Vizio TV, Hilton, Carbonite and the Power of Social Media

In a recent article, I shared a personal story about what appeared to be uncaring customer service from VIZIO TV. I'd like to update you on the positive way this ended and add to the discussion on the importance of quality customer service. If you missed that story, you can read it here.

Prior to ending my discussions with VIZIO in what would seem to be an unfavorable conclusion, I told the folks at VIZIO that I reached a rather large audience in the business community. Through my social media involvement, publishing and related connections, I let them know that I would be sharing this story with thousands of business people, but the person I was talking to didn't seem to care.

The story went out in my last Promo Marketing article and in a FreePromoTips e-newsletter, as well as through Twitter and Facebook. What I didn't expect is that my social media connections shared it through their networks. Ultimately I would think that over 100,000 people saw least the headline: VIZIO TV ... A Textbook Illustration of Uncaring Customer Service!

The reality here is that VIZIO does care about customer service and I did hear promptly from senior management who wanted to resolve this situation. It seems that what really happened was more of a business communication disconnect rather than a lack of caring about our unique circumstances.

Management had addressed taking care of this with the call center team, but that apparently was lost in translation. In the end, VIZIO chose to step up by not only offering to replace the TV, but replace it with their newest high-end model. As I talked with the management level person, it was clear that they did care about the customer. My grandmother is happy and I have a whole new appreciation and respect for VIZIO TV. Their desire to go above and beyond to create positive good will from a negative situation is commendable. We all can relate to communication challenges, so I give them grace and wouldn't hesitate to buy or recommend VIZIO to others.