I am in the process of changing over my email address from RCN to Gmail. Most of the changes have been painless since all I have to do is sign onto a website and change my email. Not so with the Verizon website. Sure I can sign on and get to the section where my email address is. I click on the “manage” button and all that happens is that the page expands and I now see where I can opt in to Verizon email offers.
I finally bit the bullet and opened up a chat window with Verizon. Talk about a surreal experience! I was online with the rep for an hour. Yes, that’s right ONE HOUR, to change my email address.
These customer service fails are pretty bad. But the sad thing, the fixes for these fails are pretty easy. Verizon, are you listening??????
Fail #1: Critical webpages NOT working.
I tried the Help section and it said, “Go to Account Page. Go to “Email Settings.” Click on “Manage.” Enter your new email address. That sounds simple enough. Well, when I clicked on “Manage.” All that happened was an expanded page asking me what additional services I wanted to add.
Further on in the Help section, it very clearly states, “Your primary email address cannot be changed.” What a contradiction and what nonsense.
Fail #1: Easy fix for critical webpages not working.
Have an employee read the Help section and make sure a. It is accurate. and b. The instructions actually work!
Fail #2: Too few choices.
You HAD to select from a drop down menu what type of problem you were having. Nope, I don’t want to pay my bill, add new services or change my password! But since I had to choose one of them, I chose, “change password.” Big mistake, since for the first 5 minutes of the customer service chat, I had to keep explaining that my password was fine, and that it was changing my email that was the problem.
Fail #2: Easy fix for too few choices.
It is not possible to account for every type of question, but how about a category called, “Other,” with a space for someone to describe their problem.
Fail #3: Unstable network.
I’m doing this from my home computer, so I know I have a good connection. The problem must have been on Verizon’s end. Every minute or so, I kept getting an error message, “network connection lost, will keep trying to connect.” No wonder my session took over an hour, since for 30 minutes of that time the “network” was down.
Fail #3: Easy fix for unstable network.
How about a working network? How hard can that be? After all, this is Verizon, who’s ads claim they are the most reliable network.
Fail #4: Customer service reps who don’t listen.
I work in computers so I know the importance of being very specific in describing a problem you are having. I did that. How complicated can it be to understand, “I need to change my contact email address since my current one will no longer be active after June 19?”
She kept insisting that all I had to do was click on the “change email” link. Well, guess what, there was no “change email” link anywhere on the Verizon website. Belive me, I looked and I looked and I looked!
Fail #4: Easy fix for customer service reps who don’t listen.
Train customer service reps to listen. How hard is it to train someone to read or listen to the customer describing the problem and then responding to what the customer said.
Fail #5: Cumbersome security processes.
After we finally established the fact that my password was fine, the rep wanted to be sure I was the correct owner of the account. So, after asking me about 25 questions, she was satisfied. I get that companies need to be sure the actual account owners are making the changes, but I had already gone through these questions when I first signed onto my Verizon account! Talk about stupidity!!!!!!
Fail #5: Easy fix for cumbersome security processes.
Why on earth should one have to answer the same questions twice?
The good news is that the Customer Service did eventually help me and change my email address.
So what about you? Any fun and intriguing customer service stories to share?
Frustrated woman at computer photo is courtesy of Debspoon’s Free Digital Photo.
Mind Margins
June 17, 2015
Things like this drive me crazy. One of my personal pet peeves is when the Help section tells you to “click on _____” and _____ is nowhere to be found. Or they’ve given _____ a new name. If you’re going to update your website, please make sure you update everything!
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Nancy Loderick
June 17, 2015
Hi,
Yes, don’t you love it when the instructions have nothing whatsoever to do with what is actually on the page.
Nancy
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Bea dM
June 17, 2015
you sound irritated 🙂 but I admire your keeping cool enough to list the failures with clear descriptions! I break into a sweat (literally) when I have to deal with changing something online. I’m about to simply register my new laptop with the manufacturer. Wish me luck.
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Nancy Loderick
June 17, 2015
Hi Bea,
Yes, lots of luck with your registration! And think of this this way, whatever your experience is, you can write a blog post about it! That was literally the only thing keeping me sane throughout my hour with Verizon. 🙂
Nancy
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Ken Loderick
June 17, 2015
Consumer Reports always list Verizon as the top Internet service provider for customer service. I hope that this was just a one time issue and they live up to their high rating by Consumer Reports!
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Nancy Loderick
June 17, 2015
Hi Mr. Ken,
In the end, the Verizon rep was able to change my email address, so that is a big thing in their favor. She could have just said it wasn’t something she could help me with.
Nancy
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Ralph
June 18, 2015
Hello Nancy 😀
Yep ! I am a great fan of Call Centres in India. Not !
Press #1 to reply
*music*
Hung up
😀 ❤
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Nancy Loderick
June 21, 2015
Dear friend Ralph,
And I love the fact that the Call Center reps in India all have very “American” sounding names, like Bill, Bob and Jane. I would be a lot of money that their real names are more like Prakesh and the like.
When will companies learn that if they try to fool people, it will only come back to hurt them?
Nancy
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