Opinion Columnists
Email
Print
PATIENCE: Getting help requires pressing the right buttons
ADVERTISEMENT
Published: September 13, 2009
I like my new telephone, my computer works just fine, my calculator is perfect, but Lord, I miss my mind!
-- Author Unknown
I had a conversation with a retired educator recently about calling a company's service line for help or directions and having to navigate through a menu of options instead of talking to a "real" person on the other end of the line. I could identify. It can be helpful, but also frustrating.
I recently purchased some new software for my computer. I followed the instructions to install it and thought I was home free, but I hit a snag and needed help. I clicked "help" in my tool bar. Unfortunately, that didn't solve the problem. I read the instructions that came with the installation disc. I went online and searched for what to do, but still, no luck. Frustration was setting in. What I wanted then was some old-fashioned help, a real person on the other end of the line to talk to.
Getting to that "real" person can be a challenge, though. Usually, you have to go through a menu of options -- sit, wait and sometimes start over. "If you would like to listen to the menu options again, press ..." I don't want to listen to them again. I want to talk to a live person!
Technology can be helpful and frustrating at the same time. Using those menu options can make the process easier sometimes. For example, calling to refill a prescription recently was simple as I followed the voice prompts: "Hello, thank you for calling. If you are calling to fill a prescription, press 1," the programmed voice said. That was straightforward and easy enough. I then entered my prescription number. It was verified. Progress. The voice directed me to take the next step and indicate the time I wanted to pick up my medicine. And it asked if I needed to fill another order. If yes, repeat the process. If no, it's done. I like that. I picked up my prescription the next day.
However, it is those occasions when help is needed and navigating through a menu of options proves challenging that can test your patience. It happens for any number of reasons: a call to the doctor's office for an appointment, the telephone company for service, or problems with the garage door. I experienced the latter recently. And the list goes on.
The retired educator expressed some of the same concerns. Sometimes you are placed on hold, depending on how many people are calling in at the same time: "Please hold, your call will be answered in the order it was received." I usually place the call on the speakerphone at that point and do other things while I wait. It doesn't help to be in a hurry.
"It's a frustrating experience," the educator told me. If it is important, she sticks with it. "If not, I hang up," she said. She doesn't like having to go back through the process all over again either. That usually happens when you listen to all the options and don't hear the one that says -- "If you want to talk to a real person, press ..."
"Well I have heard it once, I don't want to hear it again," she said. That's when she hangs up and tries another way, any way to get to an operator or customer-service representative. "That way I can ask for what I want." Menu options "make you work to get to an operator," she said.
Sometimes I think the voice prompt knows you are experiencing problems. Usually that happens when I don't respond to the options presented and hear: "Please hold, while an operator answers your call." Or, pressing "0" provides a shortcut to a live body, ready to help.
That's what happened when I called for assistance with my software installation problem. "Hello, my name is … how can I help you?" Yes, finally, help!
I explained the issue. He listened. He asked more questions and provided direction. It didn't work. He put me on hold, and came back with an alternative solution. I tried it while he waited and it worked. Yes!
"Is there anything else I can do for you, Nigel?" he asked. "No, thanks for your help," I replied. I was a happy, a satisfied customer. That was reflected in the customer-service survey I filled out moments later.
■ Nigel Alston is a Dale Carnegie trainer and motivational speaker who lives in Winston-Salem. He can be reached at nalston1@triad.rr.com
Email
Print
