Archive for July, 2009
Have a dog? Here’s how to spend $575 in 90 minutes
This recipe is just for guidance. You can replace “a dog” with any companion or feral animal and “chicken” with any kind of meat that has bones. Also, cooking time may vary. It might take you a while to figure out what works best for you.
Apparently serves only 1.
Enjoy!
1. Take one 14-pound dog (in our case, we used a male dachshund)
2. Let him have access to all parts of your house within reason of course (we keep the door to the backstairs closed)
3. Boil fresh, skinless chicken until done for your digestive-impaired, 65-pound female dog
4. Debone cooked chicken (wear rubber gloves for safety) and dispose of bones in plastic-lined garbage can under kitchen sink. In our case, we disposed of approximately 15 thigh bones.
5. Close sink door, aware that it sometimes doesn’t latch
6. Leave dogs unattended with access to all parts of your house (see #2) and go shopping
7. Return home an hour later to find two guilty looking dogs (ears back, tails tucked, the slightest hint of nervous dog grins), an opened kitchen sink door, a tipped-over garbage can, and about seven discarded thigh bones
8. Add a bit of confusion as to what dog actually consumed the leftover bones
9. Marinate both dogs for a few hours, feed them both, and ignore glassy eyes, slowness in walking, and bloated appearance
10. Convince your spouse that both dogs are fine. Eat your own dinner. Salad is recommended.
What follows is where time and prices may vary. In the following case, about 90 minutes transpired.
11. Start to observe that the small 14-pound dachshund is looking rather fat, lumpy, and has difficulty moving
12. Call emergency vet (after hours of course)
13. Humor the vet by bringing, or in our case, whisking, your now very heavy and painful sausage dog to the vet
14. Watch in disbelief as the vet assistant records your dog’s weight at over 17 pounds
14. Humor the vet again by allowing x-rays even though she says he seems fine
15. Nod your head – and remain calm – as the slightly worried vet gets your signature on a pricey estimate for inducing vomiting
16. Nod your head again as the vet returns with a limp dog, now with a lump of saline on his back
17. Nod your head as the vet can’t even describe how much stuff was in your dog’s stomach, aside from the fact that the bones were chewed. Nice.
18. Put limp dog on the counter as vet assistant (see #14) rings you up for $575
19. Return the dog to his home, knowing that he’s going to sleep very well because of drugs
20. Be very thankful that you’ve got pet insurance
And finally, it’s recommended that you try this recipe only once or better yet, never.
Our little space cadet
Welcome to the 21st Century: United’s expensive customer service mistake
Posted by kathybad in customer experience on July 14, 2009
Disclaimers: I am not a fan of country music; I have flown United; I am a customer advocate
In the spring of 2008, United followed its Terms and Conditions – i.e. , their fine print, their internal customer service policies – to their bottom-line minded detriment, and refused to reimburse a customer $3,500 for damage to his guitar incurred during the loading of the plane. The customer, Dave Carroll sings his story better than I can write it:
I guarantee you that this mistake will end up costing the company more than the $3,500 replacement value of the guitar. By the time the original incident handling went through the hands of the flight attendants, agents on the phone, supervisors, meetings, and policy review, and now the PR department, you’re talking thousands of dollars. Add the cost of poor word of mouth, unwanted publicity, and you’ve got a problem that will be talked about in customer support circles for years. And I mean years.
Company policy aside, should United have reimbursed its passenger? In hindsight, most definitely. And now, with all of this unwelcome publicity, they have to. In the new world of Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, a company must think twice about whether its 20th Century rules and regulations apply to the nano-second, at-your-fingertips, in-your-face reviews of just about everything and anyone under the sun.
Sure, United started with an obligatory vague policy – United’s Delayed and damaged baggage information – and quickly forgot to add the most important ingredient for customer service success – humanity. You can have the fairest policies in the world, but if you forget to add common sense and a personal touch, well, you’re already probably no stranger to unhappy customers.
So, should United have taken these YouTube possibilities into consideration when reviewing Carroll’s case? Yes. Should customer support staff be trained to know when an incident escalates beyond their control and when looking beyond internal policy might be the way to go. Absolutely. Should all companies review their customer service policies with the viral 21st Century in mind? They’d be foolish not to.
Sure, once the publicity started to hit the fan, United tweeted that they were ready to make good on the damage. But, Carroll is having none of that. It’s just plain too late for that, plus he hasn’t yet uploaded his follow-up song to YouTube.
My last question is whether or not United reprimands its staff for errors like this. The baggage handlers who tossed the equipment freely about did so because they knew that United’s policies covered their asses. Trust me, once United makes its staff accountable, then it will be much easier for them to work on getting their customer support in tune with the needs of today’s savvy customers.
Recent Comments