Bad service is so common that good service actually catches us by surprise. Case in point–this Monday night, I went online to buy some tennis shoes. I knew the brand, size and model number, so this was clearly a commodity purchase and thus I started with no retailer preference. Googling the brand and model, I quickly determined that there wasn’t much of a price variance, in fact all the retailers listed carried the model within $3 of $69.95 (I know, not cheap but these shoes hold up well on the tennis and paddle courts). Ultimately I selected Zappos because they offered free shipping and I knew they were a legitimate operation. By 9pm Eastern Standard Time I had place my order, expecting delivery any time in the next three weeks (it was free shipping after all). Zappos confirmed my order via email in a matter of minutes and followed up with an email shortly thereafter that they had shipped my shoes. I didn’t really pay attention to the details of the shipping email and you can imagine my surprise when my shoes arrived the next day.
Amazed by this unexpected service, I told several friends about it. What surprised me is that each of them had their own “best service” story and of course, their worst service story. Since the Internet is so famous for tales of woe, I thought it might be interesting to collect some positive stories. The best story of best service (particularly online) will receive a suitable prize, perhaps a customized latte at the “new” Starbucks. In the meantime, save your worst service story for another contest to follow.