If you’re looking for a tire service provider in Spanish Fork, Utah, DON’T go to Rocky’s Tire Pros.
Here’s why:
Rocky’s Tire Pros & Uniroyal teamed up to “support” Spanish Fork Parks & Recreation Rec Department Little League with a free soccer ball giveaway & fundraiser. They claim a “donation will be made to Spanish Fork Parks & Recreation for every Uniroyal tire sold to the general public during the 30-day program period.” This all sounds peachy, doesn’t it?
Utah County Reviews was recently contacted by a soccer coach stating his complete frustration in how he was treated. According to the coach, he called the shop on Friday, September, 23rd to inquire about a flier he’d received in a coaching packet. The coach had forgot to distribute the fliers to his team and the deadline expired on September 21st, 2011. He felt bad that his team may not get their free soccer ball and mainly wanted to see if he could still distribute the fliers to his players. Apparently, the conversation between the soccer coach and the employee he talked with went something like this:
Coach: Hi, I was wondering if you still had soccer balls available for the Spanish Fork soccer league?
Employee: Yes, we have plenty.
Coach: Is there any way I could come in and get one?
Employee: Sure, how many do you need?
Coach: Oh I can get more than one? I need 11 total. (one the flier the coach was holding it said ‘Offer valid while supplies last. One certificate per person. No mass redemptions allowed’ so that question caught the coach off guard.)
Employee: Yeah, just bring in the fliers and we’ll get them for you.
Coach: So I can pick them all up (the coach was again reading on the flier that said, ‘No mass redemptions allowed’?
Employee: Yeah, no problem.
So, the coach drives about 10 minutes into town to get the soccer balls for his team, happy the Rocky’s Tire Pros is going to take care of him and his team.
However, when he gets into Rocky’s Tire Pros in Spanish Fork, he first talks to one of the employees, Dave, and asks about getting the soccer balls.
According to the coach, Dave was very short and almost irritated with the coach right away and said, “Nope, you can’t do that.”
The coach explains that he just got off the phone with an employee there that said specifically that he could take care of him.
From the coaches point of view, Dave again spit back sharply stating that “There’s no way we’ll do that. Period.”
The coach, then a bit aggitated that Dave is being so confrontational with him, asks to speak with Rocky.
Rocky comes out and asks how he can help.
The coach again states what happened: he called in, talked to an employee, ask about the soccer balls and picking them up for his kids, and that the employee specifically stated that he could take care of it for the coach.
The coach told UCR:
“Thinking Rocky will handle things different was a MISTAKE.”
Rocky wasn’t as mean up front to the coach, BUT he was also stern and not willing to bend at all, despite what his own employee had promised.
By now, I’m sure you can imagine the coaches disgust. Not only had he driven into town ONLY because the employee had told him it was a service Rocky’s Tire Pros could fulfill, but now Rocky was not willing to take care of the potential client either and was being rather frank about the whole thing.
During the time that Rocky and the coach were talking, the employee who promised the service came and admitted that he had said what the coach claimed he said. This seemed to make NO DIFFERENCE whatsoever to Rocky and the rest of his staff.
Lessons to Learn from the Horrible Customer Service Experience:
- It’s fine to have a policy in place and to honor that policy, but to treat a client like Dave & Rocky treated the coach was unacceptable. Is it really about the cost of a “Free” Soccer ball or about developing life-long satisfied customers? The coach told us clearly that he will never, ever do business with Rocky’s Tire Pros, and he will make sure to tell as many contacts as he can about his horrible experience – “…and that’s a GUARANTEE!”
- If an employee makes a mistake and tells a potential customer the wrong information, find a solution that is right for all involved. Maybe Rocky could have ask what the coach suggested. Maybe Rocky could have suggested that the coach could still distribute the fliers to his team (even though the date was expired). Maybe Rocky could have asked the coach to promise to give the kids the flier with the free soccer ball and recommend they use Rocky’s service because the coach was treated so nice. Just ideas…At the end of the day, it’s better to have a potential client leave your Utah County business with a good taste in their mouth and feel they were taken care of than have such a bitter resentment that they are willing to contact whoever they can; let alone have those feelings linger with them any time they think about tires in Spanish Fork, Utah.
- Did Rocky or his staff think at all about who else was in the shop at the time of this “altercation”? Were there other customers in the shop who saw how things were handled as well? What was their impression? Bad business can go a long way in terms of word-of-mouth advertising and long-term customer support.
What are your thoughts on this story?
What would you have done?
Was the coach in the wrong or could Rocky’s Tire Pros handle the situation differently?