Seems that every compay wishes they could increase their customer loyalty. I hear it all the time… but what about a company’s loyalty to their customers?

Last month I recognized several bad charges on my credit card. Turns out the number had gotten leaked and now was unusable. So naturally I reported the number and got a new one issued. Well… sometimes it just takes forever.

So I’ve been using this service for the last 3 years or so. It’s a very small monthly fee, under $10, never a problem. Well I get an email today saying that my card was declined (big shocker) and that if I don’t reply immediately they’ll freeze the account within 24 hours and start charging a fee.

Now I understand they want their money, but I’ve been a paying customer of theirs for YEARS. They’ve never had a problem with me, and there’s a legitimate reason why the card was declined. Give me a week and the mess will be straightened out… it’s bad timing all around.

Of course I’m quite sure this message was automated. Which brings me to a natural question… Why in the world would ANYONE put hostile, threatening language, in an early run automatic response message? It’s almost enough to make me start shopping around.

I think there’s a lesson to be learned here for businesses with good long term customers. Treat them with a modicum of respect. Be nice to them, maybe even bend a rule here or there. And never start threatening them, anything you have to say can be said nicely.