One of the biggest issues that customers have, nowadays, is with poor service. A customer call center service plays a great role in a company's success and reputation.
Two articles in the Daily Comet and Houma Today, both local news providers in Louisiana, reported that customers have had negative experiences with a waste and disposal company, SWDI (Special Waste Disposal Inc.). SWDI is a company serving the Houma, LA area, providing responsive services for the collection and disposal of waste on customer sites. According to the articles, The Lafourche and Terrebonne parish councils have already discussed ways of addressing the issue after recording residents’ complaints on trash pickup services and poor customer service. It seems customer service complaints started after the company was sold, in 2010, to Progressive Waste Management, a collection, recycling and landfill disposal solutions company with trash hauling services in three main geographic segments – the South U.S., the Northeast U.S. and Canada.
The rise in complaints has been the result of the lack of customer service offered by the new provider, which is not adequately responding to inquiries and providing sufficient information to the customers. The Daily Comet report mentions that SWDI president Corey Callais “began receiving calls lamenting poor customer service.” It seems residents are calling to complain and receive information about trash hauling services but they are finding it difficult to get any agents on the phone.
If the waste company continues to operate in this manner, it could potentially lose the fundamental value of long-term customers. Local providers are looking for ways to bring the business back into their hands. One of these companies was founded by former SWDI manager, Matherne, who is now the General Manager of a new start-up waste company, Pelican waste & Debris, LLC, which is operating off of one of SWDI's former lots on LA 3235 in Larose, and currently only servicing commercial and business customers.
Matherne believes residents would like the services to be expanded to include residential customers too; Pelican hopes to be able to offer that very soon and desires to ensure the customers continue to receive the highest quality in the garbage collection, waste recycling and disposal hauling business. At the moment, however, Pelican has limited sources: Having only a few trash hauling trucks and staff onboard. It is, however, making an investment to grow in size and number of clients it services.
Customer service is extremely valuable for every type and size of business. Companies ought to know that complaints are a valuable source of customer feedback. Complaints are a way to provide opportunities for improvements within the industry to make an effort in preventing negative issues from occurring in the first place or happening again in the near future.
The new company owners of SWDI may need to implement a contact center makeover, as some changes apparently need to be done to improve customer service. This might benefit the waste and disposal company to make an attempt to managing complaints, if not resolve them, and increase customer satisfaction. That is the only way to turn an unsatisfied customer into a satisfied one.
A customer contact center of any business not only has an obligation to serve the customers and resolve issues, but also to drive more business. Therefore, the complaint resolution process—a solution that records, resolves, collates, analyses and improves the results as part of the feedback process—is, perhaps, an apt strategy that could be used to ensure continuous improvement. Offering better services and creating a stronger relationship with existing clients can draw in new customers and business.
Edited by Cassandra Tucker