Occasionally I can’t help myself when met with dreadful customer service. Today was one of those days. When chatting with a friend the topic of yellow page advertising came up. Last year they had left his address off of his ad but insisted the phone number was the important thing. This year they had substituted the photo he supplied, altered the layout, and added a tag line without supplying a proof.
In my optometrist listing, I was contacted several days before closing by DEX and told there was not time to provide me with a proof. (This was by an out of state rep even though we do have a local office). I provided copy and explicit directions on what I wanted. I was assured they could take care of it. The changes involved a name change vital to my strategy in the eye care business. When my friend pulled out the new yellow pages, lo and behold I found last years ad instead of the changes I requested. Since this is not the first time DEX has made mistakes in my listing I know what to expect. There was no proof to check so I fully expect them to say sorry but it was my fault (please note I supplied them with one and explicit directions). They probably will be unwilling to adjust their fees based on the mistakes.
DEX removed the one good rep I had a few years back. Apparently it is a policy to discourage reps from building up client relationships-maybe to try to keep churning accounts? Who knows. This is a company that in my experience has never shown an inkling of desire to provide customer service. In eyecare and any medical or health care setting it can have severe consequences when patients can’t find their providers in an emergency.
DEX even has a contract that is open ended allowing them to keep charging you for an ad past a year until the next phone book comes out. While no one can be sure, I have had the impression they have delayed phone book releases in years when the economy was suffering and people were going to cut back their ads.
Maybe I will be surprised this week and meet with a strong, customer service department that doesn’t even charge me for the year since my ad was totally wrong. I really don’t expect that.
When customer service falls to the level they have provided me it is time to find better ways to communicate with eye and contact lens patients in a reliable medium. Join me in sending a message to DEX in 2011. We’re not going to pay for incompetency. Ditto for DC.
Comments 2
Call up your Sales Rep, well in advance of book publishing and as for a VAR (Virtual Art Appointment) Appointment. You will have to go to the local office. A graphic designer will work online over the computer with you to get your ad the way you want it.
Author
Thanks for the comment. I noticed your IP address is in the vicinity of DEX in Aurora,Co. on Vaughn Drive. Are you an employee of DEX? COMCAST’s work on Twitter to resolve customer problems is a model to emulate. They do identify themselves as COMCAST problem solvers. If your location is coincidental and you have no association with DEX I do appreciate the input. Actually I appreciate input from DEX if they identify themselves. Having spent probably in excess of $50,000.00 with DEX media over the years I expect to have a sales rep locally contact me and make the transactions timely, right, and smooth. I do no feel it is my responsibility as an ongoing client to take care of the details for them. I also expect to have the same rep on my account yearly to be able to build up a relationship of trust. DEX has never supported this concept. Actually I did try to walk into the local office and still ended up dealing with someone in New York over the phone. Today’s marketplace is extremely competitive for every industry and clients are rapid to leave any business that appears indifferent to their needs. R.H. Donnelley- DEX Media’s publisher, declared bankruptcy in 2009. A combination of the loss of traditional print media advertising to the internet, the recession, a spending spree by CEO Dave Swanson that left the company almost 10 billion dollars in debt, and in my humble opinion, poor customer service were all part of the cause. DEX employs close to 700 people in Colorado alone, and they all deserve good management and at least a shot at keeping their jobs. I talk to small business owners every month who are planning on greatly reducing or eliminating all phone book advertising in 2011. Personally, I think every job in Colorado is crucial for for our future and DEX Media management needs to get its act together before it ends up in Chapter 7. Even what work that was done was in New York. I have nothing against the great state of New York but that is another job lost in Colorado, and poor stewardship of our local and state human resources.