Outrageously Good Customer Service Awards

The Ashe Chamber of Commerce's 6th Annual "Outra-geously Good Customer Service" Award Breakfast was heldon October 22nd at the Boondock’s Brew House in WestJefferson, and SkyLine/SkyBest was the presenting sponsor.

The awards programseeks nominations from cus-tomers who experience anextraordinary level of cus-tomer service at local busi-nesses. This year includedindividual and companyawards, and we congratu-late all winners!Individual Awards: DebCaine, Go Postal; Daniel En-gelbert, Document ImagingSolutions; Trina Martin, StyleDepot; Cara Miller, MelissaGoodman, CPA; KevinRoland, Ashe County Ford;

Luis Scarlett, Scarlett Creek; Wanda Stevens, Ingles; Deb-bie Williams, Headquarters Hair Styling.Departmental/Divisional Awards: Register of Deeds Office, SkyLine/SkyBest Support Services Department.Business Award: Creative Printers

DECEMBER 2014

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Published monthly for customers of SkyLine Membership Corporation and SkyBest Communications

www.SkyLine.orgwww.SkyBest.com

NEED TO CONTACT US?CUSTOMER SERVICE

LOCAL118

TOLL-FREE1-800-759-2226REPAIR SERVICE, 24/7

LOCAL611

TOLL-FREE1-877-475-9546

Additional Local Repair Service Numbers:

ALLEGHANY372-4444

ASHE982-3111

AVERY898-9250

WATAUGA297-4811

JOHNSON739-4500INTERNET TECH SUPPORT, 24/7

TOLL-FREE1-866-759-7591WORTH NOTING: Thursday, Dec. 25Thursday, Jan. 1

SkyLine Customer Service Centers

Close for Christmas and New Year’s Day

STAFF:Jimmy Blevins

Chief Executive OfficerKim Shepherd

Executive Director of CustomerOperationsAngie Poe

Customer Service ManagerJamey Jenkins

Retail Sales ManagerKaren P. Powell

Public Relations Administrator & Editor

Annual Directory CollectionDrive Dates Set

Don’t throw away your old phone book! SkyLine isconducting its 23rd Annual Directory Collection Drivewith area public schools from January 1 through March31, 2015. With thousands of directories collected eachyear, SkyLine donates 25 cents to participating schools foreach old directory they collect. Since we started this pro-gram, SkyLine has rewarded schools more than $100,000in donations. The schools also receive credit for all oldphone books received at any of our Customer ServiceCenters, which are collected throughout the year.

A total of 17 area public schools participated in thisyear’s drive, including Westwood Elementary (picturedhere). Thanks to all of our members and customers forgiving their outdated directories toward this project whichsupports recycling and our local schools!

9 Online Shopping TipsWith Christmas coming very soon, holiday shopping

is in full gear. Online shopping provides great conven-ience, but it pays to do a little prep work before you clickand spend. Here are nine online shopping tips from theFederal Trade Commission (FTC) to help you confidentlymark those gift-buying items off your list.1. Know who you're dealing with.

Confirm the online seller's physical address and phonenumber before you buy. It comes in handy if you havequestions or problems later.

2. Know what you're buying.• Read the seller's description of the product and eventhough it can be painful, the fine print.• Check out the terms and conditions. Can you returnthe item for a refund if you're not satisfied? Who paysthe shipping costs? Is there a restocking fee? Print andsave records of your online transactions, including allemails to and from the seller.• Buy gift cards from sources you know and trust.Avoid buying cards from any online auction sites because the cards could be fakes.

3. Be stingy with your personal information.• Don't give out your credit card or other financial information in exchange for an offer of the newest tech toy, a free gift card, a seasonal job or a holiday vacation rental.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

Pictured are members of the Cre-ative Printers’ staff at the Outra-geously Good Customer ServiceBreakfast in October: (from left toright:  Rob Donato, Steve Craven(with award), Trish Eller and DianaCraven (not pictured:  Dee Brock).Creative Printers took top honorsin the business award category.

Our Support Services group was recognized in the departmental/divisional category at the 2014 Ashe Chamber's Outrageously Good Customer Service Award program in October. Pictured, left to right:

Sandy Liddle, Karen Stewart, Tina Criscoe, Support Services SupervisorMel Buchanan, Customer Service Manager Angie Poe, Marcia Mincer,Hollie Brown, Holly Beard, Shelby Waddell, Rebecca Grogan, Melanie

Edwards and Donya Graham.

New Telephone Directories Coming This Month

SkyLine and directory publisher YP Real Yellow Pageshave joined efforts to publish a regional telephone direc-tory for 2014-15, which covers Alleghany, Ashe, Averyand Watauga counties.

The U.S. Postal Service will begin delivery of the newdirectories in a few weeks and continue through themonth of January. If you note any corrections to the newdirectory, please report them to your local SkyLine/SkyBest Customer Service Center (1-800-759-2226).

Be sure to take a few minutes to review other sectionsin the front of the directory including the CustomerGuides, which give a clear overview of the many productsand services offered by SkyLine and SkyBest.

Recipe of the MonthFrosted Cranberry SaladIngredients:1 (20 ounce) can pineapple,crushed, drained (reserving liquid)Water, add to drained pineapplejuice to make 2 cups1 (6 ounce) package lemon flavored gelatin, (or cranberry flavored)1 (16 ounce) can whole cranberrysauce1/2 cup pecans, chopped (savesome pecans for topping)1 cup ginger ale1 cup celery, chopped (optional)1 (8 ounce) low calorie creamcheese1 (8 ounce) non-dairy whippedtopping, thawed

Instructions:Add enough water to liquid frompineapple to make 2 cups. Bringto a boil. In large casserole dish,stir gelatin and hot liquid until gel-atin had dissolved. Add pineapple,cranberry sauce, pecans and gin-ger ale. Stir well. Cream cheese,whipped topping and remainderof pecans are used in frosting.Blend these ingredients well andspread over gelatin after it hasbegun to set. Refrigerate severalhours before serving.

Recipe submitted by Jan Miller of AveryCounty

Customer Appreciation Day

In conjunction with National Coop-erative Month, SkyLine designated Oc-tober 9 as Customer Appreciation Dayat all of its customer service locations.In addition to enjoying fall refreshmentsand various giveaways, customers whovisited could also register for somegreat door prizes, including gift certifi-cates toward SkyLine/SkyBest services,a Roku streaming media player, tabletstand and SkyLine’s CommemorativeCookbook. More than 330 customersdropped by our customer service loca-tions across the region that day, andcongratulations to our winners:

Linda Gilvear Michele Hebson

Sadie Phillips Larry Flood Pat Jones Guy Ellis

Jeff Turnmire Kelly Blevins

Gary Mahaffey William McGuireCarlene Garrison

Mike TarltonPamela Church

9 ONLINE SHOPPING TIPS CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1

• Don't email your financial information. Email isn't a secureway to transmit numbers–your credit card, your checking account, or your Social Security number.• Don't click on a link in an email. Legitimate companies don't ask for your financial information via email or pop-upmessage.

4. Check the privacy policy.  Really. It may be long, but it can give important information:for example, what personal information the website collects,why, and how the operators are going to use it. If you can'tfind the privacy policy–or understand it–consider taking yourbusiness elsewhere, and letting the site know what you think.

5. Shop around.  Having an item's manufacturer and model number can helpyou compare "apples to apples" among merchants. Some retailers match, or even beat, a competitor's prices. Manymerchants are offering free shipping this year, but not all–sofactor the cost of shipping into the total cost. Or if you orderonline and pick up at the store, consider the cost of parking or public transportation.

6. Should you buy on public WiFi?Don't assume that public "hot spots" are secure. Unless youcan verify that a hot spot has effective security measures inplace, you may not want to send sensitive information likeyour credit card number over that network.

7. Pay by credit or charge card.• They offer the best consumer protections. Under federallaw, you have the right to dispute charges under certain circumstances and withhold payment temporarily while the creditor is investigating. And if your card is used without yourauthorization, your liability generally ends at the first $50.• Wiring money can be risky. It's just like sending cash–onceit's gone, it's gone. You can't get it back. Buying online usingcash equivalents–debit card, personal check, cashier's check,or money order–can be risky. Use them only if you know theparty you're doing business with.

8. Free can be costly.Free screen savers, e-cards, or other seasonal downloadscould carry dangerous viruses. Keep your anti-virus and anti-spyware software current along with your firewall.

9. Monitor your financial accounts.Read your statements regularly, making sure they reflect thecharges you authorized.

For more informationThe FTC works to prevent fraudulent, deceptive and unfair

business practices in the marketplace and to provide informationto help consumers spot, stop and avoid them. To file a com-plaint or get free information on consumer issues, visit ftc.gov or call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261. Watch a video, How to File a Complaint,at ftc.gov/video to learn more. The FTC enters consumer complaints into the Consumer Sentinel Network, a secure onlinedatabase and investigative tool used by hundreds of civil andcriminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.

Anne GreenSarah Watson

Ken RatnerGale SmithPaul Smith

Judy HunterRick Hicks

Frances Sturgill Dorothy MillerLinda Church

Lawana MurphyGloria Paisley

For the HolidaysThe recipes we feature in our

monthly newsletter come from SkyLine’scommemorative cookbook. At just $15each, they make great gifts, and all proceeds will support area food banks.Visit www.skyline.org or call SkyLine at118 to order yours.

Merry Christmas &Happy New Year

FROM THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND STAFF OF SKYLINE MEMBERSHIP CORPORATION & SKYBEST COMMUNICATIONS