NEW CAR, NEW HEADACHE

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I repeatedly said that I didn’t care whose fault it was. I just wanted the problem solved. No one wanted to solve the problem. That’s when Marcie stepped in. Problem solved. The world needs more Marcies.

It all started when my wife and I bought a new car. As you probably recall, we are going to be adding a little one to our family in the next few months. However, we are not so committed to the whole being a grown-up thing that we were willing to dive in full-tilt and buy a minivan.

So, we went the yuppie version and bought an SUV. Since we traded in my wife’s car, we were simply going to transfer the tags from her Mustang over to the new SUV. Seemed simple enough.

I went to the DMV, arriving 30 minutes before it opened. There were already 12 people ahead of me. By the time I got in the building, there were more than 40 people behind me. Some of those people may still be in line.

When I got up to the counter, I explained by intentions and turned over all of the paperwork. Turns out we had two problems: (1) my wife’s old car was still listed in her maiden name and (2) the new car was only put in my name, both of which combined to make it even more impossible to transfer the tags. I was told that I needed to (1) have her name changed on the previous tag and (2) have her added to the new title. As a bonus, we would both have to come to the DMV the next time.

I decided I would tackle the part about adding her to the title. I called the dealership and asked what I needed to do. The woman who dealt with titles took down my name and number and said she would do some research and see. When I called her back three days later, she said, "Oh, yeah, I remember you." She was bright.

She said that I would have to contact the bank, as they were the ones who had the title, so they would have to add my wife to it. She smacked her gum a lot. She really made my head hurt. I asked her why they hadn’t put my wife on the title from the start. "Well, didn’t you notice when you were filling out the paperwork?" she asked, rather snidely, I might add. And, no, I didn’t notice. I filled out lots of papers. For all I know, I may be harvesting my kidneys for the president.

I then called the bank and explained the situation. "Why did she tell you to call here?" was the answer I got. I was sent back to the Gum Smacker, who then sent me back to the bank, who then sent me to another branch of the bank in another state, who sent me back to the original bank.

Enter Marcie. I called the bank (the original bank) and Marcie answers the phone. I explain to Marcie what has happened. Marcie is not happy. Marcie is a superhero whose only arch nemesis is ignorance.

"Mike, tell you what," said Super Marcie. "Tell me who you talked to at the dealership." I did as I was told. "Now give me your number." Again, yes ma’am. "OK, Mike. I’ll call you back in a little bit and let you know what I found."

In a matter of minutes, Marcie called me back. Marcie was not happy. "If you want something done right," Marcie said, "you’ve gotta do it yourself."

Marcie decided she would make it her personal mission to solve this problem. And she did this while profusely apologizing for the lousy customer service I had received. Attention Marcie’s manager – whatever you are paying her, triple it. She is a dying breed. Marcie not only cared that a customer was getting wronged, but she stepped up to the plate, took control of the situation, and made me so very happy.

The next day, she had our title in hand. My wife and I made quick trips to the bank where Marcie got us squared away. She even called the DMV to make sure that we had all of our paperwork in order. And again she apologized! How great is Marcie? The Marcies of the world seldom get their due. No one compliments the Marcie who goes out of her way to help someone or the Marcie who really and truly cares about her customers.

Worse yet, no one ever calls the Marcie’s boss and says, "Hey, Mr. Boss, you know that Marcie – top notch." So that’s my challenge to you today, good people – make today "Show a Marcie Some Appreciation Day." There are a lot of Marcies out there, and we need to make sure they’re recognized. Give a Marcie her due!

So the tag fiasco is now behind us, thanks in large part to Marcie. It will be a long time before we buy another car, so it should be a long-time before I have to deal with these things. Just to be safe, though, I think I’ll go ahead and get in line.