I've been in your position; no hard feelings.
wrprice
@wrprice
Best posts made by wrprice
Latest posts made by wrprice
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RE: It's Comcastic!
I'll let this be my last comment.
Upon reflecting on the perspective offered here, I've changed my mind. It was and is never my intention to be a jerk to CSRs. In this case, I percieved that my questions weren't being addressed and that I was "stuck" in the script unable to talk with the human on the other end (except for what the script allowed). While I still find that aspect extremely frustrating, in this case you're right that I wasn't patient enough.
I'm not above admitting that I was wrong; perception trumps intention every time. I don't know if I'll be able to send an apology to Kathleen, but I'll give it an honest shot. Sorry to any CSRs and other WTF'ers out there.
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RE: It's Comcastic!
@MasterPlanSoftware said:
But you just pushed her right around and wouldn't cooperate.
Did I say 'no' immediately? No. I asked a question. And she could've responded to my question of how sending a signal to a box in this situation would help. Is the customer asking a question considered "push[ing] her right around" and not cooperating? Instead of addressing my question, she went directly to the next card. This would lead to a technician coming out to my residence and a charge on my account because he wouldn't find anything. (The service managed to be restored w/out such a visit, FYI.) That Kathleen was trained to go to the next card isn't the point. I was at the mercy of the script and had to address the "step" I was on.
At that point, yeah, I was resistive as a result of my immediate experience with Comcast's customer service policies. That makes me an asshole? Fine, I acknowlege receiving your opinion.
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RE: It's Comcastic!
@MasterPlanSoftware said:
Based on what? You had no evidence that it was anything outside your home.
You think, rather, that the simultaneous failure of three otherwise independent devices (cable box, analog tuner in TV, cable modem) on three different cable circuits indicates that the cable box needs a reset signal?
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RE: It's Comcastic!
@MasterPlanSoftware said:
I would say the fact that you automatically assume that there is a regional outage and won't let her do her job (no matter how ridiculous it may seem to you) makes you an asshole.
Would you, honestly, take apart your entertainment center to get to the tiny serial number sticker on the bottom of the cable box in that situation? Seriously? (This is despite the WTF of having all my account information but not the serial number of their own box?) The cable box isn't sitting on top of the TV waiting to be flipped over, but no one asked how much of a hassle that would be, huh?
@MasterPlanSoftware said:
There is no excuse for calling a level 1 helpdesk person and being rude to them. They are just doing their jobs. And complaining she follows her script is stupid as well. That is her job.
I don't consider trying to derail the script as being rude, particularly when it's clearly unhelpful. I'm not complaining about Kathleen; I'm sure she did exactly what she was trained to do: the script. My complaint (and my opinion of the WTF) is the script itself: where it suggests resetting the cable box in response to an outage. From Kathleen's perspective, her job is to follow the script. From my perspective, Comcast's job is to listen to the customer and understand when a particular script might not be appropriate.
Both sides presumed to know more than they did. I'm at a loss because I don't have access to their information systems. They're at a loss because they're sitting in a call center halfway across the country and don't have my situational awareness. We're both at a loss because the process uses a script that believes it can account for all possible scenarios. I assumed I have more technical knowlege than the CSR (having done broadcast TV engineering). Comcast's policies exclude the possibility that (despite some opinions here) I'm not a complete idiot.
I'm sure, eventually, we would've reached the point in the script where it indicates a non-local equipment or signal issue. Unfortunately, my chat session was intended as a courtesy to inform them of a potential outage. How long would it take to wade through however many levels of script there were to get to that point? I'm sorry CSRs have to put up with such unscripted behavior because their employers have enforced such a system. But Comcast isn't paying ME to use that system, I'm merely left no other choice. A simple person-to-person dialogue without immediately invoking a scripted session would've allowed Kathleen to offer to start a checklist or simply note my service complaint. I could've made the choice and left it at that (saving everyone time); there was no need to go immediately into the reset-the-box script, making me feel like I was talking to a computer instead of a person. THAT was my complaint in this thread and source of additional frustration.
No WTF here? Ah, well, at least you've helped me vent rather than directing it at Kathleen. ;-) Thank you all for that.
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RE: It's Comcastic!
@MasterPlanSoftware said:
Have you actually read the transcript you posted?
Sure did. Including the parts where:
- I answer every part of the CSR's initial questions.
- I indicate conditions at my location that indicate a simultaneous failure of all cable-related devices within my apartment.
- My frustration levels rise because the CSR is proceeding down a resolution path that could not yeild results -- wasting my time and their's -- to the point where I ask a question challenging such logic.
I'm sorry that the question wasn't phrased in a more polite fashion, but at least I didn't resort to name-calling during the first "conversation" with a stranger. I continued:
- Explicitly stating that I did not need (perhaps I should've used the word "want') a service call, because I didn't want to be charged for the technician.
- Stated that I believed it to be a general outage.
- Expressed that I hoped the system would show such an outage (systems can be wrong, too).
- Explicitly said "thank you" rather than immediately terminating the chat.
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RE: It's Comcastic!
@MasterPlanSoftware said:
Also, you were an asshole . . . Learn how to treat people.
Look in a mirror, much?
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RE: It's Comcastic!
@Yaos said:
I'm confused, how did you know it was a general outage for your area? It could have just as easily been a chipmunk that had chewed through your cable line.
I'm in an apartment; all the cable lines (from the pole) are underground and the line from the distribution box to (only) my apartment isn't really accessible to most wildlife. Considering the possible trouble points of the cable system vs. the relatively miniscule subset that represents my node, it's statistically improbable that the elusive Houston chipmunk chose my one meter of exposed cable to chew (while inside the box)... but I'll give it to you, it was possible. However, I was pretty sure that the outage affected more than one customer -- hence, the "general outage" statement, hoping to get the CSR to realize that resetting my box wasn't going to fix anything.
@bstorer said:
Clearly he left out the obvious step of trying to use his neighbor's wireless connection. That's step #1 in fault resolution for network outages.
I don't trust my neighbors' networks. My wired boxes run Linux, but my laptop is a tablet running XP; its patches are up to date, but why push my luck?
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It's Comcastic!
So I'm surfing the Web, minding my own business, with the TV on for background noise. Suddenly, the cable box outputs a solid gray screen. I flip the channel up and down, no change. Switch to the analog tuner, nothing. Sure enough, my AIM connection is down and, after walking over to the cable modem, it's fresh out of happy, blinking lights.
Sigh. Comcast. Out comes the CDMA phone and a USB tether to contact customer support (I hate waiting on hold and then talking to CSRs). With apologies to "Kathleen," what follows is a transcript of my live "help" session (emphasis added):
ASIDE: I can appreciate that her job is to chat online while following a script, using a program easily eclipsed by the 1999 version of AOL Instant Messenger, but do the scripted responses really need to be so blatantly patronizing?
LiveAssist Transcript
chat id : ed8deec9-81cf-442b-bcea-ed24a88f28a8
Problem : Cable (TV + Internet) outage
William > Cable (TV + Internet) outage
Kathleen > Hello William_, Thank you for contacting Comcast Live Chat Support. My name is Kathleen. Please give me one moment to review your information.
Kathleen > I can appreciate why this cable and internet issue is of great concern to you. I certainly would want it resolved myself.Kathleen > William, may I ask what do you see on your TV screen, are you getting any message?
William_ > Cable box outputs a grey screen. Analog channels via TV tuner aren't there either. Internet service was lost simultaneously.
William_ > No message.
Kathleen > I know we can find a solution to your concern today.
Kathleen > For identification, could you please verify the last four digits of the Social Security Number listed on the account?
William_ > xxxx
Kathleen > I appreciate that information.
Kathleen > I am going to send a signal to your cable box, please turn on your cable box and your TV so we can check if there has any improvement.
Kathleen > Can you please provide your cable box serial number? You may find it on or underneath your cable box.
William_ > How are you going to send a signal to a device that's not receiving any signals? Three independent devices stopped receiving a signal at the same time.
Kathleen > I understand how frustrating this can be.ASIDE: Which part? The service interruption, or that said interruption will render your signal-sending attempts completely useless?
Kathleen > Regarding this issue I will set up a trouble call with one of our trained professional technician to diagnose exactly what the issue is and correct it.
ASIDE: At this point, I'm thinking, "Great! I can talk to someone with technical knowlege."William_ > So I need to make my phone available (vs. using it as my means of communicating with you right now)?
Kathleen > I am sorry for the confusion. I am going to schedule a technician to come out to check your cable box and service.
William_ > I don't need a service call. Someone needs to check the cable network in my area.
William_ > This is a general outage. It started about 25 minutes ago.
Kathleen > William, I checked the account and there is no record of outage in the area.ASIDE: This is the point where I start drilling into my temple with a now useless length of coax.
Kathleen > I am sorry for the inconvenience this has caused you.
Kathleen > I will take note of it on the account to provide you credit regarding this inconvenience.
Kathleen > I have finished placing a note on your account to provide you credit.
Kathleen > Again, I am sincerely sorry for the inconvenience this has cause you.
William_ > Thank you. I hope your records will soon show the outage. The only alternative is someone physically changing my cable connection at 12:30 in the morning -- while possible, I think less likely.
William_ > Have a good evening.
Kathleen > Thank you so much for bringing this to our attention.
Kathleen > Do you have any other questions for me today?
William_ > No.
Kathleen > It certainly has been my pleasure assisting you today.The rest of the transcript is all boilerplate, scripted tripe.
I bet you do; there's nothing quite like getting paid for reaming your customers. But, to be fair, it is a Comcastic reaming!Kathleen > Thank you for contacting Comcast! We appreciate your business!