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Why Tech Support Is (Purposely) Unbearable
HughPickens.com writes: Getting caught in a tech support loop -- waiting on hold, interacting with automated systems, talking to people reading from unhelpful scripts and then finding yourself on hold yet again -- is a peculiar kind of aggravation that mental health experts say can provoke rage in even the most mild-mannered person. Now Kate Murphy writes at the NYT that just as you suspected, companies are aware of the torture they are putting you through as 92 percent of customer service managers say their agents could be more effective and 74 percent say their company procedures prevented agents from providing satisfactory experiences. "Don't think companies haven't studied how far they can take things in providing the minimal level of service," says Justin Robbins, who was once a tech support agent himself and now oversees research and editorial at ICMI. "Some organizations have even monetized it by intentionally engineering it so you have to wait an hour at least to speak to someone in support, and while you are on hold, you're hearing messages like, 'If you'd like premium support, call this number and for a fee, we will get to you immediately.'" Mental health experts say there are ways to get better tech support or maybe just make it more bearable. First, do whatever it takes to control your temper. Take a deep breath. Count to 10. Losing your stack at a consumer support agent is not going to get your problem resolved any faster and being negative in your dealings with others can quickly paint you as a complainer no one wants to work with. Don't bother demanding to speak to a supervisor, either. You're just going to get transferred to another agent who has been alerted ahead of time that you have come unhinged. To get better service by phone, dial the prompt designated for "sales" or "to place an order," which almost always gets you an onshore agent, while tech support is usually offshore with the associated language difficulties. Finally customer support experts recommended using social media, like tweeting or sending a Facebook message, to contact a company instead of calling. You are likely to get a quicker response, not only because fewer people try that channel but also because your use of social media shows that you know how to vent your frustration to a wider audience if your needs are not met.
"Hello, how can I help you with your problem that I have solved. Goodbye <click>."
The world's burning. Moped Jesus spotted on I50. Details at 11.
Back in '90 or '91 I worked for Pacific Data Products, who made cartridges you could plug into an HP printer to get more fonts, postscript, whatever. Guy in the garage that invented it made a ton of money (I met him, he was a really cool dude). The customer service lines terminated maybe 50 feet from my engineering desk, I got to know quite a few of them. Their big game was to see how long they could keep someone on hold while they "researched the problem". They would take smoke breaks, take a leak, BS with the receptionist, whatever. After a few minutes they'd come back with "hey, try this". "This" being usually 1 of 3: a) Reboot the computer. b)Reboot the printer. c)Reseat the print cartridge.
// he was a smelly asshole
/// met my second openly gay dude there
//// he was way all cool
///// for his birthday he rented a yacht, and invited his friends (and me) to the party
////// Meeting that guy did a 180 on my baptist upbringing, and the cultural shit like AIDS == Anally Inserted Death Sentance
////// Also met the straight dude that could sleep with 2 girls
/////// 1 was the receptionist, the other I didn't know
//////// Went to Brian's place, both girls were there, both were pretty open on what was going on
///////// I'd spent 4 months on that receptionist, finding out she was farking Brian and some other chick made my dick shrink
////////// Brian was that typical "who would fark that geek" fast talking dude who could sell ice cubes to eskimos
/ met my first openly gay dude there
thinking slashies was the wrong way to reminisce
Tech support. Too bad it is just a dream.
This is quite possibly the most ingenious comment I have ever seen on Slashdot.
I use Macs for work, Linux for education, and Windows for cardplaying.