Bad Customers

moltomateo

SatelliteGuys Guru
Original poster
Oct 5, 2006
148
0
As a TSR, I try to help customers to the best of my ability. If I don't know the answer I find someone who does. I am most always asked if I have a direct line because I am the first person to listen or care or actually solve the problem. So there definitely are crappy tsr/csr's out there. It is bittersweet to hear you are the first person to help them out of the last ten. Mostly you hear about crappy agents. Not often do you hear about good experiences.

I can offer a unique perspective from a TSR's point of view... crappy customers!! I have had many great experiences with customers. I have talked to the nicest people, the most knowledgeable people, but also the most annoying, loud, rude, and stupid people. I hear all the time about how stupid we are, but now a glimpse into how stupid you (the customer) can be.

1) Customer calls in cussing at me, threatening to cancel his services because he has been staring at a "press select screen for 24 hours and is sick of this horse $hit". I laughed because I thought he was joking. I told him to press sat then select. End of call.

2) One customer, again cussing at me for 5 minutes this time, complained that he had no signal and was going to cancel at the first opportunity. During probing I asked is the dish installed on the roof, he said it was but it is in his "back yard right now sitting on a brick pointed up to the sky."

3) Someone called in complaining that they had been away from home for 5 months and wondered why they were charged for service. I explained they could have reduced to basic programming, but the point is moot now since they never called in the first place. Gave an analogy about not using your cell phone for 5 months and asking for the money back. Furthermore, someone was in fact home.. their daughter. Except she could not watch tv because their services were "cut off." They knew about it but didn't call because they didn't know they should. In fact, they had an 013 subscription message on the screen because it wasn't in use for 2 months. I advised we could have sent a hit or signal and it could have been working in 30 seconds. She said how was she supposed to know to call. I said most people do, they don't let something happen for 5 months then call in and complain. Most any service you would not watch it malfunction for 5 months then call in and complain. They could not grasp the concept and hung up disappointed threatening to cancel. :river

4) Any customer that calls in saying they can get a better deal from somewhere else then expects me to give them credits/discounts to stay. By doing that you make me think of 4 letter words. Don't people know being nice can get you so much further? Everyone is pissed that they can get their services cheaper as new customers elsewhere. They forget that they were once a new customer with us and got a free install. Sucks but it is how it goes EVERYWHERE.

5) Customers that say "I never had that problem with comcast/directv/adelphia". I think but can't say, "really, so why are you here?" Grass is always greener on the other side in a customer's mind. Other companies are perfect, they don't have software glitches, signal loss, or channel outages. It's just dish network. Incredible.

6) Customer had his account 3 years, and had four signal losses by his count. He called in to complain that he wasn't getting what he paid for. He went on and on and on about how bad the service was. He of course threatened to cancel. I explained the service will continue to suffer by his standards until someone or something intervenes. I offered a free service call, and yet he declined, and continued to complain. I said "let me get this right, you are calling to complain about imperfect services that could be fixed, yet you are refusing an opportunity to have them fixed, and are still complaining?" He said yes and said if it goes out again he would cancel. So I took down my notes and moved on to the next call.

7) One customer was screaming at me about how dish network was taking away their epg. I asked them to explain. They said verbatim "On my info screen it says Tribune parentheses c parentheses, so what now, are we going to have to look at the guide on the internet?" I explained that it was simply a copyright caption for the company that provides the info and nothing more. She went on and on about how we are taking everything away from them and putting it on the internet. I tried my best to explain what was happening but she wouldn't have it.

:haha

edit: Wow, I typed quite a bit. Sorry had to vent.
 
Yes I would hate to have your job. Some of those were pretty funny.:D
 
It takes a tremendous amount of patience and tolerance I can tell you that much.

Just remembered a perfect example to show this:

8) A customer called in for something, can't remember why. I just know something was wrong. All I can remember is that it took me 53 minutes to get them to find the menu button on the remote. Once they found it we were done in 5 minutes. :eek:
 
I went to one of the call centers (Littleton) and I could NEVER be one of these folks, not even for TRIPLE of what they are being paid. :)

Molto didn't even talk about the kind of customer that drives me nuts the most, the one that wants a deal / credit / something free every time they call in. Ugg I hate that. :)
 
All I can remember is that it took me 53 minutes to get them to find the menu button on the remote.
Been there, done that with my own mother, who has stage-1 Alzheimers. :confused: It also doesn't help that the up/down channel buttons are actually marked with a square and a pause symbol :mad: for some obscure reason. It's too bad we don't all have videophones; a lot of this chaos and confusion over the phone might be avoided.
 
As a TSR, I try to help customers to the best of my ability. If I don't know the answer I find someone who does. I am most always asked if I have a direct line because I am the first person to listen or care or actually solve the problem. So there definitely are crappy tsr/csr's out there. It is bittersweet to hear you are the first person to help them out of the last ten. Mostly you hear about crappy agents. Not often do you hear about good experiences.

I can offer a unique perspective from a TSR's point of view... crappy customers!! I have had many great experiences with customers. I have talked to the nicest people, the most knowledgeable people, but also the most annoying, loud, rude, and stupid people. I hear all the time about how stupid we are, but now a glimpse into how stupid you (the customer) can be.

1) Customer calls in cussing at me, threatening to cancel his services because he has been staring at a "press select screen for 24 hours and is sick of this horse $hit". I laughed because I thought he was joking. I told him to press sat then select. End of call.

2) One customer, again cussing at me for 5 minutes this time, complained that he had no signal and was going to cancel at the first opportunity. During probing I asked is the dish installed on the roof, he said it was but it is in his "back yard right now sitting on a brick pointed up to the sky."

3) Someone called in complaining that they had been away from home for 5 months and wondered why they were charged for service. I explained they could have reduced to basic programming, but the point is moot now since they never called in the first place. Gave an analogy about not using your cell phone for 5 months and asking for the money back. Furthermore, someone was in fact home.. their daughter. Except she could not watch tv because their services were "cut off." They knew about it but didn't call because they didn't know they should. In fact, they had an 013 subscription message on the screen because it wasn't in use for 2 months. I advised we could have sent a hit or signal and it could have been working in 30 seconds. She said how was she supposed to know to call. I said most people do, they don't let something happen for 5 months then call in and complain. Most any service you would not watch it malfunction for 5 months then call in and complain. They could not grasp the concept and hung up disappointed threatening to cancel. :river

4) Any customer that calls in saying they can get a better deal from somewhere else then expects me to give them credits/discounts to stay. By doing that you make me think of 4 letter words. Don't people know being nice can get you so much further? Everyone is pissed that they can get their services cheaper as new customers elsewhere. They forget that they were once a new customer with us and got a free install. Sucks but it is how it goes EVERYWHERE.

5) Customers that say "I never had that problem with comcast/directv/adelphia". I think but can't say, "really, so why are you here?" Grass is always greener on the other side in a customer's mind. Other companies are perfect, they don't have software glitches, signal loss, or channel outages. It's just dish network. Incredible.

6) Customer had his account 3 years, and had four signal losses by his count. He called in to complain that he wasn't getting what he paid for. He went on and on and on about how bad the service was. He of course threatened to cancel. I explained the service will continue to suffer by his standards until someone or something intervenes. I offered a free service call, and yet he declined, and continued to complain. I said "let me get this right, you are calling to complain about imperfect services that could be fixed, yet you are refusing an opportunity to have them fixed, and are still complaining?" He said yes and said if it goes out again he would cancel. So I took down my notes and moved on to the next call.

7) One customer was screaming at me about how dish network was taking away their epg. I asked them to explain. They said verbatim "On my info screen it says Tribune parentheses c parentheses, so what now, are we going to have to look at the guide on the internet?" I explained that it was simply a copyright caption for the company that provides the info and nothing more. She went on and on about how we are taking everything away from them and putting it on the internet. I tried my best to explain what was happening but she wouldn't have it.

:haha

edit: Wow, I typed quite a bit. Sorry had to vent.

It takes a tremendous amount of patience and tolerance I can tell you that much.

Just remembered a perfect example to show this:

8) A customer called in for something, can't remember why. I just know something was wrong. All I can remember is that it took me 53 minutes to get them to find the menu button on the remote. Once they found it we were done in 5 minutes. :eek:

Thank-you!! LOL Sad as it may sound, it's kind of nice to hear from "that" side of the fence. Generally speaking, in this forum you only hear feedback from disgruntled customers or installers. It definitely adds some perspective to know, and remind us, that there is a another group of people responsible for the overall service for both Dish and Direct. :)
 
I went to one of the call centers (Littleton) and I could NEVER be one of these folks, not even for TRIPLE of what they are being paid. :)

Molto didn't even talk about the kind of customer that drives me nuts the most, the one that wants a deal / credit / something free every time they call in. Ugg I hate that. :)

One of my personal favorites is the customer who was given a credit because the installer that put in her system gave her daughter nightmares.
 
im a tech i was sent to special job by FSM. here is wat happened

Customer called call center to make an apoitment everything was done. when customer was told the original date for the instal was going to be in 2 days from the day of the call, customer threatened to cancel so to save the customer they give him $49 credit for customer to wait he wasn't satisfied so CSR ended up giving another $49 credit customer agreed to that.
 
I get so tired of technicians, CSR's, etc. coming around telling everyone how hard their job is. Bad customers, good customers, and the ugly I guess.

It is a job! Nothing personal. Why must everyone, from CSR's to software engineers come here and complain because they aren't understood by customers? When I call and I get no good answers to my questions 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 times in a role, I have a real issue with CSR's. When my questions are answered with wrong information, sarcastic remarks, and English that I can barely make out, I have a real issue with CSR's. When I don't even bother calling tech support, because the last 5 or 6 times have been nothing but a waste of time on the phone, I have a real issue with CSR's.

Sorry, don't feel sorry for you, you chose the job, not me. If you can't stand the heat, then get out of the frying pan. Of course, 100% of the people that you deal with aren't going to be the most intelligent, respectful, or caring about you, who by the way is just doing a job.

Everyday I get dirty at work, but I don't come home complaining about dirt, it comes with the job and I know it.

I know it is hard, I dealt with customers too, on computers, worse Apples. I was a Apple/PC Technician and I had to go to customers houses/businesses, which is a lot worse than talking to them on the phone--I did both BTW. I went to one house, were a lady answered her door in her bra and underwear, and lets just say it wasn't pretty. She wanted to know why her CD-Rom wasn't working, noticed right away coffee stains, and she had been using it as a coffee holder, and well she bumped it and it closed and pulled styrofoam into it. Deal is, I fixed it--ok, sold her a new CD-Rom--and moved on.

Remember, it is a job. If someone attacks Dish Network, CSR's in general, or even satellite TV in general, it isn't anything personal. Why must you take it personal?
 
Wow, your reply tonyp is so far off its ridiculous. I'm trying to have fun. Who said I couldn't stand the heat? My job is far from hard. I think you missed the point of my topic so much it isn't even funny. I accidentally touched on a personal history of yours. Sorry about that. I don't come here to complain, I come here to chat about satellite and read about satellite. I just thought it would be fair to offer the flip side of the coin, the tsr's side. Just because you are an invincible and apparently emotionless yet totally professional person who has no problem separating "a job" from your life doesn't mean everyone else has to be.

Does being a person that has an overwhelming need to "move on" or "let it go" make you somehow a better person? I am willing to bet you tell people to move on or let it go or get over it when they complain. Because you don't complain, no one else has a right to. I work with a girl that says the same things you do.. it's a job it's a job. Don't feel for the customer it's a job, get off the phone it's a job.. shed a tear and move on its a job.. Not many people talk to her.

Now back to the topic.
 
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Heres a story for ya....

I got a commercial account I installed about 2 years ago. Last April when their annual programming came due, the lady in their accounts payable office calls me to bitch that we are over billing them due to the fact she already paid an annual bill a few weeks earlier.

Upon further investigation, we come to find out they had another DISH Network account in a different part of the building that they where not using since the company downsized.

No problem, I told the customer to call commercial services at 800-454-0843 and shut the other account down if they where not using it anymore. The next words out of her mouth where "What are we going to do with all this equipment" I then told her leave it connected to the television, put it in a closet, throw it away.

Anyways, she insisted we come out and remove the equipment if they are not using it. We sent out a technician and removed 4 receivers!

Then they call us again on Friday at 3pm and expect a service call by 5pm or threaten to cancel :(
 
Heres a story for ya....

I got a commercial account I installed about 2 years ago. Last April when their annual programming came due, the lady in their accounts payable office calls me to bitch that we are over billing them due to the fact she already paid an annual bill a few weeks earlier.

Upon further investigation, we come to find out they had another DISH Network account in a different part of the building that they where not using since the company downsized.

No problem, I told the customer to call commercial services at 800-454-0843 and shut the other account down if they where not using it anymore. The next words out of her mouth where "What are we going to do with all this equipment" I then told her leave it connected to the television, put it in a closet, throw it away.

Anyways, she insisted we come out and remove the equipment if they are not using it. We sent out a technician and removed 4 receivers!

Then they call us again on Friday at 3pm and expect a service call by 5pm or threaten to cancel :(

That is always a tough call. Most people are reasonable but I have had several customers expect someone out "today!" or else. They act as if any downtime from tv is the worst possible thing that could happen.
 
Here's a funny story I heard from a dealer in the old BUD days, he had installed a system and after a year got a call from the guy that the picture was a bit weak (sparklies...if you had an analog BUD you know what I mean), so he goes out to tweak the dish and found out the guy never moved the dish (only thought he just got the 24 channels - old G5 I think)...the guy did not even know the dish moved or that there where any other satellites. The guy shows him how to get the other satellites and the customer is ecstatic.
 
Oh were oh were to begin, I guess that as much as I understand what the O.P. is saying that this person needs to understand that when it comes down to it that in the details of what they posted they revealed that to some degrea they are a bad tsr/csr. Clueless/foolish/no idea/ignorant/cruel/mean/heartless/mcjobber/dont know their head from their ass/ tsr's and csr's exec office and retention personal are the norm and the high majority at the call centers. I dealt with call centers each day and reps up to 20 times in a day depending on just how bad a sales rep for a reseller lied or how incredibly wrong a tsr or csr was on their diagnosis of what was wrong with the customers system ( you want to know what I really really hate about the dish tsr's above all else? the fact that so many of you will either tell the customer to cut down a tree or that the dish wont be affected by tree's ). As much as your job may suck due to the ocassional bad customer ( you only listed 8 examples so it must not be that bad ) it is a job ou have chosen and a job that you are still getting a pay check from and the fact is that the good csr's and tsr's are a tiny tiny minority in the pool.
 
"The guy shows him how to get the other satellites and the customer is ecstatic."

I think this is the key statement to this whole thread. If you show a customer how to use the equipment, most of these calls wouldn't even happen. A lot of people come from cable where they just use the remote control and change the channel. Satellite is a different technology and customers need the education.

Example: "Customer calls in cussing at me, threatening to cancel his services because he has been staring at a "press select screen for 24 hours and is sick of this horse $hit". I laughed because I thought he was joking. I told him to press sat then select. End of call."

If the installer would've shown the customer how to use the equipment, this call would've never been made.

Now installers are gonna say, we don't have time to show the customers how to use the equipment and to certain extent I agree. But don't complain that a customer doesn't know how to use the equipment when you never showed him/her how to use it. Complain to Dish Network management for dumping all the work on you the installers and not giving you enough time to complete the job, the way it should be done.
 
Eh?

TSR's are usually good. CSR's, well... there... umm.... not as up to par so to say, at least in my experience and their english usually sucks. I've talked to some good TSR Level III's tho for sure out of Oklahoma and Pittsburg.

Van brings up a few things where the customer is told satellite works through trees, there's a new satellite that faces the north, the technician will gladly move your furniture... what gets me is when the customer is told we will be there at 3 o'clock, EVEN though it's scheduled either 8-12, or 12-5. Then you show up at 1pm and your getting chewed out.

The one thing I find on alot of jobs on new connects is the fact that the customer 9 out 10 times is not aware of the phone line fee, then it's me that gets the break the news.

Either way, it's nice to hear from the other side.
 
Employees CHOOSE to be employees.

Customers CHOOSE to be customers.

Employees pretty much have it figured out, most of the customer base seems to need a hand on the second half of that. Not all, just more than I personally care for. As far as CSR versus TSR, that point is rather moot. People say that calling the tech support line gets better service and all problems are dealt with by the exec office. The reality of that is the worst of those issues go far beyond the TSRs and Exec office, they just know where to send them to. THOSE people are your heroes. Most of them you probably don't even know the names of, and I bet a few will even be at Team Summit this year (don't think I'll be going this time.)

There's no one phone number, no majority rule, no better odds to getting someone who is familiar with all the rules and operations of DISH. It is luck of the draw (granted that I agree it really shouldn't be, but it is.) I COULD NOT do what a CSR does (and came so incredibly close to it too...) but at the end of the day, there's only so much a CSR can learn, so far a CSR can go. So I'm not entirely sure their lack of training or skills are entirely their own faults either for those with poor ability.

But then again reflectors mounted to bricks... there are installation companies that aren't any better than the customer service offerings.
 
Just some thoughts...

The last installer was young, new and having troubles with a DVR activation. Thats ok, I gave him his space and read the manual while he did his job. However, afterwards he didnt offer to show how it all worked. Another person in the house isnt as technically savvy as I am and would have had a hard time figuring out how to use it. Offering would have been good customer service.

When talking to CSR's and tech support being smooth at all times really helps. Subtly flirting when appropriate helps also. CSR's/TSR's are supposed to be %100 helpful anyways. But they are not computers and will react like people. A no brainer. But many people act rude right from the beginning.

When CSR's have conflicting answers dont get mad at them. Being in similar positions myself, they are the last to be told things and are sometimes given bad or conflicting information to begin with. We all know this but some forget when talking to them.

One thing that really bothers me are people that are downright angry about problems relating to TV. But when hearing on the news about people getting shot in the head their reaction is "oh thats a shame" and forget about it 2 minutes later. Fortunately they are in the minority. Its TV not life. There are many other things to do while a problem is fixed... some of which I would gladly shut the thing off no matter what was on :D
 

Owned 942 to Owned 622 at what cost?

Educate me please

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