Recently, my Father sent a note to the Cinnabon corporation. If you read the note and understand that it is tongue-in-cheek, congratulations! You can safely assume that you are NOT a Robot. Sadly, the same cannot be said for the Cinnabon customer service ‘bot machine.
My Dad’s missive, sent to the general Customer Service email, on their web site is below:
The only saving grace of being drug shopping was knowing that I could sneak away for a pecan-laden cinnabon. If I am going to line my coronary arteries, it must be worth it. I was very disappointed that you no longer make a true pecan roll, but instead sprinkle crispy, candied nut fragments (and squirt more frosting) over the top of the standard bun. That is NOT the same as fresh pecans, baked with the roll. You have probably managed to break my secret addiction by this change. I suppose my heart and waist should thank you, but my salivary glands and tongue may never forgive you.
He got this in response:
Dear Dr. Faiola:
Thank you for contacting the Cinnabon Guest Response Line. We appreciate our guests taking the time to inform us about their experiences.
We genuinely apologize for the disappointment your visit caused and appreciate your taking the time to write us. Your feedback helps us improve in our mission to deliver the ultimate Cinnabon guest experience.
If you have any other concerns or comments, please do not hesitate to share them with us or with the management at your local Cinnabon Bakery. Additionally, we will forward your comments to our Management Team for their review and consideration. We are committed to earning your loyalty.
Thank you, Dr. Faiola, for sharing your comments. We apologize again and look forward to serving you in the future.
Sincerely,
Jan
Cinnabon Guest Response Line
P.S. Please retain your Thread ID in the message body. This will help us locate your information should you need us again.
I do happen to have one teensy suggestion. Maybe, if they genuinely want to “deliver the ultimate Cinnabonguest experience,” they should consider investing in real people to answer emails.
Carrie – My Dad wrote me back via email so I’ll post his response here (and can I just say a lifetime scar? That’s a bit much for lasagna, no matter how good it is!)
“Interesting. I would have thought the pan was to diffuse the heat (it comes form the bottom in most ovens) for a more even baking experience for the lasagna – again, like your correspondent, I would not have thought the cookie sheet necessary because the pan lacked structural integrity. How easy to state: “The safe removal of the baked lasagna requires that it be placed on a cookie sheet.”
Dr. Faiola- I also had an experience with a large company NOT investing in real people to answer emails…
I emailed Stouffers after receiving a third degree burn on my wrist when the lasagna pan collapsed after taking it out of the oven. When I emailed them, they sent a “happy/glad to hear from you” response:
**Dear Carrie – Thank you for contacting us and visiting Stouffers.com! We appreciate your interest in our products. Your feedback is very important and we’ll do our best to reply to your inquiry as quickly as possible…**
This was hardly the response I thought I’d receive after such an incident…BUT someone must have re-read my email, and I received a personal contact the next day.**
First, they noted that I had not followed directions on the label (putting the lasagna on a cookie sheet), and I stated “YES” it stated to use a cookie sheet–BUT they forgot to state the “WHY” it should be used.(BIG mistake Stouffers in the world of communication)
When I polled family and friends 99.9% agreed it ( a cookie sheet) was for any over flow that would drip into the bottom of the oven.
When I asked to talk to someone in the Marketing Department- I wanted to make sure they corrected their communication on the directions to: “Cookie sheet has to be used because the pan will collapse when contents are heat, possibly causes severe burns, etc…” They declined to put me through to the Marketing Department.
That’s all I wanted, but they said they would pass my suggestions along…ummm. I need to check out a box of lasagna the next time I am shopping. In the meantime–I am left with a lifetime scar on my wrist.