Empire Direct demonstrate how a solid online experience can be undermined by failure to address the total customer experience. Customers may come but get the experience wrong and they won’t come back.
As part of my customer service frustration therapy here is how the story went ...
The colours on our CRT TV had seen better days so it was time to invest in an LCD TV. From reading the Which? report, asking friends, googling and local store visits I drew up a shortlist. I used several price comparison engines and Empire Direct came up as the best all-in price in most cases. This was handy as Empire Direct has a warehouse nearby. Purchasing from an online retailer with physical stores gives me the added reassurance should I need to return a faulty item.
I decided to purchase the Panasonic Viera TX-32LXD70. Empire Direct offered a solid browsing and search experience. I found the TV by typing ‘32LXD70’ in to the search box. The product details was reasonably presented and easy to digest. The product page linked to reevoo product reviews so I was able to make a more informed purchase decision.
This was the first time I had purchased from Empire Direct online so I scanned their policies. If I need help I expect an immediate response so I only buy from sites with support phone numbers. Everything seemed in order and the site did a reasonable job of reassuring me and engendering trust.
The checkout process was straight forward. I placed the order and was happy enough with the online experience.
Next day my wife suggested we go for the smaller 26” version. This is when the problems began. Customer Services is a key differentiator for me particularly with electrical goods. In this case the reason for returning the TV was down to our indecisiveness but all the same the customer service that followed was shocking.
The headlines are that no-one answered their customer support number for 5 days and there was no multichannel integration!
The customer support number was either engaged or would ring off before anyone answered - I tried nearly 2 dozen times before finally having success. The 26" TV was out-of-stock online but available in their store just 1 mile down the road - however EmpireDirect would not allow me to exchange the TV in-store. The online customer support informed me “the online shop operates as an independent store and that items purchased online could not be returned in-store.” I could not even return the TV to the store while I wait for the 26" model to come in stock so I would have to wait 2-4 weeks with a large boxed TV cluttering up my hallway. There are plenty more customer service niggles...
<deep breath>
The fact that I am extremely happy with the TV itself is not enough. I have positive feelings about the TV and the Panasonic brand, but the fulfilment and disappointing customer services are my parting memory of Empire Direct.
Would I buy from them again? No. Well, maybe. I never say never but with a minor price differential I would buy from a company with better customer services. This experience is all too common where online retailers fail to appreciate that every single touch point in the total experience is an opportunity to strengthen or weaken their customer relationship.
<the end>
Listening to Estudando O Pagode: Na Opereta Segregamulher E Amor