The Customer Service Survey
VocaLabs' weblog providing news and commentary on the challenges of providing good customer service.
Top Ten Most Annoying Recorded Messages
Monday - April 03, 2006 04:28 PM in
The ten most annoying recorded messages (in My Humble Opinion):
- 10. "Please listen carefully, as our menu options have changed."
- This would be okay for a day or two after the menu options actually change, but after six months?
- 9. "You may get faster service on our website www.wedontwanttotalktoyou.com."
- If I could get what I wanted on your website, don't you think I'd be going there instead of listening to this annoying recording?
- 8. "Hi! My name is Suzy, your automated virtual assistant!"
- The last thing I need is a computer which wants to be my friend.
- 7. "I'm sorry, that's not a valid option." (in response to hitting zero)
- This may be arrogance, but I think I know better than the computer when I need to talk to a live agent.
- 6. "In order to help us serve you better...."
- This message is invariable followed by asking me to jump over some obnoxious customer-hostile hurdle.
- 5. "Please press or say one."
- All the power and flexibility of touchtones, combined with the accuracy of speech recognition!
- 4. Any advertisement played while on hold for technical support.
- Here's a clue for the marketing department: If I'm on hold for technical support, chances are I'm not a happy camper. This is not the best time in the world to try to sell me something else.
- 3. "Your call is very important to us."
- A statement which is immediately proven false.
- 2. "We are experiencing unusually high call volumes."
- Like #10, this would be OK during those occasional moments when a company really is flooded with calls. But after a month you don't have a call-volume problem, you've got a too-cheap-to-hire-enough-agents problem.
- 1. "Please enter your account number" said by the recorded message, followed by "Can I have your account number?" from a customer service representative.
- There's this amazing new invention called a "computer" which lets you do things like "store" and "communicate" stuff called "data." These "computers" can solve all sorts of irritating little problems, but only when they're used properly.
Posted by Peter Leppik
Posted at 04:28 PM by | | | |