I find SOS columns interesting–and not because of the plight of the person seeking help. For those who are not familiar, SOS columns feature everyday citizens who need assistance in resolving their issues, which typically include not receiving a service for which they paid or not receiving a refund that’s owed to them.
These citizens talk to customer service reps, supervisors and managers and still hit a dead end. It’s only after the SOS reporter calls the company and talks to the media rep that the situation gets resolved.
How telling is that?
Members of the customer service team–the ones whose job it is to service customers, by definition–can’t or won’t do what the PR team will, which is to make things right. I imagine the PR practitioners understand the value of a good reputation as well as the damage that a bad reputation can cause. As a result, they are much more motivated to step in and provide the customer with what they were owed in the first place.
It’s clear that companies need to train their customer service staff, both in-house and outsourced, to have the same mindset as the PR staff.