Ticket: --/9
Rating: ★4.0
Score: 000
Best: --

Customer Storm

Angry messages flood the Pebblebox support desk. Build a reply that calms each customer, and keep the shop's rating above 3 stars.

Customer Storm

Buffer runs the support desk at Pebblebox, a made-up home goods shop, and the inbox is full of upset customers: late parcels, double charges, a broken app. For each one, build a reply from six sentences that acknowledges the problem, apologises for the right thing, gives a concrete fix with a time and never blames anyone. Three shifts, and the shop's rating rises or falls with every reply.

9 tickets
Customer service

How to play

Read the ticket. The customer's message and the order notes: what really happened and what you're allowed to offer.
Build the reply. Tap 2 to 4 of the six sentences, in order. Three are good, three are traps: blame, a non-apology, a vague fix.
Pass 4 checks. Acknowledge the problem, apologise for the right thing, give a fix with a time, never blame. Every sentence is explained after you send.
Watch the rating. 4 checks: +0.2★, 3: +0.1★, fewer and it falls. Under 3★, Buffer takes over. 25 points per check, +20 for a perfect reply, plus your final rating.

Quick tips

Read the order notes first. They say what really went wrong and what you can promise. A fix that isn't in the notes is a promise you can't keep.
Name their problem. "A present that missed the party" lands better than "your order". Acknowledge what it cost them, not just what happened.
No "if", no "but". "Sorry if you feel…" and "Sorry, but…" cancel the apology. Say sorry for the specific thing that went wrong.
Always add a time. "Soon" and "as soon as possible" make angry people angrier. Today, tomorrow, Thursday, 3–5 business days.
Never blame, even when it's true. When the customer typed the wrong address, fix it first and apologise for the stress, not for a mistake you didn't make.