Rant- Yuppies and customer service (or lack thereof)

Rant Mode ON!

I truly want to be kinder and gentler, and I am impressed with the ability of today's "Yuppies" (young, up and coming executives).  EXCEPT, their knowledge of customer service.

Many my age or even close or retired want nothing to do with high tech items, particularly electronics, but for watching TV.

I have previously lectured that any customer expects four things- 1) Price; 2) Delivery; Quality; and Service. 

Price and delivery can be shopped for at Walmart, Sears, Penny's, Target, etc.  If a quality defect is found, the customer can return the item, stand in line at the service desk, and arrange replacement with not too much trouble.   Remote customer service must be searched out and, if a number or a site description is found, just you try to contact a person of ability to assist you in your attendant problem(s).  Virtually everybody I know has experienced the long telephone waits to obtain a real live person on the telephone through the "systems" that have replaced real live operators. 

Yeah, I am old and grouchy but I try to be the conservative Christian that I declare I am on the introductory remarks of this blog.  It becomes more difficult as I get older and grouchier.

I called Avis a few years ago.  The people there had no realization of Robert Townsend,  former Chairman of the Avis board in 1970, when he had his best selling book, Up the Organization" published.  In it he touted the telephone operator or receptionist, normally a capable and pleasantly acceptable looking person (female mostly).   I plagiarize that he said- You can spend five minutes with any of my vice-presidents, and you will know if they are qualified.  They could perform in a cubicle.   I would make the operator- receptionist area look like a turkish harem.
They must know where the people are and get the caller and the person on "live" ASAP!

In addition to my hard earned money spent on products, I have also spent many hours on the phone trying to reach a live person to help in a customer service problem.  I must say:  The Yuppies don't even care.  There are alternative services or products, but very few know the value of giving real live service to real live customers .  

Bring back the operator- receptionists and get the job done right!

Maybe it is the Secular Progressives versus the Traditionalists, Bill O'Reilly so aptly dilineates in his great 2006 book: "Culture Warriors".  I am on the side of traditionalists such as Townsend and O'Reilly! 

SamKat  aka Sam Kegley

800 numbers ... Thanks good friend, Doug Brooke!

This is valuable.  I am so disatisfied with most all customer service today.  The yuppies wghio have replaced us old dogs of industry and marketing seem to forget about customer seervice in the intwerest of less expensive 'phone systems'.  Give me an operator(s) to get to the right person in reasonable time.  Our entrepreneur benefactor, W.C. Denison knew that so well.  

Sam Kegley



Subj: FW: 800-number information



I'll pass this along, however, personally I have been getting US reps for a long time so perhaps US companies are getting the message,




This is good to know----I have struggled to understand people----don't want to ever be rude but----GEEZ I want to have a decent phone conversation!!!!


Sounds like a pretty good idea to me.

800-number information

Any time you call an 800 number (for a credit card, banking, charter

communications, health and other insurance, computer help desk, etc)

and you find that you're talking to a foreign customer service

representative (perhaps in India, Philippines, etc), please consider doing the following:

After you connect and you realize that the customer service

representative is not from the USA (you can always ask if you are not

sure about the accent), please, very politely (this is not about

trashing other cultures) say, "I'd like to speak to a customer service

representative in the United States of America."

The rep might suggest talking to his/her manager, but, again, politely

say, "Thank you, but I'd like to speak to a customer service

representative in the USA." YOU WILL BE IMMEDIATELY CONNECTED TO A REP

IN THE USA. That's the rule and the LAW..

It takes less than one minute to have your call re-directed to the USA.

Tonight when I got redirected to a USA rep, I asked again to make sure

- and yes, she was from Fort Lauderdale.

Imagine what would happen if every US citizen insisted on talking to

only US phone reps from this day on.

Imagine how that would ultimately impact the number of US jobs that

would need to be created ASAP..

If I tell 10 people to consider this and you tell 10 people to

consider doing this - see what I mean...it becomes an exercise in

viral marketing 101.

Remember - the goal here is to restore jobs back here at home - not to

be abrupt or rude to a foreign phone rep. You may even get correct

answers, good advice, and solutions to your problem - in real English.

If you agree, please tell 10 people you know, and ask them to tell 10

people they know....etc...etc