I’m writing this article as I’m sitting in the demo area of Apple’s european flagship store in London’s Regent Street. Let me get right to the jist – Apple’s customer service just rockz … and it rocks hard!
I had a problem with my iPhone 3G and where O2 told me to fuck off, Apple simply gave me a new phone. That’s what I call customer oriented.
Here’s the pre-story to it (in case you’re interested):
I recently bought a the HTC G1, which some of you will know is a T-Mobile exclusive. The main problem, however, with T-Mobile, is that they have a incredibly incompetent customer service department that sucks. Although I really liked the G1 I just had to return it. The thought of staying with T-Mobile for 18 months just gave me the shivers!
I then turned to spot number two on my list: Apple’s iPhone. The main reason I didn’t go for it in the first place was because I don’t like monopolies. It’s the same reason why I switched to Apple several years back and the same reason I haven’t jumped on the Google bandwagon yet. Anyway, I signed a rather expensive contract with O2 and paid about £160, but I finally had a 16GB iPhone in white. But, 3 days later the little mechanism on top that pops out the phone’s sim tray broke. Going back to O2, the first thing they did before even looking at it was to blame me for it: Sorry O2, but what kind of customer service approach is that! Then they claimed that they don’t provide any warranty services unless I bought insurance. Again: bad bad customer service and not even true! After arguing with them for some time they finally admitted that they do in fact provide warranty services but told me that I would be served faster if I just went directly to the Apple Store. Since I was already sick of them, I just left and made an appointment for the iPod Bar at Apple’s retail store in Regent Street.
When I got there, I was greeted by a very friendly Dave, who took care of my problem. He asked me a few questions about the circumstances of the damage but then almost immediately told me that he was very sorry about my “bad experience with O2” and that he regularly receives complaints about them. He then said that he would give me a replacement phone. Bang! Just like that. And when I left the Apple Store several minutes later with a very satisfied smile on my face, I knew that my next PC, phone or mp3 player would again be from Apple. That’s how you stupid British companies should treat your customers to ensure they are loyal and not by pointing your fingers at them!
