In the past few days, I really grew to appreciate the value of good customer service.  I had to run a lot of little errands, buying necessities for my apartment, a DVD or two for my entertainment, oil for my car, books for my education and gifts for nieces and nephews celebrating their birthdays.

I was amazed at the number of stores I visited where I received excellent customer service.  The friendliness of my reception made those tedious tasks less trying.  It was in stark contrast to the chilly service I frequently receive at commercial establishments in the Hollywood area.

The greatest irony of this recent cycle of errands is that the one store where I normally get the best service was the only place this time where the staff seemed indifferent to my concerns.  Perhaps this was because the owner (and his wife) was absent from the toy store where I stop first when shopping for gifts for my nieces and nephews.  (I have patronized this shop for as long as I’ve been in LA and will definitely return.  The man who runs the place was born to run a toy store.)  The teenager working there Monday night was clueless about the newest Thomas engine which one of my three-year-old nephews just had to have.

Thanks to an amazingly friendly woman at the Toys ‘R Us on La Cienega, I was able to find just that engine which he will soon have. 

The customer service which most impressed me was that of the folks at Techrestore.com.

I had been directed there when I learned that AppleCare did not cover damage to the screen of my back-up computer.  On Monday, fewer than forty-eight hours ago, I called to ask about their services.  The guy couldn’t have been nicer as he walked me through the options.  A few minutes later, I filled out the form on-line, took my computer to the Kinko’s FedEx on Sunset (& Stanley) where the clerk there was amazingly friendly, making sure I got my package out before the 5 PM pickup.

Just a few moments ago, a FedEx guy showed up at my door.  It couldn’t be my computer. I had just sent it in.  But, it was my computer, working as it did before it sustained the damage to the screen.

So, I decided to blog to promote that company.   The guy was friendly on the phone.  Their web-site was easy to use.  They completed the service in an incredibly short amount of time.  They live up to their word of overnight laptop repair.

Would it that more companies were like this one.

And would it that more establishments in Los Angeles had the kind of customer service I experienced in the past few days.  They might see their business pick-up.  Something to consider in these difficult economic times.