September 9th, 2008 by 
I would like to acknowledge the corporate management at Dollar Tree for the most amazing response to a customer complaint that I’ve ever seen.
Sunday, my wife shopped at a local Dollar Tree with my 9 year old daughter and 2 year old son. They were the victim of shockingly bad treatment on the part of a store manager…I don’t feel the need to tell what happened, but it was egregious.
I was very upset. I went to their website and fired off an objective but harsh email through the only form on the website (the Investors Relations page…you folks might want to consider a page especially for customer feedback). I then looked up a list of their top corporate execs, figured out their email addresses, and emailed my complaint to them as a group.
I did my “complaining” on Sunday afternoon. By the end of Sunday, I had a voicemail and email responses from one of their corporate executives back in Virginia as well as the regional manager for their Portland area stores.
On Monday, I received a phone call from the Portland regional manager who apologized for what happened and promised that corrective action will be taken. He made it clear that no stone would be left unturned in dealing with the problem and making sure that never happen again. He also told me that to express his forgiveness, he wanted to stop by my house (I work at home) with gift baskets compliments of the Dollar Tree. He made an appointment to do this today (he wanted to make sure to apologize in person and not just leave a basket by a door).
Today, he stopped by my house and talked to my wife (I never saw him since I was on a phone call at the time). He brought two gift baskets containing products found at the Dollar Tree (I know some might snicker at this, but the products and arrangement were quite nice). What made the gift even more thoughtful is that he chose products specifically targeted for my wife (food condiments), daughter (coloring books) and son (stuffed animals)…all of whom were in the store and were affected by the bad customer service.
It’s not the first time I’ve made complaints through corporate websites and usually, I’ve gotten an apology plus a gift card. Almost universally, I’ve found that corporations will respond appropriately if the complaint is justified and set out in a non-threatening, non-confrontational manner. However, Dollar Tree’s immediate and personal response to my issues was so outstanding, I feel compelled to acknowledge them publicly for it.
Great job people!
September 9th, 2008 at 5:30 pm
Man I love to hear that some companies still take pride in how they treat their customers. I had a similar experience at a retail store with horrible customer service. Because the corporate office went above and beyond to apologize and make up for it I am now a very loyal customer to that chain.
johns last blog post..Baltimore Real Estate
September 9th, 2008 at 5:35 pm
I read this post twice because it gives me hope that somewhere, companies have connected the web and real world and realize that sometimes, just sometimes, the people they help might be marketing mavens.
Scott Clarks last blog post..Simple Web Design
September 10th, 2008 at 9:52 am
I love hearing things like this, especially since I am getting ready to send a similar letter to the higher powers of the food chain Chipotle. As a society we have reached a point where money matters and people don’t. So when companies actually show some compassion for an upset customer it makes all the difference in the world.
Mike Wiltons last blog post..My Twilight Soundtrack
September 16th, 2008 at 12:40 am
I read this post twice because it gives me hope that somewhere, companies have connected the web and real world and realize that sometimes, just sometimes, the people they help might be marketing mavens.
Agnuss last blog post..Brownsville, Texas
October 28th, 2008 at 8:21 am
I read your article regarding your response from Dollar Tree executives and was thoroughly impressed. I have been searching their website to register a complaint myself, but have been unable to locate an email address for any of the executives. Can you help me out with an email address? Thanks.
October 28th, 2008 at 10:08 am
Dollar Tree, I am going to make it a point to shop there more often and recommend to my friends. This is exactly what I look for in a company.
October 30th, 2008 at 2:27 am
I sent emails to the executives of Dollar Tree on Tuesday, 10/28/08, regarding a complaint that I had. I have received 3 responses, one from the local Training Manager, one from the District Manager, and one from the Manager of Consumer Relations. All have been very positive and lead me to believe that my complaint will definitely be handled as it should. The District Manager went to the Manager of the location where I had a complaint, and spoke with her in person. This is the type of customer service that I wish they were able to pass on to their store Managers and employees. After receiving these responses, I will definitely continue shopping there.
November 3rd, 2008 at 4:12 am
I think you are luck to get good support most of customer are having problem with one or another service provider. No one want to listen to complaints. all are keen to get new clients for more profit.
management Gurus last blog post..Govt gives spectrum for peanuts. Unitech hits jackpot.
January 29th, 2009 at 5:38 pm
Funny, I was just searching for an e-mail address for Dollar Tree so that I can send in a complaint about an over zealous Assistant Manager who treated by 3 grand children, ages 12, 12, and 9, and I will say, well behaved. She treated them as though they were running around upsetting the store, which is not the case. Do you have an e-mail address for dollar tree so that I can have them address this issue. I am the owner of a store and I know when children are unruly and deserving, but these three kids did not deserve what she did.
Thanks
Rosalie gonzalez
January 29th, 2009 at 10:18 pm
This is a great example of customer service judo, turning a botched up situation into a great customer experience.
It’s great to hear about companies like this with all the companies that feel like they’re entitled to your business.
It looks like they’re going the extra mile. A lot of companies have executive support teams that help their execs handle complaints that get escalated to their level. The only ones I’ve interacted with are the ones at Dell and Comcast.
Dell got it right. The folks at Comcast… well… it was a bad sign when they sent me an empty email with poorly typed Word attachment that looked like a phishing scam. Turns out it was the text of the email.
Steve – Integrated Marketings last blog post..COPA vs. COPPA and the U.S. Supreme Court
October 21st, 2009 at 12:37 pm
Todd,
I had a major problem with Gateway a few years back and I too got an amazingly stellar response after hunting down the contact info for Board members, and finding in their annual report a phone number for corporate HQ. I called that number and by threatening to set up a 1st page Google complaint web site and personally call each Board member directly, was put through to their “Presidential Complaint Unit” where the EVP of that unit personally became my advocate and that’s how I got the “stellar” response and result.
But Todd, our experience only shows that what Gateway did for me and Dollar Tree did for you is only because we had the willingness/forethought to go so far into the back office channel.
Neither of us however, would have been given any outstanding resolution through what should be reasonable means (telephone customer complaint service / web site complaint forms).
Corporate America is still fubar.
Alan Bleiweiss´s last blog ..Six Rules for Custom eCommerce SEO
October 21st, 2009 at 2:36 pm
Based on your experience, I’ll be shopping Dollar Tree. I’ve never even been there before. These days, even an inch of effort goes a LONG way.
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