AT&T did the right thing

Ok, so the title throws off the ending, but I want to give kudos to a company that did, in the end, do the right thing. Some of their competition hasn't treated me so well, so you have to point out a successful venture when the time comes.

When it comes to customer service, it's about both emotion and numbers. There are times when you make a calculated risk that says "this customer isn't worth keeping." It's rare, but it happens. That being said, I want to keep as many customers happy as possible. Sometimes, that takes a little forethought on the part of an organization's management. It requires a model that instills independent thought amongst customer service reps within certain parameters. It's the absolutes that kill a company.

Here's the quick story for AT&T....

I don't know if Motorola intentionally built the plastic piece that connects the H681 Bluetooth headset to one's ear badly, or if I just got the lucky unit. But, once the temperature dropped below 40 degrees in my car for the first time this year, the plastic broke. So, rather than trashing the $80 device that I've grown fond of, off to the "AT&T Device Support Center" I went. It was after a call to customer service and stops at two different retail stores. Upon arrival, I finally was granted an audience with someone who knew something and more importantly, had been granted the ability to take care of a customer.

It would have been easy for Nathan, the CS Rep, to follow the absolutes which are, "Physical damage to this device is not something we cover." The problem in this case was, the thing broke because it got cold and it cost me $80 + tax. The issue wasn't whether I could have afforded a new one or made do with the existing. The point was, I wanted something that worked as it was supposed to and didn't require duct tape to hold it together just because it finally dropped below 40 in San Antonio.

So, today Nathan is my CS hero. Here's why:

1. He didn't pawn me off on someone else so he didn't have to address a somewhat confrontational question.
2. He took the initiative to take care of a customer quickly. Rather than sending me to the Manufacturer to get a replacement which would have taken months, he just said, "We can't promise this every time, but here is a new one."
3. He said Thank You even after I got a little heated at the beginning of our discussion about the rules.

Pros

1. I'm happy and will probably continue for a while to use AT&T a lot
2. AT&T has an additional customer that is a walking advertisement for their devices.
3. The other folks inside the AT&T customer service lobby also witnessed some successful

Cons

1. It took a while and several stops to get to the person I needed.