MILLENNIAL'S HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA WHAT CUSTOMER SERVICE IS!!!

[Golddollar]

I have posted before about lousy customer service but I won't rehash them now. Sometimes the rejoinder has been "Do you want to pay the prices it would cost the company to have better customer service staff?"

This discussion has sparked a memory of a possible solution. One time I was out of town for a chili cookoff and picked up a Sunday paper. There was an article discussing the merits of having a customer service center built in a part of the United States that was suffering from high unemployment and/or low wages. That sounds like a practical solution all the way around.

 

[twodog max]

To be perfectly fair to the muddled English speaking so called customer service reps we have our fair share of poor CS right here in the good old USA. I hope it is only a local anomaly but I think not. Several times I have encountered plumbers, excavation contractors, gravel haulers etc. etc. tell me I will call you tomorrow with an estimate, time of arrival, on and on to never hear from them again. some even dodge your calls when you try getting them back. I do not see how these jerks make a living much less stay in business. Really grinds my gears. If you are to busy or just do not want to do the job say so and we can end it there.

 

[ContinentalOp]

I've had good customer service experiences and I've had bad customer service experiences. Over the phone, I couldn't tell if they were millenials or not. In person, I've had good experiences with millenials and bad experiences with boomers.

Maybe you shouldn't judge an entire generation based on bad experiences you've had that likely result from corporate managers deciding to cut CS costs, managers who are likely older than millenials.

Painting with broad brush strokes doesn't do anyone any good. Remember that the next time you get stereotyped because of whatever groups you belong to.

 

[Golphin]

Another part of our old America that has been lost. The reason there is no longer Sears is because they stopped hiring full timers and as the full timers that had been there retired they were replaced with part time help or not replaced at all. They tried to compete in the Walmart world and lost their identity and soon the entire business.

 

[Rustyt1953]

Here goes:

I believe that threads like this are one of the reasons that younger members don't stick around here for long. If I were a much younger man and read the almost weekly bashing of younger people as a whole here I would be looking for the door too.

As far as dealing with CS, I don't mind waiting as I know that I am not the only person on the planet that is seeking assistance. Also, I have yet to run into a language barrier that a little patience and compassion couldn't overcome.

Incidentally, my children, their cousins and their friends are millennials. They will be crushed to know they killed CS.

 

[Muss Muggins]

Another part of our old America that has been lost. The reason there is no longer Sears is because they stopped hiring full timers and as the full timers that had been there retired they were replaced with part time help or not replaced at all. They tried to compete in the Walmart world and lost their identity and soon the entire business.

Sears started out as a remote mail order delivery business that eventually got killed by remote mail order delivery businesses . . .

 

[ImprovedModel56Fan]

I don't have many problems with customer service. Of course, I usually don't use the phone. The LGS is only a few miles away, so I just drive over there.

 

[arjay]

Sears started out as a remote mail order delivery business that eventually got killed by remote mail order delivery businesses . . .

Beaten at their own game
I never call anyone when an email or text will do,even locally

 

[S42N8]

Same thing here...then they wanted the return of their gear(at my expence...not!!) and they even said I had other gear that I had tp pay for( Not!! as was taken by service people)So now I have an Amazon Prime account and watch free movies(John Wayne & Sophia Loren last night)and an occasional pay per view. I save over a hundred a month and must say I REALLY miss the commercials

+1. Cut the cord about two months ago. Even with upgrading the Internet from laggy Spectrum to Frontier 1 gig (doubled the price, but 8x speed ), I added the Hulu bundle (Disney+, ESPN+ and Hulu), Discovery+, and Philo—and still cut $100/month off the bill. The digital HD antenna works fine for OTA channels, and paid for itself the first month. Commercials? We don't need no stinking commercials!

 

[charlie sherrill]

To be perfectly fair to the muddled English speaking so called customer service reps we have our fair share of poor CS right here in the good old USA. I hope it is only a local anomaly but I think not. Several times I have encountered plumbers, excavation contractors, gravel haulers etc. etc. tell me I will call you tomorrow with an estimate, time of arrival, on and on to never hear from them again. some even dodge your calls when you try getting them back. I do not see how these jerks make a living much less stay in business. Really grinds my gears. If you are to busy or just do not want to do the job say so and we can end it there.

I'm going through this same thing right now with a plumber AND a A/C man.

 

[charlie sherrill]

When pay TV started one of their selling points was NO ADVERTISEMENTS. Formerly the ads paid for the free TV then we eliminated the ads by paying for the service ourselves. The ads gradually started coming back until it reached the point it is now. A 1.5 hour movie takes about three hours or more to complete on cable TV because of all the irritating ads. Add that to the crappy CS and billing errors (always in their favor) and you have a real sorry service that many people are running away from. This stuff is far too expensive for what you receive.

 

[Puller]

Here goes:

I believe that threads like this are one of the reasons that younger members don't stick around here for long. If I were a much younger man and read the almost weekly bashing of younger people as a whole here I would be looking for the door too.

As far as dealing with CS, I don't mind waiting as I know that I am not the only person on the planet that is seeking assistance. Also, I have yet to run into a language barrier that a little patience and compassion couldn't overcome.

Incidentally, my children, their cousins and their friends are millennials. They will be crushed to know they killed CS.

I agree that if one is of the millennial generation, a proponent of polymer, or don't buy into the media driven hype on the pandemic, it can be a tough crowd around here.

But the customer service is good so some keep coming back.

 

[Golphin]

Sears started out as a remote mail order delivery business that eventually got killed by remote mail order delivery businesses . . .

That may have finished them off but they were well on the way out before the Amazon's and others even became a thing. The steep plunge started around 1980 when they went to the part time split shift model to avoid giving employees benefits as a way to say money. By the time the delivery business became popular they were to far gone anyway.

 

[Muss Muggins]

That may have finished them off but they were well on the way out before the Amazon's and others even became a thing. The steep plunge started around 1980 when they went to the part time split shift model to avoid giving employees benefits as a way to say money. By the time the delivery business became popular they were to far gone anyway.

I'm guessing you or someone you care about is a former employee driven out by the "part time split shift model . . . "

 

[dockmurgw]

Here goes:
I believe that threads like this are one of the reasons that younger members don't stick around here for long. If I were a much younger man and read the almost weekly bashing of younger people as a whole here I would be looking for the door too.

It would be nice to see the constant state bashing curtailed. Remington starts making guns in NY and members here are angry. S&W moves manufacturing from Mass and members celebrate the job loss. A member from CA asks a question and the thread turns into an anti CA / free state dumpster fire. A member post's they are going to NJ for a family emergency and anti NJ posts follow. And nobody EVER says anything about it...except me, and I'm disliked by many because of it. Picking on millenials is the least of this forums problems.

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

When you have a B-R-A-N-D- N-E-W DELL Laptop you bought specially configured for your purposes and had to wait a month to get and it keeps freezing up and after finding out that you have to schedule an appointment time to speak with a tech and after finally geting to talk to the tech the best the tech can do after an hour or so of remote fiddling around with the computer is to tell you to turn it off-wait 10 seconds and then turn it on and you have just turned your mouse into a 90 mph fastball that has smashed into the wall opposite your desk leaving a dent in the sheetrock you can perhaps understand the depth of frustration that poor customer service can engender

 

[dockmurgw]

or don't buy into the media driven hype on the pandemic,

This one usually ends in points and suspensions.

 

[waffles]

I'll just add customer service to the list of things we killed, right after chain restaurants but before napkins. I'll consult the others at our avocado toast brunch tomorrow and see if we can come up with a resolution.

I'm just thinking of how this thread would go if it were talking smack about about boomers.

 

[waffles]

I'd also note that CS policies come from the top down, and shockingly I know, the CEO of Amazon is a boomer.

 

[muddocktor]

Sorry chief38, I don't see your original post as pertaining to Millennials or any other age group, except maybe that Millennials have a lot lower chance of being exposed to truly good customer service nowadays than us old farts had back in the good old days. The problem isn't the age of the people involved with customer service, but rather the policies of the companies involved with the experience nowadays. There are companies that still give good customer service in this era but they are getting few and far between in my opinion. Others, like the aforementioned AT&T used to be good back in the day (like back when it was Bellsouth here before AT&T took them over) and are terrible nowadays.

So, you want to complain about customer service, go right ahead. But don't try to place the blame on any one age group. Instead, hold the companies involved with customer support on their products accountable by boycotting them instead of buying from them again in the future. As for LG, I learned my lesson with thier products when I bought a Google Nexus 4 phone for my daughter, which was manufactured by LG. The darned thing lasted just long enough to get out of warranty before giving trouble and it crapped out about 6 months later. So that soured me on anything from them.

 

[dockmurgw]

The OP doesn't need me to speak for him...but I cant resist! He didn't say millenials did anything to customer service, he just said they don't know what it is, or was...he isnt blaming them for anything. I think the point is that they just accept today's customer service as the norm, which makes sense since this is all they know.

 

[waffles]

The OP doesn't need me to speak for him...but I cant resist! He didn't say millenials did anything to customer service, he just said they don't know what it is, or was...he isnt blaming them for anything. I think the point is that they just accept today's customer service as the norm, which makes sense since this is all they know.

Yaknow, rereading it with that in mind I can buy that interpretation. Sorry OP, I retract my kinda snarky replies if that's how it was meant.

 

[TheHobbyist]

There are a ton of moving parts, if you will, in this discussion. First, I agree with those that state it is not a millennial issue. Also, to be mindful in casting a "broad net".

Personally, I have advocated that CS and inside sales should be paid a professional-level, entry-to-mid level salary based on experience. The challenge is first company culture, then economics...that is, it may not be feasible for a larger organization due to call volume.

Technology: Most in the under 50 demographic will use online services, chat, etc., for support and further direction. These folks are FAST in response. If it is not your preferred medium of communication, that is OK, but it is subject to the architecture of most current business practices.

Personally, I enjoy talking to a 'real person', but fact is I am also doing so online and it is mostly very expedient.

Last quick note and thought is: Professionalism. I am talking of behalf of the Company AND the customer...I understand if someone is on hold for long durations or having difficulty communicating that emotions can get the better of us...BUT, take a time out, relax/breath, in a 100 years will it really matter? I forgot who said it, but food-for-thought: in your vision of the world, is the reflection of yourself.

Poor service is inexcusable; not necessarily the fault of the person you are dealing with, however.