Now THAT’S Customer Service
August 09, 2009
The officemates and myself took a field trip a few weeks back to replenish the beer fridge. Derek picked up some Winter Ale from Alaskan Brewing, Brian got Cinder Cone Red from Deschutes and I chose Sam Adams Pale Ale. We took our haul back to the office and had an impromptu happy hour that afternoon.
Unfortunately, my brew was about 3 months past its expiration date. It tasted OK, but wasn’t up to Sam Adams’ usual level of deliciousness. I filled out the complaint form on their website and then drank the beer as usual.
A month later, I found an envelope from the Boston Beer Company in my stack of vacation mail. It was a letter of apology signed by none other than Jim Koch, president and founder of the brewery. Granted it was a form letter for the most part, but the fact that the president of the largest American-owned breweries (and a personal business/brewing hero of mine) signed it was mind-blowing. It will definitely affect my thought process the next time I make a beer purchase.
To top it off, I received a $10 refund check for the beer, which I will be framing and hanging in my office as a lesson in customer service. Check it out:
Now if I can just figure out how to get a check from Sam Adams as a result of doing work for them… hopefully for more than $10…
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