Recently, I received a promotional offer from a bank with which I already have a credit card relationship. The offer of a credit card—for which I was deemed to be “preapproved”—boasted zero percent APR for 12 months, no annual fee, and—the best part of the deal—ten percent earnings for the first six months (and 5 percent, thereafter) that can later be applied toward the purchase of a new vehicle. That’s some heckuva deal, don’t you think? There was just one problem. I already have one of these cards—from the exact same bank that mailed me the letter making me the offer and stating I was preapproved. In fact, I’ve been a credit card customer since 1992 and have yet to pay a penny of interest against my balance because I pay the bill in full every month. You could call me “a bank’s dream customer.”

When I called the toll-free number on the letter to inquire about the promotion, I asked if I could simply convert my current card—which is only posting one percent of my purchases as earnings—into the new card being offered in the mailer. To my surprise, I heard more than just one of the customer service reps—and I spoke to no less than seven of them—say, among other equally inane ones, the following statements:

• “You will need to cancel your existing credit card, forfeit the earnings you’ve accumulated to date, and then apply for the new card as a new customer to get the deal.”

• “If you retain your current credit card, you will not be eligible to apply for the new card. In fact, you shouldn’t have been sent the promotion letter in the first place. It’s only for new applicants.”

• “Well, you don’t qualify for this offer because you already got your introductory offer back when you first applied for your current card.” (Note: That was 19 years ago.)

When I asked “So, what you are telling me is that you care more about your new customers—who you know very little about—than keeping a great, long-time, loyal customer happy? Is that it?” The customer care supervisor—who I was shuffled off to—said, “I am not saying that. It’s just the bank’s policy.” (I remembered thinking…sounds like she didn’t want to be associated with the bank and she’s a supervisor.) She continued, “I am in charge of the new card application department reps. I don’t know what reputation you have with the existing card services department. We don’t have anything to do with them, nor do we ever talk to them.”

Here are the valuable business and customer service lessons that this unfortunate exchange taught me:

1. Empower your customer service/care reps to use common courtesy and speak on behalf of your business—not blame their inability to serve the client or respond to a customer concern on some senseless, arbitrary rule. There should be no reason for someone to tell a customer “But that’s company policy. I can’t help you.” To the customer, CSRs are the mouthpiece of the company.

2. Monitor, from time to time, what your customer service reps are saying and how they attempt to facilitate the sale or help the client. If they are resorting to handing out empty apologies to placate a caller—without really sounding remorseful, caring or offering a workable solution—they are killing the sale and alienating the customer.

3. Treat every client or prospect like you value and appreciate their business. If you are inclined to make an irresistible offer to lure new customers, be sure to offer the same deal to your current clientele—especially your faithful ones, the ones that are the bread and butter of your enterprise.

4. Finally, if you have an internal communication problem—where one department doesn’t have easy access to any other—drop everything and fix that problem now. Nothing tells a customer faster that your business is not being run properly than revealing evidence that your people are not working together or talking to each other.

Good luck.