Vodafone is slacking - Plain and simple.

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Aaroona

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#179919 24-Nov-2008 15:42

ajw:
Aaroona:
cokemaster: Ironically, if you use your 3G iphone - you'll get better coverage (97% of where NZ work and play) on Telecoms 850mhz WCDMA network than you'll get on Vodafones 2100mhz (NZ herald says only 63% in linked article) network.

That IS ironic. :|

Well, Bring it on Telecom!

Bring it on NZ Comms. In the Wellington region NZ Comms cellsites are like new mushrooms and are sprouting everywhere on a regular basis.

Either im blind, or there isnt any round my area :)

(im in AUckland, BTW)

marmel

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#179920 24-Nov-2008 15:44

ajw:
Aaroona:
cokemaster: Ironically, if you use your 3G iphone - you'll get better coverage (97% of where NZ work and play) on Telecoms 850mhz WCDMA network than you'll get on Vodafones 2100mhz (NZ herald says only 63% in linked article) network.

That IS ironic. :|

Well, Bring it on Telecom!

Bring it on NZ Comms. In the Wellington region NZ Comms cellsites are like new mushrooms and are sprouting everywhere on a regular basis.

Going to another provider might make you feel better but will it change anything? What if the call centre at NZ comms is just as bad as the other telco's?

What I'm trying to get across is that something needs to be done to make the staff in call centre's "stick to the program" and actually help customers.

I don't know if it is a training issue, company policies, the type of staff employed or a combination of the three but at present it just sucks if you have ongoing problems and need help.

Aaroona

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#179921 24-Nov-2008 15:48

marmel:
ajw:
Aaroona:
cokemaster: Ironically, if you use your 3G iphone - you'll get better coverage (97% of where NZ work and play) on Telecoms 850mhz WCDMA network than you'll get on Vodafones 2100mhz (NZ herald says only 63% in linked article) network.

That IS ironic. :|

Well, Bring it on Telecom!

Bring it on NZ Comms. In the Wellington region NZ Comms cellsites are like new mushrooms and are sprouting everywhere on a regular basis.

Going to another provider might make you feel better but will it change anything? What if the call centre at NZ comms is just as bad as the other telco's?

What I'm trying to get across is that something needs to be done to make the staff in call centre's "stick to the program" and actually help customers.

I don't know if it is a training issue, company policies, the type of staff employed or a combination of the three but at present it just sucks if you have ongoing problems and need help.

I agree 100%.

Personally, I didnt make my comment with the assumption of better CS at this point, it was mainly because I want to see what they have to offer. Hopefully we can gain some competition between all the providers.

ajw

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#179923 24-Nov-2008 15:49

I would rather try out the new boy on the block rather than use Vodafone.

ajw

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#179931 24-Nov-2008 16:05

PaulBrislen: For future reference:

ALWAYS ask for the case number if a CSR says they're escalating.

ALWAYS write it down and keep it somewhere safe.

RING back and ask for a progress update (don't just let it sit).

If you're the squeaky wheel you get a result.

This isn't a Vodafone thing, this is how it is with call centres anywhere.

Cheers

Paul

And if you are a prepay customer and ring back asking about a fault caused by Vfone it is $1 every time you ring them.

Aaroona

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#179937 24-Nov-2008 16:16

ajw:
I would rather try out the new boy on the block rather than use Vodafone.

Fair enough to. Thats where im at as well.

ajw:
PaulBrislen: For future reference:

ALWAYS ask for the case number if a CSR says they're escalating.

ALWAYS write it down and keep it somewhere safe.

RING back and ask for a progress update (don't just let it sit).

If you're the squeaky wheel you get a result.

This isn't a Vodafone thing, this is how it is with call centres anywhere.

Cheers

Paul

And if you are a prepay customer and ring back asking about a fault caused by Vfone it is $1 every time you ring them.

Oh yeah, I forgot you poor buggers are being charged that. Im glad I wasnt on prepay, there would be $20.00 credit gone :|

cokemaster

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#179999 24-Nov-2008 18:23

PaulBrislen:

This isn't a Vodafone thing, this is how it is with call centres anywhere.

While I'd agree that its a common trend with call centres to make promises and not deliver the results, I would expect operators of contact centres to aim for a lot better.

It would be far more comforting to hear a statement along the lines of 'Sorry to hear you had a negative experience, we'll try to be much better next time' rather than 'This is a call centre issue, not a vodafone issue'...

Customers are paying you for a service and support, they shouldn't have to endure call centre hell or have to jump through flaming hoops to get a resolution.

(before I get asked, yes I have been on both sides and know whats involved)

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marmel

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#180004 24-Nov-2008 18:31

Problem is though is that for one of the big telco's to change there call centre's for the better it would have to be an ethical decision rather than a business one. As I said above why bother changing anything if you are making massive profits? Can't see it happening unless we get a couple more decent sized operators in NZ and I'm not sure if the market is big enough.

You just have to do a google search on vodafone NZ to read about the company being the "jewel in the crown" of VF international operations.

What I would love to see is a net profit per customer comparison between VF overseas and NZ markets, then we would see just how much we are being charged due to a lack of competition and regulation.

ajw

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#180005 24-Nov-2008 18:32

cokemaster:
PaulBrislen:

This isn't a Vodafone thing, this is how it is with call centres anywhere.

While I'd agree that its a common trend with call centres to make promises and not deliver the results, I would expect operators of contact centres to aim for a lot better.

It would be far more comforting to hear a statement along the lines of 'Sorry to hear you had a negative experience, we'll try to be much better next time' rather than 'This is a call centre issue, not a vodafone issue'...

Customers are paying you for a service and support, they shouldn't have to endure call centre hell or have to jump through flaming hoops to get a resolution.

(before I get asked, yes I have been on both sides and know whats involved)

You get what you pay for. Pay peanuts and you get monkeys.

marmel

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#180008 24-Nov-2008 18:39

ajw:
cokemaster:
PaulBrislen:

This isn't a Vodafone thing, this is how it is with call centres anywhere.

While I'd agree that its a common trend with call centres to make promises and not deliver the results, I would expect operators of contact centres to aim for a lot better.

It would be far more comforting to hear a statement along the lines of 'Sorry to hear you had a negative experience, we'll try to be much better next time' rather than 'This is a call centre issue, not a vodafone issue'...

Customers are paying you for a service and support, they shouldn't have to endure call centre hell or have to jump through flaming hoops to get a resolution.

(before I get asked, yes I have been on both sides and know whats involved)

You get what you pay for. Pay peanuts and you get monkeys.

Good point.

One thing I did learn from working in retail is that the sales people that were generally interested in the products always sold more and got more repeat customers than those than turned up for smoko and to collect their paycheck.

It must be difficult at times though motivating staff when I'm sure they do get a lot of noobs ringing up frustrating the hell out of them and dealing with the same problems time and time again but it's vital that a company puts the right staff in those positions. At the end of the day they are the "public face" of the company. It's unlikely that a punter will ring VF and have Paul or JohnR answer.

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#180009 24-Nov-2008 18:45

Thats true, ajw.

The pay isn't the best and the environments range from great to outright awful. I often wonder if the low wages/salaries are a false economy - sure you save money in the short term, but you spend more training others and waiting for new staff to relearn whats aleady been learnt by others.

As for marmels post. There are plenty of things that you can do that can improve the customer experience without spending large amounts of money. Instead of pure emphasis on call length and number of calls taken, put an emphasis on first call resolutions, taking ownership, and providing a consistent experience. Its not difficult to do and if you do it right - it doesn't cost much at all (particularly if it reduces repeat calls into the centres).

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Aaroona

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#180011 24-Nov-2008 18:48

cokemaster: Thats true, ajw.

The pay isn't the best and the environments range from great to outright awful. I often wonder if the low wages/salaries are a false economy - sure you save money in the short term, but you spend more training others and waiting for new staff to relearn whats aleady been learnt by others.

As for marmels post. There are plenty of things that you can do that can improve the customer experience without spending large amounts of money. Instead of pure emphasis on call length and number of calls taken, put an emphasis on first call resolutions, taking ownership, and providing a consistent experience. Its not difficult to do and if you do it right - it doesn't cost much at all (particularly if it reduces repeat calls into the centres).

SightUnseen

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#180038 24-Nov-2008 19:47

PaulBrislen: Listen, if I could clone JOhnR I would...

well, maybe not.

But JohnR has been with Vodafone for seven years and has a wealth of knowledge tied up in his head. Or somewhere.

We do have people with that level of experience in the front-line business. Joseph, who is working on the Vodafone Forum, has been with the company for seven or eight years in a variety of support roles and is making a huge impact every day.

But not every CSR is going to be like that. In NZ call centre/support is not seen as a career by most people and the turn over rate is quite high. I don't like that any more than you do, believe me. I'm just not sure there's anything we can do about it.

Cheers

Paul

With regard to the last paragraph, I have figures from research carried out ten years ago that put the cost of turnover for a CSR at $38,000 total (at BellSouth whom Vodafone purchased). I don't think the figure today would make for pleasant reading.

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