So, I work in a call center for Best Buy (I'm in the mobile department and deal with the cell phones, so don't lynch me yet!), and I was talking to a customer who was wanting to pre-order the new Sony Ericsson Xperia, unlocked at it's full price. He inquired about shipping charges and times and here's how the next part of our conversation went:
Me: well, it looks like shipping is going to cost $5.50, with an estimated arrival date of 11/28 through 12/1.
Customer: Dang. It's not coming out before that?
Me: No, sir, afraid not. That's the earliest we're releasing that phone.
Customer: well, crap. I'm leaving the country on the 21st.
Me: Oh, yeah, really? Where are you going to?
Customer: Seattle.
Me: Uh, sir, you do realize that Seattle is still in the United States right? It's in Washington.
Customer: Seriously? I thought it was in Canada.
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elmo01 Posts: 2335
Phone Model: Samsung SPH-M510
Service Provider: Bell Canada
Sun Nov 23, 2008 10:55 am
Hey. I get that all the time but in reverse.
cust --- why is my bill so high?
me---"I do see some roaming charges of $xxx.xx in the roaming section of your invoice. you called from Toronto and Montreal on such and such dates and times. the roaming rate in Canada is bla bla bla".
cust--- "I have roaming and long distance included"
me--- "you have domestic long distance and roaming included"
cust--- "arent those cities in my plan?" (generally an argument ensues at this point where the cust denys being in Canada at ANY point in his/her life and threatens to cancel unless we "fix the bill". look in the acct history find that he/she has "not" been in Canada several times adv her/him that the **one time courtesy** has been done several times and the charges are valid
isnt life grand?
randa0283 Posts: 129
Phone Model: LG Shine (Yeah! I got it back!)
Service Provider: AT&T
Mon Nov 24, 2008 1:50 pm
Yeah, I remember those calls from when I worked for AT&T. Those were always ones where the customer was being so stupid about it that you just wanted to bash your head against the keyboard.
paperstreet Posts: 433
Tue Dec 16, 2008 10:02 pm
Similar to the customer who thinks his service was interrupted for non-payment, and during troubleshooting the only thing we did was press the PWR button for three seconds and voila! His service was fine, but his phone was turned off. It's like saying the car won't start but you didn't turn the ignition.
gerio Posts: 476
Phone Model: (Long sigh) 'Nother iPhone (keeping my Moto Q, though)
Service Provider: AT&T & Cellular South
Tue Dec 16, 2008 10:47 pm
From listening to conversations in retail stores and reading the postings around here and other forums, I simply cannot imagine why on God's Green Earth anyone would want to be a CSR. Does it pay extremely well? Do you earn a special spot in Heaven or something?
I certainly hope that it's all of the above and more.))
Geri O
randa0283 Posts: 129
Phone Model: LG Shine (Yeah! I got it back!)
Service Provider: AT&T
Wed Dec 17, 2008 3:32 pm
For the most part, Gerio, no. None of the above.
Of course, I like to think that there is a special place in heaven where anyone who's worked in customer service has earned a spot.
And as far as being paid more, I WISH! I make $10 an hour (which doesn't sound like much), but it's one of the higher paying jobs in town without having a law degree or a doctorate.
bgreif Posts: 82
Sat Dec 20, 2008 1:29 pm
randa0283 wrote:
For the most part, Gerio, no. None of the above.
Of course, I like to think that there is a special place in heaven where anyone who's worked in customer service has earned a spot.
And as far as being paid more, I WISH! I make $10 an hour (which doesn't sound like much), but it's one of the higher paying jobs in town without having a law degree or a doctorate.
Its not the best paying job, nor is it an easy one, however we are not dependent on a quota to keep the job either, we have the freedom to make decisions that we feel neccesary and are respected (for the most part) those who lack respect for us usually don't last long with our company. Im really luck to work for at&t, they have the best benefits in the industry and they treat us like humans and not numbers, if you know what I mean, the union doesn't hurt either
randa0283 Posts: 129
Phone Model: LG Shine (Yeah! I got it back!)
Service Provider: AT&T
Sat Dec 20, 2008 4:52 pm
bgreif wrote:
I'm really luck to work for at&t, they have the best benefits in the industry and they treat us like humans and not numbers, if you know what I mean, the union doesn't hurt either
HA! Really? The CWA? Right. I loved how they "helped" their employees at my former call center. I worked at a Business Care call center in Missouri, and the CWA there was a joke. People who went on maternity leave (after filing the proper paperwork) were fired for accumulating too many points. The CWA just stood by and did nothing. And I loved how they would tell you NOT to listen to supervisors about anything because they would lie to you. *rolls eyes* Right, union's are great.
As far as benefits go, yes, they were great. I loved only paying $21 a month for my benefits, but the environment was not the best. At the call center I worked at, it was always stats, stats, stats. "Randa, your call times were high, you need to cut it down by 5 minutes." Okay, but I was helping the customer understand their bill. "That doesn't matter. Bring it down or you're fired." Or it was quality scores. I was making the customer happy, but not following the proper protocol. The rules at the center that I worked at were so insanely strict that it was a wonder that anyone could get ANY work done.
I'm GLAD not to be working for AT&T anymore. I would rather eat some gross item than to be working there again. Granted, I loved what I did, I couldn't stand the rules and regulations that they had enforced against us. I'm working for Best Buy Mobile now, and I have a lot more freedom to do my job. I'm not constatly scripted. In fact, we only have two scripted lines: "Thank you for calling Best Buy Mobile, I'm Miranda, how can I assist you?" and "Thank you for calling Best Buy Mobile. If you have any other questions, feel free to call us back at any time, or check out the web site. Have a great day." Everything in between the opening and closing is up to us.
bgreif Posts: 82
Thu Jan 01, 2009 6:07 pm
randa0283 wrote:
bgreif wrote:
I'm really luck to work for at&t, they have the best benefits in the industry and they treat us like humans and not numbers, if you know what I mean, the union doesn't hurt either
HA! Really? The CWA? Right. I loved how they "helped" their employees at my former call center. I worked at a Business Care call center in Missouri, and the CWA there was a joke. People who went on maternity leave (after filing the proper paperwork) were fired for accumulating too many points. The CWA just stood by and did nothing. And I loved how they would tell you NOT to listen to supervisors about anything because they would lie to you. *rolls eyes* Right, union's are great.
As far as benefits go, yes, they were great. I loved only paying $21 a month for my benefits, but the environment was not the best. At the call center I worked at, it was always stats, stats, stats. "Randa, your call times were high, you need to cut it down by 5 minutes." Okay, but I was helping the customer understand their bill. "That doesn't matter. Bring it down or you're fired." Or it was quality scores. I was making the customer happy, but not following the proper protocol. The rules at the center that I worked at were so insanely strict that it was a wonder that anyone could get ANY work done.
I'm GLAD not to be working for AT&T anymore. I would rather eat some gross item than to be working there again. Granted, I loved what I did, I couldn't stand the rules and regulations that they had enforced against us. I'm working for Best Buy Mobile now, and I have a lot more freedom to do my job. I'm not constatly scripted. In fact, we only have two scripted lines: "Thank you for calling Best Buy Mobile, I'm Miranda, how can I assist you?" and "Thank you for calling Best Buy Mobile. If you have any other questions, feel free to call us back at any time, or check out the web site. Have a great day." Everything in between the opening and closing is up to us.
I guess I don't have that much to worry about, I have some of the best stats in the company and I have no problem with any of my managers so far, I understand what your saying though, we are kinda scripted in what we say, its more like, you can say this or this but never say this or that, the only problem I really have is working every holiday and my stupid hours, CWA states that I must work 12-9 with my days off of Tuesday and Sunday, working holidays aren't too bad though, atleast they pay pretty good, the benefits are great, I know you can agree with that, so all in all, I understand what your saying, however the benefits outweigh the negative so far anyways, for me anyways, I've been here a lil over a yr with no problems
stymus Posts: 24
Sat Jan 24, 2009 1:05 am
Really Tmobile has awesome benefits, how many of you ge quarterly bonuses, monthly bonuss, great vacations, how many pay 10.00 a month for their service, also get free money for doing your job and many other incentives. NOt to mention our 401k and I pay 13.00 a month for my health benefits. I have a friend who works there and he makes over 18.00 per hour
Uh, sir, you do realize that Seattle is still in the United States right? It's in Washington.
))
