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It's a little surprising to me that you'd expect better customer support from a service with >248 million[1] monthly active users. Having worked for/with depar

It's a little surprising to me that you'd expect better customer support from a service with >248 million[1] monthly active users. Having worked for/with departments like this, they have to heavily optimise for their response rate, and use as many macros to respond as possible, which's probably your case as I'd assume that many customers contacted them with the same question. By all means, always speak with your wallet, but if you genuinely expect huge corporations to answer each request with a custom response, you will probably be disappointed often. [1] https://qz.com/1736762/spotify-grows-monthly-active-users-and-turns-profit-shares-jump-15-percent/ https://qz.com/1736762/spotify-grows-monthly-active-users-an...

ISL 6y ago
Most of the time I initiate contact with Amazon customer service, I seem to get a custom response. When pushy, I have gotten excellent custom responses. I expect Amazon does far more revenue/customer, though.
- martin_a 6y ago
  Same for me. I was really surprised when I used their chat like four weeks ago and actually talked to a human being. Didn't expect that from Amazon.
- viraptor 6y ago
  Not just more revenue per customer, but also the more issues they solve for you the more you'll be able to pay. If Spotify fixes your problem you won't go "now I'll use you more and pay 2x". For Amazon that's a real opportunity.
- tachion 6y ago
  Your mileage may vary - I've got plenty of Amazon support staff blatantly telling me I've got no consumer rights (both national and EU) "because Amazon rules", no matter how high you try to escalate it.
  - ISL 6y ago
    If you feel that way, consider sending an email to jeff@amazon.com .
- Merem 6y ago
  My local Amazon website customer service was also pretty good every time I had a need for it. On the other hand, the English customer support of Amazon.jp is just straight up terrible. Wanted to send back a damaged product which I had bought as new and which wasn't damaged during transportation. Sent an e-mail, asking for specific information regarding that return. Got reply lacking such information, asked again, different person answering, still unsatisfying answer...rinse and repeat. In the end, I had sent seven e-mails and got a reply from a different customer service representative every single time whose answers contradicted each other too even. Went with the reply that made the most sense and seemed the most right in the end and eventually got it returned (despite some wrong information still) and my money back. Another thing regarding wrong information on their product pages: Reporting wrong product names/descriptions and providing sources via the website was pointless and they never fixed it. After the whole ordeal with the return, I took the opportunity to tell them directly. Was told to provide a source (URL to some official website for instance) since they need it to confirm that there is something wrong there. Gave them all the URLs which included product titles, product pictures etc but they replied that they can't "use" (whatever that means) the URL (despite saying I should link it) and I'm supposed to screenshot it, upload it and then provide a link to the upload (or send it directly I guess). Of course, after everything above and now this, I was already beyond fed up and just stopped bothering since I'm certainly not gonna do their work for them. That, in addition to a website that is just getting worse and worse and worse stopped me from buying there. No point in having a bad buying experience and also knowing that, if you ever have an issue, support is gonna be an experience that will make you want to flip any tables you see for at least a few hours.
- alteria 6y ago
  With Amazon I do like that I talk to real people, but half the time they try to give me money instead of actually trying to solve the problem. It's great that chat is empowered to send $5 or $10, but oftentimes I just want to have my problem solved.
Wowfunhappy 6y ago
I don’t necessarily disagree that Spotify’s response was unsurprising, but is the number of Spotify users relevant? Logically, the number of support staff ought to scale with the number of customers. It’s not about size, it’s about where Spotify has decided to invest.
- sabellito 6y ago
  I absolutely agree that it should scale with the numbers of customers. However, from my experience working for companies that have customer support, that was definitely not the case.
selykg 6y ago
Did I expect different than what I got? No, I didn't. I honestly expected exactly what I got. Before I even emailed I had already made the decision to move, but I figured I should at least give them the opportunity to respond, and at the very minimum on my part give them feedback as to why I'm leaving.
falcolas 6y ago
Scale should never be an excuse for poor customer service. Customer service is part and parcel of offering a service to customers. A failure to offer good customer service is a failure of your service, period.
- turbinerneiter 6y ago
  You pay them 120 bucks per year. I get great customer service at the local record store, where I pay 30 bucks for an LP.
  - stevenwliao 6y ago
    What kind of service would you expect if you ask them to give you a list of every LP you've ever purchased from them?
    - Karunamon 6y ago
      ...I mean, video rental stores and libraries have had the ability to pull that data for a long time. Many companies, even small ones, offer loyalty programs, which would also mean they have a list of your purchases available.
- pacamara619 6y ago
  Exactly, companies just see people who need support as pure cost, since they can't make money off someone who already paid for the service, they treat you like garbage.
- tashoecraft 6y ago
  I think the internet age has changed this. The pure cost to offer customer service is insane for the costs users are paying. If you want good customer service you're going to have to pay for it, but the market has shown that's not going to be a option, because not enough people are willing to pay for it. Great customer service used to be a differentiator, but for many services, cost is way more important, and customers are willing to pay.
gmadsen 6y ago
I don't agree. All my questions to Western Digital are answered quickly and personally. Not that I am trying to promote them, but that is my most recent customer service experience. As another example, 5 years ago, Amazon had excellent and prompt customer service, rivaled by pretty much no one. Although it has gotten worse recently.
isoprophlex 6y ago
I don't think it's unreasonable to expect a human to answer a customer service request in a sensible manner, when you're paying them 120$/year!
Miraste 6y ago
That statement's a little misleading--they only have ~100 million paid users, for whom one would think they'd prioritize support requests.
deleted 6y ago
[deleted]

ISL 6y ago

Most of the time I initiate contact with Amazon customer service, I seem to get a custom response. When pushy, I have gotten excellent custom responses. I expect Amazon does far more revenue/customer, though.

martin_a 6y ago
Same for me. I was really surprised when I used their chat like four weeks ago and actually talked to a human being. Didn't expect that from Amazon.
viraptor 6y ago
Not just more revenue per customer, but also the more issues they solve for you the more you'll be able to pay. If Spotify fixes your problem you won't go "now I'll use you more and pay 2x". For Amazon that's a real opportunity.
tachion 6y ago
Your mileage may vary - I've got plenty of Amazon support staff blatantly telling me I've got no consumer rights (both national and EU) "because Amazon rules", no matter how high you try to escalate it.
- ISL 6y ago
  If you feel that way, consider sending an email to jeff@amazon.com .
Merem 6y ago
My local Amazon website customer service was also pretty good every time I had a need for it. On the other hand, the English customer support of Amazon.jp is just straight up terrible. Wanted to send back a damaged product which I had bought as new and which wasn't damaged during transportation. Sent an e-mail, asking for specific information regarding that return. Got reply lacking such information, asked again, different person answering, still unsatisfying answer...rinse and repeat. In the end, I had sent seven e-mails and got a reply from a different customer service representative every single time whose answers contradicted each other too even. Went with the reply that made the most sense and seemed the most right in the end and eventually got it returned (despite some wrong information still) and my money back. Another thing regarding wrong information on their product pages: Reporting wrong product names/descriptions and providing sources via the website was pointless and they never fixed it. After the whole ordeal with the return, I took the opportunity to tell them directly. Was told to provide a source (URL to some official website for instance) since they need it to confirm that there is something wrong there. Gave them all the URLs which included product titles, product pictures etc but they replied that they can't "use" (whatever that means) the URL (despite saying I should link it) and I'm supposed to screenshot it, upload it and then provide a link to the upload (or send it directly I guess). Of course, after everything above and now this, I was already beyond fed up and just stopped bothering since I'm certainly not gonna do their work for them. That, in addition to a website that is just getting worse and worse and worse stopped me from buying there. No point in having a bad buying experience and also knowing that, if you ever have an issue, support is gonna be an experience that will make you want to flip any tables you see for at least a few hours.
alteria 6y ago
With Amazon I do like that I talk to real people, but half the time they try to give me money instead of actually trying to solve the problem. It's great that chat is empowered to send $5 or $10, but oftentimes I just want to have my problem solved.

Wowfunhappy 6y ago

I don’t necessarily disagree that Spotify’s response was unsurprising, but is the number of Spotify users relevant? Logically, the number of support staff ought to scale with the number of customers. It’s not about size, it’s about where Spotify has decided to invest.

sabellito 6y ago
I absolutely agree that it should scale with the numbers of customers. However, from my experience working for companies that have customer support, that was definitely not the case.

selykg 6y ago

Did I expect different than what I got? No, I didn't. I honestly expected exactly what I got. Before I even emailed I had already made the decision to move, but I figured I should at least give them the opportunity to respond, and at the very minimum on my part give them feedback as to why I'm leaving.

falcolas 6y ago

Scale should never be an excuse for poor customer service. Customer service is part and parcel of offering a service to customers. A failure to offer good customer service is a failure of your service, period.

turbinerneiter 6y ago
You pay them 120 bucks per year. I get great customer service at the local record store, where I pay 30 bucks for an LP.
- stevenwliao 6y ago
  What kind of service would you expect if you ask them to give you a list of every LP you've ever purchased from them?
  - Karunamon 6y ago
    ...I mean, video rental stores and libraries have had the ability to pull that data for a long time. Many companies, even small ones, offer loyalty programs, which would also mean they have a list of your purchases available.
pacamara619 6y ago
Exactly, companies just see people who need support as pure cost, since they can't make money off someone who already paid for the service, they treat you like garbage.
tashoecraft 6y ago
I think the internet age has changed this. The pure cost to offer customer service is insane for the costs users are paying. If you want good customer service you're going to have to pay for it, but the market has shown that's not going to be a option, because not enough people are willing to pay for it. Great customer service used to be a differentiator, but for many services, cost is way more important, and customers are willing to pay.

gmadsen 6y ago

I don't agree. All my questions to Western Digital are answered quickly and personally. Not that I am trying to promote them, but that is my most recent customer service experience. As another example, 5 years ago, Amazon had excellent and prompt customer service, rivaled by pretty much no one. Although it has gotten worse recently.

isoprophlex 6y ago

I don't think it's unreasonable to expect a human to answer a customer service request in a sensible manner, when you're paying them 120$/year!

Miraste 6y ago

That statement's a little misleading--they only have ~100 million paid users, for whom one would think they'd prioritize support requests.

deleted 6y ago

[deleted]