Tag: Phone

Can I speak to a human please? My war with tech in customer service

Posted on by Han_A

Sometimes I’m certain tech is going to be the death of us all.

At other times I have moments of excitement and intrigue when I think about what new opportunities tech will unlock for us as a species. But today let’s focus on one of the roots of my pessimism. Customer service.

Tech has been used very strategically by several companies to make dealing with customer queries more efficient. Snazzy websites with FAQs, AI powered chatbots and ‘virtual assistants’ online and on the phone who can point you towards the best answer possible. Sometimes they work very well and you think – thank God for that. However, at other times they lead you hopelessly in circles, teasing you with the promise of an answer BUT NOT ACTUALLY GIVING ONE. It’s at those times I have to take deep breaths to protect my sanity and my phone screen (which is one step away from being thrown at the wall).

I recently found myself in need of documents from my bank and was of course advised by the website (one bit of tech) to use the banking app (another bit of tech). I did as I was told but the app actually couldn’t fulfil the demand so after a few tries I reluctantly decided to go to the bank. Even that decision wasn’t made easy because the physical sites of many high street banks are slowly all shutting down. All the ones in my borough of London were closed down, so I had to venture out.

When I got to the bank, after a long journey there and I finally get to see a member of staff after waiting ten or 15 mins, what happens? They ask me if I’ve used the app and if not, if they can show me how to use it. Part of me wanted to scream. What is the point of me being here if all roads lead back to this god forsaken app? Can no service be provided independent of it? It’s enough for me to hopelessly despair at times.

Human, where art thou?

These days there’s a thrill and pleasant surprise to hearing a human voice on the phone. And that’s mainly because companies make you work SO HARD to access one. You have to talk to 101 AI bots who you tell your problem to (in over enunciated English because they understand nothing less), only for them to say they don’t understand a thing you’re say. Repeat this scenario about 3 – 4 times and you have a typical phone call to your bank or utility provider. Humans, of course, have their own problems, sometimes I’ll be forwarded back and forth between teams on the phone like cow on a farm. No, they’re not perfect, but I always feel like I am in slightly better hands and that I’m at least one step closer to a solution.

In terms of human access for customers – it’s a luxury. And, you’ll notice, if you observe carefully, that there’s also a hierarchy. People who are likely to buy new products will always be put through to humans faster. As for existing customers who are likely to be making complaints or trying to be processing returns? You’ll have to jump through a few hurdles. Maybe you’ll get through to a human, maybe you won’t. It’s up to the company gods and what they’ve decided. Sad stuff really – especially when you’re in the midst of it. There’s an incorrect assumption that it’s mainly those that are elderly and/or old fashioned that like to have human customer service. This is not true, young people like myself are increasingly valuing human assistance too. Why? Because it’s not necessarily an age or generational thing at this point.

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Do you have any bad customer service stories to share? Feel free to comment and share so we can release our anger together 🙂

Alternatively feel free to read more of my thoughts on shopping and customer service here.

Thought of the Day: When you need a friend

Posted on by Han_A

‘I miss the days when you could just go to friends’ houses and be welcomed’

Someone said something along those lines the other days and I immediately thought ‘I don’t’.

Imagine: you’ve just logged off after your last work meeting the day. Tired is not even the word for how you’re feeling. Dinner is ready and you already have a film in mind for the evening. JUST as you’re about to press play on the film – the doorbell rings.

I’m not even sure I was old enough to properly experience those days but imagine the hassle of having to welcome people into your home, unexpected and uninvited, at various hours of the day. Very stressful indeed. Particularly when you think about the energy and effort that often has to go into hosting people. It’s energy and effort I’m sure people these days are still willing to exert – just not without warning.

This sentiment plays into the wider idea that people are increasingly less accessible. And I suspect this is true. It’s ironic too considering we’re more well-connected tech-wise than we’ve ever been before. We’ve all had the scenario with someone close to us where you want to meet up with them and you have to flick through diaries – sometimes months ahead to find a feasible date that works for both of you. People in general have become less accessible and lonelier. Probably not a coincidence I suspect.

Even I often find having a social life, as much as I enjoy it, sometimes can feel like a part-time job. I’m always grateful once I’m around people but sometimes I feel like energy is always in short supply, particularly when social plans are made after work, which has used up all my energy – leaving me shattered and chewed out!

Back to this idea of accessibility though – I don’t think it’s necessarily a bad thing but it just depends on the level and frequency. For example, you may be inaccessible at certain points in a day or week and that’s fine, if not necessary for your sanity. Also, how do we define accessibility? Typically, how easy it is to get through to people by phone. This becomes a problem if you want to be accessible a lot because you feel you can’t really detach from your phone – always paranoid when you do THAT will be the moment someone has an emergency and needs you. Likely a delusional thought but one I have often, nonetheless.

Many people are actively trying to limit their screen time and I support this. In fact, I should probably jump on that train soon but for now, using do not disturb and making sure calls are scheduled (as opposed to spontaneous!) are my happy medium.

How do you manage your screen time and stay accessible to others? Any tips?

Photo by NoWah Bartscher on Unsplash

Thought of the Day: What women want

Posted on by Han_A

We live in a society with a lot of options so I often feel the weight of indecision when going into certain situations. For example, you go to the supermarket to buy crackers and cheese and you’re faced with about 25 brands of crackers alone (like, why?) However, there are times when you may go guns blazing into a situation, knowing exactly what you want. And it’s VERY annoying in those circumstances when you make it crystal clear what you want and it’s still doubted for some reason.

You say ‘no’ and people think ‘ahh, she just means ‘not yet’.

You say ‘no’ and people think ‘she’ll say yes with a bit of persuading.’

And why? What part of ‘no’ or a ‘yes’ is so confusing? This often happens, surprise surprise, to women because God forbid they be highly rational or know what they want when they make decisions. It’s why we have to give credit to female entrepreneurs and CEOs – I honestly can’t imagine how often they face this issue on a regular basis and yet they still make moves and get things done. It must be tiring, constantly jumping through hoops and hoping people take your decisions at face value.

Anyway, that rant is to segue into my recent story of a grapple with customer services this week. I decided to save some money and cancel a subscription from a certain well-known British TV service provider. I made this very clear when I called – the automatic voice when you call customer services asks the purpose of your call and then so does the human adviser when you finally get through to one. For a straightforward request, I was shocked to find myself on the phone for over an hour trying to cancel my subscription. I was forwarded to three or four people, all as unhelpful as the other. In fact, they were even trying to sell me MORE things during the call (can you believe it?) The cheek. During and after the call I was fuming – it was a hairpulling experience, to say the least. I finished that call unsuccessful with my request. I decided the next day to call again and go in guns blazing, being very clear about what I wanted. I think I even said something along the lines of ‘Can we make this process quick please since I’m working and don’t have much time to spend on this.’ Result? A shorter call overall and my cancellation was successful.

The moral of that story isn’t to be rude to customer service but sometimes being firm and repetitive about what you want can never hurt.

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Read more about my ramblings with customer services in this previous post.

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Photo by Negative Space

When tech goes wrong: Red Rose – a review

Posted on by Han_A

TW: This drama contains scenes of suicide

Most of us have a love/hate relationship with our phones – their batteries don’t last as long as we would like them to and the apps on them can often waste much of our time, for example. However, the irritating things aside, we are increasingly reliant on them for everyday life – I can barely remember birthdays or my social commitments without mine at this point (the shame, I know.) There’s even a term, believe it or not, for smartphone addiction – Nomophobia, an indicator of just how widespread, if not normal, this phenomenon is becoming in our lives.

This show cleverly taps into this increasing reliance on technology and takes it to a dark extreme. The scariest thing about the whole concept is that it’s not even that farfetched when we think about what tech is capable of and the evil many humans use it for.

The Nitty gritty

The eight episode drama follows a friendship group of six students who have just finished secondary school (year 11 to the UK audience /high school) and are celebrating their freedom in their post-exams summer. Or so they should be. However, a mysterious app named ‘Red Rose’ has other plans for the group and they must eventually end up fighting for their lives (and those of their loved ones) whilst figuring out who is behind the app.

I want to say I started the drama calm and detached but this is anything but true. In fact – and I won’t ruin too much – but RIGHT at the beginning we witness a mysterious and tragic accident without much context. Immediately your mind races with questions that are painstakingly revealed towards the middle to end of the show. The questions don’t ever really end and what follows throughout the drama is a series of events that appear to be unrelated but are at their core all connected.

It’s not all doom and gloom though – there are banterous scenes with humour dotted throughout which help to ease tension and help you relax, even if momentarily. Scenes of kids being kids which made me smile with nostalgia. For example, the scenes at the beginning where they’re celebrating the end of exams and signing each other’s school shirts or the moment they open their results. Made me think about to that feeling of the world being at your feet and the start of something exciting beginning.

My Verdict

In this BBC drama, nothing is as it seems, so be prepared – it’s truly a Northern twist-turner from beginning to end and I’m not complaining! It turned unexpectedly from a show I was casually viewing into a binge with me on my sofa at 4am doing the classic ‘just one more episode’ and finishing the series. I would be intrigued to see based on the show’s success (it’s trending at number 9 on most watched UK dramas on Netflix at the time of writing) whether a sequel will be in the making. I won’t be mad if they don’t but I’ll definitely be queuing to watch if they do! Overall, would highly recommend.

Some tweet highlights of people reacting to the show:

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Interested? Check out the trailer here. Watched already? Let me know your thoughts!

I do see some similarities between this show and the Mexican drama, Control Z (also set in a high school and involves tech and blackmail), so for fans of this show who fancy another dose, this will be up your street too. You can read my review of that show here.

Thought of the Day: Breaking the IG façade

Posted on by Han_A

Not every moment you experience will be IG perfect and that’s okay. You’ll be surprised how averse people are to experiencing moments in their raw unfiltered beauty these days. Instead, because of social media, many think of every moment they experience as a potential social media post. Is this Instagram-worthy? And if not, what can I do to ensure that it is? What should the caption be? And so on. It’s fairly common for people to go a location (supposedly for leisure) and then when it comes to taking photos instead of few natural snaps to memorialise the moment it becomes this eventually stressful endeavor to capture the perfect like-worthy shot.

I knew things were very much going downhill when people a year or two ago criticised an influencer who got engaged. She showed an obligatory photo of the engagement ring on her hand and instead of sharing her joy – as she probably assumed would be the response – many people focused on the fact her nails weren’t manicured in the photo. Since then, it’s been a running joke for many people that their partners should give them a heads-up before a proposal so they can get their nails done. What should be a romantic, intimate moment is now, for the most part transformed by this overwhelming desire to ensure the moment is approved by the numerous unknown eyes viewing it on their timeline. A bit of a shame if you ask me.

This is why, a friend and I concluded over brunch recently, not everything needs to be posted on your socials. It’s very tempting, and I can admit I do fall into this trap more often than none. I’ll be bopping to music playing at a gig and think to myself, ‘I should probably post something on my story’. As if people actually care. Regardless of if they do or don’t, the moral of this story is sometimes you just need to put your phone down and enjoy the moment.

*Photo by Omkar Patyane: https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-using-smartphone-238480/

In the moment. In the now.

Posted on by Han_A

I miss you, yet I see you every day.

Is this how it feels to be so close to someone

yet so far away?

Disclaimer: I write this (as with all my posts) with no malice. In fact, I may sometimes be guilty of this myself so I’ll keep that in mind throughout.

Is it only me or do people find it so hard to be in the moment nowadays? By that I mean just savouring the present moment and appreciating what you’re doing and who you’re with. I can sometimes be with people and see they’re with me but actually quite distant all at once. Distracted by their phone either pinging with messages or simply not strong enough to resist the momentary urge to scroll through social media whilst you are talking. And that can be quite a frustrating state of affairs; firstly because it set a precedent for the whole evening and secondly, it means they may not have heard something that you felt was really important or took a lot of courage to share. In fact, it can be quite rare I find to be with someone I know and just be within a moment where you’re both talking whilst filled with genuine appreciation and joy at being with that particular person. With no one else. Or anywhere else. But there. I have a friend that will always tell me off for being on my phone and insist I put it away when with her. As a true phone addict would, I used to be annoyed at that but after some reflection and observation of my own social situations in the past few months I’ve seen the logic behind what I thought was once madness on her part.

It may not be intentional but being on your phone indicates you’ve only half-heartedly pushed time aside for that person. That you’re physically present but mentally you’re only half present here and God knows where else. The greatest sign of care and love is when you’re sitting opposite each other or walking side by side and you’re friend puts their phone away and looks you square in the eyes and says ‘talk to me’. That’s the cue that says to me (supported by action) that, I’m here for you, I’m listening and I’m all yours. The exclusivity of time is one of the benefits of a relationship and should definitely be taken more seriously. It may feel more intense without your phone there to buffer the awkward moments if they arise but at the end of your time together- whether long or short- you’ll know and love each other that little bit more. Because you’ll be reminded all over again of why you love that person and keep them in your life.

Happy Monday!

Posted on by Han_A

So… Margaret Thatcher, the UK’s only female prime minister, and the longest-serving prime minister (eleven years I think) is dead. RIP to her. She died ‘peacefully’ of a stroke the news has said. I was talking on WhatsApp to my friends today and was wondering, is it even possible to even die peacefully of a stroke? Maybe, although I strongly doubt it. She has always caused division among people. Many love her and many hate her. I mean, she did close down quite a bit of Britain’s coal mines- causing the breakdown of small communities and the loss of 20,000 jobs. On the other hand, she did save Britain’s economy and transformed our Education system. So…like I said, division.

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R.I.P to you Maggie.

Today has been unproductive once again- damn you modern technology. Hopefully, the evening will not go to waste. The house phone has become my enemy over the last year. It used to just ring three times and then go to voice mail but now it continuously rings. Honestly, me and it are not on good terms. Every time it rings I ignore it and eagerly await the sweet silence that will follow when the ringing finally stops.

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I wish I could be her and say this proudly…*sigh*

Check out my Square eyes section- I’ll be posting some more stuff this week. Some book reviews may also be coming your way. 🙂

On a serious note…

I was asked how I feel today about Transgender people, this wasn’t a random question, it was the topic of a talk show I was watching at the time. I think it’s so easy for people, especially for those that are Christians like me, to say what people should and shouldn’t do, when you yourself may have not been in that situation. So if you think it’s wrong and you don’t think the person should change their sex, what SHOULD they? Stay so unhappy that they eventually commit suicide and become another statistic? I don’t think so.

My thought on it all-  it’s a nuanced subject that requires education, empathy and understanding. Let’s continue to equip ourselves in these three areas since ignorance, hate and apathy only continues to hurt the trans community and we need to be the change.

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Margaret Thatcher- (cropped) photo taken from wikipedia.org

R.I.P to the weekend- till we meet again…

Posted on by Han_A

Howdy Guys!

Two posts in one day! Wow, aren’t I treating you guys 🙂 Honestly, I love WordPress, I stumble upon amazing bloggers everyday. YOU GUYS ARE AMAZING. Yes, feel the love right there.

Anyway…so it’s just about gone past midnight here in London. The weather wasn’t too bad- no sign of precipitation coming from the sky so…yes, not too bad. I went out to eat on Saturday. I think it’s the first time I had properly stepped out of the house all week. I met a couple of friends and went to the O2 Arena, a massive concert venue near the River Thames. It’s dotted with nice restaurants and other shops. We went to Frankie & Benny’s, a restaurant that does American/Italian style food. I ordered a hot toasted wrap with a filling of Balsamic chicken, garlic, iceberg lettuce etc. with a side of ‘house-fried chips’ and coleslaw. The wrap was Ok- but I don’t think I would order it again. The Balsamic was too overwhelming, and frankly didn’t go well with the chicken. The Chips were great,  they had a crispy coating and were basically like fancy Burger King Chips. As for the coleslaw,well I don’t do coleslaw, so it was left untouched. I was mourning the loss of my phone yesterday evening. It tragically died on me, so I was cut off from the outside world for a good two hours or so. I would have posted a photo of my meal, but since I had no phone…I think you get the point.

Frankie& Benny's logo

My friends and I were unfortunate enough to decide to go the O2 arena on the day of a One Direction concert.  The place was swamped with girls and women, young and old, wearing band merchandise from shoe laces, scarves to T-shirts and hoodies. For those of you that don’t know who One Direction is, they happen to be one of those extremely overrated famous boybands that many girls love. It might surprise you, but I’m not one of those girls. Don’t get me wrong, I have nothing against them, I even like some other songs surprisingly. It’s just obvious to me that they are one boyband in a line of many gone and to come. Once they hit 30-40 years old, they’ll lose their appeal, split up and we won’t hear from them till a couple years time.

Look Familiar?
Look Familiar?

You’ll turn on your TV one day and see them on some pointless reality TV show such as ‘I’m a Celebrity get me out of here’ or ‘Big Brother’, trying to revive their very much dead careers and fame. Fame is a funny thing- many long for it, some have it and hate it, others once they lose it or finally get it, will do anything to keep their hands on it or get it back.

Now, hop onto the random thoughts train…

I read this month is National Poetry writing month- so I’ll try and get some poems I like, or post a few of my own. (Emphasis on the ‘try’)

I love the store ‘Tiger’- they do everything (at a reasonable price) from candles, spices to pencils. Love it. Went there on Saturday and took some pics. People must have thought I was crazy. Funny thing is they’re probably right.

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Lastly, Follow my newbie friend Abigail on her blog:

http://www.awesomenessismine.wordpress.com

Be a sport and follow newbie friend no.2 Javani:

http://www.themindofaweirdo.wordpress.com

Have a great week! 🙂

Note:This entry is a combo of stuff written on Saturday and Sunday.

 

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My pictures were taken from:
http://www.ukmums.tv/mums-columns/a-day-out-with-frankie-benny-s-mum-s-review (Frankie and Benny’ logo)

http://www.peoplestylewatch.com/people/stylewatch/package/article/0,,20658248_20673349,00.html (One Direction).
The rest are mine, taken on my iphone 🙂