It was unexpected. That may be why it seemed exceptional. It was Saturday morning and I was looking forward to a great cappuccino produced by our highly intelligent high-end espresso machine. The capsule goes in, motor starts pumping and with a lot of noise, no espresso! What’s wrong? It appeared the holes were not getting punched in the capsule. I called the customer service number to find out what to do for repair since the machine is out of the warranty period.

This is a Saturday. The customer service number is primarily for taking coffee orders. But, alas, the technical service extension answered the phone. Surprise #1.  The agent asked for our customer number, which I never know since it’s an internal company identification (who does?). She looked me up by name, confirmed the model of the machine and inquired as to the problem. After I explained the problem, she said the lack of holes was not the problem since they are made when the water runs through. Surprise #2 – she understood how the machine works. The agent talked me through a series of steps to correct the problem. She asked to make a cup again. It worked! Surprise #3 – fixing a mechanical problem over the phone.  She offered a tip to prevent the problem from occurring again. Surprise #4 – offering value to the customer. The agent asked if there was anything else we needed and hung up. Surprise #5 – no sales pitch for products.

After that, I was delighted that my espresso maker was fixed and it was still Saturday morning and I didn’t need to leave my house!  I will buy from that same company again because I will always remember that great service on a Saturday morning.

What will your customers recall about your customer service that makes it and your company memorable? How many times can you surprise your customer with your service?