Good credo to live by, Cathy. What astounds me is how much customer service lines have deteriorated in quality over the years. Why? Aren't they there to solve problems, not create stress?

Paula, good for you for hanging in there, and good for that man for helping. Recycling IS part of what we pay – I agree. You're right – even if you can't solve it, you can be courteous about it.

Anne, oddly the mattress issue wasn't the worst I've ever had – far from it – just the most recent. It was solved fairly easily, amen. I reacted strongly because I'm used to being treated poorly, I guess.

Tony, good seeing you here. 🙂 Funny how those comments can sometimes get the companies to really respond. I had that happen here. Microsoft showed up when I was ranting. They didn't fix it, but they listened. Made a difference.

Great point on the enthusiasm. Feedback is easier to give when the person receiving it is engaged.

When I have good experiences, they stand out. I tend to talk about them, and I will call or write to let someone know. The last was probably two excellent servers at a dinner theatre on New Years' Eve.

I do want to make one point. When an organization receives positive feedback about staff, sound enthusiastic when taking it, and be sure to convey it to the staff member. It makes everyone feel good.

I'm sorry about your mattress experience…

I've had some CS problems… super nice people who promise but don't deliver. Now the client is dragging his feed about changing providers… out of my hands.

While I don't believe the customer, me or a client, is always right, they/we always deserve good, respectful and truthful service. Your points are wll taken.

That's when it got bad. The woman from the city was beyond snippy. She barked "We don't give credits!" (um, they can and do on occasion). She flat out lied by saying they provide recycling services as a free courtesy. I was polite, but when she realized I wasn't backing down she directed me to a guy who heads up an entirely different department. Can you say run-around? Had that women even pretended to care (or feign politeness) I would have dropped it, but I left a voicemail for that guy anyway.

My bill was due today, so Monday I tried calling in again. Four tries and each time I hit the voicemail option for Billing, the line went dead. So I e-mailed. First try didn't go through because an e-mail address (copied directly from their website) was invalid. Tried again with just one address and it went through.

Tuesday morning I head back from the actual guy who handles the billing for the city (not the guy she referred me to). He saved the day. He knows customer service. He apologized both for the initial problem and for the woman's rudeness (right off the bat he knew which employee she was). He'd also checked with the person who handles their phone system and learned they'd been having issues with the voicemail and were working on it. He gave me two direct numbers in case I have further issues with the trash collection.

He explained the situation from the city's POV – the company they contract with suddenly stopped collecting anything in alleys – without informing the city or residents. While they've been overwhelmed with complaints, he said that's no excuse for that woman's behavior.

That's what good customer service is – it's not solving every problem, it's letting customers know you care about their situation and will either try to resolve it or explain the reasons behind it.

In my corporate days, one of my assignments was managing onsite audits of customer service units. I was often accused of being too tough. Perhaps I was. But, I really think customer service is not rocket science. Apologize when you screw up and treat others how you would like to be treated. Respect one another.

My bad customer service experience: Dealing with the local cable provider (who shall remain nameless)insisting that I verbally agreed to a 3 year contract. When I insist they play the tapes so the we can hear me agreeing to such foolishness, they are conveniently unable to so so. This is an ongoing nightmare.

My good customer service experience: I was recently forced to get a new phone and number and new phone, so I upgraded to something so complicated I could kick myself for choosing it. However, yesterday I called my wireless provider and spoke to a very pleasant, helpful representative who took my trembling hand and walked me through the basic features with the patience of a saint. She even sent me links to a couple of demonstration videos for good measure.

Your customer service tips are spot on as usual. I especially agree with the 4th one – when I encounter a problem, I don't want anyone wasting my time with excuses, passing blame, etc. None of that matters to me in the least. I just want the problem acknowledged and some genuine attempt to provide a solution. Is that so hard?