Because customer service really is important

Something happened recently that made me curious for a little "blog feedback" from my regular readers. The first part doesn't paint me in the best light - you'll have no doubt about my flawed humanity after I share. A few months ago, I sold a necklace to a woman who hadn't seen my work before. She had seen the piece at a festival and followed up by driving to my home to actually purchase it later. She suggested it would be fun to have a couple of bracelets to match, but not being in a rush, said that I should make them whenever I could.

Not only did I not have the time to make bracelets that very week, but I misplaced her number. Was chagrined and thought about her more often than you might imagine. But then, in a glorious display of "eventually things really do work out okay," I found her number on Friday!  My inclination was to start making the bracelets right then, but that seemed wrong. After far too much time had passed, it felt better to call her first.

Good thing, too. She said she wouldn't need the bracelets after all. Okay, that's cool. But then she admitted she's not wearing the necklace! Less cool. Fortunately I'm one of those people who can get others to open up, and she soon shared that the problem is incompatible coloring. The necklace she chose is accented with copper wire; the jewelry she wears is all silver and white gold. And when she puts the necklace on to wear it, it never looks right to her, so she's not been wearing it. Eek!

I did what any self respecting artisan jewelry designer would have done: I offered to rework the necklace using sterling wire to replace the copper. For a nominal charge. We discussed some of the details and the jury's still out as to whether or not I actually will, but as her schedule permits, I'm expecting her to call and set up a time for us to meet. After she's seen what sterling wire actually looks like laid over the pendant, she'll decide if it's something she wants me to do.

So I guess my question is whether or not my offer went too far? I feel it's important to always offer whatever feels right to make my customers happy. It has served me well in the past and I think it's an offer I'd have liked to received, myself. On the other hand, it's her choice whether or not she wants to wear something she purchased. I'm left feeling pretty comfortable with my offer, and we'll see what comes of it. But I'm also curious: how far do you go toward customer satisfaction? Is there a limit? I'd be interested to hear what you think...

Comments

[Dena]

Ooh--this is intriguing. My thoughts are since you offered to redo the necklace for a charge, the offer didn't go too far and it was in fact very good customer service. If you had offered to make the change for free, that would come across to me as overly solicitious and needy. This woman is an adult and we've all made purchases that we thought we would love but that didn't work out. You gave her a high-quality product to begin with and just b/c she chose outside her color range doesn't mean you should lose money as a professional trying to fix her mistake. But I think you handled it beautifully.

You didn't mention if you gave her a time line, and that would be my only suggestion. Give her a week to make her decision and get the necklace to you--otherwise, your offer to fix is null and void. This forces a decision in people vs. her maybe calling you 3 months from now, saying she wants a change.

Whether she takes you up on the offer or not, I'm sure she thinks well of you for going above and beyond to see that she enjoys her necklace. Great job!

[Margot]

I can't imagine you handling it any better than you did. Think of the positive public relations you may have just earned for yourself. "I bought this necklace and when I discovered it didn't work, the artist redesigned it just for me."

And since you discussed the price of the redesign up front, she won't be surprised and you won't feel like she's simply taking advantage of you. Fabulous job all around! (And if she had been in a huge hurry for the bracelets, she would have called you. Everyone misplaces things like phone numbers. No beating yourself up over it!)

[Melody]

Thank you both for the thoughtful responses to my question. You each reiterated a little more of my feelings on the subject and in the end I'm feeling comfortable with my choice. It may turn out not to be a question at all, but even if it doesn't, these questions can help us better handle future such scenarios. If they happen to present themselves again, that is.

Thanks again! You both said some kind things, too, which I also appreciate.

~Yours in High Quality Customer Service...