Friday, June 30, 2006
Repetition
If the soul-crushing nature of doing tech support stems from the countless repetitive instances of the same silly questions, imagine what it's like when those things constantly reoccur on the same call.
An example: a customer calls with an error when they try to connect. The error indicates that Windows cannot communicate with their modem. In the vast majority of cases, this error is fixed in one of two ways: either you restart the computer, or you reinstall the modem's driver. Really, in the grand scheme of errors, this type is very nice, because there aren't multiple things that are likely to be at fault.
Not everyone understands what a modem driver is. I generally describe it as "the program that lets Windows talk to your modem" or something similar. The driver is like a translator: without it, the communication is unintelligible.
Now... if a customer calls with one of those errors, we suggest restarting. If they've already done so, we need to tell them to try reinstalling the driver.
"So I should reinstall the modem driver?"
"Yes, that's correct."
"Because I've already restarted."
"Right."
"And I checked the cords at the back."
"Yep."
"So you think I should reinstall the modem driver?"
"That's correct."
"I checked my settings, too."
"... yes sir, this problem is not going to be related to your settings. It's definitely an issue with the modem driver. That driver needs to be reinstalled."
"Oh, ok. So... I should install that driver again?"
Argh.
And then there's the flip side, where the customer seems insistent on mentioning the same point over and over. Sometimes it's trivial.
"Hi, this is so-and-so, let me give you my customer number!"
"Actually ma'am, that's ok, I just need your phone number to bring up your account."
"Oh, ok, it's 555-123-1234."
"Thanks... alright, I've got your account here. What can I hel--"
"Do you need my customer number?"
"No, that's ok, I have your account here in front of me. What can I help you with?"
"Well, I need to renew my account."
"Sure."
...the acount is renewed...
"Alright ma'm, your account is all set for another year. Was there anything else I could look at for you?"
"Do you need anything else?"
"Uh, no, your account is ready to renew."
"I have my customer number if you need it."
"..."
An example: a customer calls with an error when they try to connect. The error indicates that Windows cannot communicate with their modem. In the vast majority of cases, this error is fixed in one of two ways: either you restart the computer, or you reinstall the modem's driver. Really, in the grand scheme of errors, this type is very nice, because there aren't multiple things that are likely to be at fault.
Not everyone understands what a modem driver is. I generally describe it as "the program that lets Windows talk to your modem" or something similar. The driver is like a translator: without it, the communication is unintelligible.
Now... if a customer calls with one of those errors, we suggest restarting. If they've already done so, we need to tell them to try reinstalling the driver.
"So I should reinstall the modem driver?"
"Yes, that's correct."
"Because I've already restarted."
"Right."
"And I checked the cords at the back."
"Yep."
"So you think I should reinstall the modem driver?"
"That's correct."
"I checked my settings, too."
"... yes sir, this problem is not going to be related to your settings. It's definitely an issue with the modem driver. That driver needs to be reinstalled."
"Oh, ok. So... I should install that driver again?"
Argh.
And then there's the flip side, where the customer seems insistent on mentioning the same point over and over. Sometimes it's trivial.
"Hi, this is so-and-so, let me give you my customer number!"
"Actually ma'am, that's ok, I just need your phone number to bring up your account."
"Oh, ok, it's 555-123-1234."
"Thanks... alright, I've got your account here. What can I hel--"
"Do you need my customer number?"
"No, that's ok, I have your account here in front of me. What can I help you with?"
"Well, I need to renew my account."
"Sure."
...the acount is renewed...
"Alright ma'm, your account is all set for another year. Was there anything else I could look at for you?"
"Do you need anything else?"
"Uh, no, your account is ready to renew."
"I have my customer number if you need it."
"..."
# posted by Terry @ 6:19 AM 
