Opuscula So-so documentation; Fair customer service

 

OF LATE I HAVE been on a rampage about customer service; actually the LACK of customer service.

This is, unfortunately, an on-going travail for me.

But I came across a company with responsive, albeit not especially fast, customer service.

The company is Taurus, full name Taurus International Manufacturing, Inc.. of Miami FL.

Actually, Taurus is Forjas Taurus S.A and, save for one caliber, it makes Taurus (and other) firearms in Brasil (Brazil) . The Miami operation imports the Brasil-made firearms and, when necessary, handles repairs.

I was reading the Taurus Revolvers Instruction Manual a/k/a owner's manual; it covers all wheel guns (revolvers) made by Taurus. LOTS of pages of warnings and cautions. As a former tech writer, I appreciate that.

There is a relatively new, "souped up" ammunition for specific calibers. It's called "+P" (Plus P), the "P" being for "pressure."

Not all weapons for which +P bullets fit are designed for regular use of +P bullets.

Taurus' manual gives a list.

It looks like all current Taurus .38 caliber revolvers can accommodate +P, as well as "all firearms chambered in .38 Super Automatic, .45 ACP, and 9 mm Luger."

Missing was a line reading "All firearms chambered for .367 magnum."

I just bought a used Taurus Model 605 .357 magnum manufacatured in 2014.

Was I going to fire .38 +P bullets with it? Taurus omitted that flavor in its list and I suspect perhaps there was a reason for the omission. Perhaps date of manufacture?

I did my homework and found out that while the .38 +P is more powerful (has more pressure anyway) than a .38 Special, the +P pressure was substantually less than a .357 round.

So I wrote a snailmail letter to Taurus asking How Come the .357 was missing from the list of weapons that could fire +P ammunition. I included in my letter what I discovered regarding pressure ratings. Perhaps Taurus has a reason I failed to perceive for omitting the .357 from the list of guns that would safely fire +P rounds. Maybe the age of the gun.

Friday afternoon a Sweet Young Thing calls and tells me she's calling from Taurus and yes, the .357 magnum I bought will indeed safely fire .38 Special +P ammunition.

She tried to explain about pressure and how the .357 bullet's pressure was higher than the .38 +P and I interrupted her, telling her THAT information was in MY letter to Taurus.

For all that, Taurus gets at least a silver star on its corporate forehead for at least responding to my query, and with an answer than actually was usable.

Meanwhile, an airline's Customer Care(less) operation still is doing I'm not sure what, certainly not answering my many-times-asked question. The traveler will be back home before I get an answer from the airline.

Since I know I'm going to make another international flight, maybe I'll ask another airline how to get from Passport Control and Customs to the domestic flight gates in Philadelphia.

It's a shame that a customer service opeeration that takes care of the customers is so unusual.

Opuscula Can't people READ?

 

I BELIEVE I KNOW how to communicate, at least in writing.

Over my lifetime I have worked successfully as a newspaper reporter and editor, a PR flack (practitioner), and a technical writer. I'll admit I am not the world's best "speler"^CQ, but I use spell check and both on-line and unabridged hard copy dictionaries to mitigate my deficiency.

Given that, I am somewhat miffed, put out, and otherwise perturbed (I'm being polite) when I TRY to communicate with groups that claim to be "Customer Service."

I recently had occasion to contact my favorite airline's Customer Care people. For domestic service, this airline is very good; not the least expensive, but service is usually A-1.

My Spouse is returning from visiting across the pond. She will be arriving at JFK' Terminal 4. Clearing passport control, collecting baggage, and clearing Customs goes fairly smoothly, even with masses of passengers seemingly arriving at the same time. I did the "Welcome Home" exercise a few months ago, so I write from experience.

Once The Spouse clears Customs she has to haul her bag to a domestic flight baggage re-check. The walk from the Customs' exit gate to the baggage re-check is short and, if the bags are on wheels - as most are - not difficult.

NOW THE PROBLEM.

I now know, thanks to the airline's Web site, that there is (was?) a bus/van shuttle between JFK Terminal 4 to the airline's terminal for most domestic flights. I didn't know this when I came back; the guy who checked my bag - certainly nice enough - directed me to the intra-airport train that stopped at all terminals. I caught the train - 'course it was going clockwise and I needed to go counter-clockwise, but it's a closed loop - and I arrived at my destination terminal in good time.

HOWEVER, now knowing that the airline had a terminal-to-terminal van/bus shuttle - unlike the train, no intermediate stops - I sent the airline's Customer Care people a short message via the airline Web site:

Wife arriving from ROME/FCO with connecting flight to FLL.

Believe FCO to JFK arrives at T-4; JFK-to FLL departs from T-2. What is BEST WAY for her to get from luggage recheck at/near T-4 to T-2? If (airline) shuttle, where are stops? TIA

Rather than provide an answer to what I thought was a simple question in 8th grade words, Customer Care ignores the question and responds

Based on the information received, we are unable to locate your wife's reservation. Your assistance would be appreciated in providing additional information which would allow us to process your request.

Please provide us with the 13 digit ticket number that begins with 006 or 012, dates of travel, flight number, city pairs, or the phone number listed on the reservation.

OK, maybe I'm not the sharpest crayon in the box, but I fail to see how the flight-specific information was needed to answer what I still believe was a simple, straight-forward question: How to get from Point A to Point B.

Perhaps it is a time-of-day thing. The shuttle operates between, say, 6 a.m. and 10 p.m. Still, Customer Care could could have responded with:

A shuttle bus (van) operates between terminals between 6 a.m. and 10 p.m.; all other times passengers may use the train that runs 24/7..

I responded to Customer Care's email with the requested information and asked them why it was necessary since the question was not flight dependent. Customer Care declined to respond.

I eventually documented my exchange with Customer Care and sent a paper letter to the airline's Customer Care(less) operation. Perhaps - perhaps - someone who can READ AND THINK will respond in time for me to advise my Spouse.

In another instance, I asked a company a two-part question:

1. Where is the product made
2. What is the warranty?

The reply, from the Advanced Technical Sales Manager told me where the product was manufactured, but failed to address the warranty issue.

A second email to the gentleman reminded him that my post was a two-part question and he owed me an answer for part 2. He replied "Lifetime warranty" - no apology. In the end I bought a competitor's product, also made overseas and also with a lifetime warranty. (Both companies have service centers in the U.S.)

Anyone who has visited this blog knows that I seem to have a running feud with customer support operations. I've railed against insurance companies (frequently, it seems), VoIP phone companies, and retailers.

There are a couple of bright notes : Julia J. of Wayfair, Inc. took care of a warranty issue the first time I contacted Wayfair. Bravo to Julia and to Wayfair for employing someone who can read and giving the people enough authority to do their job.

I know my penmanship's not what it used to be - I WAS proud of my handwriting - but I can't blame handwriting on my apparent inability to communicate with so many Customer Service Representatives (CSRs) across several business fields since my exchanges with them have been via a keyboard.

I work very hard to make myself understood. I avoid negatives (no, un-, not), rephrasing things in the positive. I sometimes list things "by the numbers" after alerting the reader that "This message has two questions."

On the other hand, I admit to providing only information I deem relevant to avoid making the CSR read more than absolutely necessary. My opinion of most CSRs' ability to read - Julia J. being an all too rare exception - is that second grade may be too high.

Perhaps most CSRs are told to follow the script and never deviate. If any box lacks a check, tell the person asking for help that all boxes must be checked if they expect service from Customer Service.

Why not use the telephone?

1. I lack patience for 30-minute wait times
2. I have a difficult time understanding non-U.S. English - and I lived overseas for awhile
3. I am a curmudgeon.

Am I asking too much for Customer Care, Customer Support to actually DO THE JOB they are charged with doing?