BizNet OnLine Magazine, AT&T SUCKS!

AT&T SUCKS!
So Here It Is

I hate it when I fail to keep my word so, here it is : AT&T Sucks! I said it, I wrote it, so I am now true to my word.

O.K., So now your thinking I’m a little nuts. I’m not really nuts its just that I had a problem a week or so ago with AT&T and my last words to them was " I have a better idea, I’ll write an article and call it AT&T Sucks". So you see in order to be true to my word I had to write this article.

So, just what lead up to this burning need to put into print that AT&T SUCKS!?, Let me tell you.

First AT&T is the company I use as my personal Cell Phone Company. I have used them for a long time. I started with L. A Cellular, AT&T was a majority owner and has now renamed L. A. Cellular AT&T. In the Los Angeles area based on my needs I have found them to have the best coverage. Customer service was never a strong point with them. Now that they are under the AT&T name and control, Customer service has only gotten worse.

It all started when my phone started to act up and needed service, now like most people I can’t live without the dam thing. So I called customer service and explained it to them. They had my records on their screen and I told them the phone was purchased from them months ago. They told me I could go into any super store that had the phone in stock and swap it out. They suggested I call the store I was going to first to make sure the phones where in stock.

I then contacted the store in Woodland Hills, Ca. I called and asked to speak to the manager. I was told the managers do not work 24 hours a day, seven days a week, so the manager was off. I thought as I was calling on a Thursday at about 10:30 am that was a strange response but, I pushed on. I asked to speak to the person in charge of the store that could make decisions etc., when the manager was out. I was told that when the manager was out every employee was in charge of the store (sounded strange to me). I asked "Do you mean that any person there can make executive decisions etc...". I was told "Sir I just told you every one here is in charge including me, now what can I do for you?". I told this young lady abut my conversation with customer service (including that I purchased the phone months ago), and that I needed to make sure they had phones in stock and could swap out my phone. She stated, "yes we have phones in stock, is there anything else I can do for you?". I just asked for her name so she could help me when I came in. I was not given her name, just the response " Sir we are all in charge talk to anyone here". With that the conversation ended.

On getting to the store I was eventually helped by a gentleman , that after hearing all of the above told me he would start by pulling up my records, he then disappeared for fifteen minutes. On returning he told me I purchased the phone over thirty days ago. I told him that I told him that and I told everyone that. He continued to state that store policy stated that after thirty days they could not help me. I asked who could override store policy. I was told the manager. I confirmed the manager was off that day. I asked who was in charge when the manager was out. Now this is the truth I am not making the following up......

He stated "We are all in charge when the manager is out, but no one here is going to make a decision".

For the next 20 minutes I tried to point out that if someone, anyone was in charge that person could make decisions, but if no one could make decisions then no one was in charge. All I got was the same line. "We are all in charge put we do not make decisions". I then spent the next ten minutes talking him into calling someone that could make a decisions.

After another 15 minutes he put me on the line with a woman that would not give me her name. When I asked her for her name the response was" Sir if your listening to me you would know I’m the person that is trying to help you, and that’s all you need to know". No, she never gave me her name ( it has been my experience that when someone will not give you their name they are more interested in helping you out the door, then helping you out). After wasting another ten minutes with this lady the answer was no, no to exchanging the phone ("Sir I’m not going to make that decision"), no to any consideration to all the wasted time this company has put me though. I then took the time to explain to this lady that before the name change to AT&T, LA Cellular had a V. I. P. department that handled my account as I was considered an Important customer as I was an editor of a business magazine and I wrote a Telephony column ( this was meant as a hint that maybe her response should be rethought or the matter turned over to someone else). Now again I kid you not her response was to say " Sir if your so important we will sell you a new phone for $499.00, and you can forget about having to have you old on fixed under it’s three year warranty". My response to her was that I could hang up on her and write an article called AT&T SUCKS............... So now you know why I called this article AT&T SUCKS!.

Now I could end this article, but this is a business magazine, and we try to use every article to educate business people on how to butter run and manage their business, etc........

So, in that line I will continue typing out this story. First a copy will be sent to the powers that be at AT&T. We will print any response they send. It is my hope that the at the very lest that they will but an end to the Bull..... policy about everyone being in charge when the manager is out. Lets get real. When there is no one in a place of business that can make a decision, then there is no one incharge. Second, it really is a good way to piss of customers by telling then that everyone is in charge when in reality no one is in charge.

Lets just think about stores like Home Depot, or Nordstromes. One of the biggest reasons that these two companies are doing great is that the have empowered there employees with the ability to make customers happy. These employees have the power and understanding to make decisions, to help there customers. There is a big difference between telling customers everyone is in charge, and everyone doing nothing, and a place where every employee just takes the incentive to get their customer some real help.

Now lets go back and look at what would have happened had AT&T just replaced the phone.
One I would not be writing this article. Two I would be much happen. Three AT&T would not be risking loosing a customer or more then just one. What would it have cost them? Not much. The phone is under warranty. The manufacture would have replaced it and they would not have lost any stock.

Without a doubted the right way to have handled this would have been to apologize for the wrong information being given to me. The policy should have them been explained with the statement that do to the circumstances an exception would be made. A solution that would have let every one win. Now every one looses. I don’t like AT&T, I have now written an unfavorable article, and they have to deal with the lose of customers that this may cause.

So, now look at your own business. When your customers come in with a problem do your employees really work at helping them, or do they just give the customers a song and dance. Remember you worked hard to get that customer to begin with. An existing customer is more valuable then any ten "possible" customers. Don’t be afraid to put work into keeping your customers"

In closing we will let you know how AT&T response to this. Who knows, it may have a good outcome?

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