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That's funny, I regularly say please give me a discount or credit, politely, in person, emails or on phone. For the last four times I can remember, the CS rep w

That's funny, I regularly say please give me a discount or credit, politely, in person, emails or on phone. For the last four times I can remember, the CS rep was always nice and on top of that, does it.

mlthoughts2018 7y ago
This happens so infrequently as to render your uncommon anecdote irrelevant to the broader conversation.
xtiansimon 7y ago
Never works for me, but maybe you navigate the structure of the organization better? For instance, when I changed cable companies last, the ‘retention’ department stooge was dopey, didn’t know anything, and couldn’t offer anything. Whereas the sales person for the company I switched to was sharp, quick, ready to discuss options, and made me an offer. And as I recall, I had put a block on my credit report, so it took a few calls to the sales agents to close the deal. Each one was equally willing to deal, but then again, each time I called back I had to give more to get the same deal (1 year to 3 year, 100$ product gift certificate gone, and finally no free installation—uuug! They said I had the GC, but it never showed up. I called, they stalled, whatever)
mieseratte 7y ago
For me it depends on the company. The large, "everyman" companies, the Comcasts and T-Mobiles of the world, have always had me dealing with a customer service representative on a script giving me friction about something that is completely within their reach, but they're made to be unhelpful until you cross some threshold. Start off polite, but the second they tell you something "isn't possible" you drop the polite tone, get stern, ask for supervisors, etc. That isn't to say swear and insult, and you should reset the politeness each time you get a new person. In my experience anything even a little more "targeted" tends to have more reasonable customer service. I've had good customer service experiences from major sportswear brands, and we're not talking crazy high-end, boutique brands but major, publicly traded companies. That isn't to say they will just cater to your every whim, no questions asked, but if you have a legitimate grievance they will handle it without ruining your day. Some companies care about reputation and customer satisfaction, and some just count every bean.
- Fezzik 7y ago
  I have had the exact opposite experience - every 12 months I call Comcast when my 1-year introductory offer of internet service for $39.99/month is expiring and ask for it to be re-upped, as opposed to increasing to $64.99/month or whatever, and they do it with no hassling. Heck, this year the dude on the phone voluntarily gave me a better deal of $29.99/month for 12 months. * not a shill for Comcast, just a happy customer. I tend to be extra-friendly over the phone, which maybe helps, but I have always received stupendous CS support from big corps like Apple, Comcast, Sprint, my CC companies, mortgage holder, and Amazon, to name a few I have dealt with regularly.
  - kbrackbill 7y ago
    My experience with comcast has been extremely variable depending on where I live, and in particular, what other ISP options I have. When I lived somewhere where the only alternative was terrible 5mbit (advertised, actually much less) AT&T DSL, they wouldn't extend any of my discounts and even when I canceled they didn't even try to stop me. They basically just told me "haha good luck, you'll be back". When I've lived in other places where there are options like webpass or fiber, they behaved much more like you're describing.
    - uberduber 7y ago
      Exactly. It also depends on your neighbors. Right now we have two relatively similar options, but for various reasons the neighbors are all the type to never switch. So, no one will negotiate and you just have to switch back and forth every year if you actually want the discount.

mlthoughts2018 7y ago

This happens so infrequently as to render your uncommon anecdote irrelevant to the broader conversation.

xtiansimon 7y ago

Never works for me, but maybe you navigate the structure of the organization better? For instance, when I changed cable companies last, the ‘retention’ department stooge was dopey, didn’t know anything, and couldn’t offer anything. Whereas the sales person for the company I switched to was sharp, quick, ready to discuss options, and made me an offer. And as I recall, I had put a block on my credit report, so it took a few calls to the sales agents to close the deal. Each one was equally willing to deal, but then again, each time I called back I had to give more to get the same deal (1 year to 3 year, 100$ product gift certificate gone, and finally no free installation—uuug! They said I had the GC, but it never showed up. I called, they stalled, whatever)

mieseratte 7y ago

For me it depends on the company. The large, "everyman" companies, the Comcasts and T-Mobiles of the world, have always had me dealing with a customer service representative on a script giving me friction about something that is completely within their reach, but they're made to be unhelpful until you cross some threshold. Start off polite, but the second they tell you something "isn't possible" you drop the polite tone, get stern, ask for supervisors, etc. That isn't to say swear and insult, and you should reset the politeness each time you get a new person. In my experience anything even a little more "targeted" tends to have more reasonable customer service. I've had good customer service experiences from major sportswear brands, and we're not talking crazy high-end, boutique brands but major, publicly traded companies. That isn't to say they will just cater to your every whim, no questions asked, but if you have a legitimate grievance they will handle it without ruining your day. Some companies care about reputation and customer satisfaction, and some just count every bean.

Fezzik 7y ago
I have had the exact opposite experience - every 12 months I call Comcast when my 1-year introductory offer of internet service for $39.99/month is expiring and ask for it to be re-upped, as opposed to increasing to $64.99/month or whatever, and they do it with no hassling. Heck, this year the dude on the phone voluntarily gave me a better deal of $29.99/month for 12 months. * not a shill for Comcast, just a happy customer. I tend to be extra-friendly over the phone, which maybe helps, but I have always received stupendous CS support from big corps like Apple, Comcast, Sprint, my CC companies, mortgage holder, and Amazon, to name a few I have dealt with regularly.
- kbrackbill 7y ago
  My experience with comcast has been extremely variable depending on where I live, and in particular, what other ISP options I have. When I lived somewhere where the only alternative was terrible 5mbit (advertised, actually much less) AT&T DSL, they wouldn't extend any of my discounts and even when I canceled they didn't even try to stop me. They basically just told me "haha good luck, you'll be back". When I've lived in other places where there are options like webpass or fiber, they behaved much more like you're describing.
  - uberduber 7y ago
    Exactly. It also depends on your neighbors. Right now we have two relatively similar options, but for various reasons the neighbors are all the type to never switch. So, no one will negotiate and you just have to switch back and forth every year if you actually want the discount.