Rewarding Excellence in Long Beach CA

Well Patrick really understood the importance of customer satisfaction and the impact this can have on his bottom-line.  This episode did not start off well but he took the extra step to compensate for his shortcomings.

Laurie a great way to start the day, getting some free supply.

Patrick left a lasting impression on me Jennifer and I am not easy to impress.  He is a credit to Staples. 

Lauire, I have a "George" at Office Max in Bonita Springs, Florida.  He's the best.  Above and beyond.  He's helped me buy black, metal, filing cabinets for my boys to use as dressers. (I figured if REALTORS weren't breaking them, the boys wouldn't - plus you can only have one drawer open at a time) and last fall he helped us find two sided tape to fix the wardrobe malfunction my daughter was having with a prom dress.  I just remember explaining the issue to him, Jen standing there in a tangerine gown - cut down the there. and him turning red and taking us to two sided tape.

I think these office guys are exposed to more than they care to admit.  I hope Office Max reads their feeds and give George recognition for protecting my daughters assets!  LOL

I featured this!  Congratulations Laurie!  Although this is local in content, it is an excellent example of what members should be doing in our local content.   But the big question is -- did you ever get your headseat?

I need to go to one of these office stores today, if I were in Long Beach I would be taking a printout of this with me and giving it to the person.  But flying ot to California seems a little extreame (although having an opportunity really share a meal with you would be reason enough).

Patrick Owens you deserve that Gold Star and more!   What an excellent example you are to everyone.  For us those that work in the Real Estate industry it is just another example of the power of just doing the right thing.  I still feel that way about Ace Hardware on Marco Island.

So often, we are too cheap to dazzle customers- this is a great story!

Patrick sounds like an exemplary too often scare employee.  It's nice to hear that you had such a positive experience.  My wish is for everyone to receive the same quality of service at all times. 

I'd say Patrick Owens was paying attention in Customer Service Class.  He certainly turned this situation into a positive that money can't buy.  Surprised he has the ability to make judgement calls like that in the chain store bureaucracy.

Laurie - what a GREAT story on customer service and about one store manager who GETS IT.  I hope he finds this post or gets a copy of it - I suspect if he reads this, it will make his day for sure.

Thanks for sharing this story - very inspiring.

Ann

Laurie, that is just fantastic!!! I love Staples. This guy needs to move to Florida and manage the store I go to. Talk about going above and beyond....great story. You should print this and send it to his higher up.

Very cool story, thanks for sharing!

But back to your treo - I have a 700P and the wireless/bluetooth headset I was given (Motorola) doesn't work well at all - drops calls if it connects at all. Do  you have a headset you like?

Great story, Laurie. It'r rare to find someone who gets it...or perhaps there are those who do but are not in the position to respond in kind. This is what creates raving fans...a good lesson for us all. Thanks for sharing.

Jeff

Laurie..Wow.. might be worth the trip to LB.. in our local Staples they may page Larry but he is on a permanent break.. Office Depot seems to offer a little better service

Chris, Yay for George and Patrick!

Colleen, Thank you for the featured post.  No I didn't get my headset, looks like I am going to make another trip to Ebay.

Laurie, Being too cheap to dazzle a customer often will cost us future business.  Customer service rules.

Diane,  If more business's had Patrick's they would do very well indeed.

Renewing faith in humanity! Very cool Laurie I hope you email him a copy of this post!

Dan, I was surprised that he had that ability also.  He also did not identify himself as the store manager which probably contributed to my being speechless, which really is a very rare event indeed.  

Ann, Oh he is going to read this before this day is out.  So are his boss and many Long Beach residents.  My blog is on page one of Google.  I am going to make Patrick famous today.   Good deeds do not go un-noticed. 

Bryant, You can't have my Patrick.  I assure you that many people are going to know about Patrick Owens today.  

Mary, I have 5 bluetooths, all of which worked for 5 or 10 minutes with my TREO then crapped out.  I gave up.  I buy TREO compatable headsets on EBAY several at a time because I go through them rather quickly.  They get caught in car doors, desk drawers and everything else.  I also lose them often.  

Jeff, Yes I guess today I am a raving fan of Patrick Owens.

Kaye, Staples and Office Depot do not offer all of the same products.  I use both out of necessity, but the Staples store is convenient for me.  I usually order online and rarely go into the store anymore.   The service at Staples had not been so good for quite a while, but yesterday was outstanding. 

Carole,

Oh you bet he is getting a copy of this, so is his boss and a lot of other people.   

Laurie, this post is an excellent example of where to find inspiration for local content. Real estate is about relationships. 

WoW, Laurie,  this was an amazing post!  Makes me want to go to the Long Beach Staples to do my business shopping!  Even though I have never been to Long Beach, CA, you're making me fall in love with this place vicariously.  Thank You.  :)

Fantastic example of customer service - and good for Patrick to be getting all the attention. Hopefully some unhappy former customers who shopped before he was the manager will now come back.

Why not call Patrick, have him pick out the right headset for you, and have them deliver it tomorrow? 

I often see a great deal of caring and attention to customers needs at Staples. I think that they must have an excellent management training system. It just couldn't be luck of the draw.

Great story.  We have become so accustomed to crappy service in the big box stores.  It must have been your lucky day!

Jeff T, Life is about relationships, I wish I could find inspiration for local posts on a daily basis. 

Lola, lol, thank you.

Sharon, I think Patrick has what it takes to bring the customers back.

Herb, I wonder if it is the training system, the individual or the recruiter.

Stefan, Thanks and maybe, but I think it had more to do with professionalism than luck.

Note:  Patrick is off for the weekend and Staples would not give me his email address so he will not see this until Monday.  They did however give me the phone number of the Presidents Office who won't be back until Monday also.  They will both receive this post emailed to them as soon as I find out where to send them to. 

Laurie,

Public acknowledgement is such an important way to recognize people when they do an OUTSTANDING JOB!  Laurie, your public, positive raving about the high quality of service that Patrick provided, will make a wonderful note to his career at Staples and help to demonstrate to others what Great Customer Service is!  

This customer service story was not about giving away product or services, but acknowledging that if you fail to hit your customer service standards, you must take steps to wow your customer to turn around a negative experience and turn it into an opportunity to make a "raving customer" for life...that's how to build referral business!

Laurie, thanks for telling us about Patrick...GREAT JOB Patrick!

Customer Service appears to be a thing of the past.  More and
more I am appalled at the lousy service there is in the retail
stores.  Customer service is the #1 thing I look for and as a
REALTOR I am expected to give great service to my customers.  I
like to think I give the best service to my clients/customers because I
Love What I Do and It Shows!  

Patricia Aulson/CallPatricia.Com 

What a marvelous illustration of what makes - or breaks a business: not perfection (which we can strive for but never obtain) but recognizing the lack therof and pulling out all the stops to let your customer KNOW you care and will do your best to rectify the problem.

This is a GREAT example of how we can bring value to consumers on Localism. Wouldn't this story tell you where you should be shopping for office supplies in Long Beach? Thanks for showing us a great way to handle posts about local businesses (without them being deadly dull) Laurie!

Derek,

It was good speaking with you also.  I am looking forward to the info.

Deborah,

Thank you, yes it is important to acknowledge above and beyond service.

Patricia,

Customer service rules, no doubt about it.  It is one of the few things we remember when our shopping experience is over.

Beth, 

Localism is a great venue for all things local, not just to promote our business's.  The Google juice that localism provides gives us the voice previously only held by the media and the power to acknowledge our community.  Thank you.

Patrick sound likes the type of new agent I like to recruit.  People who are excellent in their daily lives can make wonderful agents.  About 6 six years ago I offered the opportunity to a gas station attendant who was always polite, charming & friendly when I filled up my car.  I didn't realize he also owned the station, but now the station is sold and he is a top producing agent in our area.  If our profession had more people who understood the power of customer service and the concept of pleasing the customer, we would not be viewed by consumers so negatively.

 Laurie

    Thank you for one of the articles on here that truly is a Breath of Fraiche Aire!

Hey Patrick, did you read Michelle's comment?  Are you interested in a career in Real Estate?  She is right you know, you would make an excellent Realtor.  If you read this and are interested give me a call, I can make it happen for you. 

Michelle,

You may have begun a new career for our Patrick.

Joan,

Thank you. 

To Everybody,

Today Corporate HQ at Staples was shown this post by me.  I could hear them smiling through the phone.   I then spoke with Patrick who unfortunately does not have an internet connection in the store.  I read it to him on the phone and sent him links to it here, on Localism and on my personal blog.  He was very pleased.

The really great news is:

This post is already on page 2 of Google search results for major search terms and will probably hit page one in the next few days.

Patrick, if you are reading this that means that a lot of people in Long Beach are going to read this, you are famous!

Wanna be a Realtor?

That is the definition of a "WOW" expereince.  There are way to few people in management positions these days that will take that kind of initative in order to make the customer happy.  Good luck on your headset hunt! :)

A Great BIG WOW! Patrick is WOW!  Still don't have my new headset though.  No time to shop, need to jump onto Ebay. 

Wow!  Great post.  It is great to hear of someone who ISN'T completely clueless! 

Thanks Kevin

Good stuff! I worked in the service industry for a long time and the customers were always quick with the complaints and slow with the kudos. Thanks for being someone who actually cares enough to give a kudos!

I love to hear stories in which a company acknowledges they have provided less than acceptable service to their customer then actually do something about it, this in turn makes their customer truly and forever grateful.  What a wonderful story.  Kudos to Patric it is well deserved....he gets it!

You've got to love this kind of feel-good story and that particular Staples will certainly benefit from having such a wise manager. Last year I represented buyers in a transaction where there were 8-9 counter-offers.  My clients, who were newlyweds, were in horrible state marriage shock.  They were having a hard time agreeing between themselves, let alone trying to reach an agreement with the sellers.  In the end they went into contract.  A few days prior to the close of escrow the listing agent was shocked to discover that her seller was paying $10K of my buyers closing costs.  She had missed it on the final counter and on the attached cover letter. Although her client had signed the counter, he was a long-time client and she had been doing business with him for years. Although she had no legal obligation to do so, she forfeited her commission on the transaction.  She may have lost one commission but she retained a life-time client. And me? I got off easy. My clients got a flat screen t.v. and I got another lesson of "what not to do!"

John, Thank you, I love to give Kudo's.  Would love the opportunity to do it more often. 

Therese, Thank you, I love being able to give Patrick the recognition he deserves.  He has been on the 1st and 2nd page of Google on an off all week.

Kelly, Great lesson.