It is a popular misconception that the ‘customer is always right.’   In fact, a lot of them are just plain wrong.

Over at Positive Sharing, Alexander writes about one such instance and how the CEO of Southwest Airlines handled it.   The learning here, also, is that this story—and hundreds more like it—help create a company’s culture.   With one sentence, Herb the CEO, created a ton of value.

When the customer isn’t right – for your business

One woman who frequently flew on Southwest, was constantly disappointed with every aspect of the company’s operation. In fact, she became known as the “Pen Pal” because after every flight she wrote in with a complaint.

She didn’t like the fact that the company didn’t assign seats; she didn’t like the absence of a first-class section; she didn’t like not having a meal in flight; she didn’t like Southwest’s boarding procedure; she didn’t like the flight attendants’ sporty uniforms and the casual atmosphere.

Her last letter, reciting a litany of complaints, momentarily stumped Southwest’s customer relations people. They bumped it up to Herb’s [Kelleher, CEO of Southwest] desk, with a note: ‘This one’s yours.’

In sixty seconds, Kelleher wrote back and said, ‘Dear Mrs. Crabapple, We will miss you. Love, Herb.’”

[tags]Southwest Airlines customer service, Herb Kelleher, Positive Sharing blog, Alexander Kjerulf, customer service, customer are always right, customers are sometimes wrong[/tags]