Originally published December 3 2005
Arlington man creates company contact cheat sheet to avoid automation
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
Paul English put together a cheat sheet on his website that details how to quickly reach an actual person at 108 companies. He has invited readers to make their own contributions.
Paul English of Arlington got tired of dealing with computerized voice systems and decided there was only way around it: He would put together a cheat sheet.
It started small, with the 10 companies that frustrated him the most.
But the list started growing after the 42-year-old software engineer posted it on his website earlier this year and invited readers to make their own contributions.
A lot of attention has been focused on how consumers end up speaking to call centers in India or other countries when they phone for help.
But Gartner Inc., a market research firm in San Francisco, said many companies are bypassing call centers altogether by asking their customers to serve themselves with the help of technology.
Self-service activities range from customers scanning and bagging their own groceries to consumers using automated voice systems or websites to purchase tickets, submit insurance claims, manage bank accounts, or adjust financial portfolios.
By 2010, Gartner says, self-service will account for 58 percent of all service interactions, up from 35 percent today.
Richard Shapiro, president of the Center for Client Retention in Springfield, N.J., estimates an automated customer service system can handle a query at a cost of 8 to 15 cents a minute.
The same query handled by a customer service representative in India or the Philippines would cost 20 to 40 cents a minute, and 65 cents to $1 a minute if handled by a US agent.
They often improve customer service by delivering information quickly and around the clock.
They can also reduce wait times for human customer service agents and let those agents focus on more difficult problems.
Yet many consumers, particularly older ones, don't like talking to computers.
All content posted on this site is commentary or opinion and is protected under Free Speech. Truth Publishing LLC takes sole responsibility for all content. Truth Publishing sells no hard products and earns no money from the recommendation of products. NaturalNews.com is presented for educational and commentary purposes only and should not be construed as professional advice from any licensed practitioner. Truth Publishing assumes no responsibility for the use or misuse of this material. For the full terms of usage of this material, visit www.NaturalNews.com/terms.shtml