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I just love...

repoman

Feb 15, 2009, 12:30 PM
...the custs who threaten to get me fired. This last lady was not only going to get me fired but also my supervisor. She's going to bring lawyers into it, the whole shebang. I mean do they really think they are going to get us fired for doing our jobs?! Come on lady, use some common sense!
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Soimbored

Feb 15, 2009, 2:49 PM
I absolutly love it when a customer threatens to sue our company. It is company policy for us that as soon as someone even mentions law suit, we are no longer allowed to have any communication with the customer except to say that any further communication with our company must be done in writing to our legal department. At that point they usually shut up, apologize for being rude and are much more willing to listen to reason. If not, then they have to leave our store, and I am supposed to notate their account that they threatened law suit, and that No One is allowed to talk to them. It's fantastic. Theytry and threaten us to get what they want, and instead they end up making things ALOT worse for themselves.
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repoman

Feb 15, 2009, 2:50 PM
I wish we had that policy...
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moemoe26

Feb 17, 2009, 11:49 AM
what company do you work for?
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girlsgotphone

Feb 15, 2009, 3:19 PM
Getting a customer to say something like that usually means you really pissed off someone who was previously happily giving you money... not a smart move in business nowadays. ๐Ÿคจ
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sms_Queen

Feb 15, 2009, 3:33 PM
๐Ÿคฃ ๐Ÿคฃ you must not work in wireless, honey. NO ONE is happily giving us money! ๐Ÿ™„
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girlsgotphone

Feb 15, 2009, 3:43 PM
well yeah honey, currently I am, and I've worked in other industries as well were all the customers suck according to my co-workers, but after over 10 years of working directly with customers in some capacity, I can honestly tell you I can count the customers on one hand that I haven't been able to reach some sort of amicable solution with, in an ethical, above-table manner.

Furthermore there are MANY customers of all various cell companies that are loyal and quite satisfied, not to mention happily paying for services they appreciate. You must be one of the reps that I have to make up for when the customer calls in pissed and I have to make them happy again. A little change in attitude and a little respect for customers as humans goes a ...
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Menno

Feb 15, 2009, 3:53 PM
I follow a simple rule: If you treat me like a human, I'll do the same.

If you come in here yelling and screaming at me, throwing your phone at me and demanding I fix something now or you'll quit, you are acting like a child and shall be treated as such.

I am a person too, so if a customer cannot treat me well, I see no reason why I should do anything to help them until they calm down.

Customers in this industry seem to assume that the more they yell, the more they threaten, the more will get done. Sadly too many people have caved, but people also assume that we are just "order takers" like a place like wal-mart where if they yell at us to do something, we don't care because we still get paid.

We're not simple order takers, so ...
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KingTiger

Feb 17, 2009, 11:45 AM
I once had a lady tell me, "You are a horrible person, you must not have a conscience, and I don't know how you sleep at night." When she left, my assistant manager just laauugghhed.
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T-Monster

Feb 15, 2009, 3:54 PM
what sms_queen is refering to are the customers who want unreasonable things that think they are entitled to everything under the sun then get pissed when they don't get what they want, or the customers who threaten to sue us because they didn't know that they would get charged for going over their minutes. There are plenty of customers who, as you said, are content. Unfortunatly the bad outweight the good.
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girlsgotphone

Feb 15, 2009, 4:04 PM
I guess I'm just talented then... because when I encounter these people, they calm down, I needn't "give" anything away, I just tell them what I can do within reason and they leave satisfied. Maybe being a parent has helped me. I learned long ago yelling back at a child doesn't help, why should it with "adults." Someone has to be the bigger person and respond with reason, even when the interaction is not initiated that way by the customer. If they're pissed, it's my job as the company rep to resolve their issue and I can't take it personally because they don't even know me. If I can't do that and make friends with the customer, then I'm in the wrong line of work and shouldn't be working in a role that interacts with customers.
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Menno

Feb 15, 2009, 4:22 PM
You don't yell. You tell them to calm down and explain what is going on. If they yell it at you, you tell them to calm down. You continue this until they do so.


Fixing a customers issue when they are mad will only create more issues in the future.

It is my job as a company rep to assist the customer in understanding the companies policies and working within those policies to resolve their issues.

-Getting a free phone every 4 months because they feel they deserve one.
-Backdating the unlimited texting plan they admit they will drop next month for three months to cover their overages that they refused to pay
-Discounting their rate plan
-cancelling premium content they signed up for that is not owned by verizon (I am an indir...
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girlsgotphone

Feb 15, 2009, 4:41 PM
I think there's a lot of assuming, all the way around here. I've personally never experienced a customer bursting in saying they were going to get someone fired with whom they've had no prior exchange.

I stand by my comment that a customer would not say that unless the rep did something to piss them off, whether it was within policy or not is irrelevant. I've barely encountered a situation where I was not able to turn the customer around while not giving in to unreasonable demands.

Also, I personally have never had to "tell" a customer to calm down. And I've never withheld service while they were still mad. When they see that I expeditiously look for a solution while not wanting to waste any more of their time than necessary, they back...
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Tmo Slave

Feb 15, 2009, 6:07 PM
You must be one of the luckiest people in the world if you've never had an angry customer. People turn into children when they don't get what they want. I've had people scream at me when I tell them their phone got wet so its no longer covered under warranty. I've had people become irate when I tell them they went over on their minutes and thats why their bill is so high. People never take responsibility for themselves and blame someone else.
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Menno

Feb 15, 2009, 10:42 PM
You obviously never worked in a retail location, or you live in stepford

Yes, we want to keep customers happy. but keeping them happy doesn't mean doing whatever they want, and no matter how hard you try to keep people happy, you will always piss someone off.


And we're not "defending a rep" we're saying that your assumption that he HAD to do something wrong to get the customer that way. Based on our experience, this does not have to be the case. Based on your experience, this had to be the case. Which is fine, whatever.

But unless he stole money from their credit card or intentionally withheld information that resulted in a huge bill, there is no reason they should be getting their lawyers, even if he did "piss them off."
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Menno

Feb 15, 2009, 10:54 PM
for the record, I dont mean stepford as angry as it sounds.

But I highly doubt that anyone could be in this industry for more than a year and not have totally irrational customers. I met them my first week in a store.
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girlsgotphone

Feb 15, 2009, 11:11 PM
Had you read my post, I did say I do not do "whatever they want" to keep them happy. But there is a way to let people know they're not getting what they want without pissing them off.

I had my own retail/wholesale/manufacturing business for 6 years. It was not this industry, but regardless, I read time and time again on other boards how my competitors were having so many problems with their customers, claiming they were trying to rip them off, or that our market was "saturated" and that's why they couldn't keep customers. Yet, never once did I advertise, other than word of mouth, and yet after six years I sold what became an international business for quite a nice sum of money... well more than you'd think a little home based business co...
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Menno

Feb 15, 2009, 11:33 PM
See it is stuff like this:

"no one ever tried to rip me off"

that is NOT possible with customers.

Why do I say this? because my uncle owns a small christian bookstore that is a staple of the community and if he can go THREE DAYS without people trying to rip him off he considers it a good week.

So maybe you had a better than average customer base, but to say no one tries to rip you off is either obscuring the truth to try and push a point or you are the luckiest business in history.

People will try and rip you off.

Why? Because people are selfish. It is what motivate people.
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girlsgotphone

Feb 15, 2009, 11:40 PM
guess I was just lucky ๐Ÿ˜›
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drantin

Feb 16, 2009, 7:58 PM
Or you've been conned quite a bit and don't realize it...
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Pious Goddess

Feb 16, 2009, 1:18 PM
Menno I agree with what you said 100%. I just think some people on here like to fabricate things. I don't see how she has not been in that situation no one is that lucky.
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repoman

Feb 16, 2009, 10:46 AM
Maybe I should explain the situation of which I was speaking, trimming the fat as much as possible.

Cust calls in and right off the bat she starts in saying how she's had 5 exchanges on her Blackberry curve and that she wouldn't be satisfied if I was not able to swap her phone for a different make and model entirely. I went through the routine of getting the info from the phone and everything, bypassing troubleshooting as she had been through enough as is.

She had indeed had 4 exchanges on the device, however two of the three most recent were insurance replacements and not warranty replacements. So technically she was not eligible for a make and model swap. I spoke with my supervisor and he approved a courtesy make and model swap as ...
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Menno

Feb 16, 2009, 5:11 PM
So basically, she wanted the new fancy phone, but refused to pay anything for it. Sounds about right.

Best of luck with that one. Let's see if she actually follows through with her threats. Hopefully the lawyer is smart enough to see that he'll be hard pressed to show anything illicit on the part of your company.
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taoareyou

Feb 16, 2009, 5:24 PM
No lawyer is going to waste their time with this.
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Tmo Slave

Feb 17, 2009, 12:57 PM
Not to mention its going to cost more to go to court, with lawyer fees, court fees, and time wasted. It would be cheaper in the long run to just buy the phone.
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thanx4callingcustcare

Feb 16, 2009, 12:03 PM
So how long have you been in customer service for cellular phones? Me , over 7 years and I have had numerous customers threaten to get me fired,call their laywers, sue me and my company etc. etc. I am considered one of the top reps in my center and have learned that cellular customer are whining little cry babies who b*tch anytime they do not get what they want. I can do everything correctly. I can talk them sweet as pie and they still act like 2 year olds. These customers call in knowing they will act this way because 90% of reps whimp out and give them what they want! Your post is completely idiotic!
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repoman

Feb 16, 2009, 8:29 PM
nothing? hmm...that's funny because you made it sound like you had all the freakin' answers. Guess not.
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sms_Queen

Feb 15, 2009, 5:38 PM
Thank you T-Monster and Menno for helping me out on this one. And since this is the time to pat ourselves on the back for how good we are at our jobs, let me join: I am VERY good with my customers. Granted, I am on a phone, and not in person with them, but I very rarely get escalated calls that I can't "de-escalate" before they ever get to the sup. I have had customers who get on my line start out incredibly, raging mad, and end the call as docile as little kittens, and some who even apologize for starting out so upset. As I tell my customers, I have been a customer longer than I've been a rep, and I DO understand their frustration, and if it is something that SHOULD be fixed, then I will go above and beyond for them.

However, there ARE ...
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girlsgotphone

Feb 15, 2009, 5:58 PM
so you were making a bit of a generalization when you said that there are NO customers that are happy to give us their money. I get tired of the reps that have already decided all their customers are idiots, even before they speak with them, and your comment sounded to me like you were coming from such a position.

I am happy to hear that you hold yourself to high standards, Queen. That is something to be proud of, and worth patting yourself on the back, as well as letting people know such a performance IS possible with consistency.

Of course we can't be all things to all people, but in these times, we should be approaching such a situation looking for help to avoid it next time, not telling war stories to look for sympathy and pass bl...
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JLYNNE

Feb 20, 2009, 10:20 PM
Wow. I bet your store location has a pet unicorn and gives people winning lotto numbers with every purchase of a new contract.

If you haven't had at least one completely unreasonable, out of control customer, you haven't been in wireless that long. People come in thinking that if they intimidate you, they will get what they want. When it doesn't work, they get more angry. I've never had a customer threaten to try and get me fired, but I've definitely seen the customer that EVERY OTHER salesperson on this post has seen.

Somebody needs to wake you up from your fantasyland, or maybe you get all the easy customers because your co-workers can sense that you're out of touch with reality.
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Menno

Feb 15, 2009, 3:57 PM
All it takes to get a customer to say that is to refuse to give them credit for the texting overages they had because they refused to take your advice and get the unlimited plan in the first place.

Add that to a customer having a bad day, and they will simply explode towards the employee because it is someone they think they can yell at and never have to apologize for it. Kind of like how the internet has the tendency to turn people into jerks.
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EdgarN

Feb 15, 2009, 5:46 PM
oh i was sooooooooooooo scared when they tryed to do that to me.... she was like "ill get my lawyer personaly to YOU! omg i was tembling ๐Ÿคฃ
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taoareyou

Feb 16, 2009, 2:07 PM
The way in which we do business is a learned manner. There was a time when people respected the business' because they were owned by their friends and neighbors. You were honest to them and they were honest to you.

As business evolved into larger companies, the personal attachment customers had was lost. Large companies began to compete with each other by giving away things and teaching people that "the customer is always right" and "the customer pays your check".

The business relationship has been changing from one based on mutual respect to one of master and servant.

Which leads us to where we are today. More and more customers in a widening variety of industries believe their business is so important that the CEO should kiss ...
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ikon

Feb 17, 2009, 11:54 AM
Most of you people bitch because custies want free phones and you lack them. Instead of admitting fault and switching to another company or opening up an indirect you go on these tirades about how they can't have everything they want. Why don't you just tell them to **** off and stfu about it you're the lowest rank of a giant corporate ladder you're not **** you don't matter stop pretending.
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taoareyou

Feb 17, 2009, 12:04 PM
It's not because we lack "free" phones. I have plenty of phones I can offer for free. Customers don't want the FREE phones. They want the expensive phones for free.

Anyone who works in a store, corp or not, has been asked to give away a Bold or a Storm or an iPhone because the customer "deserves it due to their loyalty".
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ikon

Feb 17, 2009, 12:32 PM
Yeah and? Why don't you go sell dish washers nobody has a ball and chain around your neck.
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taoareyou

Feb 17, 2009, 1:32 PM
I'm not sure your reading comprehension is serving you well today. Either that or you're just trying to cause a stir. ๐Ÿ™„

But if you choose to re-read my post, you will see I was discussing the attitude of customers in general, not just in a cell phone store. So going to sell kitchen appliances really wouldn't remove me from the situation.

So if you're needing to be a jerk, at least appear to be somewhat coherent and suggest I go into ditch digging or work for the government or some job other than sales.

๐Ÿคฃ
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ikon

Feb 17, 2009, 1:52 PM
taoareyou said:

So if you're needing to be a jerk, at least appear to be somewhat coherent


Dude. You typed two pages worth of text bitching about how everyone wants high end phones for free (US retail high end). Someone has to be a jerk to push you off your high horse. Let me be abundantly clear since you didn't get it the first time.

You are at the bottom tier of an incredibly long chain that goes to the CEOs. You are nothing. Stop acting like customers suck because you can't sell them. Obviously if all of you vags bitch and moan about how your prices are high then YOU ALL HAVE THE SAME PRICES (or close to it). Where the **** are these people going to go if you ALL HAVE THE SAME PRICES?! Stop trying...
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Tmo Slave

Feb 17, 2009, 2:17 PM
ikon said:


Dude. You typed two pages worth of text bitching about how everyone wants high end phones for free (US retail high end). Someone has to be a jerk to push you off your high horse. Let me be abundantly clear since you didn't get it the first time.

You are at the bottom tier of an incredibly long chain that goes to the CEOs. You are nothing. Stop acting like customers suck because you can't sell them. Obviously if all of you vags bitch and moan about how your prices are high then YOU ALL HAVE THE SAME PRICES (or close to it). Where the **** are these people going to go if you ALL HAVE THE SAME PRICES?! Stop trying to use faux pas catch phrase words to appear intelligent and belittle random internet nodes an
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taoareyou

Feb 17, 2009, 2:23 PM

You are at the bottom tier of an incredibly long chain that goes to the CEOs. You are nothing.

Another fine example of the mentality that's been created. This person believes others do not deserve to be treated with respect simply because they don't own the company they work for.

I hate to burst your bubble, but your views don't define anyone's reality but your own.

Feel free to continue to kick and scream all you want, hurl a few insults in for garnish, then you can wander off and be angry elsewhere. In my reality, I don't care what you think.
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ikon

Feb 17, 2009, 3:48 PM
taoareyou said:

Feel free to continue to kick and scream all you want, hurl a few insults in for garnish, then you can wander off and be angry elsewhere. In my reality, I don't care what you think.


Feel free to think you know how to sell a pda haha
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taoareyou

Feb 17, 2009, 4:26 PM
See how they react when someone doesn't cower to their will?

Why don't you go sell dish washers nobody has a ball and chain around your neck.


You are at the bottom tier of an incredibly long chain that goes to the CEOs. You are nothing.


Obviously if all of you vags bitch and moan


Feel free to think you know how to sell a pda haha


Someone has to be a jerk to push you off your high horse.


They will lash out repeatedly, trying to attack what they perceive will "hurt" you in retribution for your willingness to dismiss their childish behavior.

This one states his goal is to clearly "push you ...
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ikon

Feb 21, 2009, 7:13 PM
WTF are you talking about I sell cell phones and obviously better than you without your pompous bullshit articulations.
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ikon

Feb 17, 2009, 11:49 AM
That and like the lawyer costs more than whatever she money she lost or is being charged.
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chuckie

Feb 21, 2009, 5:14 PM
Lol ya i had a customer who said she was going to report me to the FEDS because I didn't refund her on a FREE sim card! gotta love customers
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