Several months back I was putting on my mask doing my makeup when I ran out of mascara. Because I’m a couponer, I have a pretty decent stockpile. OK, not really a stockpile, per se, because nobody needs a stockpile of mascara unless you’re Tammy Faye Baker (RIP) or a makeup artist. I’m neither, so basically I have a shoebox size rubbermaid container, filled with makeup that I’ve purchased at deep discounts with coupons.
So instead of heading to the drug store when I run out of my “pretty makers”, I head to my bedroom closet and grab whatever I need. That day I needed a mascara. So I snagged one and headed back to my makeup station bathroom. When I opened up the tube everything looked normal. When I put the wand into the tube I felt a slight resistance. When I pulled the wand out it looked like this:
Houston, we have a problem! The wand head was bent so badly I couldn’t use it. So I tried to bend the brush back in place and it completely broke off (photo is pre-break). What happened? I have no idea? Malfunction in this particular tube? something lodged in the tube that bend the head maybe?
Annoyed that a perfectly good tube of mascara was now unusable, I considered my options.
- I could wash and dry my old wand from another tube, (tried this) but it was the wrong size.
- I could open up another package of the same mascara and see if I could use that wand – but why risk breaking another wand?
- I could e-mail Cover Girl and explain what happened.
So I did what any annoyed consumer would do. I e-mailed Cover Girl and told them what had happened. I explained that I’ve been a loyal customer since I was a teenager and I was disappointed that I had to throw away a brand new tube of Ruby Eyelights mascara because the wand broke. One day later I received the following response:
Thanks for contacting CoverGirl, Ruby. (Well the mascara was “Ruby”-close enough)
We value your loyalty and I’m very sorry that your CoverGirl exact Eyelights Mascara has dried out and the applicator has bent; we do appreciate your reporting this issue to us. We have many checkpoints along our manufacturing lines to ensure the quality of both our products and packaging, so this should not have happened. Please be assured I’m sharing your report with the rest of our team. Since your satisfaction means a great deal to us, I’m also sending you a coupon. It will arrive by postal mail within the next 2-3 weeks.
Thanks again for taking the time to write.
CoverGirl Team
Good customer service right? About 2 weeks later I received a coupon in the mail for a free Cover Girl product.
Because customer service isn’t always what it used to be (yes I know that makes me sound old) I appreciate the companies who “get it.” Sad to say, but I actually expect to receive sub par service at most businesses these days (especially the big chains and big companies). A lot of companies have really lost the art of good customer service. Maybe it’s the Internet, maybe it’s the fast pace of sales or the large volume of sales? I’m not sure sure, but the “customer service” I receive most of the time sure leaves a lot to be desired.
I understand that the customer isn’t always right and there are a lot jerks trying to sue you for ridiculous reasons, but there are still a lot of good consumers out there too. On behalf of those good customers I respectfully request and encourage you to continue offering good customer service. I love it when I dial your 800 number and get a real live person, I love it when you apologize for your mistakes and I love it when you thank me for my business! Keep doing those things and you’ve got me locked in as a loyal customer for life.