pmsumner

I want to write here about customer service. I want to rave about the company I deal with maybe once every 4 months or so, who provide the best service I have ever received. It's nothing fancy, it's nothing over the top but genuinely good, caring, thoughtful service.

It's Hotel Chocolat (http://www.chocs.com/).

As I said - simple simple things. I was poking around their site last night and added something to my basket which I had no intention of buying, I just wanted to check out something. I did so and then left the site. This evening, I got this email:

( Body Of Email )

Now, note the tone of that email. Friendly. Personal. Not at all automated, is it? Chances are it will be, but it is well written and feels *right*.

Secondly - you call them out of hours from a normal phone (mobile or landline with number not witheld). You will find that the next day, you get a call back from them asking if you still need help. Now as far as I'm concerned that is just astonishing service. A bit weird the first time it happens, but wow.

Their chocolate tasting club involves you, and makes you feel important as part of the operation. Yes, you're paying for the privelege but you soon forget that! Their website is thoughtfully designed, works in all 3 browsers I use and gives you all the information you need before you add anything to any baskets.

They are just about perfect in their customer service provision. And given that they're working the (extremely) added value market, I guess it's all they've got. The products that they offer are good - but without the service would they be good enough to justify those prices and get repeat custom?

The following people not on the friends list for phil99 are close by:

• sillysally, spliceruk, suzylou, rowan_leigh (100 - 150)
• skorpionuk, mooism, arosoff, squirmelia, alexa_robinson, randalf (150 - 200)
• ctrlfreak, sigje, commlal, kyte, ghoti, daftmoo (200 - 250)

( More results below the cut... ) TrustFlow II: Who is closest to your friends list?

Note, that _every_ _single_ _person_ on that list up to the number "300" is a Mono spod (apart from maybe jameswotist - I don't know who that is). Think that says something about my friends list, somehow. Despite the fact that I've tried to branch my flist away from that direction, quite successfully too. Out of 36 friends, only 13 are spods!

It's all your fault that I keep on getting dragged back to spoddom!