I’d like to step back from the normal domain of this column, and take a moment to relate a story that has little to do with the crop protection and production industries (directly, anyway).
它始于一项简单的任务：我想更改手机的铃声。
The journey began in the most logical place: the web site of my cellular service provider. The site was gorgeous in design, and loaded with features. I combed through it for 10 or 15 minutes (which, in web time, is an eternity) before discovering that my model of phone, which was first manufactured in the fourth quarter of 2005, was discontinued. The only option given to me was to set up an online account to find out if I was eligible for an upgrade. After filling out numerous forms and accessing my e-mail to retrieve an activation code, I learned I was not eligible. I had hit a dead end; my phone was no longer supported, and no alternative service was offered. I left unsatisfied and frustrated. Next stop: the phone manufacturer’s web site.
On the site of the phone manufacturer, I located my phone model. Again, the site was sleek and loaded with fancy content. I was able to find my phone’s profile, and there was a link that stated “Get Ringtones” — finally, I was in the right place. Or so I thought.
单击链接后，我发现我也需要在这里创建一个帐户，这又涉及多个表格并登录我的电子邮件以检索另一个激活码。这样做之后，我收到一条消息说我的模型已停产；该网站建议我咨询我的手机服务提供商。打两下。
By this point, I had enough of traveling the main road. If I know anything about the spirit of the Internet, it’s that it is the ultimate forum for collaboration, cooperation, and volunteerism. The abundance of projects from the robust Wikipedia to the thousands of open source applications online all point to the fact that when internet users are unsatisfied, they take matters into their own hands, and help each other out.
I used a search engine to look for my phone make and model, and the word “ringtones.” And there it was: a results page listing 20 people who had asked the exact same question, and the help they had received from anonymous internet “neighbors.” One result directed me to www.mobile17.com.
我发现的是一个简单的网站，目的非常明确。我从列表中选择了我的手机型号，该网站为我提供了多种查找铃声的选项，以及将我已经拥有的音乐文件转换为铃声的功能，所有这些都是免费的，并且隐私保证可以保护我免受垃圾邮件的侵害。它给了我两个选择：可以在几个小时内完成的免费服务，或者快递服务
如果我自愿捐款，这将花费不到一分钟的时间。我选择了免费路线（我想在捐赠之前看看它是否有效），今天早上，我的铃声一直在等待，还有一条消息感谢我使用该网站，并欢迎我回来。
我知道我会的。下次，我会很乐意捐款。我也知道我不会再使用其他两个网站。
The experience made me re-think what service means online. It was clear that the major corporate sites were built to fulfill the corporations’ needs, while mobile17’s was obviously crafted with customer satisfaction as the primary goal. This is a lesson that can be applied to all industries: nothing can take the place of customer service. The first two sites drove me away unsatisfied; the third made me want to come back, and it asked nothing in return unless I was happy enough with their service to want to contribute.
It’s a simple truth: If your first values are not making customers happy, those customers will look elsewhere. And on the web, there is always an elsewhere.