A Day in the Life: Customer Service Volume 53

Me: This is La Tache, how can I help you?

Customer: Can I just call you Jane?

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

????????????????

(My Mind) Me: Sure, Dick.

(My Mind) Customer: My name isn't Dick?

(My Mind) Me: Well, mine isn't Jane.

Only in a perfect world... ha!

<fortunately, as you now read this...I am in my new position! yahoooo!!>

A Day in the Life: Customer Service Volume 40

40 posts of just silly customer service issues/requests?! 

Wow!

So I got an email from this potential customer:

Customer Email: "What is your monthly rate?"

So with this email, I sent the canned answer to direct the customer to our website with our subscription rates.

Apparently, that wasn't good enough for him...

(And after the fact, I would be a bit frustrated if I was him because I guess on the site we don't post monthly rates, just annual and higher and we ask customers to call in for prices on Monthly rates - which I didn't realize...

Oops!)

Customer Email: "No monthly rate?"

So I sent him him the monthly rates for the printed edition because he didn't specify otherwise.

That sent him over the edge.

Customer Email: "This lack of a answer is just why I dropped my subscription. Simple question which was what is the monthly rate for the iPad edition can not be answered in 3 attempts. 

Don't bother no longer interested. "

Ok, SIR, you never said you wanted the rate for the iPad version. 

Chillax.

What the heck!?

Like I said, I could understand his tart email #2, totally get it!

But really, with the last/final email?!

ha!

WhatEVERRRR!

A Day in the Life: Customer Service Volume 36

Happy Monday to All!

So I was a little offended by a customer...

Customer: What is your name, again?

Me: La Tache

Customer: Spell it

Me: L.a.T.a.c.h.e.

Customer: Where are you? You must not be in the United States. You must be in India, or somewhere...

Me: We are in Los Angeles, how can I help you today?

What a buffoon!

Why would you assume I am in a different country by my name?

Isn't the US a melting pot?

Oh because your name is is Bulgarian does that mean you are in Bulgaria?

I mean, obviously...!

And furthermore, don't be rude to me.

I understand that there are a lot of people who have a grudge against big businesses who have outsourced the call centers overseas, I get that

There is still no reason for you to be rude to the people who answer the phone!

Anyway...

That was my rant

Thanks for reading :-)

I wish you all a Happy Happy Monday!

A Day in the Life: Education Services Day 5

So, as you know I work for a newspaper. We have 5-day a week subscriptions and we have 1-day a week subscriptions.

The 1-Day a week subscription is for the Monday paper and it is delivered the Saturday before. (i.e. Monday 4/16 paper was delivered to customers on 4/14 -- most of the time and depending on their delivery route, Saturday is the earliest it would be delivered.

Now, in my new position I process email complaints about people missing papers etc.

Someone submitted a complaint that they missed the Friday, April 13 issue. I looked up his account and found that he is a 1-day a week subscriber, which means he, of course, missed the paper because, well he only gets the Monday paper.

I responded to his email and told him that we couldn't process his request because he is a Monday Special Subscriber only and this is the response I got (verbatim)

"The Monday special edition comes out on Friday night and is delivered on Saturday. Are you brain-dead? Change the request and give me credit for the Monday edition, please. "

WHAT?

Am I brain dead?

Really?

THAT was unnecessary!

I had to wait a moment, or 10 before I could reply to his email to make sure that I didn't get myself fired.

How rude!

A Day in the Life: Customer Service Volume 29

A customer called because he was having difficulty accessing our website.

He started talking and I, misunderstood what he said, so I interrupted him to clarify what he meant.

He whistled at me and said, "is it my turn to talk yet?"

Ok, have any of you been whistled at on the phone?!

It is probably the worst sound...um, ever!

I do know that I was wrong for interrupting, however, I wanted to stop him before he got ahead of me and I would have to make him go back.

I couldn't believe that he did that!

Fortunately, at the end of the call he apologized...

So that was nice, but still...rude!

A Day in the Life: Customer Service Volume 28

Me: Do you have any one in mind who may enjoy a free trial of our newspaper?

Customer: What do I get out of it?

Me: You get to spread the great word of our paper?

Customer: Well if there was some incentive for me, then I have someone, if there isn't then I don't.

Me: Ok, well there isn't, so have a nice day!

What a butt head!

Ha! 

A Day in the Life: Customer Service Volume 23

Customer: "I have a PhD, and I can't even understand your directions"

My Thoughts: "Well, if you are so smart and have a PhD, maybe you should know how to use a computer!?"

Some people are so rude!

He was my longest phone call: 40 minutes!

Not okay!

And I find out that he is a retired dentist...

...hmm...yeah, I ok!

A Day in the Life: Customer Service Volume 18

I get very upset when men or women make sexist comments

Customer: I didn't get my paper on Monday or today

Me: Ok, I will credit your account for the missed issues. Your new expiration date is XYZ. I will also send a message to the carrier and let them know that you were missed.

Customer: Well, I am wondering if the carrier is delivering the paper and it is being stolen?

Me: Where does the carrier usually leave the paper?

Customer: In the lobby. I live in an apartment building. You know what, it must be the carrier because I live in a building that is mainly women and they wouldn't be interested in reading a business publication

Honestly, it took every ounce of control to not hang up on the man.

Why would you say that 1) in general and 2) to a woman?!

What an ignorant fool

Thanks for reading my rant...if you made it this far :-)

Happy Tuesday!

Sheesh...

Poor Customer Service

Back at the end of September I was playing Tennis with Rich.

Read story here.

I fell.

I hurt my knee.

Pretty much, I was just trying to walk it off.

I was avoiding the doctor.

My knee is still swollen and with deductibles met, I decided to bite the bullet and see an orthopedic doctor.

I mean, I need to take care of my legs/knees - so I should take good care of them!

I found a doctor through my insurance website {I want to make sure that I see a preferred provider}

I called to make an appointment, made it and was looking forward to the appointment.

The (what I assume to be) office assistant, Martha, called the day before the appointment to let me know that she confirmed my insurance and that I had not met the deductible. So I asked to call her back because I wanted to call my insurance company.

Martha: So, do you want to cancel your appointment or what?

Me: Can I call you back?Martha: Well, do you want to cancel?

Me: Can I call you back? 

I called the insurance and they told me that we had met the deductible, at the end of Novemeber. So I called the clinic back and asked to speak with Martha to clarify. She was extremely rude to me. She told me that the insurance told me the wrong information and argued with me over the phone. She, reluctantly, offered to call the insurance back and made sure to add that the insurance would tell her the EXACT same thing that they told her earlier in the day.

Me: I just got off of the phone with insurance and they told me we met the deductible.

Martha: They told me that you hadn't

We proceeded to argue about what the insurance said to each of us and then she said:

Martha: I guess I can call them back but they are going to tell me the same thing they told me this morning.

We hung up the phone and then I came to my senses and realized that I didn't want to go there even if my insurance proved to be good. And then I thought to myself

Wait, I want her to to call

I want her to realize she is wrong

Does that make me a bad person?

She was supposed to call me back once she spoke to insurance. I was getting antsie, so I called her back before she called me and told her I wanted to cancel and told her that she was extremely rude and that I would take my business elsewhere. She didn't even acknowledge that I called her out.

Me: I would like to cancel

Martha: Oh! So you want to cancel now?

Me: Yes, you were extremely rude and I do not want to take that and I will take my business elsewhere

Martha: Ok, Sorry, Bye

And she hung up!

I was shocked!

I get bad days...

We all have them...

That doesn't mean you can talk to people this way...

They got a bad review on yelp...!

Thank you social media!

I hope you all are having a great day!

How disappointing...

As many of you know, I am not one to do a lot of ranting and raving on this blog...I don't think it is necessary....however...I have a rant for a post. 

I just found out that someone we know lost someone close to them to suicide. {yes, I know...6 degrees of separation}

This particular type of story really hits home for me for reasons that I don't care to share...

Here is my rant:

{if you are offended easily...please navigate away from this page for the time being..if you decide to stay, please excuse my profanity...I don't usually swear :-/}

My heart hurts.

What kind of a world do we live in that people think that they can run away from their problems by ending their life. 

What selfish people. 

This makes me tremendously sad and I can't even believe that we are living in a time and a place and a world that so many people are resorting to that. 

Bullshit that they have no one to turn to and no one who loves the. 

Bullshit that they are in so much pain and going through so much suffering that they think that it is OKAY to end the life that God gave them and that Jesus Christ died for. 

Bullshit. 

And then to be so selfish as to put other people through all of this pain and misery. To make then have to live with this hurt, this pain, this sorrow, this loneliness, this image burned into their brain for the rest of their lives because someone was so selfish as to be so open and public. I don't believe that anyone can be going through something so awful that talking to someone wouldn't help. What the hell is wrong with people in our society and in our community. 

Now to talk about potential reasons why people resort to suicide: 

how can people be so mean and be so cruel to someone else that it makes them feel like they are alone and cannot make it through this tough time? 

Where do these bullies find this kind of ammunition? 

Does it really make them feel better knowing that they hurt someone else? 

This makes me have little to no faith in people. 

I am so disgusted with how people are handling their issues and their upsets and their hurts. They are being so selfish by making so many other people have to go through the pain that they are going through and by taking a life that isn't theirs to take. I am beyond myself with hurt and frustration! And I am shocked that this is what people resort to. 

I think that this kind of selfish act is a cry for help and attention and they don't  understand what the consequences of their actions are.

If you or any one you know are going through these terrible thoughts, please seek out someone who can help you. I promise life is worth living and you will be grateful that you lived it!

{I am not much of a stubborn person except when it comes to this topic...I won't budge, so please don't try to sway my opinion.}

Again, I apologize for such a depressing post....hopefully no more of these for a while!