February 10th, 2011
Santa Cruz, CA
"Goodbye Droid Incredible, hello iPhone 4." I thought as I stood outside the Verzion store, a full 45 minutes prior to opening.
What was I doing here? Two days ago, I wasn't planning on buying an iPhone.
Sure I wanted it, followed the rumors, but deep down I planned on getting the iPhone 5. Yet there I was, sipping coffee while trying to avoid being seen.
I'm the one hiding behind the lamp post.
So how did Verizon/Apple rope me in before dawn? A couple of reasons: (1) I want to stay up to date on new iOS apps. (2) I was in Santa Cruz for a couple days and figured I could get one without the usual pandemonium of a San Francisco store. Turns out, there was no pandemonium at all (preorders).
What surprised me about this experience wasn't the lack of a line, rather, how much it all smelled like Apple.
Last month, I upgraded to Snow Leopard 10.6.6, and I tweeted about it here. In and out of the Apple store in less than 2 minutes! The holy-grail of customer service. Could Verzion actually learn a thing a two from Apple? Absolutely. But given Apple's death-grip on everything, Verzion probably had to be taught. Either way we all benefit.
It started 6:30am, with the peppy Verizon store manager (headset affixed) shouting cheers to a dozen of us. “Is everyone excited to get an iPhone today!!” The Fanboy at the head of line ate this stuff up. Next, the first 10 customers were given cards and instructed to fill out which phone/plan/accessories we intended on purchasing.
I was #4. My plan: use an eligible family-share plan line to purchase a 16GB phone for $199, then transfer it my number. Easy enough. But what I wasn’t counting on was a group picture: the first 10 customers plus the Verizon team. Call it pride, call it fear, but there was no chance I was going to risk being front-page material, after all, I wasn’t suppose to be here.
Promptly at 7am, I was greeted by my own personal sales rep, whose name I can’t remember, but will call Dan. Once inside the store, Dan already had my account up, phone in hand, and asked me if I needed any accessories. A box filled with cases and skins is shoved into my face. Confused by the early morning, I muttered: “I’ll be purchasing such items online.” Then I remembered: I need to make sure he activates the correct line. I begin babbling to explain the situation, about halfway through; Dan gets it and ensures it won’t be a problem. I’m silent in astonishment.
I've been a Verizon customer for over 5 years, and have always dreaded walking in a store. Now all of a sudden they can read my mind. WTF?!
<insert catch>
Dan asks if I want insurance, and I go “just give me the same stuff I had on my Droid”. “Mmmm, yeah, that’s going to cost an extra $3 a month, making it $10.99/month”. He says. At this point I’m guessing water damage is not covered, and am too scared to check. So I take the insurance.
Finally, Dan ushers me over the Raul (definitely not his real name). Who kindly helps me sync my gmail and tells me how to use the Verizon Contacts Transfer app. Thank god, I synced Backup Assistant on my droid while in line. In any case, I’m out the door in a total of 18 minutes.
Besides the surprise increased cost of insurance, this was greatest Verizon experience I’ve had, period. Between the peppy staff, organized line, clear two step purchasing process, and informed and accommodating staff, I walked away a happy customer and another brick in the Apple’s road to cellular supremacy.
Unfortunately, when I used the Contacts Transfer app, what I got wasn’t my most recent my contacts, instead I got old college friends, co-workers, and a bike combination from 4 years ago.
So where does this leave Verizon? Will they be able to sustain this new level of customer service? I certainly hope so. Even if this was all part of a well planned iPhone launch, I feel the Verizon teams will have learned the benefit of planning, of separating sales from setup, of taking care of the Fanboy’s – even the one(s) still in the closet.
