I am sorry I am sure you have more important things

[jackfaire]

This is about good customers versus bad.

What went wrong that a customer calling in with a legitimate issue apologizes profusely for wasting my time.

While a customer with an imaginary complaint wants me to call in a nuclear airstrike to deal with his issue?

I also get, "This is an emergency" translates to "I didn't pay my bill"

"This probably isn't an emergency" translates to "Holy fuck get out now"

What's disturbing is how constant it is like people aren't allowed to be upset when the situation calls for it but when it isn't necessary people are freaking out like their biscuits are burnin' Yosemite Sam style.

Is this something that carries over all walks of life or is just something about a call center that makes people backwards?

[bara]

If i understand what you are saying.

People with actual problems want them fixed. Generally these people are going to be nicer since they understand that its a lot easier to fix a problem when the person isnt being stressed by useless blather and the fact that 'you catch more flies with honey than vinegar'.

People with made up problems, or problems caused by themselves (such as not paying their bill for 2 months or dropping/throwing a cell phone into a pool), try to hide that fact by yelling, screaming, throwing fits much like a three year old not wanting to go to bed on time and they hope that if they make enough noise you will give them what they want to get them off the phone.

A three year old I can forgive this behavior. A thirty year old, not so much.

Sadly, companies for the most part do not care what sort of abuse call center agents, or pretty much any of their line employees have to face. They just want their customers to be happy and want to have nice reviews when those poll places do their polls.

[mikoyan29]

Quite honestly, I think it is time that companies start turning against these abusive customers. In the long run they end up costing everyone more money because eventually a company has to start making up for those losses. Sadly, we are being conditioned to raise as big of stink as possible because we can get free stuff.

[bara]

In the long run they end up costing everyone more money because eventually a company has to start making up for those losses. stuff.

Exactly, the problem is they dont look at the long run, they only look at the quarterly reports.

[Glados]

A few years ago a major company fired almost 100,000 customers for abusive behavior and excessive discounts requested. They lost subscribers but their profits went up. Yet, sadly, no one seems to have learned from this.

[Seshat]

Is this something that carries over all walks of life or is just something about a call center that makes people backwards?

Next time you're in an emergency room, watch the triage queue.

Or watch a pharmacy queue.

[jackfaire]

My company doesn't cater to everyone. By regulation all customers are treated the same and the SCs don't get special treatment by my customers.

I am not talking about the nice customers I am talking about the victimized customers like the ones that act like I am about to yell at them for wasting my time.

They are like abuse victims who apologize for "making you hit them with your shoe"

[SkullKing]

People who are polite and genuinely care about orders, will try to not cause unnecessary bother.

People who don´t care about others, will make ridiculous demands, and blame others for their problems.

[Hyena Dandy]

Being the type who would probably apologize, I'm guessing the apologizing ones are the type who wait until they know they can't solve an issue on their own before calling, so the types worried about wasting your time will only ever call if it's an emergency situation. While the types who freak out over minor hings call over anything.

[blas87]

I gave my cable company very low ratings when they had a phone survey. Because, well, they suck and their phone associates are rude as hell and outsourced and only trained to upgrade services and send techs at $70 an hour when all you call to do is ask if you can have your modem reset.

A few weeks later, I get a letter in the mail that my service charges are going up $5 a month.

Where's my freebies and everything else that the whiners get?!

[protege]

Is this something that carries over all walks of life or is just something about a call center that makes people backwards?

Some of it could be blamed on those automated menus that many companies have now. I don't know about the rest of you, but having to deal with one...and getting directed in circles just pisses me off. Especially, after reaching whatever department I need...I get cut off, because the system is borked. Then I have to call again, hope that I remember the previous choices...and that when I finally do get someone, I don't have to repeat the sequence.

Also irritating, is that when I "press 2 for a rep," I sometimes get the system that insists on giving me my balance...then hangs up on me after I get it. How does that help if I have a question about billing, or if someone has stolen my card?

That's why, after someone got my card number (some crackhead in Poughkeepsie used it to call Australia back in 2007 ), I wasn't exactly happy when I had to deal with that system. In fact, after multiple calls to resolve it...I actually screamed "Put a fucking rep on this goddamn call right now." End result? "USAA, this is Lisa, how can I help you?" I actually told her that yes, I sounded pissed, because I was. I didn't take it out on *her* though. Their automated system sucked...and she actually agreed with me.

With that said, I can see *why* some people get pissed when dealing with employees over the phone. I just wanted to get my credit card problem taken care of. I didn't want to spend a half-hour of calls. I can handle being put on hold and other delays. Shit happens. But, when I have to waste my time calling around because *your* phone system is shit...I have a problem with that. Still, I didn't chew out the rep, nor did I demand freebies for my time--all I wanted was my problem taken care of.

Companies install those things to 'save' money. However, it costs more in the long run--pissed-off customers (who occasionally go elsewhere), stress in employees, and even 'rewards' to appease customers to stay. Kinda self-defeating, don't you think?

[Silverharp]

Where's my freebies and everything else that the whiners get?!

Don't be too upset. More companies are doing away with the "OMG you say you gonna cancel i give you free shit DON'T GO!!!!!"

[HYHYBT]

My favorite, and I don't remember all the relevant details, but I once sat on hold an hour and a half past when the place I'd called closed, best I could tell because the person I'd been transferred to had left a gew minutes early.

[Andara Bledin]

Were you on hold that entire time?

I can't imagine staying on hold without some contact for more than 10 minutes except as an exercise to see how long it'll last while I'm doing other things.

^-.-^

[HYHYBT]

Yes, I was on hold the whole time. With one of those "please stay on the line. Calls are answered in the order they're placed" things playing every 45 seconds or so. I figured that they *might* still be working on other people ahead of me, and I knew I *definitely* wouldn't get anywhere if I hung up and called back because of the time.

I can be stubborn, sometimes... but obviously not as stubborn as an empty desk.