Levenger Strikes A Blow for Service!

Dec. 20, 2005
This entry is crossposted from The Big Yellow Book, with additional commentary: I've been a fan of Levenger for years. One of the nice things about moving to Chicago is that the Marshall Field's State Street store (sadly, soon to become J.A.M. {just another Macy's}) has a Levenger shop inside. Last year, Laura Patrick of ABB made my day at the ABB Automation World, by handing out, as the pres...
This entry is crossposted from The Big Yellow Book, with additional commentary: I've been a fan of Levenger for years. One of the nice things about moving to Chicago is that the Marshall Field's State Street store (sadly, soon to become J.A.M. {just another Macy's}) has a Levenger shop inside. Last year, Laura Patrick of ABB made my day at the ABB Automation World, by handing out, as the press tchotchke, Levenger Pocket Briefcases. I notice that I am not the only editor who is using it on a daily basis...good job Laura! Here's what I'm talking about: Levenger's Shirt Pocket Briefcase! Well, along with the pocket briefcase came a 3x5 card two year calendar that fits in a slot in the Levenger Pocket Briefcase. The bad news is that the calendar was 2004/2005. So I went on line to see if I could buy another, updated, calendar card. Nope. No hava. I wrote to Levenger customer service, and here is the reply I got: Dear Mr. Boyes, Thank you for your email. You cannot find it at our web store because we do not sell them; however, if you will forward your mailing address, it will be my pleasure to send one as a courtesy to you. I will await your reply. If we may be of further assistance, please email us at [email protected], or call us toll free at 800-544-0880. Our representatives are available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Thank you for your interest in Levenger. We look forward to serving you again in the future. Sincerely, Marc Weiss Internet Associate Now, folks, that's service.

"Erst das Fressen, dann die Moral!"

--Berthold Brecht There's a lesson in this, for vendor and end-user alike. As you will learn, the Readers' Choice Award Service scores are significantly down over last year's survey. One of the reasons for this could be that vendors, fat and happy in a good year, are not quite as willing to go the extra mile with end-users who may not be buying anything right now. I'd like to hear other reasons (excuses) from vendors, either here or sent to me at [email protected]. End-users, based on what the survey shows, are perhaps getting ready to vote with their feet. Vote, end-users, vote. Be aware of the lesson of Levenger, vendors. Walt