Great customer service is hard to come by. In today's world, we almost expect poor service. We order a burger in the drive thru, ask for no onions, and perhaps give ourselves a 50/50 shot of getting onions anyway. We call the phone company because the bill was incorrect and, no matter what options we select, we spend half an hour on hold - the phone company's way of telling us we're not as 'valued' of a client as they say.

What happened to the customer being right, business existing for the customer, and so forth?

Last year for my birthday, my wife and daughter (who was celebrating my birthday for the first time) bought me a watch. It was a nice watch and made me think about them every time I checked it. Within about ten months, the battery having been replaced twice already, the watch wasn't keeping up with time.

So, I took it back to the store they bought it at, explained my situation, and asked if there was a warranty of any kind. Without receipt, original packaging, or even the exact price paid, the lady at the jewelry counter asked me to pick out a new watch. I did. She exchanged them at no cost. No questions. No receipt policy. The watch didn't work, she trusted me that my wife bought it from there, and she replaced it because it didn't work.

You know what? Now I'll buy every watch I ever wear at this place. I'll also buy every watch I ever buy anyone else at this place. I'll probably also buy other things there.

It pains me that we take stories like this as the exception these days. We read books about companies with superior service and hail them as great successes (as opposed to it being expected as the norm).

Companies that give passionate service will be remembered. What is the lasting thought your people leave in your customer's eyes?