:evil: Businesses don't answer phones anymore and it's making me insane!! :evil:

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You sound old. Reminds me of my boss was trying to contact a vendor and not responding to emails or phone calls.

I just slacked the guy for a response in two seconds. My old job I used slack and email and phone maybe I check once a month

You think it’s just fine that a business that you are patronizing wouldn’t return emails phone calls? You sound…young.

Not PP you responded to, but again, this is the new normal. You can choose to evolve or not. If you don't, you die (technologically speaking, but also, you must be very old).

Disagree. It depends on the nature of the communication. Email is good for providing a paper trail. Text (through whatever app) is great if you have access to the person you need via text. Phone calls are irreplaceable for some things, such as a problem that is not easily categorized and may need to be redirected to other resources (sometimes multiple times). Or a client that needs reassurance ( you can't simply ordain that the entire world conform to your [young] POV.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You sound old. Reminds me of my boss was trying to contact a vendor and not responding to emails or phone calls.

I just slacked the guy for a response in two seconds. My old job I used slack and email and phone maybe I check once a month

You think it’s just fine that a business that you are patronizing wouldn’t return emails phone calls? You sound…young.

Not PP you responded to, but again, this is the new normal. You can choose to evolve or not. If you don't, you die (technologically speaking, but also, you must be very old).

Disagree. It depends on the nature of the communication. Email is good for providing a paper trail. Text (through whatever app) is great if you have access to the person you need via text. Phone calls are irreplaceable for some things, such as a problem that is not easily categorized and may need to be redirected to other resources (sometimes multiple times). Or a client that needs reassurance ( you can't simply ordain that the entire world conform to your [young] POV.

Duh. But we're talking about a business who does not answer emails or phones. So short of sending certified mail, OP might want to use chat, or social media.

[Anonymous]

How often do you call businesses? I need to call social security right now and that's about it.
I try not to buy too much crap so there's no time spend\t sending it back or fixing any errors.

[Anonymous]

You can take solace in the fact that it reduces costs and improves shareholder value. That’s what life is all about these days.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:The only improvement here is the cut in labor costs due to automation. As if every problem can be resolved by automation. Folks are calling because they have a PROBLEM, not to listen to an automated voice.

I had troubles recently with our bank and cable company. Neither one would transfer me to an agent right off the bat. For one, it took me 20 minutes to game the system to get connected to an agent. For another, the chat bot finally morphed into an agent who figured out how to override the system and stick with me through setting up an appointment. Before that, every time I replied to the chat, it was a new agent asking me to retype EVERYTHING I had just typed to the eight prior agents. Even after setting the appointment, I kept getting calls about "let's resolve this over the phone." How many times had I explained that we needed a cable worker to come to the house and replace faulty equipment.

So annoying!

Leave Comcast right now.

[Anonymous]

I dunno. I called 3 small businesses today and two large, everyone answered the phone and we sorted stuff out: pediatric dentist, electrician, hvac company, credit bureau (credit report freeze), credit card people.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I only use their chats, now. Amazon and my healthcare provider (Kaiser Permanente) have excellent chat services in which you reach a real human in record time. Kaiser's chat person is a nurse and they can triage your symptoms for you. They always answer all my questions. Other websites as well. Yesterday I had a question about a product, went to the manufacturer's website, asked the robot in the chat, who got a real human (took 5 min, which is long!), who answered everything to my satisfaction.

Get with the times, OP.

I'm having a mediocre experience with Kaiser. Their bureaucracy is incompetent. Quick to chat but very difficult to get answers out of them and to resolve anything. Patience is a virtue, however. I've gotten hundreds back from billing by playing the long term game. It's made me realize how much money is lost through small billing errors because people give up trying to fight back via emails or calls and can't be bothered to have to write a formal letter to an address in Atlanta because it disappears into a void and you have no idea if you'll ever hear back.

This is a pattern that has happened twice with Kaiser: bill higher than estimate, you file complaint to find out why, you get letter saying Kaiser is on the case! A few weeks later some formal letter arrives saying you made this or that mistake with estimate (which never happened, including describing steps you allegedly took but you never did), matter closed. You file second complaint, repeat. Finally you write a formal letter to Atlanta, a real person reviews and actually does investigate, money refunded.

In all these instances, everything could have been resolved within a few days and a few calls if Kaiser was willing to actually call me and talk directly with me and ask me questions to understand why my view of the billing was such and such. But they never do.

I'm leaving Kaiser next year. I only came to them because I thought they would be an improvement over my previous national PPO but they're even worse.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I dunno. I called 3 small businesses today and two large, everyone answered the phone and we sorted stuff out: pediatric dentist, electrician, hvac company, credit bureau (credit report freeze), credit card people.

What kind of chaos do you have going on?

[Anonymous]

Np. I had a quasi emergency the other day (credit card was stolen, I was trying to stop the charges) and the company the thief had used the credit card at does not have a phone number.

I know the credit card company takes care of this stuff but I’m a petty b and I did not want the thief to receive stolen goods.

It was super frustrating but I stopped the shipment but trying every social media account I could find for them.

[Anonymous]

I find the chat function works well. But it is exhausting.

I just wish a CEO would try to get through once so the would know what it is like.

Wayfair has been good to me. Amazon chat is good.

[Anonymous]

To all the poster who are calling OP old fashioned, wait until you literally can’t call anyone. It’s already happened to restaurants in ny. Technology has made us so in touch that we can’t tolerate it anymore

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/28/dining/restaurant-phone-line-call.html?unlocked_article_code=1.ok0._I6J.51_NouXyfmqG&smid=url-share

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You sound old. Reminds me of my boss was trying to contact a vendor and not responding to emails or phone calls.

I just slacked the guy for a response in two seconds. My old job I used slack and email and phone maybe I check once a month

You think it’s just fine that a business that you are patronizing wouldn’t return emails phone calls? You sound…young.

Not PP you responded to, but again, this is the new normal. You can choose to evolve or not. If you don't, you die (technologically speaking, but also, you must be very old).

Yeah, you need to stop pretending that this about efficiency or some kind of positive evolution. Young people don't like the phone because they're afraid to speak. That's it. I remember being afraid to use the phone when I was a kid. My parents worked with me until I could do it. The thing is that you guys are adults, and it's pathetic.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You sound old. Reminds me of my boss was trying to contact a vendor and not responding to emails or phone calls.

I just slacked the guy for a response in two seconds. My old job I used slack and email and phone maybe I check once a month

You think it’s just fine that a business that you are patronizing wouldn’t return emails phone calls? You sound…young.

Not PP you responded to, but again, this is the new normal. You can choose to evolve or not. If you don't, you die (technologically speaking, but also, you must be very old).

Yeah, you need to stop pretending that this about efficiency or some kind of positive evolution. Young people don't like the phone because they're afraid to speak. That's it. I remember being afraid to use the phone when I was a kid. My parents worked with me until I could do it. The thing is that you guys are adults, and it's pathetic.

+1

Same here. I remember having anxiety when I first went to college about having to make basic phone calls for things like carryout and doctors. Then I grew up and learned how to communicate with people from many different backgrounds. It’s a valuable skill for anyone that wants to experience life outside of a self created ego bubble.

[Anonymous]

The same problem with some local government offices. For example Montgomery county office of the county executive cannot be reached at all. You have to call the stupid 311 number, talk to a clueless operator who has difficulty understanding what your issue is. That operator is responsible to relaying your question to the county exec office. Nobody calls back. Government bureaucrats hiding from county residents.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You sound old. Reminds me of my boss was trying to contact a vendor and not responding to emails or phone calls.

I just slacked the guy for a response in two seconds. My old job I used slack and email and phone maybe I check once a month

You think it’s just fine that a business that you are patronizing wouldn’t return emails phone calls? You sound…young.

Not PP you responded to, but again, this is the new normal. You can choose to evolve or not. If you don't, you die (technologically speaking, but also, you must be very old).

Yeah, you need to stop pretending that this about efficiency or some kind of positive evolution. Young people don't like the phone because they're afraid to speak. That's it. I remember being afraid to use the phone when I was a kid. My parents worked with me until I could do it. The thing is that you guys are adults, and it's pathetic.

Also, “you sound old” is super offensive. My 88 year old dad is old and he even though he uses email and text and chat, it’s a lot easier and less frustrating for him to use the phone now and he deserves some respect.

PP you’ll be old some day if you are lucky, and it’s going to happen way faster than you can imagine, and you’re going to be humbled.