User [1:51 PM]: help plz
CSR (Customer Support Representative) [1:51 PM]: Hi there! Thank-you for contacting support. What can I do for you?
User [1:52 PM]: my app isnot working
CSR [1:52 PM]: I am very sorry to hear that! I don't believe we have this number on file. Can you please tell me your name ?
User [1:54 PM]: john
CSR [1:55 PM]: Hi, John! I am afraid that won't be quite enough on its own. May I please have your full name?
User [1:55 PM]: john smith
CSR [1:56 PM]: Thank-you, Mr. Smith. Now which app in particular may I assist you with?
User [2:05 PM]: ThatBusinessApp
CSR [2:06 PM]: I see. You are having a problem with ThatBusinessApp. May I ask on what platform you are using this app?
[Time elapses]
CSR [2:36 PM]: Mr. Smith? Please tell me which platform are you currently running this app on?
User [2:40]: whats a platform
CSR [2:42 PM]: How are you running this app? On your PC? On a tablet? On your iPhone?
User [2:45 PM]: tablet
CSR [2:46 PM]: I see! And would this be an Android tablet or an iPad?
User [2:50 PM]: at&t tablet
CSR [2:52]: So you got the tablet from AT&T. Do you happen to know what operating system the tablet runs?
User [3:00 PM]: no i dont f_cking kno what os it runs. i already said i got it from at&t. your sh_tty app is broken and its been a goddman hour and u still haev no idea (1/2)
User [3:01 PM]: wat the problem is? this service is terrible and above all else u cost me money by wasting all my txts 4 the month! (2/2)
I could describe countless communications where the supposed tech-warrior-wizard didn't record accurate notes, didn't listen properly, didn't respond and ... later, this all conspired to ensure that they didn't know what the hell they were talking about.
And don't get me on the customer services staff ... I name no names ... (VODAFONE have completely dropped the customer services ball. It's a disservice).
I actually disagree with the article (from my experience). It's not the communication platforms that are to blame, it's the rigidity of processes and the imprisoning of staff within those processes that are to blame.
I feel sorry for staff and despise the people who design such customer service architecture (at least any I have encountered).
It's asynchronous but lets you respond quickly and for startups will likely be sufficiently organized to keep things moving without a full blown helpdesk application.
Secondly, it lets you be extremely precise and copy & paste friendly in a way that phone calls can't match. Ex: we often have to help people set their DNS entries and it's much easier to email someone the following than explain it.
Please set your www CNAME to fugu-1111.herokussl.com
1 - https://www.expeditedssl.com/pages/how-we-grew-our-startup-b...
1.) There's no accents in text. Especially for outsourced call-centers and helpdesks, communication through text eliminates a lot of the difficulty in variations in spoken language.
2.) Higher through-put. It's just about impossible to service two phone calls at the same time. It's not nearly as hard to switch between two or three IM conversations.
3.) With enterprise IM platforms, you've got capabilities to step up into a phone call, transfer files and screenshots, do a screen-share, and other things you just can't do with just phone.
4.) Integrating with ticketing systems, customer tracking systems, whatever, is easier, since you can pretty easily look up the incoming requester by their IM username or email, and present that information to the agent servicing the request.
About the only downside is that, developing, you're often dealing with limited APIs, half-baked, incomplete and even downright incorrect documentation, and weird, little-known platform limitations.