We understand that customer care and services in general are a living organism; it evolves, it adjusts, it adapts. Since the covid era we saw several companies changing their business model, providing alternative solutions for the new digital consumer. Digital spending rose and new platforms entered the game.

This became a harsh reality for sectors that traditionally were relying on brick-and-mortar shops, that being the supermarkets. We were not allowed to visit the markets, or we were allowed to do so under very restrictive conditions. Therefore, the supermarkets created online shops and started home deliveries. For me this was a pleasant development. Going to the physical store, collecting the products and bringing them back is a waste of time, especially now that I have a child to care for. Therefore, the fact that I could save all that time through the digital alternative was a miracle. However, we noticed that there were some issues. I do not want to elaborate here as the scope of this article is not to evaluate the whole service, but rather the feedback mechanics and its response.

Let me get to the point. At one of the recent deliveries, I noticed that 2 out of 3 yoghurt cups arrived damaged. The one was broken, while the other had broken lid and the protective plastic film was leaky. I kept them aside; I took some pictures and I sent them an email asking for a refund. I didn’t complain about the packaging, the transportation or the delivery. It was not my target to complain, it was a) to get my money back or a replacement and b) to test the feedback mechanism.

Next day in the morning they called from the central service (not a local supermarket that takes each order, there is a central distribution center for the online orders), they apologized, and they offered to deliver 2 new cups the next day, no questions asked. They wanted to get back the damaged goods (if they were still available) but it was not mandatory. I agreed on the replacement and moved on.

Conclusion

As I had said before, mistakes happen. The difference is how you handle them. In this case, the response was swift and to the point. One additional bonus point is that they mentioned that the number from which they called, is a number I could call at anytime if there was any issue with my orders. This is not something that you can see in their site, but it was something like special treatment. For sure I will use this in the future, as I have many suggestions to make that will help them reduce damages and waste of packaging.

This kind of prompt response is missing from many digital services and for sure does make the difference. I am afraid that with the use of automated systems, this lack will become even worse.