Slashdot Mirror
Setting the Bar for Customer Service?
meburke asks: "Computer repair, copier repair, customer support: It seems to be mostly done the same way for the last 40 years. That is: 'Something breaks, call the repair guy.' But customers expect more, and they can't tell us what they expect, so where do we develop guidelines for customer service and how do we improve? I've searched the net for three days now, and I haven't found a comprehensive list of actions or standards that distinguish the excellent tech from the average tech. Can anyone point me toward some sources?" It seems that as our technology becomes more complex, the service that is offered to customers continues to fall shorter of the mark. What kind of service do you expect from your vendors, and how close is reality to your expectations?
As an aside, shooflot wonders: "If the definition of 'news' includes 'rarity' then good service must be news. My usual experience includes the kind of sulky and dismissive attitude I got from an Apple rep when my new iPod wouldn't charge (I eventually got him to exchange it). However, I was recently surprised by Rogers, my cellphone provider, when I followed up on some charges for ringtones I'd never downloaded. The service rep not only cancelled the charges but discovered I'd been wrongly charged an extra air time fee for the whole last year and credited me for the entire amount plus tax! What great service stories does Slashdot wish to share which (I hope!) may inspire all those other reps in the trenches?"
AOL
"...if people respected copyright more, like you guys do with the GPL so religiously, [the DMCA] wouldn't be necessary."
And here, I was going to say that you could just walk into the average Best Buy or CompUSA with a complex computer problem, write down everything the technician there does (interactions, attempted fixes, plan of attack, etc.)
The exact opposite of everything you wrote down is exactly what customers would really like.
Apple Stores are hilarious, all right. You keep expecting to see a curtain somewhere, with a bunch of people attached to E-Meters behind it.
The amazing thing is that Apple's customers just eat it up. Being processed like something out of a Huxley novel is just part of the "think different" experience.
Slashdot seems to have numerous AC problems as well.
Perhaps the editors should call that guy he seems cool
The only things certain in war are Propaganda and Death. You can never be sure which is which though
Saw a billboard a couple of weeks back off-strip in Las Vegas: "We repair what your husband fixed."