this has been through the same wasted day I just spent. It's the way home-related business is done, whether repairs, cable installation, appliance delivery or installation, landscaping services, or anything else requiring someone to come to your house. It should not be so time-consuming and uncommunicative.
In a world as connected as ours is, customers should be able to go online, see a reliable window of time in which the repair person is likely to arrive, contact the company if necessary, and not spend eight or nine hours waiting. Most of all, if you tell a customer that something is going to happen - someone will call, someone will be at a certain place, whatever - make sure it happens the way you set the expectation it will. Sears did not follow through today.
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