As a consumer, I am constantly reminded that the goodwill dividends returned by a sincere, well-timed apology can easily outweigh the negative impression of the original offense. I noted this in an earlier post comparing two radically different approaches to solving customer problems — one proactive and solicitous, the other dismissive and unhelpful. Here’s another example that proves the value of a customer relations strategy that acknowledges errors / disappointments and treats customers like intelligent, reasonable adults:

One of the earliest posts on CoFactors concerned the Logitech Harmony universal remote. I’m a big fan of this product and recently set up about reconfiguring it to work with some new home theater components. Several attempts to connect to the Harmony site were frustrating in that the site was unavailable or its performance was unacceptable. I reminded myself that it was just after Christmas and the site was probably being hammered by legions of new customers trying to set up the remotes (which is, admittedly, not a trivial exercise). I eventually managed to get through and finish the setup, so any irritation was soon forgotten. Today, I received the following email:

Dear Nick,

This holiday season has been an exceptionally busy one for the Harmony Member website and as a result you may have experienced problems during the adjustment & customization of your Harmony remote. We do sincerely apologize for any inconvenience that this temporary problem may have caused and we thank you for your patience as we resolve the issue.

We have been working diligently to increase website capacity and improve your setup experience. Please return to the setup of your Harmony Remote at your earliest convenience.

The Harmony support team is always available to assist you. Please do not hesitate to contact us. Numbers and support hours are available by clicking on the following link:

Harmony Support Information

Regards,

Peter Evans
Sr. Manager, Customer Services
Logitech Remote Controls

A great email! As I said, I had forgotten all about the difficulties and wouldn’t have held a little post-holiday dodgyness against the company. But this email goes one better. Here’s how:

— It tells me that my experience was not unique — i.e. it was nothing about my setup, my internet connection or any other issue on my end that caused the trouble. This is reassuring.

— It tells me that the company knows I was having problems and cares enough about the relationship to admit it.

— I’m glad to hear that they are working on ways to deal with the increased demand on the site and that, as a result, the problem should not re-occur.

— I’m invited to get in touch if I still have concerns (instead of the common experience of companies that would really rather not have to deal with you directly when problems arise).

The only thing I might have added would have been some kind of freebie or coupon “for my trouble.” This isn’t really necessary, but it would have been a further acknowledgement of (and compensation for) the annoyance — and it could have provided an incentive for me to look into buying another logitech product.

Nice job, Logitech.

This entry was posted on Friday, January 6th, 2006 at 2:11 pm and is filed under General, E-commerce.