> We want to "speak to a representative" because the automated interfaces are deliberately designed not to let us do the thing we need to do. The customer servi

> We want to "speak to a representative" because the automated interfaces are deliberately designed not to let us do the thing we need to do. The customer service representative is not our servant, they're a guard who holds the keys to the door we need to enter. Nailed it. A lot of times you're doing something special or off the well beaten path, or they just don't want you to do it (like closing your account). Voice recognition usually just seems to listen to single words to try to route you to to someone. Either way, usually by that time the company doesn't care, they've got your money.