I had a cable problem and an electrical problem at my house. The cable company scheduled a service appointment and did not tell me to be home. I had a cut cable line and nobody needed access to repair it. Since I had no internet, I was not home during the service appointment. Apparently the technician showed up, didn’t know what to do, didn’t call anyone and left. It took four days, multiple phone calls, speaking to a manager to finally get it fixed.
Dispatchers claimed they called me. They did not. I gave them two different mobile numbers. There were no missed calls or voice mail. When the technician finally came out—I was home this time—he didn’t know what to do. After all the calls and all the notes in the cable company system, it was hard to imagine that he didn’t know what the problem was. I told him the line was cut. He ran a new line, attached it to the house and left. All told it only took about 30 minutes. He said another crew would come later to bury the line. They came the following week and buried the line. It is because of this level of service that everyone hates their cable companies.
A local electrician showed up to check a breaker and install a light on a ceiling fan. He knew exactly what he was there to do. He arrive 30 minutes before the scheduled appointment and finished promptly.
Local businesses care about serving their customers. It’s too easy to call someone else next time. Marketing a local business is as much about the work and how customers are treated as it about what you offer. It’s too based that national outlets don’t realize the importance of considering how they serve—or don’t serve—their customers.
