HP tech support lacks human touch

[Renew Deal]

Over the years, I've been told by executives at high-tech companies that every call that comes to customer service or technical support is an opportunity to take a problem and turn it into a loyal customer. The idea goes back even further. The great American industrialist Henry J. Kaiser -- who built the Hoover Dam, the Liberty Ships, and Kaiser Health, among other achievements -- is famous for quipping, "A problem is just an opportunity in work clothes." That attitude brought him great success, both business and personal, and has been much cited since.

But this being the Gripe Line, it's become clear to me over the years that the opposite is also true. It is possible to take a small problem and not only squander the opportunity but turn it into something irreparable. I recently tried to repair such a rift between HP in Canada and one of its customers.

Stacy wrote to me about a problem he had with his laptop, which was only a year and a half old when something went very wrong with its motherboard. He called customer support and, unfortunately, found himself speaking to someone who had not heard Mr. Kaiser's famous quip.

This support rep, according to Stacy, did not see this problem as an opportunity but as an irritant. He diagnosed the problem as caused most likely by a battery that had been, unknown to Stacy, recalled. The heat from the battery, which was too hot to touch, had likely fried the motherboard, the tech told him. He offered to fix the laptop for $450. This price seemed high to Stacy, who pointed out that the problem was caused by a known defect, that he had not been informed of the recall, and that a new laptop didn't cost much more than $450.

The technical support representative laughed, and while laughing may seem like a small thing, this time it wasn't.

"I have a stutter," explains Stacy. "It gets worse when I'm agitated or uncomfortable." This tech support representative -- and another one that Stacy spoke to the next day -- laughed and sighed with impatience whenever he began to stutter. "I felt belittled, embarrassed, and ashamed," he says.
<snip>

The rest of the story about how this wasn't resolved is here: http://www.infoworld.com/d/adventures-in-it/hp-tech-support-lacks-human-touch-453

[Warpy]

1. I use online help whenever possible

because it takes at least 10 minutes to convince a tech over the phone that they're not dealing with an idiot and that I've already tried the easy stuff in their protocol. The computer and the components are all securely plugged in, in other words.

For some reason, it's easier to cut to the chase in a dialog box on screen. I suppose if you can access one of those, you're assumed to have enough intelligence to have checked all the plugs first.

[Sentath]

3. I'm sorry you have to go through that

But, so does everyone else.

Given the choice between a little frustration and the cost of sending a tech to plug in the customers lines the tech support people have no choice but to ask about them every time. I do tech support and even I am surprised how often something is plugged in the wrong place or wrong way 'round. (We use a power over Ethernet unit that can accept cables any which way.)

[Warpy]

4. I know that, but online help avoids the problem

I was the computer maven at my last job and I know how non technical people need to be walked through the simplest things. I just want to skip it, so I use the online help instead of phone help whenever possible.

I use it so rarely that it's not that big an issue, in any case.

[baldguy]

2. There's no such thing as Customer Service anymore.

If it isn't a source of revenue, then by definition it's an unnecessary expense which is subject to cuts, outsourcing & eventual elimination.

[Beerball1]

5. HP

This is what happens when you buy crap. You get crap tech support. If you want a really good computer from a company with excellent tech support, try Xi Computer. I purchased a Windows 7 mid tower from them last year and have had 0 problems. Look Xi up on-line, they're the real deal. A+ from BBB.

[givemebackmycountry]

6. BB

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