American Express

Last night, I witnessed what I call "user frustration". A friend of mine picked up his mail and opened a letter from American Express...

"Congratulations! You have been pre-approved for an American Express card!"

My friend groaned and exclaimed,

"What the...I already have an American Express card!". He shook his head and proceeded to the shredder, "...Don't they know that?!"

I laughed and read the rest of the letter. It contained some private information so I understood why he wanted to shred it.

"What a waste of money, paper, AND my time!", he stated as he continued to shake his head.

It must be frustrating to realize that a company just doesn't take the time to check their records or to ensure their mailings are catered to a customer's individual needs. My friend didn't want to receive that letter. He wanted to be notified of other things pertinent to him as an American Express cardholder.

So, I thought I'd take it further and asked him, "...so how does that make you feel?" He looked at me exasperated and said,

"Like I'm unimportant as a client and customer... like I'm just a name or a number... and now I don't have a very good impression of American Express anymore, thats for sure!