I spent a frustrating June: one problem after another surfaced with my favorite get-it-delivered supplier: Amazon. But, unlike other large corporations that managed to have its employees working from home or remotely: my banks, my physicians,hospitals, pharmacy, condo employees, Amazon appeared to be totally unreachable by telephone or email.
They expected their customers to solve all problems by using their website.
My bad: none of my assorted issues could be handled that way. But, the last straw was when an email I craftily wrote
to Investor Relations and received a form letter saying that their phone service had been stopped, and they could not be reached by email.
Given that I do own some stock in Amazon, that was the last straw. “When you see something, say something” is one of my mottos, so the question became, how can I get someone’s attention, because my favorite supplier is missing the boat, and harming its own business model.
“It’s not what you know; it’s who you know” is another motto of mine. I know a retired librarian with the internet skills of Houdini. I asked her to locate the email address of an executive high up on the food chain at Amazon as possible. And, she did.
I’m going to write the first two paragraphs of the letter I wrote to the CEO of Web services for Amazon below:
“For me, outstanding customer service is the most compelling reason why I trust Amazon for on-line-purchases. Over the years, one runs into problems, and without fail, Amazon customer service has been prompt, gracious, thorough, reliable and fair. This breeds customer loyalty. The bad news is that Amazon has not handled the Covid crisis well.”
This got his attention. It was meant to. Later that morning, I got a telephone call from Regina, who managed to solve three of my problems to my satisfaction while we were on the phone, and put me in touch with Ceci, who had the patience of a saint, and managed to solve the fourth: making it possible for me to watch The Good Fight on my TV set, as well as on my computer, without commercials. That took over an hour of her time, and could not really be accomplished by a customer using their website.
I’m going to copy the last paragraph of my bread and butter letter to the CEO of web services:
“Superb customer service is bottom line what has led to Amazon’s well-deserved successes. There has been an unfortunate rupture in that service, caused by Covid19, and I look forward to repair of that rupture in the future for all loyal Amazon customers.”
I am glad I got their attention, and know I was heard. Never underestimate your ability to communicate what needs to be said to someone high enough up in the food chain to do something about it.
ElderChicks 
Carol, I agree with you totally. I went through the exact same problem with Amazon, having been able to connect with them immediately by phone pre-COVID and having my problems addressed in a courteous and timely manner. My son, a former Amazon professional, said this is the wave of the future. 1:1 customer service will recede into the past now that we are ordering everything online. I am disheartened by that. If you wish to share the name of the executive, I will also follow up with a letter like yours. Thanks for voicing your frustration & creatively solving the problem!
Amazon dropped customer service at least a year ago. They want you to put their app on your phone. (No thanks) Online customers are dead to them. When I quit shopping there they wont notice.But hopfully they will take better care of customers
Carol, Your persistence and creative problem-solving inspire! BTW I’m sure Houdini would have the necessary skills if only her were here.
Perseverance, or as my kids say “my stubbornness” results in success every time! Well done Carol.
My Mother in law had a Schwinn exercise bike. When she took it for repair, she was told it couldn’t be fixed because she hadn’t oiled as instructed. She showed the dealer where her Manuel advised against oiling. He said he might be able to a part, but he couldn’t get one that matched. Somehow she found the name of the CEO of Schwinn. She wrote a letter explaining she was an 83 year old women and had amassed 800 miles on her bike. She explained her experience with the local dealer. That dealership got a call demanding that her bike be fixed with the appropriate matching part for free in no less than 2 weeks “or else.” Later we read her story in Reader’s Digest although she wasn’t consulted and her name wasn’t used.
I love this story! What we think of as a “faith-restorer.”
Thank you all for your kind words and thoughts. ANd, I sure hope you are not correct about 1to 1 customer service being a relic of the past at Amazon and other places. It truly has made a difference in buying pattern up until now.
What a strange coincidence that none of the four problems I experienced
could possibly be handled on their otherwise excellent website! I think that
surprised the execs at Amazon also.
My experience also and I spend lots on Amazon. Amazon needs a competitor. Companies you can’t reach by phone should be black listed.