Hail, Arturo!

I really like cataloguing the books that I read and usually write a brief review. Several years ago, I joined Shelfari and have tracked all the books I read there. A couple of years ago, I also joined Goodreads. (I forget what prompted me to do that, but I’m glad I did.) Then I tracked using both sites.

I recently got a notice from Shelfari that it would be merging with Goodreads. Fortunately, they offered a way to export all your info over to Goodreads, as well as downloading a file. I did that and most of my books transferred over, but there were over 40 books that didn’t. Not the end of the world, but it bothered me. Like I said, I really like tracking all the books I read!

I like having the record of it and to be totally honest, sometimes I forget if I’ve read a book, so it helps to be able to have a list handy. (A while back, I remember being all excited to read Game Change, until I got into it and realized, “Hey, I’ve read this already!” Mind like a sieve, I’m telling you.) I also enjoy having the ability to see what I thought of a book when I read it and what kind of a review I gave it. In Days of Yore, I kept a written journal (I still do that to some extent, just to make notes about books) and in prehistoric days, I wrote it all down on a yellow legal pad. My record-keeping was sporadic for many years, but for the past decade or so, I’ve been faithful about it.

I contacted Goodreads customer service and soon heard back from a representative, Arturo. He apologized for the problem and asked me to send him my file of books and he’d try exporting all of them on his end. A couple of days went by, but I heard back from him today. He was able to export them all! He sent me a link of the info and showed me via a screen grab of how to make sure the reviews were there. I checked and it’s all there. HUZZAH!

Arturo is my hero today. I thanked him profusely and asked if he had a supervisor who I could write to and tell what a great job Arturo did. Dealing with customer service can often be an exercise in frustration, but I am so pleased with this outcome. The problem was identified, he addressed it immediately, and was able to solve the problem. I appreciated his efforts and am happy at the results.

I haven’t heard back from him about contacting his supervisor, but I hope I do. If someone provides excellent service, I try to sing their praises to their supervisors. Not just because it can help them in their jobs, but because I remember what a boost it was in my own job to hear something as simple as, “Thank you. I really appreciate your help and you did a good job.”

So if someone helps you, be sure to let them know and go a little further, if you can, to let their supervisors know. It can mean a lot.