Technology: Customer Service In Cyberland

Editors Note: When this article was written, we were still trapped in the world of Microsoft and Windows. We have since migrated to Mandrake GNU/Linux 9.0 and now use open source or open source based applications almost exclusively. For example, this article was preparred for publication using StarOffice 6.0 , the Bluefish HTML editor, and the gFTP program. Although we still have to use Windows to run our inventory control program for The Unicorn Shoppe, that too shall pass. We are currently attempting to replace Small Business Inventory Control, mentioned in this article, with a GNU/Linux alternative.

Almost anyone who's ordered software over the internet will tell you that customer relations are practically nonexistent in cyberspace. If you have a problem with installation or figuring out how to use your newly purchased program, you're usually directed by an automated server to the dreaded "knowledgeable database," a Byzantine maze that requires the knowledge of a programer to navigate. An email to technical support will usually be answered several weeks later with a document from the aforementioned database that's indecipherable by the lay person. Advise from an actual human being is usually not available, and when it is available there's a hefty fee involved. In other words, after you fork over your credit card number and download that program you really need or want, you're pretty much on your own.

To be fair, part of this problem lies with the consumer. Software companies have had to insulate themselves from their customers in order to avoid phone calls on issues that could easily be resolved with five minutes of thought or a telephone call to a computer savvy friend. Also to be fair, a few companies are doing an excellent job of supplying more than adequate customer service while insulating themselves from petty annoyance calls.

I've had the good fortune of dealing with some of these better companies recently. Being a computer junkie, I order a lot of software online and I've learned to jump up and down and throw tantrums to get attention when I'm having trouble with some program I've just purchased for a king's ransom. Recently, however, I've had some pleasant surprises when dealing with software firms, and I think that these companies deserve to be applauded and held up to other software companies as examples for the industry to follow.

My first pleasant experience happened about a month ago after I downloaded an evaluation copy of an HTML editing program from the Cute FTP people. I'd purchased a copy of their FTP program about six months earlier, had enjoyed using the "baby" HTML editor that came as part of the package and decided to give their full-fledged version a try. When I ran across a problem right away, I dashed-off an email to their technical support team. Within an hour they sent to me, via email, a new and improved version of the program that was not yet available online. Problem solved.

Around the same time, I had another experience with another software company that didn't have as happy an ending, but not because the company didn't try. I ordered a copy of Norton SystemWorks 2002 to upgrade my computer from SystemWorks 2000. When I installed the program, all heck broke loose. The computer crashed every few minutes, began loosing the registry (a scary thing if you know anything about Wintel computers) and refused to upgrade virus definitions from the company's web site. My email inquiry to technical support was answered within a couple of days (fast for a software firm) with complicated but easy-to-follow and detailed instructions on a possible fix. Unfortunately, the fix didn't work, but the company refunded my money within twenty-four hours and asked me to donate the CD-ROM with the install program to Goodwill.

The best experience I've had with a software firm, though, had nothing at all to do with a technical issue but was a case of good old fashioned customer relations. After evaluating about ten different inventory control programs for my fledgling business, I shelled out a hundred bucks for a program called Small Business Inventory Control issued by RyTech Software. It turned out that less than a week after I made the purchase, the company issued a major upgrade. The new version was divided into a Standard and Pro version (not available when I ordered), with Pro version ($100 more) having many features not available on the version I'd purchased. Unfortunately, my agreement with RyTech seemed to offer free minor updates, but not a major upgrade like this.

I quickly fired-off a rather strongly worded email to the company. If I'd known that you were going to issue a major upgrade in less than a week, I said, I would have waited rather than purchase software that is now already obsolete. You have made a satisfied customer very unhappy.

Although it'd been after ten at night when I sent the email, my complaint was answered in less than an hour. The reply came as an email from Chris Ryan, the company's owner, who assured me that customer satisfaction was very important to him. He gave me a free upgrade to the new Standard version, including the unlock code in the email, with an offer to purchase the Pro version for an additional $100.

That would've been a wonderful experience in itself - but there's more. A few days later, I sent Mr. Ryan another email to thank him for taking care of my original complaint in such a timely fashion. I explained that I would be wanting to upgrade to the Pro version but that funds were low and I was wondering how long I had to upgrade for the additional hundred bucks. Again, within an hour I received a reply. "The upgrade to the Pro version is on me," he said. "I'm a sucker for a satisfied customer." A free $100 upgrade cost him nothing - but it generated tons of goodwill.

Maybe one day other software firms, the one's who ignore their customers when they're having problems with their expensive programs, will learn from these examples.

©Copyright 2003 by AlternativeApproaches.com