Customer Service, the 2nd time round.

This is a bit of a rant about my recent experience with a professional company called Ede & Ravenscroft…..

Many would not use the term “photographer” loosely as it is a profession that is highly respected and regarded around the world. People commonly associate characteristics like high quality imagery, photo editing, digital art form, and professionalism with photographers; however these characteristics were not portrayed or delivered in my recent experience with a company called Ede & Ravenscroft.

As a recent graduate from Glasgow University I was recommended to use this companies service for ordering my gowns and professional pictures. After checking out the company website and reading their strap line which says “Robe makers & tailors since the year 1689” I was confident that I would be ordering and dealing with a professional organization and photographer. However to great disappointment this was not the case.

On the day of my graduation I was herded into different lines waiting patiently for my turn. Eventually when I arrived at the desk to receive my gown and have my pictures taken there was nothing but further mass confusion. Even with a print out of my reference number and full order details there was still confusion as to who I was and what I had ordered. After a bit of a debate I was given my gown and pointed in the direction of the photographer. The photographer quickly put me in position and took my picture before I even had the chance to look up and say “cheese”. Then I was quickly ushered off for the next student to take my place.

So to say the least, when I walked away I did not feel confident that a good picture was taken. A few weeks after the graduation and the arrival of my pictures, my unsettled feelings were reaffirmed. Not only was the quality of pictures crap but my order wasn’t even right! When your paying a lot of money in advance to book and pay for these things to have an event like this occur just tick’s you off even more. To say the least the lack of quality and attention to detail did not leave me a satisfied customer – so I took action and wrote to the company voicing my complaints. My letter highlighted to the company that they are not a discount venture but a reputable company that was recommended by the University.

You’d think that with advancements in technology today and the ability to quickly and easily edit images my parents did a better job with a 35mm camera than the professionals did!

After sending off my letter I was pleased to see that Ede & Ravenscroft took corrective action in the matter. They not only wrote me back apologising for their error but also provided me with a new set of prints that met my standards. Their letter back to me commented on how they strive to provide consistent high standards of customer service and valued my comments.

So what is the moral of my story and my little rant……?

If you don’t get it right the 1^st time – make sure you take the appropriate action to correct the situation. Considering the University of Glasgow has over 50% of their student body from countries around the world you can easily conclude that the craftsmanship of Ede & Ravenscroft is travelling around the globe not just locally within the UK.

Graduation is an important event in the educational career of numerous students and an event like this could have been easily avoided with a little more attention to detail.

Overall I would now classify myself as a satisfied customer and Ede & Ravenscroft have acted in a professional manner to correct the situation.