Open letter to Jeremy Wells
Wednesday, July 28th, 2010Tonight I got a postcard from Jeremy Wells. The last time I saw Jeremy Wells was at a cinema on Queen Street. When she saw him, my wife grabbed my arm and whispered – excitedly, and a little too loudly – “is that Newsboy?!”. She was tickled to be watching a movie with a celebrity. We don’t get out much. So imagine our surprise to open the mail tonight and see Jeremy’s stern face glaring at us:
Far from inviting us to join him for another movie, Jeremy was writing to let us know how gutted he was to hear we were intending to leave Meridian. I was flattered that Meridian had let him know about our intention, and that he’d taken time out of his busy schedule to not only follow up with them directly, but also to get my details and to write to us. Here’s his note:
Just in case you can’t see that clearly, here it is in plain text:
Dear Hayden
I went on TV saying how great Meridian are. In fact, I’m so convinced by what they offer that I even put my name to their brand.
But now I hear you’re leaving them.
That didn’t sound right. In fact, it sounded distinctly wrong.
So I called them up and asked what the flip is going on over there. They apologised, said they weren’t sure, but that they’d do everything they could to set things right. In fact, they said if you called 0800 866 374 (11.30am – 7.30pm, Monday to Friday, excluding public holidays) by 2nd August they’d offer you something to make you stay…
I thought that sounded alright.
Yours faithfully,
Jeremy Wells
Well, I thought that this act of solidarity and sincerity deserved a response. Unfortunately, I don’t have Jeremy’s address. So I hope he – and you – won’t mind if I publish my response here on this blog. Here goes:
Dear Jeremy
It was a real surprise to hear from you. The only time I hear from Meridian ordinarily is when they send me my monthly power bill, so to receive a personal note from a real Kiwi icon (if I can call you that?!) on their behalf was kinda cool. I guess it’s just a shame about the timing and circumstances, but I’ll come back to that.
I didn’t realise the extent to which you had put your name to their brand; I vaguely remember seeing you on TV, but didn’t realise it was that serious. I don’t know if, like me, you watched Captain Planet as a kid. If you did, you must be quite chuffed that you can say “The power is mine” (or something like that) and really mean it. Well, you know what I mean.
They’ve obviously done some great things for you because – while I like to think I’ve got a few friends, and I have been on TV once or twice – the fact that you’d take the time to ask Meridian what was going on, arrange for them to hook me up with a little ‘something’, and then write to me to let me know about all this speaks volume for the love and passion you have for the company.
Unfortunately, and even after receiving your note, I have neither.
You see, I recently received a bill for nearly $600 for electricity from Meridian. This was a bit of a shock, given that the previous months’ bills had been closer to $150. It turns out that the previous bills were based on estimated readings, and that the latest bill was a ‘square-up’ based on an actual reading. Now, I don’t have a problem this per se – I understand that it’s expensive to have someone read everyone’s meter every month, especially with the high cost of advertising and promoting the company, and offering incentives to fed-up customers who want to leave. But the trouble is, the same thing happened to me last year and, well, I guess I just expect a bit more from a company that is – ultimately – a ‘systems’ company. If we can put a man on the moon (though, granted, not with an electric-powered rocket), then surely we can create computer models that more accurately predict a household’s electricity usage, particularly when it has a history with the company.
I’m not bitter, nor was I intending to complain to Meridian. But when I got the bill, I realised that I’d have to be a bit more vigilant about reading my own meter to avoid these sorts of surprises in the future. And if I was going to do this, I knew exactly which company I’d rather be with.
I had been wanting to sign up with Powershop for some time, because I know they still offer the best customer interface for people who want more control and choice when it comes to their electricity supply. Up until recently, they hadn’t served my area (as you know, I live out in the sticks), but I got a tweet from their CEO letting me know they were available about the same time I got the bill from Meridian. Perfect timing; I signed up that night.
In the spirit of full disclosure, I had a hand in designing the Powershop interface. They haven’t asked me to go on TV, or put my name to their brand (though, I admit, HaydenPower sounds kinda cool). But plenty of customers have said how great it is, and that – combined with the love and passion their team have for their service – is all the convincing I need.
I assume, from your note, that you’re in frequent contact with Meridian helping to resolve customer issues. As such, I’d be grateful if you could let them know that I won’t be calling them about their little ‘something’ and that I’m looking forward to a real change of scene (and service!) over at Powershop.
Yours sincerely,
Hayden Vink
I'm Hayden Vink, aka Hades, aka Skittle. 
