My sister in law is fighting a battle of wills with her cable company. Have you ever had to do that and no matter who you speak to in customer service, you don't get anywhere? Round and round she goes like she's on a merry-go-round, but I can tell you she's not having any fun. Something is wrong when it's company policy to treat people badly. Just trying to get an address and phone number of their corporate offices has proved a struggle. That should be a flag when they don't want this to go any further than the local offices. The Internet has changed everything about how we deal with our problems. We can go online and in seconds find out everything we need to know about a company. We can find out their performance and we can see if there are other complaints from disgruntled customers. There's always going to be customers that no matter what the circumstances a company can never please them. But when you see page after page of formal complaints posted, you quickly realize maybe this company doesn't really care.
For years my sister in law has had the same cable company. For years she has paid her bill and they would remind her in correspondence that she was a valued customer. Last week she realized she really wasn't valued at all. She now knows just where she stands with them and that she just needs to hush and go sit down. I don't think she's gonna do that.
I got so angry with a customer service rep one time on the phone, I asked for his name. He replied, Ebeneezer. When I asked to speak to someone higher up, he hung up on me.
ReplyDeleteThat's when I switch to another service - - - there are lots of good choices these days. We have Dish right now and love it.
ReplyDeleteThese companies don't want you talking to a human being!
ReplyDeleteWe finally just dropped satellite TV...all that money each month and still nothing worthwhile to watch.
We haven't missed it at all.
I worked as a Customer Service Rep for Sam's Club for a lot longer than I wanted to.
ReplyDeleteI had to talk to a lot of people who were already mad because of whatever happened, then they'd had to be "on hold" too long, so by the time they got to me, they'd reached the point of no return. Every day, I was called "stupid" and sworn at. Many nights, I just would go home and cry from the stress of it all.
Customer Service is there to "protect" management from the customers. The only problem is, there are so many problems that only management can fix, so all the rep can do is fill out a complaint and wait for them to handle it. Sometimes they do handle it and sometimes they don't, and the rep is left with the frustrated customer. Management doesn't want you giving them their number. Your supervisor doesn't want you asking her/him to take your call. Do it too much, and it can affect your job. Often, when customers ask for the supervisor, what they are getting is just the rep that sits beside the one they were just talking to.
Here is my advice: if they have a website, they almost always have an address of the home office. Or a way to e-mail. I use those first. Look on the side-bar and also across the top and 'way down at the bottom.
None of us are important to anyone. Our money is.
I finally was able to find a different job and gave two weeks' notice. On my last day, a man said to me, "I'm about to ruin your day!" And I said to him, "Sir, I wish you good luck on that, because today is my last day here." Fortunately it was one of the few problems a rep is allowed to correct personally, and I was able to help him. By the time he hung up, he had calmed down and wished me well on the new job.
But the thing is, those reps get treated so badly by frustrated customers, all day, every day, that after awhile they don't care anymore.
So when you talk to a rep, please remember they're just caught in the middle most of the time.
We were not supposed to hang up on anyone, but I admit that I did one time when a man was screaming obscenities at me because Sam's Club was still sending him "junk mail" after he'd asked to be taken off the mailing list....
good luck to your sister in law. i'd also just switch companies. have a happy valentines day!
ReplyDeleteBeing in the banking industry for 25 years, I appreciate quality customer service! Your sister, in my humble opinion, should begin exploring her options. Rude is just unacceptable!
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