Liberty Bottleworks is based in Yakima, Washington.; Credit: Liberty Bottleworks via Facebook
The rule book for Business 101 has it that the customer is always right, but one Washington-based entrepreneur has found that standing up to an unreasonable, irate client can sometimes win you a lot of fans.
After reading a complaint on Facebook from an angry customer criticizing his company for not offering customer service on weekends, Ryan Clark, co-founder of Liberty Bottleworks, decided to respond with a short, sweet, eloquent message that has won the love of the Internet.
Clark’s response reads
"We did receive your numerous voicemails and emails. The buck stops with me. This will, I am sure, upset you ... my customer service team will not be helping you on the weekends. Your voicemail stated 'it is the holidays, you should be working' and your email stated, 'Instead of doing my Christmas cards and enjoying the holiday spirit I was dealing with this.' Perhaps you need to spend a bit more time embracing the holiday spirit. You see, my employees were home with their families doing their cards, baking cookies, etc. Family first, product second.”
The post went viral after a former employee posted the exchange on Reddit and the company has been rewarded with an avalanche of new orders since.
Guests:
Ryan Clark, co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of the Washington-based company Liberty Bottle Works. [He was the person that responded to the ticked off customer on Facebook].
Keith Ferrazzi, an expert in professional relationship development and the founder and CEO of Ferrazzi Greenlight, a strategic and business consulting firm in Los Angeles