It is Friday and Fridays are for fun. A couple of years ago I wrote a post about customer service, and I wrote it on a Friday even though Fridays are for fun and customer service is never fun. It used to be about pressing #1 for sales or #6 for support and being put on hold. Have you ever noticed that talking to a sales representative is almost always the first menu option?
Customer service has not changed much but now they have added a new feature the customer service survey. It isn’t all that new but we can count on a survey from just about every company we hire to provide a service. In fact, even getting an estimate will result in a survey.
If the plumber fixes the leak that we called him to fix we pay him but he expects more. We need to fill out a survey and rate his work. If he did what he was hired to do we are supposed to give him a five-star rating.
If you go to a doctor or dentist you will be asked to fill out a survey, before the appointment and after the appointment. To be fair the survey before the appointment asks the same stupid questions you may have answered a week ago.
Most surveys don’t have any questions that I would like to answer. They may ask me to rate the person who answered the phone. They never ask me to rate their surveys.
This week I called for estimates on some work I need on the house. In one case I got the satisfaction survey before I got the estimate. If I call someone and ask for an estimate and they come out and look at my project they send a survey. When I set up the appointment I told them I don’t do surveys. They sent one anyway.
Going forward I am going to tell service providers that there will be a survey surcharge of $100 and by sending me a survey they have agreed to pay it. I’ll put this information at the bottom of every email or online form I fill out for service. Even if they send $100 I am not going to fill out the survey.
