[BC] Poor customer support

[Dana Puopolo]

Tom is 100% right. I do customer support for Barix-and you'd be amazed at the
calls I get every day. Most 'engineers' don't have a single clue about how
IP/networking works.
I regularly get calls from people who expect that all they have to do is plug
their units into an RJ45 jack anywhere in the world and *presto* the units
should talk and play audio. In response to this I developed QuiklinkIP, which
actually DOES this-yet there are no customers who want to buy the service
(which by the way has NO connection with Barix-it's my own
idea/product/service). People believe that the basic units should do this
automatically, and for free.

-D

------ Original Message ------
Received: 06:38 AM PST, 02/27/2010
From: "Thomas G. Osenkowsky" <tosenkowsky at prodigy.net>

> Once again, I hate to be "that bunch" that calls and has to be mean,
> but when you're off the air, what do you do?

There is another side to the story. I am not taking a position
on the matter, just pointing out what may be the other side.
I am sure we all agree that the ranks of experienced engineers
has diminished over the years. The typical calls Tech Support
receives are not from qualified, experienced professionals but
from end users with little technical expertise, or no experience
with the particular brand/model they are faced with repairing.

To deal with this, companies composed boiler plate "Check the
power switch" type of manuals and have hired less experienced
people to answer the phone calls. It is a Catch-22 scenario. There
is an old saying "When you hear the sound of hoofs, think horses,
not zebras." Many problems can be solved using the boiler plate
responses. Those more deeply rooted require a higher level of
competence. Whoa is that call taker who calls the higher level person
only to find it was a tripped breaker. It goes both ways.

Tom Osenkowsky, CPBE