Telecom Giants Try To Fix Dismal Customer ServiceBut are investors really willing to pay for more than superficial fixes? ( old news - 11:53AM Thursday May 01 2008) tags: Fiber · competition · business · cable · consumers · Comcast · Verizon Online DSL · TekSavvy Solutions Inc.Last summer, we profiled a small Canadian DSL ISP named Teksavvy, who has built almost a cult following in our forums largely thanks to actually giving a damn. Among larger providers, customer service is among the first thing to suffer as they seek to cut costs wherever possible in order to please investors. The Washington Post argues that crappy customer service from large carriers has reached critical mass (right, grandma?), and companies like Comcast and Verizon are trying to correct course. (Verizon's new "customer care czar") has created a tiered system to handle the complexity of complaints. At its most basic level, call centers around the nation act like medical triage to handle routine service issues and minor problems. Complaints from "triple play" customers, who have Fios television, Internet and phone services, are sent to a special team of "personal account" handlers in Florida. The angriest customers and those who send e-mails and letters directly executives are handled by the "escalation team." "What you don't want them to do," he said, "is leave or write up a blog or something." Yeah, god forbid your customers talk about poor support on a blog. One can't shake the feeling that many of the industry's latest fixes seem superficial in nature; geared at image control, keeping the unwashed masses away from higher level executives, or making the consumer feel better -- as opposed to addressing deeper, systemic issues. Verizon's hiring of personalized support nannies for angry FiOS customers in Florida doesn't repair the company's dysfunctional billing systems, which seemingly enjoy creating phantom charges and eating promised consumer bundle discounts. Comcast's use of Twitter as a way to calm customers doesn't address Comcast's traditionally low quality subcontractors -- who occasionally fall asleep on customer couches or worse. Real fixes to real problems cost real money. Consumers don't feel like they should have to pay more, given carriers' healthy profits. And given these giants must provide investors with sustained, quarter over quarter financial improvement, carriers aren't going to eat into said healthy profits in order to pay for it -- unless low quality support begins to decimate subscriber totals. And that's not happening for a reason the Post didn't feel the need to go into: companies can afford to cut back on customer service because many of them lack real competition, existing as either monopolies or as part of a coordinated duopoly where customer service stinks across the board. Most customers have nowhere to run to. So where's the fix?
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 hogrunr
join:2005-10-21
Spring, TX | Makes you wonder.... if the "phantom" charges are because the FiOS billing system is constantly being updated for new rate hikes.
"Well the new rate hikes are coming, we'll just see if we can sneak it on a few bills early. | |
| moonpuppy
join:2000-08-21
Glen Burnie, MD
 ·Verizon Online DSL
| Customer service czars are worthless..... ....unless they actually fix a problem.
No one wants to hear "I'm sorry you are unhappy" from a customer service drone who cannot or will not fix a problem whether or not they have the power to do so. The apologies are hollow without a fix and actually make the customer angrier instead of calm. | |
|  | jc100
join:2002-04-10
| Re: Customer service czars are worthless..... Empathy only goes so far. What people want are their solutions fixed in a reasonable and timely manner. For most people, t his is well justified. You pay for the service, you should received what's promised. Sure, there will always be those 5-10 percent you can NEVER make happy, even if you gave hem the moon and the stars. That's part of business. However, a company should focus on making the other 90-95 percent loyal patrons. While this has to be done in line with costs and profit, it is feasible. Companies today are too quick to rush cuts and not foresee the problems they create. The less staff one has to field issues, the more qualified people one eliminates in the in the process. There has be be a fine balance between a reasonable trained staff and dollars and cents. That's a given. However, one can without a doubt equate a company's viability to how happy and loyal said customers are. Customers who feel that a company is willing to go above and beyond, are more apt to give leeway when problems occur. On the contrary, when a company has a bad track record, the retention department has an uphill battle. In many cases, customers are already lost by the time it reaches that stage in the game. Companies need to focus on prevention and training to make sure this doesn't happen. Simple and concise answers can save the company both time, customers, and money via future callbacks. | |
| | Kearnstd
Elf Wizard
Premium
join:2002-01-22
Mullica Hill, NJ
| the trouble is that while most of us dont care to hear the empathy statement, us CS drones are pretty much required to say it. the suits do listen to calls and expect to hear the prefab statements that they think are good customer service.
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[65 Arcanist]Filan(High Elf) Zone: Broadband Reports | |
| | tlbepson
Premium
join:2002-02-09
Reston, VA
| >>No one wants to hear "I'm sorry you are unhappy" from a customer service drone who cannot or will not fix a problem whether or not they have the power to do so.
Having recently switched from Comcast broadband to Verizon DSL, my experience with Verizon "customer service" is not a pleasant one.
I am hearing impaired and use a special phone to make calls and the Verizon phone directory is just a nightmare for someone like me. I've called twice--I gave up on live chat!
The first call took 1 hour and 5 transfers--each time I'm transferred I have to explain again that I'm hearing impaired and that there will be a delay before I can respond to what is said because I need to wait for the speech-to-text conversion (via a communication assistant using speech recognition software) and then read the text. That gets really old the 3rd time you have to repeat it.
The second call I made took 2 hours and 11 transfers!
It's ridiculous that Verizon does not allow their customer service agents to actually do their job. It's so pointlessly fragmented or maybe it's deliberate so that the caller will give up in frustration? I've had a similar experience with Office Depot so it's not limited to Verizon.
The very best customer service experience I've ever had was with Staples online customer service. Staples allows their customer service agents to actually make decisions and they are given the power to resolve issues. It was so refreshing that I now make a point to shop at Staples either online or local stores.
I hope never, ever to have to call Verizon again. | |
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AtomicZero
join:2004-11-24
West Palm Beach, FL | so true | |
| | | jc100
join:2002-04-10
1 edit | Re: Most customers have nowhere to run to. So where's the fix? I think you are wrong. Americans do want bargains but they also want the service that comes with it. How would you like to go to a fast food restaurant (even though the item costs a dollar on the value menu) and be told to make your own meal? Odds are, you'd walk out and go elsewhere. By all means, you buying a single dollar item actually costs more to make than the business actually earns. However, said business is still willing to serve you the item the same as the next guy who comes in and spends 20 dollars on that same menu. It's a balancing act. Don't fool yourself to think that Americans don't want service. We just want the service done right. Just as you'd be irked if that dollar hamburger came out cold, so is the person who pays for their triple play and only has 2/3 items working and spends on month on the phone to get the other one fixed. In summation, the delivery and approach count as they all affect the service of the product one receives. Business is all about perception as they say. One unhappy customer, whether big or small, has many friends to tell. | |
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tc1uscg
join:2005-03-09
Saint Clair Shores, MI
| Re: Most customers have nowhere to run to. So where's the fix? said by jc100  :I think you are wrong. Americans do want bargains but they also want the service that comes with it. How would you like to go to a fast food restaurant (even though the item costs a dollar on the value menu) and be told to make your own meal? Odds are, you'd walk out and go elsewhere. By all means, you buying a single dollar item actually costs more to make than the business actually earns. However, said business is still willing to serve you the item the same as the next guy who comes in and spends 20 dollars on that same menu. It's a balancing act. Don't fool yourself to think that Americans don't want service. We just want the service done right. Just as you'd be irked if that dollar hamburger came out cold, so is the person who pays for their triple play and only has 2/3 items working and spends on month on the phone to get the other one fixed. In summation, the delivery and approach count as they all affect the service of the product one receives. Business is all about perception as they say. One unhappy customer, whether big or small, has many friends to tell. You JC are correct. The customer(s) wants everything pretty much for FREE and then expects 110% customer service, with a smile, to go with it. The days we started buy stuff from dollar stores, buying our groceries from walmart and jumping form one cable provider to another just for 10.00 savings, we became too expectant. We expect way too much for such little price. | |
| | | | jc100
join:2002-04-10
| Re: Most customers have nowhere to run to. So where's the fix? I think that is pretty true to some extent. I believe Americans are after the best value and the best service, for the least price. However, companies that charge more and give great service usually win out. How many times have you gone out of your way to go to a certain place because you liked it more? I know I have plenty of times. There might be a store, restaurant, etc real close that does similar. Yet, you are willing to blow the gas money to go to that one place. It might not be the best bargain, but it also is reasonably priced and you love how you are treated. I think this speaks wonders to the American mindset. While we want our deals, we want good service. Sometimes, we find paying a bit more gets us both. I truly believe that the companies who take the high road approach will do much better in the end. Yes, the short term might see people leaving which does hurt, but the long run sees them returning. There's only so much of being treated like crap for a bottom barrel value one is willing to take. After that, the person is willing to step up and go to the next level if it means less frustration. This anyway, has been my experience in life. | |
| | moonpuppy
join:2000-08-21
Glen Burnie, MD
·Verizon Online DSL
| said by TKJunkMail :That old saying that you can have 2 of the 3 following items is still pretty accurate: 1 cheap 2 good 3 fast Let's see. I had digital/HD/DVR/HSI with Comcast. It wasn't cheap, it wasn't good and it wasn't fast. Where is my 2 out of 3?
A month ago, I have severe pixilization problems on channels 30 - 70. I tried calling and all I got was a disconnect message because of high call volumes. When I finally got through, they said there were no other complaints and rolled a truck. Even the truck tech said she knew about the problem and that Comcast needed to replace a piece of equipment. My friend down the street had the exact same problem and he was using boxes (I was straight into the TV with no box.)
Now, why did Comcast roll a truck (which costs money) and waste a tech's time (again, costing money and taking them away from much more legitamate calls) when they could have just dealt with the faulty equipment? If they want to pay for customer service, maybe they need to do a better job of diagnosing problems and saving themselves a few dollars. | |
| | | jc100
join:2002-04-10
1 edit | Re: Most customers have nowhere to run to. So where's the fix? Maybe Comcast wants to show off their fleet of trucks at 3.70 a gallon, along with paying said individual to drive it up and down the street, all in the name of advertising (sarcasm). | |
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Nightfall
My Goal Is To Deny Yours
Premium,MVM
join:2001-08-03
Grand Rapids, MI
 ·Site5.com
·AT&T Midwest
 ·Comcast
| said by moonpuppy :said by TKJunkMail :That old saying that you can have 2 of the 3 following items is still pretty accurate: 1 cheap 2 good 3 fast Let's see. I had digital/HD/DVR/HSI with Comcast. It wasn't cheap, it wasn't good and it wasn't fast. Where is my 2 out of 3? A month ago, I have severe pixilization problems on channels 30 - 70. I tried calling and all I got was a disconnect message because of high call volumes. When I finally got through, they said there were no other complaints and rolled a truck. Even the truck tech said she knew about the problem and that Comcast needed to replace a piece of equipment. My friend down the street had the exact same problem and he was using boxes (I was straight into the TV with no box.) Now, why did Comcast roll a truck (which costs money) and waste a tech's time (again, costing money and taking them away from much more legitamate calls) when they could have just dealt with the faulty equipment? If they want to pay for customer service, maybe they need to do a better job of diagnosing problems and saving themselves a few dollars. Please read his post, he was talking about customer service, not the technical service you subscribe to. | |
| | | | moonpuppy
join:2000-08-21
Glen Burnie, MD
·Verizon Online DSL
| Re: Most customers have nowhere to run to. So where's the fix? said by Nightfall :Please read his post, he was talking about customer service, not the technical service you subscribe to. The cost of customer service was included in my monthly fee....not cheap.
Customer service was rarely good as they did not fix the problems.
Customer service was most certainly not fast since it took forever just to get them on the phone and their walk up counters were even worse.
0 for 3 | |
| | | | | jc100
join:2002-04-10
| Re: Most customers have nowhere to run to. So where's the fix? And back to my point. Customer service makes the experience. One can have a great product but bad customer service. As a result, good product becomes marginal as one does not get proper help in using or receiving it. On the same token, a fair product can be a good one if the customer service is top notch. The people who you talk to, if knowledgeable, can show a person how to do and make the best out of something simple. It's the truth. Business and products are 50 percent function and 50 percent perception. One perceives something to be a good product many times if they understand how to use it fully and integrate it into their lives. Most times, this require GOOD support that makes sure said product functions as promised. | |
| | 
Matt
Take me down to the paradise city
Premium
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC
·North State Commun..
| said by TKJunkMail :More/better customer service COSTS a lot more money(warm bodies being the most expensive corporate cost). And, so far at least, US customers are NOT willing to pay more for better service. When given the choice, a large majority of customers will invariably choose the cheapest service and NOT the best service. That old saying that you can have 2 of the 3 following items is still pretty accurate: 1 cheap 2 good 3 fast I don't think this is the case. Given an OPTION to choose a company with better customer service is a start. I don't see how you can conclude people won't pay for better customer service when 90% of the population only has two companies available to them. And those companies pretend they hate each other as they pass in the hall but secretly kiss every day after school under the bleachers. | |
| | | 
TKJunkMail
Enjoy the sun
Premium
join:2002-03-03
Avalon, NJ
 ·Sprint Mobile Broa..
·Comcast
| Re: Most customers have nowhere to run to. So where's the fix? said by Matt : And those companies pretend they hate each other as they pass in the hall but secretly kiss every day after school under the bleachers. If you have any proof that anti-trust collusion is going on, please send that info to your local US Attorney so that the Justice Dept can prosecute them.
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My BLOG .. .. Internet News .. .. My Web Page | |
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Matt
Take me down to the paradise city
Premium
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC
·North State Commun..
| Re: Most customers have nowhere to run to. So where's the fix? said by TKJunkMail :said by Matt : And those companies pretend they hate each other as they pass in the hall but secretly kiss every day after school under the bleachers. If you have any proof that anti-trust collusion is going on, please send that info to your local US Attorney so that the Justice Dept can prosecute them. And if you think it's not, you do need to stop drinking the corporate Kool-Aid. | |
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TKJunkMail
Enjoy the sun
Premium
join:2002-03-03
Avalon, NJ
·Sprint Mobile Broa..
·Comcast
| Re: Most customers have nowhere to run to. So where's the fix? said by Matt :said by TKJunkMail :said by Matt : And those companies pretend they hate each other as they pass in the hall but secretly kiss every day after school under the bleachers. If you have any proof that anti-trust collusion is going on, please send that info to your local US Attorney so that the Justice Dept can prosecute them. And if you think it's not, you do need to stop drinking the corporate Kool-Aid. It is easy to throw around accusations when you have no proof whatsoever.
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My BLOG .. .. Internet News .. .. My Web Page | |
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Matt
Take me down to the paradise city
Premium
join:2003-07-20
Jamestown, NC
·North State Commun..
| Re: Most customers have nowhere to run to. So where's the fix? said by TKJunkMail :It is easy to throw around accusations when you have no proof whatsoever. Seriously?
Prices within a couple dollars of each other, restrictive promotions, which are only in place to confuse you and keep you from moving because the price looks better than it really is, bundle discounts which require you have to spend money on services you may not want to save a couple bucks on the only service you needed ... they are mirror images of each other when viewed from 1,000 miles up.
Oh sure, they may cast an evil glance at each other from time to time because they steal phone or television customers ... but they both hold the status quo in their respective markets. When was the last time either cable or Ma Bell actually competed for your business?
I'd counter your final thought with the fact it's easy to turn a blind eye when there's money at stake. | |
| | | | | bicker
join:2007-05-10
Burlington, MA
| In other words, you're blowing smoke, and TK Junk Mail called you on it, so now you're going to engage in petty mud-slinging to try to hide the fact that you posted something irresponsible.  | |
| | | bicker
join:2007-05-10
Burlington, MA | Bull. If customers were willing to pay enough extra for better service, then one of the suppliers would try it and the market would pushed in that direction. Consumers only react to price. That's why things are the way they are. | |
| |
Nightfall
My Goal Is To Deny Yours
Premium,MVM
join:2001-08-03
Grand Rapids, MI
·Site5.com
·AT&T Midwest
·Comcast
| said by TKJunkMail :More/better customer service COSTS a lot more money(warm bodies being the most expensive corporate cost). And, so far at least, US customers are NOT willing to pay more for better service. When given the choice, a large majority of customers will invariably choose the cheapest service and NOT the best service. That old saying that you can have 2 of the 3 following items is still pretty accurate: 1 cheap 2 good 3 fast I agree wholeheartedly with this statement.
Customer Service is an afterthought. Its one of the first things that are shipped overseas because its easier to pay someone $3 a day to answer the phones over there and not pay them insurance. As opposed to over here where you are paying $18 an hour + full benefits.
Would people pay for better support? I agree with another poster when I say that if people had more of a choice of providers, then it would be easily measurable. As it is right now, its not. If you only have one high speed internet provider, you really can't measure customer service on that. | |
| | nasadude
join:2001-10-05
Rockville, MD
·Comcast
| said by TKJunkMail :More/better customer service COSTS a lot more money(warm bodies being the most expensive corporate cost). And, so far at least, US customers are NOT willing to pay more for better service. ... that's funny, it looks to me like US telcos are NOT willing to pay more for better customer service. They obviously recognize this as an issue or we wouldn't have had this news post.
according to your comment, it seems you believe customers must rise up and shout "charge us more money so we can have better customer service" before anything gets done.
this seems to be more of a PR issue for them; if the market were truly competitive, people would be voting with their feet and the company might decide to shave a point or two off their profit for better customer service to keep people from leaving.
I'm guessing they are worried about congress mandating a minimum level of service, or they wouldn't be doing or saying anything. | |
| | 
footballdude
Premium
join:2002-08-13
Imperial, MO
| said by TKJunkMail :When given the choice, a large majority of customers will invariably choose the cheapest service and NOT the best service. Which explains the popularity of VOIP. | |
| | 
Jovi
join:2000-02-24
Mount Joy, PA
·T-Mobile US
| said by TKJunkMail :More/better customer service COSTS a lot more money(warm bodies being the most expensive corporate cost). And, so far at least, US customers are NOT willing to pay more for better service. When given the choice, a large majority of customers will invariably choose the cheapest service and NOT the best service. That old saying that you can have 2 of the 3 following items is still pretty accurate: 1 cheap 2 good 3 fast With Roberts comparing Cable to Dsl as a BMW/Hyundai, I should expect top of the line customer service, fast performance and issues fixed with unsurpassed efficiency and timeliness, no?
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"Where's my coffee? Oh. I guess it's my turn to make it."  | |
| | 
JF Mezies
@teksavvy.com
| The way things are looking in Canada either you get a dedicated line with at least 99.99 percent uptime guaranteed or you get dial-from America. In Canada there is no in-between. Outsourcing to India is akin to going to the zoo and asking the zoo animals for tech help. | |
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karlmarx
join:2006-09-18
iraq
·Fairpoint Communic..
| The fix is to de-esablish the american corprateism system Corporations are unelected bodies with an internal hierarchy; their purpose is to exert control over the social and economic life of their respective areas. Thus, for example, a cable corporation would be a cartel composed of all the business leaders in the cable industry, coming together to discuss a common policy on prices and wages. When the political and economic power of a country rests in the hands of such groups, then a corporatist system is in place.
That exactly describes the current political system we have. THERE IS NO COMPETITION. You can choose carrier A, or Carrier B, but they work TOGETHER to maximize profit, and minimize costs. Why do you think every time you call comcast, you end up talking to 'Bob', who just happened to grow up in New Dehli?
The solution is to do what other countries do. NATIONALIZE the infrastructure, and let companies COMPETE to provide services. That results in lower costs, and better services, because lets be honest. The only reason most people won't drop their provider, is simply becuase THEY HAVE NO CHOICE.
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The happiest countries are the most secular. The struggle AGAINST corporations is the struggle FOR humanity! | |
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TKJunkMail
Enjoy the sun
Premium
join:2002-03-03
Avalon, NJ
·Sprint Mobile Broa..
·Comcast
| Re: The fix is to de-esablish the american corprateism system said by karlmarx : Why do you think every time you call comcast, you end up talking to 'Bob', who just happened to grow up in New Dehli? You gave a real bad example. Comcast customer service is done almost all in the US, with a small contingent in Canada.
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My BLOG .. .. Internet News .. .. My Web Page | |
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DrModem
Premium
join:2006-10-19
USA | Re: The fix is to de-esablish the american corprateism system Dehli Bob is with AT&T. | |
| | | | Thaler
Premium
join:2004-02-02
Encino, CA | Re: The fix is to de-esablish the american corprateism system I thought Bob was just in Florida?
I dunno. Somehow Florida seems to be the home turf to everyone w/ a heavy accent who is providing me "tech support" that day. | |
| majortom1029
join:2006-10-19
Lindenhurst, NY
| only way this will work The only way this will happen is if, No out of country call centers, NO time limits for how long the rep can talk to a person, and give them the ability to actually help.
TExample , Power to learn customers (schools and libraries0 with cablevision get local based support with no call timelimits. The rest business and home get stuck with part time teens reading off of a script with 5 min time limits.
Everybody should have the same support that schools and libraries get with cablevision. | |
| 
TechieZero
Tools Are Using Me
Premium
join:2002-01-25
Wesley Chapel, FL
|  Serves Them Right
You reap what you sow Verizon. | |
| | | MrSpock29
join:2008-02-09
Hammonton, NJ
| Re: Demand For Quarterly Profit Growth said by WiseOldNerd :An earlier poster mentioned that the call for increased profits each quarter impacts customer service. I believe that that pressure by "analysts" is one of the major faults in our total economy. When companies are totally focused on growing profits every quarter, they lose sight of the long term. Infrastructure is ignored, customer service is ignored, common sense is ignored. If companies started telling all Wall Street "analysts" to F**K OFF and managed their businesses for stable, long term growth we would all be much better off and maybe service in all areas would begin to improve. This is a rather simplistic, and unrealistic view w.r.t. analysts. Companies do want/need long term stable growth, because in the end, analysts are often wrong anyway. In fact, Wall Street is the REASON for better products and services overall, because that's where the pressure to perform comes from. Why do you think so many companies started going private after Sarbanes/Oxley (aside from cost)? Threat of lawsuits and the pressure to perform are 2 other things removed that can stress a company.
So if a company were to treat analysts like that, and you get the analyst community against you, see how much they will be willing to help when capital needs to be raised, or whatever.
Companies that are only worried about the next quarter end up ultimately paying a huge price, and that is falling behind the competition, and stock price declines.
Also, it isn't necessarily quarterly increases that must be shown, but it's EXPECTATIONS that matter. If a company doesn't meet or exceed, that's a problem many times. Verizon has publicly said they don't expect fios to be profitable for even a few more years. But everyone knows it, and those who were critical of the business decision to move forward with it a few years ago, are becoming fewer and farther between. | |
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DaveNJ
No Fear
join:1999-09-01
New Jersey
·Comcast
·Patriot Media
| The customer is last. I know from calling various call centers, they treat you like how dare you call. Its obvious, regardless of what they say to you. Corporate America doesn't get it. The small company feel is what people want, yet a large corporation. Why this isnt implemented is beyond me, because local service, and local support is what is really needed. Not someone reading a script with a timer. So you have to call back 8-9 times.
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“Say no to fear. Don’t let anxiety crush your life. Live life free and unfettered.”
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Chiyo
Save Me Konata-Chan
Premium
join:2003-02-20
Minneapolis, MN
clubs:
·Comcast
| Re: The customer is last. Last night I called Comcast because I had the 50 meg package installed. I'm only getting 35mb tops. I found out hte tech installing it never did a speed test did a bare minimum and left.
So I called and asked for help I went to the modem's page and asked for the login details I was told.
"You don't need to be in there you can break stuff" I said exscuse me being in there can help me troubleshoot my connection issue before having to call you. She said that I still couldn't have it, she was very deffensive and seemed angry I asked.
In the end she blamed everthing on the equipment I had running. I was never given a single detail about my connection she said "fantstic"
I felt realy let down I'm paying a large amount of money and treated like shit way to go comcast. | |
| | Kearnstd
Elf Wizard
Premium
join:2002-01-22
Mullica Hill, NJ | ouch the doc3 modems have a login? no more »192.168.100.1 and instant access =x
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[65 Arcanist]Filan(High Elf) Zone: Broadband Reports | |
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en102
Canadian, eh?
join:2001-01-26
Valencia, CA
·RoadRunner Cable
·DSL EXTREME
| C.S. is limited due to levels of management The vast majority of large businesses all suck when it comes to customer service. This is typically due to the silo mentality of corporations in an attempt to make things efficient for outsourcing.
Eg. I currently have a dispute involved with my car dealership as they made a mistake on my paperwork (their error). Now they want me to come in an 'lose' 9 months of warranty service... and be happy about it. Its taken a large amount of effort on my part to have them at least pro rate the warranty, but they want it only as 'store credit' - BS... Small Claims court time.
Until it reaches upper management, its not going to have any impact, as each layer of management can only approve a certain amount of credit.
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Canada = Hollywood North | |
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Millenniumle
join:2007-11-11
Fredonia, NY
| ... Competition really is the key. At least good competition anyway. In my little hometown we had lousy cable, only 30 channels. Then the phone company got the idea of starting their own cable service. Suddenly we had 70+ channels on basic with crazy amounts of extras available with expanded packages. It killed the phone company's plans.
Then the phone company introduced ADSL, beating Time Warner at bringing in Road Runner. It was priced out of this world until very recently. $200/month for 1.5 Mb and about $100/month for 1 Mb. Road runner obviously began eating into their customer base because they finally dropped prices radically.
I do have to say though, we get great customer service from both (local offices). Tech support is nothing short of a work of art at the phone company. One call directly to support, 24/7. Sometimes a wait on hold, but always answered and always solved on the spot. They even update their calling system on the spot as needed. Recently DSL was out and a call to Tech brought a message indicating they had an outage and were working on it. All I needed to know. I didn't have to mess around with my router/modem wondering if the problem was my end. | |
| Gardener
Premium
join:2006-10-19
Burnaby, BC
·TELUS
| It's not just telecom If you think telecom support is bad, you should try working in the travel industry. Rampant incompetence, deliberately misleading information, customers (and agents) treated simply as a revenue source, and - sorry, I rant, but the lack of good customer support is so inefficient I wonder why anyone tolerates it. The smaller businesses are much better than the big ones, which are infested with bean-counters and are not particularly user-friendly. Hey, this sounds just like the telecom industry. Seems to be the same kind of problem, perhaps endemic in overgrown monopolies regardless of field.
A big business that compartmentalizes into smaller pseudo-businesses can provide better service, but the monolithic giant that doesn't will make more money. Guess which prevails? | |
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neko
All Hail Canada
Premium
join:2006-08-11
canada
 ·Callcentric
·Cogeco Cable
·Future Nine Corpor..
·TekSavvy Solutions..
1 edit | Teksavvy rocks! I realise most of the responses are from US customers of various ISP's, but if I may...
The original article mentioned *MY* ISP: Teksavvy, based in Chatham, Ontario, Canada.
I swear, guys - If Teksavvy offered service to the USA, you would be over the moon at the fantastic tech support, customer service, low price & all round brilliant service from this company.
They have a gold rating on DSLR, & it's well merited.
Example:
I called up to have a custom reverse DNS on my regular DSL connection. Their response? "Sure, no problem - What do you want?".
They run a direct support forum right here on DSLR, the techs post in the regular Teksavvy forum - Hell, even the CEO posts regularly!
Teksavvy have also branched out into offering home 'phone service. Again, a fantastic support environment.
I really feel for some of you guys in the states that have poor support & service from your ISP's.
Teksavvy have a fanatical support, but it's well warranted. They really are 'the real deal".
To me, the latest announcements from various US ISP's are just paying lip service to customers. I really do wish Teksavvy was available in the USA. They would make a killing!
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...virtue gives you heraldry. | |
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GlobalMind
Domino Dude, POWER Systems Guy
Premium
join:2001-10-29
Hollywood, FL
| Won't hold my breath Hey AT&T the first thing you can fix is your online billing system.
I haven't been able to pay my bill online for something like 8 months now, since the site times out continually.
So yea you either send a check or you pay on the phone or sign up for a bill pay from your bank.
Still crappy service. Thanks guys.
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TheGlobalMind.com | Speed costs money. How fast do you want to go? | Trust the instinct to the end, though you can render no reason. Ralph Waldo Emerson
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| tlbepson
Premium
join:2002-02-09
Reston, VA
| customer service reps not allowed to do a good job >>moonpuppy: No one wants to hear "I'm sorry you are unhappy" from a customer service drone who cannot or will not fix a problem whether or not they have the power to do so.
Having recently switched from Comcast broadband to Verizon DSL, my experience with Verizon "customer service" is not a pleasant one.
I am hearing impaired and use a special phone to make calls and the Verizon phone directory is just a nightmare for someone like me. I've called twice--I gave up on live chat!
The first call took 1 hour and 5 transfers--each time I'm transferred I have to explain again that I'm hearing impaired and that there will be a delay before I can respond to what is said because I need to wait for the speech-to-text conversion (via a communication assistant using speech recognition software) and then read the text. That gets really old the 3rd time you have to repeat it.
The second call I made took 2 hours and 11 transfers!
It's ridiculous that Verizon does not allow their customer service agents to actually do their job. It's so pointlessly fragmented or maybe it's deliberate so that the caller will give up in frustration? I've had a similar experience with Office Depot so it's not limited to Verizon.
The very best customer service experience I've ever had was with Staples online customer service. Staples allows their customer service agents to actually make decisions and they are given the power to resolve issues. It was so refreshing that I now make a point to shop at Staples either online or local stores.
I hope never, ever to have to call Verizon again. | |
| lonewoolf47
join:2001-04-20
Denver, CO | Customer service It all comes down to competition. If you have two or three Cable Companies to choose from it would be an entirely different story. I don't understand why it is set up which allow these monopolies. | |
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jsmarkbrown
Premium
join:2002-12-16
Baltimore, MD
| Who had the advantage when this war started? Verizon had to build an entirely new infrastructure, going from copper to fiber, while Comcast' changes were not as costly (not having to change their cables). I'm sure Verizon has a whole different set of problems (investors screaming in one ear while consumers scream in the other). I don't envy the guys in the middle. Meanwhile, smaller companies who will most likely use copper until it crumbles to dust are offering some very nice package prices on telephone, internet, and (in some cases) satelite. I haven't heard too much about outsourcing being mentioned. I'm not sure what else can be done to cut costs. | |
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Froggy
@teksavvy.com | Telecom Giants Try To Fix Dismal Customer Service One recurring theme i seem to read about on these support hotlines is "thick accents". | |
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jsmarkbrown
Premium
join:2002-12-16
Baltimore, MD
1 edit | Knowledge and truth, grasshopper Is this about the title of this thread, or a few conspiracy crazed consumers flying off the handle. Bottom line - corporations want to make money. They don't want to do anything that could be seen as selfish, uncaring, betraying, etc. Problem is, somebody started slinging mud and once that happens the real issues start becoming clouded. The game is an easy one. Charge as much as you can and when your customer's start complaining about their slow speeds and crummy customer service (see, that's what happens when you give crappy service, you overtax techsupport), you then throttle it forward enough where they feel the problem's been fixed. Selling bandwidth, that's all it is. Oh yeah, and also thinking up nifty names for your "new technology". | |
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linicx
Caveat Emptor
Premium
join:2002-12-03
United State
·CenturyLink
| Monopoly! In the last 25 years every little town I lived in had one cable company and one cable company. It's overpriced. I'm currently playing $100 for forced bundling. Service is horrid and so is the product. The current cable company charges $100 to hook up a modem, It's almost worth the price to watch them tell me to fire up my pc and pull up IE. I have a Mac.
The monopoly does not allow competition. It makes no difference what FCC says as they have no authority to enforce anything. They prattle on and hope congress does something; usually it doesn't.
Over the years I've had ten or more ISPs. Only one had great CS and didn't tell customers it was their fault when the company servers were down.
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Mac: No windows, No gates, Apple inside | |
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Most customers have nowhere to run to. So where's the fix?
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