Respecting so-called loyal customers

A couple of weeks ago, I received through the mail a glossy brochure from Melita, accompanied by a standard letter signed by Chief Operations Officer Stephen Wright. Impressive.

The letter started with "As a loyal customer..." and ended with "...you are our most precious asset. You deserve nothing but the best". That's when I had to double-check the calendar to see if it was April 1!

If I deserve nothing but the best, how come I am still waiting for the call-back from Customer Care, which was promised when I called in with a query in late June? I am also still waiting for the courtesy of an acknowledgement - let alone a reply! - to my e-mail sent to Customer Care (or should it be Customer Don't Care?) on July 16. This is not the first time it has happened to me.

Apart from reminding them I was still waiting for their call-back, my e-mail also requested they stop sending me the Melita Guide, seeing that invariably some of the programmes listed do not match what is shown on the screen. Yet, the magazine still arrives a few days after the first of the month!

The brochure tells me: "We want a strong open relationship with you to understand your needs, so we can build a service around you that exceeds your expectations".

I will believe that when Melita starts acknowledging and replying to correspondence.

"We can deliver what we promise..." continues the letter from Mr Wright. That doesn't ring true, judging from the experience of this "loyal customer". My advice to Mr Wright is: Words mean nothing unless they are matched by a professional attitude and action. Something I find missing from Melita.