I’m real quick to point out when I get bad customer service and a little slow to point out when I get service above and beyond the call of duty. One company that continually surprises me with excellent service is A La Zing. They sell excellent pre-made meals perfect for birthdays and holiday gifts.
A while back we sent a meal package to Sandy’s brother in Arizona for his birthday. Unfortunately, he and his wife to be were out of town. The delivery guy ignored the instructions on the package not to leave it and drove it with on their doormat. After a few days of baking away in the Arizona sun, the meal was ruined. (Note: the meals are shipped in a styrofoam cooler with dry ice. They’re good for a day or two at room temperature during shipping.)
He called up A La Zing customer support to see if they could do anything. Astonishingly, they said they’d send out a replacement package right away, even though it wasn’t really their fault. No questions asked. Wow!
For Christmas, we sent Sandy’s borther an A La Zing gift card. After you purchase the card, they email out the details to claim the gift. Unfortunately, a few minutes after I made the purchase, I got an email saying that they were unable to charge my credit card and to give them a call. So, I gave them a buzz.
They picked up promptly and were able to quickly fetch my order details based on the the confirmation number that I gave them. The first person I talked with was only able to provide me status about the order. She said that I’d have to talk to the customer service department to get the charge straightened out and gave me their hours and number. So, I called the second person.
Again, they promptly picked up and pulled up my order. They said there was no obvious reason why the charge failed, so they’d try it again. While confirming my info, we figured out that the month of the expiration date of the credit card was wrong. Whoops, that’s what I get for making purchases before that first cup of coffee in the morning. They said the second charge went through fine and that I was all set.
Fast forward through the holiday week and we talked to Sandy’s brother and he said they didn’t receive the A La Zing email. Doh. No problem, I called up customer service again. Again, they promptly and politely pulled up my record. When I said the recipient didn’t receive the email, they said not to worry and that it happens all the time (which I tend to believe due to junk email.)
I asked if they had a problem with sending the email to me rather than the original recipient so I could confirm that I got it and I would just forward the email myself. They said that was not a problem. I gave them my email and they resent the gift card. I was able to confirm its reception before hanging up.
I know it seems like a lot of hassle with the multiple phone calls above, but I was still very pleased with the way that they handled the situation. Each time I talked with them, I came away with a good feeling that the problem at hand was fixed. I wish that the other businesses I deal with could be as good to work with. Job well done!
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