Amazon.com - Great Customer Service

In Today's age of eCommerce and Internet purchasing many of us buy their books, cell phones, electronic gadgets on the Internet. Such transactions are not trivial as the buyer does not see the physical good he is purchasing, does not the seller and on the top of that, he (the buyer) has to enter his precious and unique credit card number to complete the transaction. In many instances the product might arrived damaged, different from what the seller has claimed ..etc etc
As a result, customers perception of the eCommerce company and the confidence they might have in it is critical for the survival and profitability of that company.
In that regard I want to share a few thoughts about interactions I have had with Amazon that really show how the company does really care about its customers and does every thing (I mean every thing) to ensure 99.99999% customer satisfaction.
Let's start at the beginning, say you have an issue that requires talking live to a customer service agent. In other companys you would have to call that 1-800 number, navigate through the maze of selections and options to find that magic number that will transfer you to cusomer service agent. Likely you will have to wait a few minutes before some one picks up and talks to you. Not at Amazon, all you have to do is enter your phone number and they will call you. A real person will call you right away to listen and see how he or she can help you.
The other great thing about Amazon is their product guarantee. Whether you purchased the product from Amazon directly or from a seller listed on their site, Don't worry, Be happy. Recently, I purchased a battery for my personal laptop from a seller listed on Amazon. The battery arrived but was not compatible with my laptop so I returned it to the seller and asked for a refund. For about 1 month I was having back and forth emails with the seller inquiering about the refund and the answer came the same every time, the check will be mailed to you tomorrow. Needless to say, the refund check never showed up, so I called Amazon customer service (ooh actually they called me) and in 2 minutes I explained the situation to the lady on the other line. Once done, I received an email with details on my claim and a targeted closure date by which I should received my refund. One week later I received my refund (including what I paid for shipping and handling). Isn't that great?
In another instance, I ordered a new book from Amazon. Although the shipped book was new, it had a few damages (during shipping I think) on the corners of the hard cover. I had Amazon customer service calling me (after I entered the phone number to be reached at) and explained what happenned. The lady apologized for the damaged item and offered a 20% discount on the item right away If I can keep the book. Otherwise, she could send another book right away and send me a pre-paid package to send the book I already have.