Way cool Extreme Pita register!

The other day I went to lunch with my sister to a place I’d never been before – Extreme Pita (oh, cool – they’re on Twitter and Facebook!). Now, normally I’d have a bit of ordering anxiety at a place like this (kinda like Chris Reaburn explains about Starbucks), especially when I hadn’t been before. I didn’t have it here, and I’ll tell you what else: I wasn’t only impressed by the customer service I received, but I was really wowed by the entire customer experience they provided me with!

Stuff Extreme Pita did right:

• We were greeted with a smile when we walked in the door.
• I got a tour of the menu and how to order when they found out it was my first visit.
• The entire staff (including the manager-possibly-owner) worked together and seemed wonderfully happy about it.
• They have a nutrition guide for their entire menu – a huge one hanging on the wall, as well as a handy little booklet that I took with me.
• I got a helpful tutorial on the special nifty way in which to unwrap your pita for optimal eating. (I should have taken a picture.)
• They have a really cool register – I can watch what’s being rung up! (I did take a picture of this. Yes, I’m easily amused. No, I can’t explain exactly why this makes for a better customer experience; it just does.)
• The manager-possibly-owner asked how our meal was and cheerfully answered our questions about Extreme Pita even though he was clearly on a break.
• They offer free Wi-Fi – no purchase necessary!
• My sister and I got a friendly send off when we were finished.

Stuff Extreme Pita did wrong:

• No name tags! How am I supposed to compliment the wonderful staff who were working if I don’t know their names?

All in all, it was a superb customer experience and I can’t wait to go again!

For some reason, though, Disney didn’t tell Paul that they’d remedied his concerns. I’m not sure why they would choose to let that opportunity pass them by. In my opinion, it’d turn an unsatisfactory customer experience into a much better one. Who wouldn’t want that? Instead, it just makes them look as though they don’t want to admit to their small error in judgment.

You're telling me THIS is a plus-sized model?!

I’m following @LaneBryant on Twitter. I’m not sure they’re following me, but that’s hardly the point since they should be monitoring their name on Twitter anyway; they should notice when I mention them, right? Well, they didn’t. But that’s okay, because I know it’s a busy world out there and businesses don’t have time to respond to every single complaint. Even if I complain about the same thing a second time. Really, it’s okay.

Before I get started on the rant, though, I did want to give Lane Bryant the props they deserve. They hire GREAT people. I’ve never walked into a Lane Bryant store and not been greeted with a friendly smile and offer of help. Even better, they are not the type to hover! And when you do have a question, they’re knowledgeable and un-intimidating. Also, they’re always sure to let me know the current deals and promotions to help me get the most for my money.

Now. The rant.

The other day, I found a tweet from Lane Bryant asking for my opinion on ads. Well, I have a lot to say about Lane Bryant and their catalog and ads, and I’m going to say it here (and I’ll post my direct answers to their questions as a comment on their web site, as they asked – even though it’s highly irritating that I have to become a member and give them my home address before I can leave a comment). Here are the 10 questions they asked in their survey along with my answers:

1. When you receive ads in the mail, which ones do you pay attention to?

Most ads end up in the recycle bin. I’ll look at the grocery store ads, but don’t get much use out of them. The only retail ads I get (if I recall correctly) are for Fashion Bug and Lane Bryant. If I have time to kill, I sometimes quickly scan through those catalogs to look at the clothes.

2. Which retailer’s advertisements grab your eye and why?

I guess the Lane Bryant and Fashion Bug ones, as they’re colorful . . . and the only ones I get.

3. Who sends you the best advertising or catalog?

The best? I guess I’ll say Fashion Bug.

4. When you get the Lane Bryant magalog – what are your first thoughts?

“Hrm. Lane Bryant pisses me off because they have too many skinny chicks in here.”

5. What is Lane Bryant doing right in its advertising?

Are the coupons and “Real Women Dollars” part of the advertising? If they are, you’re doing that right.

6. What is Lane Bryant doing wrong in its advertising?

Check out the panties section of your web site, where the pictures show the belly and hips. I see maybe three women who might qualify as “slightly overweight”. Where are the Real Women you tout? Oh, right. They’re hidden in your blog/community/whatchamacalit.

7. Does the Lane Bryant magalog look expensive, not expensive, or inexpensive?

Not expensive.

8. What are your favorite things about the Lane Bryant magalog?

Not much. I guess that there are coupons. But they’re rarely useful – to me, personally – since I don’t shop for clothing that often. It’s good to know they’re there, though, for when I do need to go shopping.

9. What don’t you like about the Lane Bryant magalog?

Hello. Page 26 of the current catalog. You’re kidding me, right? I would really like to know what size this woman is wearing because I wear size 18/20, which as you know, is the next size up from the smallest you offer – 14/16. I am nowhere NEAR looking like this woman. Check out the panties section of your web site, where the pictures show the belly and hips. Seriously?

You know those Real Women of Lane Bryant I mentioned earlier? These are the women I want to see a lot more of in the catalog and on the web site. This woman, she makes me want to buy her clothes. Why? Because she’s REAL. And she looks happy and confident, regardless of her weight! Does anyone really relate to the fashion show model posing? I don’t. Maybe that’s because I’ve been jaded by so many years of looking at bizarre clothing on waif-like women in bizarre poses – you know, the ones running rampant in most magazines.

10. And last but not least – what store do you buy most of your clothes?

Fashion Bug and Wal-Mart. I don’t have the money to buy everything I’d want from Lane Bryant. Also, Fashion Bug tends to have “younger” styles than Lane Bryant.

(*I’m making this up, so my apologies if there is actually a web site out there that claims to be the happiest place online and it’s not Disney.)

And without further ado . . .

A while ago, I went online to buy a gift for a friend from the The Disney Store. Everything went smoothly at first. I found the item I was looking for, started the checkout procedure, put in the shipping address… no problems. Then I put in the billing information, and got a strange error:

“Oops! We cannot continue the updating process with the text you have entered.”

Text filters change "Wiener" to "****" without any clear reason why.

I tried everything I could think of. Reentered all the information. Put my street, town, and phone number in different formats. Same error. I tried editing the delivery address (which had been accepted) with my billing address, and… same error.

Finally, it hit me. My last name is Wiener. I’ve been fortunate enough to have reached adulthood without being picked on because of that, but I’m aware that it’s sometimes considered a bad word. I put it in as “Wiene r,” and, sure enough, it went through. At least, the address did. I had to do the same thing with the name on my credit card before it would accept that, too.

I immediately wrote to customer service. In part because I was worried that mangling my name would cause issues with the credit card transaction, but also because I found the idea of my name being a banned word to be offensive.

I received a reply that evening. The representative assured me that the order had gone through and offered repeated apologies about the text filter. So far so good. I was less happy about his proposed solution – if it really bothered me, I could place my order by phone.

I wrote back the following morning:

Thank you for your understanding and apologies. I’m glad to know that the order went through.

I do, however, find myself with something of an unresolved issue. As I understand it, you still have a text filter which is blocking out my name as a naughty word. It’s not that uncommon a name. And it’s not really that naughty. You can find it boldly printed on many packages in your local grocery store. Even advertised in a popular TV jingle.

Frankly, I don’t see what reason you could possibly have for putting in a text filter in the names field of the billing information form. Or, for that matter, any field on that form. We can’t help our family names, and you have no place judging them. Will you also block out everyone who happens to be named “Wang”? Or anyone who lives on a street with a name you don’t approve of?

What good does that filter do? What are you trying to block? Pranksters? I doubt there are many who would bother going through the whole order process just to put in a juvenile fake name. Even if they do, the charges wouldn’t go through.

I got through grade school and summer camp without being picked on because of my name. My father was in the army and never saw a sign of disrespect from anyone who had to address Major Wiener. Now I come to your store, where everyone is supposed to feel magically welcome, and there, of all places, I have to change my name because it’s been blocked out for no good reason?

I realize that you’re a customer service representative, and not personally responsible for the policy, but it’s nonetheless a policy that has to change.

Early that afternoon, I received a reply from a different customer service representative. Without addressing the actual issue at hand, she thanked me for my “candid feedback,” told me that she had forwarded the message to management, and once again offered the suggestion that if I’m having trouble with their online ordering system, they’d be more than happy to take my order by phone.

In the ten days since then, I’ve heard nothing more. The website continues to reject my name on the billing form and replace it with “****” as if it was an obscenity (something I’d originally taken to be a glitch or some kind of security measure).

Disney’s customer service representatives were prompt and courteous in their replies. The order went through in good time and the gift was received with gratitude and excitement. I couldn’t be happier, as far as that goes. And yet I still find myself a less than satisfied customer. Not so long as I find the store itself rejecting me, my name being coldly and needlessly censored.

Disney, I am not feeling the magic. Clearly, your computers aren’t, either. You need to fix this.

UPDATE: Disney seems to have taken the naughty word filter off their order form. But they didn’t tell anyone.