Who To Write Your Effective Complaints To

Disclaimer: The views and opinions stated in this podcast are just that, one person’s views and opinions shared freely on the internet while exercising the freedom of speech guaranteed in the United States Constitution. 

Visit the Effective Complaints Website

In this week's podcast, entitled "Who To Write Your Effective Complaints To", I talk about the importance of addressing your effective complaint letter to the right person.

A written complaint can end up going nowhere if it’s not address to the right person.  And while there are times when it's best to "follow the chain of command" up from the front-line manager all the way to the CEO, there are also times when the best course of action is to find the head people in charge.

How do you determine who that person is? It can be tricky, but with a little investment of time, you can figure it out.  For instance, if you're looking for a person within the federal government, start at USA.gov, where you can find Government Agencies and the names and titles of people who work there.

If you're looking for a major corporation, check their company's website, and look for "About Us" or "Contact Information" or the "Investor Relations" page, which is sure to have the names and titles of higher-level executives with the company, as well as the corporate headquarters.

For smaller companies that don't have a web presence, you can try calling them directly and asking for the name of the person who would be responsible for handling your issue. Chances are good that perhaps someone on the phone can help you get your issue resolved, and if not, then they can definitely give you the name and contact information of the person who can.

Wikipedia is also a great place to find the names of top corporate leadership within larger firms, and though every grievance probably shouldn't be brought to the attention of the CEO of the company, if you feel its important enough, and you've tried other avenues but can't get satisfaction, then we’ve uploaded a brief tutorial on Youtube that shows a few ways to locate a corporate CEO:




The goal of the EffectiveComplaints.com website and this blog is to be a resource for people seeking complaint resolution, thus you are invited to join in and become active in the community:

1. Visit EffectiveComplaints.com and send a message through the Contact Us page,
2. Continue to visit this blog, blog.EffectiveComplaints.com, and comment on our blog posts and subscribe to our RSS feed,
3. Become a Fan on Facebook at the Effective Complaints Fan Page,
4. Follow us on Twitter (@complaint_help), or
5. Give us a Call on our Google Voice line at 920-543-HELP (4357).

How we can help?

If the player above isn't displaying, or working properly, you can also download the podcast from iTunes for free!

When to Write Effective Complaints

Disclaimer: The views and opinions stated in this podcast are just that, one person’s views and opinions shared freely on the internet while exercising the freedom of speech guaranteed in the United States Constitution. 

Visit the Effective Complaints Website

In this week's podcast, entitled "When to Write Effective Complaints", I talk about the importance of writing with a "cool head".  Writing when you’re angry isn’t a good idea. I find, it’s best to jot down major points of how you feel when you’re angry to jog your memory for later, then wait 24 hours from the time of your injustice is a "cool down period".

When you return, try to view the situation as third-party or "outsider" would, then script a narrative in your letter that concisely conveys your message and shows what your expectations were, and exactly where the company failed to meet them.

Here are some tips that can help you cool down when you’re really steamed:

1. Take a Walk.
2. Have a Cold Shower.
3. Meditate.
4. Get a Good Night's Sleep.
5. Take Deep Breaths.
6. Listen To Music.
7. Whatever it Takes for you to Temporarily "De-stress".

The goal of the EffectiveComplaints.com website and this blog is to be a resource for people seeking complaint resolution, thus you are invited to join in and become active in the community:

1. Visit EffectiveComplaints.com and send a message through the Contact Us page,
2. Continue to visit this blog, blog.EffectiveComplaints.com, and comment on our blog posts and subscribe to our RSS feed,
3. Become a Fan on Facebook at the Effective Complaints Fan Page,
4. Follow us on Twitter (@complaint_help), or
5. Give us a Call on our Google Voice line at 920-543-HELP (4357).

How we can help?

If the player above isn't displaying, or working properly, you can also download the podcast from iTunes for free!

How To Write Effective Complaints

Disclaimer: The views and opinions stated in this podcast are just that, one person’s views and opinions shared freely on the internet while exercising the freedom of speech guaranteed in the United States Constitution. 

Visit the Effective Complaints Website

In this week's podcast, entitled "How To Write Effective Complaints", I detail the 10 Key Steps for Writing an Effective Complaint Letter:

1. Be Business-like: Type your letter on your own stationery using your own personal letterhead. It’s very easy to create your own stationery using a program like Microsoft Word, or Open Office 3.
2. Include contact information and the date on each page.
3. Address your letter to a real person, and CC (carbon copy) key people: To Whom It May Concern" generally concerns no one.  Visit the EffectiveComplaints.com/who/ page, and find a video tutorial of how to find CEOs and key executives at major companies in the U.S.
4. Start with a good lead-in story.
5. Clearly state the problem.
6. Back up your facts with documentation whenever possible: But remember to only send copies and never your original files or paperwork.
7. Ask for what you want (Be reasonable).
8. Set a deadline for response (Again be reasonable).
9. Watch your tone (Be friendly, but firm).
10. Be sure to follow up if your deadline for a response has passed. Follow-through is key.  This can often be the difference between a complaint letter and an effective complaint letter.

The goal of the EffectiveComplaints.com website and this blog is to be a resource for people seeking complaint resolution, thus you are invited to join in and become active in the community:

1. Visit EffectiveComplaints.com and send a message through the Contact Us page,
2. Continue to visit this blog, blog.EffectiveComplaints.com, and comment on our blog posts and subscribe to our RSS feed,
3. Become a Fan on Facebook at the Effective Complaints Fan Page,
4. Follow us on Twitter (@complaint_help), or
5. Give us a Call on our Google Voice line at 920-543-HELP (4357).

How we can help?

If the player above isn't displaying, or working properly, you can also download the podcast from iTunes for free!

An Effective Complaint Letter Positive Outcome: How Safe Are You At U.S. Bank?

Disclaimer: The views and opinions stated in this podcast are just that, one person’s views and opinions shared freely on the internet while exercising the freedom of speech guaranteed in the United States Constitution. 

Visit the Effective Complaints Website

In this week's podcast, I share a story about an effective complaint letter I sent to U.S. Bank President and CEO Richard K. Davis. I hold several accounts with this company, and recently my account security was breached several times in a major metropolitan/high crime area.  Essentially, someone made a deposit into my account and was able to access my balance on more than one occasion.  This angered and disturbed me, because a criminal could just as easily do the same thing, and abscond with everything in your account by being able to so easily retrieve the information by simply making a deposit in the first place.

I initially voiced my concerns with the bank branch in question, but their response was that they assumed there was a level of trust with a person who had my account number, despite the fact that ANYONE who you've ever issued a personal check to would have access to that same number, since it's on the bottom of your checks.


Because I didn't receive a successful resolution in my first attempts to resolve my issue, I found the right person, and wrote a letter to them.  I soon received a response from the Executive Communications department at U.S. Bank, telling me that the issue happened at a newly acquired bank branch, and that as a result of my letter, the staff at that location had been brought up to speed with what it takes to be in compliance with U.S. Bank policy procedure (which requires identification prior to releasing account information).  The podcast cast has more details, if you're interested.

The goal of the EffectiveComplaints.com website and this blog is to be a resource for people seeking complaint resolution, thus you are invited to join in and become active in the community:

1. Visit EffectiveComplaints.com and send a message through the Contact Us page,
2. Continue to visit this blog, blog.EffectiveComplaints.com, and comment on our blog posts and subscribe to our RSS feed,
3. Become a Fan on Facebook at the Effective Complaints Fan Page,
4. Follow us on Twitter (@complaint_help), or
5. Give us a Call on our Google Voice line at 920-543-HELP (4357).

How we can help?

If the player above isn't displaying, or working properly, you can also download the podcast from iTunes for free!

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EffectiveComplaints.com

Introducing the EffectiveComplaints.com Website!

Disclaimer: The views and opinions stated in this podcast are just that, one person’s views and opinions shared freely on the internet while exercising the freedom of speech guaranteed in the United States Constitution. 

Visit the Effective Complaints Website

Hello, my name is Kindra Cotton, and I don’t like to complain.  I like when things are done right the first time, and when they aren’t, I’d like to see a swift and effective resolution to the issue. 

A complaint is merely an expression of an unmet expectation.  

I am a reasonable person and so are my expectations.  I wish in my heart of hearts that people would do the right things, for no other reason than the fact that it simply is the right thing to do.  I wish people would start treating others the way they want to be treated, for if they did, we’d not only have happier people, but the world would be a better place.

There’s a cliché about “the squeaky wheel gets the grease”, but I'm not sure if that’s still the case.  I have reluctantly become a "squeaky wheel", because for me, enough became enough!

Paying for products and services who QUICKLY process payments, and are even quicker to initiate collection proceedings, but who move at a snails pace when they are in the wrong, has encouraged me to spring into action! 

I've learned that there is strength in numbers, plus I just know that all these crazy injustices and daily indignities aren’t just happening to me.  There have to be others out there like me, and now is the time that we should band together!

Most people don’t complain.  Ever!  Lots of people have complaints, but very few of them do anything about it.  I’ve read statistics on this that say only 10-15% of people who have complaints actually do something about them, and for those that don’t, the reasons are cited as followed:

1. Concern that the process is too time consuming,
2. Thinking that nothing will ever change,
3. The issue at hand is considered to be too trivial to be bothered with,
4. Feeling that whatever went wrong is ultimately their own fault, and
5. Not knowing how to complain or how to do so effectively.

Many people will complain among themselves or their family members and friends, but rarely take their complaint to the source or the entity most likely to be able to correct it!

In the introductory podcast that you can listen to by clicking the player below, or by downloading it from iTunes, I talk about my experience with writing effective complaints and getting results and how I hope that the EffectiveComplaints.com community can work together to build and grow the community, and its resources by actively participating and adding content.

There’s a generally accepted rule in business that says “If you make 1 person happy, they’ll tell 5 people, but if you make 1 person unhappy, they’ll tell 20”.  I imagine in the age of the internet that number can be astronomically higher, bumped up to 200, maybe even 2000 or more!

In the world we live in now, where advertising is becoming more and more ineffective, we’re seeing a “Trend Towards Trust”, where people are far more likely to trust the recommendations of a friend or family member, over a sales pitch or random ad campaign.  This is a day and age where opinions matters, and more importantly the internet is working to make the opinions of just about ANYONE relevant to SOMEONE!

If only one person complains to a huge entity, that person can be dismissed as "crazy", but if you find others to join with you, your voice and your mission become that much stronger! 

With that in mind, I’m looking for like-minded people to join me and help resurrect a consumer advocacy movement that works to put the power back into the hands of the people, and hopefully, wrench some of it from the grasp of the big greedy corporations who take our money, with reckless abandon, and feel that they have no responsibility to us when they have wronged us!

Please visit the EffectiveComplaints.com website, as well as its Facebook Fan Page and make a note that you LIKE it.

I encourage you to visit other websites and communities that deal with complaints, like ComplaintBoards.com, My3Cents.com, and PissedConsumer.com, but remember EffectiveComplaints.com as your Solution-Oriented Consumer Advocacy Home Base.  The site is called “Effective Complaints”, where the emphasis is on “efficiency”, because my goal here is to help people that want to help themselves.  If there’s something I can do to help, I’ll try, and at the same time, I invite anyone within the community who can offer assistance, or chime in when necessary, to do so.

Finally, I want to point out that the EffectiveComplaints.com site isn’t about writing letters for you.  We don't write complaint letters for you, nor do we claim to be legal experts. We're just regular people trying to do what we can to help our fellow consumers.

I would like for the EffectiveComplaints.com website and this blog to be a resource for people seeking complaint resolution, thus I invite everyone to join in and become active in the community, and reach out to me in the following ways:

1. Visit EffectiveComplaints.com and send a message through the Contact Us page,
2. Continue to visit this blog, blog.EffectiveComplaints.com, and comment on our blog posts and subscribe to our RSS feed,
3. Become a Fan on Facebook at the Effective Complaints Fan Page,
4. Follow us on Twitter (@complaint_help), or
5. Give us a Call on our Google Voice line at 920-543-HELP (4357).

Let me know how we can help.