Are you one of these people who absolutely cringes at the thought of calling an 800 number for customer service? Having to push buttons or speak to an automated computer? “REP-RE-SENT-A-TIVE!” “OP-ER-A-TOR!” “HU-MAN BE-ING!” I certainly am. Any time I think about having to call my online auction site or cell phone company to get something resolved, or struggling to understand someone with a heavy accent (whether it is here or abroad- it's me, not them!), it almost seems worth it to pay the extra $10 they just hiked my bill for no reason, yet I do it, because every dollar counts.
A friend of mine told me one day not to long ago, and it makes total sense... calling a big corporation and you encounter someone who is brash or gruff, who may be having a bad day, or merely isn't very good at their job? Don't get angry, start swearing, or worse. Here is the one simple solution: Hang up and call back.
Whaaat? Am I so daft that I have never thought about this before? Super duper simple. Most of the time, these REP-RE-SENT-A-TIVEs are not taking notes on your call. I recall a bunch of years back, I got rid of my land line phone (back in the times of dial-up Interwebs) because it was an added expense that honestly did not make sense for me anymore. I called V-Corp (name withheld to maintain their anonymity... you know who they are... <wink>) to disconnect my land line. They did so, without bothering to tell me that (derp) this would also disconnect my Interwebs. It took them seconds to disconnect it, and after two weeks and dozens of phone calls, I still did not have Interwebs.
If that had been present day, I would be paralysed because my business relies on the Interwebs, especially now, during the Zombie Apocalypse. Point being, every time I would call back, meticulously writing down dates and times that I called, and names of people I talked to (which I am convinced are bogus made up names anyway), I would have to retell my story over and over from square one, because every time I would speak with a different REP-RE-SENT-A-TIVE they didn't seem to know what I was talking about (in the end I ended up changing companies, and doing away with any V-Corp relations entirely).
More recently, I had to call my current company, S-Corp, because of an increase in my bill. The first person I spoke with was surly and brash, and very unhelpful, almost seeming to take pleasure in my mounting acrimony. Guess what? I started getting very frustrated and then remembered... hang up! Call back! I did, and while the second REP-RE-SENT-A-TIVE gave me basically the same answer, she put it in such a way where I wasn't so exasperated about it, offering to put me on an email list for future offers.
A side note here, don't hesitate to ask if the companies offer a discount. S-Corp offers discounts for people who work at the local colleges, and a friendly gent at the local store slyly offered, “You work at Tiny Town College, don't you? I think I've seen you there. You haven't received your discount for that. Let me see that you do... <wink>”. That was an added and unexpected bonus as well.
So that is my advice to you, Faithful Readers. Next time you are on a call and the RE-RE-SENT-A-TIVE is not pleasant, helpful, or giving you the answers you want to hear? Hang up. Call back! Just a tip from your old pal, moxy.!
Enjoy the weekend. Stay safe!
~m.
A friend of mine told me one day not to long ago, and it makes total sense... calling a big corporation and you encounter someone who is brash or gruff, who may be having a bad day, or merely isn't very good at their job? Don't get angry, start swearing, or worse. Here is the one simple solution: Hang up and call back.
Whaaat? Am I so daft that I have never thought about this before? Super duper simple. Most of the time, these REP-RE-SENT-A-TIVEs are not taking notes on your call. I recall a bunch of years back, I got rid of my land line phone (back in the times of dial-up Interwebs) because it was an added expense that honestly did not make sense for me anymore. I called V-Corp (name withheld to maintain their anonymity... you know who they are... <wink>) to disconnect my land line. They did so, without bothering to tell me that (derp) this would also disconnect my Interwebs. It took them seconds to disconnect it, and after two weeks and dozens of phone calls, I still did not have Interwebs.
If that had been present day, I would be paralysed because my business relies on the Interwebs, especially now, during the Zombie Apocalypse. Point being, every time I would call back, meticulously writing down dates and times that I called, and names of people I talked to (which I am convinced are bogus made up names anyway), I would have to retell my story over and over from square one, because every time I would speak with a different REP-RE-SENT-A-TIVE they didn't seem to know what I was talking about (in the end I ended up changing companies, and doing away with any V-Corp relations entirely).
More recently, I had to call my current company, S-Corp, because of an increase in my bill. The first person I spoke with was surly and brash, and very unhelpful, almost seeming to take pleasure in my mounting acrimony. Guess what? I started getting very frustrated and then remembered... hang up! Call back! I did, and while the second REP-RE-SENT-A-TIVE gave me basically the same answer, she put it in such a way where I wasn't so exasperated about it, offering to put me on an email list for future offers.
A side note here, don't hesitate to ask if the companies offer a discount. S-Corp offers discounts for people who work at the local colleges, and a friendly gent at the local store slyly offered, “You work at Tiny Town College, don't you? I think I've seen you there. You haven't received your discount for that. Let me see that you do... <wink>”. That was an added and unexpected bonus as well.
So that is my advice to you, Faithful Readers. Next time you are on a call and the RE-RE-SENT-A-TIVE is not pleasant, helpful, or giving you the answers you want to hear? Hang up. Call back! Just a tip from your old pal, moxy.!
Enjoy the weekend. Stay safe!
~m.
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