How bad customer service helped me save close to $2,000 in phone bills
Today was the expiration date of our contract for our 2 TREOs with Verizon Wireless. We bought them 2 years ago and took a 2-year plan with all the bells and whistles and got stuck with a monthly bill of $265/month. This might sound like a bit much to anyone not connected to our industry but when we looked at all we got, we felt we were getting our money's worth. We were getting access to the Internet, we got our e-mails wherever we were, we used google maps when we got lost and did not have a map, we had unlimited calls nationwide and could send nasty and/or funny text messages and/or pictures on a flick of a button and we could even open lockboxes at houses that we wanted to preview or show. We also used the phones as alarm clocks and as guardian angels that reminded us of all the appointments and meetings that we had to keep on any given day. We have to admit that these PDAs are absolutely worth it. When they work!
Yeah! We did not put any fine print in the above promotional exhibit, but there ought to be a few. My partner and I had between 8 and 10 of those wonderful TREOs in the past 2 years. There were so many we lost count of how many we had to have replaced. The damned phones would not ring or vibrate when they were supposed to. Screens would freeze. Messages would not be received.... You name it, we got it.
Now, we have to admit that Verizon always came to the rescue. Every time we came up to their retail outlets with a problem, they took care of it. Slowly but surely. We even got on a first name basis with some of their top notch support service folks. Wonderful people. They told us that most of our problems were due to a compatibility issue between the GE software that activated our lockbox opening capabilities and the rest of the Palm software that kept the other functions in working order.
To make a long story short, I went to our local Verizon Wireless store yesterday to take advantage of some incentives that they had sent to us via regular mail. As you probably understand, we were a bit hesitant about getting new TREOs again and decided that we wanted to get different PDAs. After our TREO experience, we were not keen on a product that relied on touchscreen technology and opted for the Blackberry Curve models. We were eligible for a new phone upgrade and the second phone would have cost only $99 had we taken a new 2 year plan. Not bad for 2 new phones. But somehow, my negotiating instincts and my frustration from all the inconveniences we suffered took over and I felt like I should be getting the 2nd phone for free. As someone who had spent over $3,000 per year over the last 2 years for products that were giving us a lot of trouble, I felt like we deserved something a break.
When I got to the local Verizon Wireless store, I hoped that I would be told that they were sorry about what had happened to us over the past 2 years and they would be glad to make amend for it and offer us a deal that would make us customer for life. Unfortunately, I had such a bad customer service experience with the store manager that I left the store within minutes, went 3 miles west to an outfit that sold the same products, told them my story about what a shoddy service experience I had just received and got them to give me exactly the same deal as what offered to me at the Verison Wireless store even though I was not one of their clients. When we started talking about the plans, I realized that I would have to pay $125 LESS a month. And when I look at the potential savings associated with the use of other devices tied to my having TREOS, I came to the conclusion that this was a no brainer.
Today, I switched from Verizon Wireless to Alltel. Bottom line is that I saved myself close to $2,000 a year because some store manager had an attitude problem and did not want to take care of a customer that could still have been with his company had he not been such a poor customer service provider. If you want my own personal professional opinion, I' would fire the guy on the spot unless he is willing to go back to basic training. Somehow, I feel bad saying all those things about him because he did help me save close to $2,000 per year for the the next 2 years. Thanks Bud, but no thanks.