Perhaps VM should allow Email support

[Florence]

Since VM are making it dearer to get support maybe its time they allowed email support like many ADSL ISPs do, this form of support is valuble to many customers as the information is there to read dealing with their specific problem. This method would also allow customers to get speed results to them when the speeds are bad for long periods.

[nffc]

Hmm, I could see this... "I can't connect to the internet" "Can you send us an email with the details" lol.

Though it would be useful.

[Toto]

I thought VM did this already?

[r00t]

VM has this its called e-contact, I've also sat and answered e-mails for this department, and believe me the vast amount of the e-mails are about 3rd party hardware & software causing problems or where the customer couldn't be bothered to google setting up outlook express or reading our help page, but oddly enough had the time to sit and compose an e-mail.

BTW if you use the webform, don't expect an answer straight away, we don't have people sitting there to instantly answer _your_ question.

[Safeman]

they should have somethink like a IRC channel 24/7

[janipewter]

LOL yeah because that would work...remember what happened to the Steam IRC channel.

[bywater]

LOL. Similiar to the contact us form. This is what I got when I tried to email Virgin from it.

ur message
To: >Web Team
Subject: Virgin Media Helpsite Webform - Customer Feedback NGEN
Sent: Sun, 17 Jun 2007 15:31:27 +0100
did not reach the following recipient(s):
IBMKANA.NTL@NTL.COM on Sun, 17 Jun 2007 15:33:24 +0100
The recipient name is ambiguous
The MTS-ID of the original message is: c=gb;a= ;p=ntl corp;l=MAST-DC0-SE120706171433MXM05VJR
MSEXCH:IMS:NTL Corp:CableTel Datacentre:MAST-DC0-SE12 0 (000C0595)
Ambiguous Recipient

What a joke of a company. If they think I am paying to tell them there is something wrong with my broadband ie half speed I am paying for and pings of over 100ms. taking ages to resolve address slowing down browsing. They can think again. I'm off ! What a scam. F*** up the network purposely ? Then make some revenue from the suckers at 25p a min. Come back NTL.

[NTLVictim]

BTW if you use the webform, don't expect an answer straight away, we don't have people sitting there to instantly answer _your_ question.


Why the hell not? You are in the communication business, are you not?

If I email screwfix or toolstation, or planet rock (to name just three at random), I get a (human) answer in half an hour or so..I expect nothing less, and neither should anyone else!

[r00t]

LOL. Similiar to the contact us form. This is what I got when I tried to email Virgin from it.

ur message
To: >Web Team
Subject: Virgin Media Helpsite Webform - Customer Feedback NGEN
Sent: Sun, 17 Jun 2007 15:31:27 +0100
did not reach the following recipient(s):
IBMKANA.NTL@NTL.COM on Sun, 17 Jun 2007 15:33:24 +0100
The recipient name is ambiguous
The MTS-ID of the original message is: c=gb;a= ;p=ntl corp;l=MAST-DC0-SE120706171433MXM05VJR
MSEXCH:IMS:NTL Corp:CableTel Datacentre:MAST-DC0-SE12 0 (000C0595)
Ambiguous Recipient

What a joke of a company. If they think I am paying to tell them there is something wrong with my broadband ie half speed I am paying for and pings of over 100ms. taking ages to resolve address slowing down browsing. They can think again. I'm off ! What a scam. F*** up the network purposely ? Then make some revenue from the suckers at 25p a min. Come back NTL.


And there we have it, a perfect example of the e-contact messages that flood in.
Filled with bile, no info e.g type of modem, does this happen at a time or all the time, ip address, security software used, router if any, server address you are trying to connect to, ping times, tracert stats.

[NTLVictim]

And there we have it, a perfect example of the e-contact messages that flood in.
Filled with bile, no info e.g type of modem, does this happen at a time or all the time, ip address, security software used, router if any, server address you are trying to connect to, ping times, tracert stats.

So get the service right, the bile stops flooding in.

[r00t]

So get the service right, the bile stops flooding in.
Come show us how its done!
No better still,put together a model on how it should be done and how it will work, sell it to VM, you'd make a fortune..

[Florence]

Perhaps VM should take a look at the Aquiss ISP setup for support they use VOIP for calls and email support my friend who is using them is full of praise even an online graph showing the tickets and colour coded so customers can see if the email has had a reply.

[Paul]

So get the service right, the bile stops flooding in.That's a pretty ridiculous thing to say. There isn't a (large) service / product supplier in existance that doesn't have problems of some sort to deal with, and on top of that, there is no excuse at all for sending in 'hate mail' type e-mails to a support function (or at all for that matter).

[Maggy]

Perhaps VM should take a look at the Aquiss ISP setup for support they use VOIP for calls and email support my friend who is using them is full of praise even an online graph showing the tickets and colour coded so customers can see if the email has had a reply.

Sounds interesting..Let us hope someone from VM HQ is reading this thread. :tu:

[mentalis]

Why the hell not? You are in the communication business, are you not?

If I email screwfix or toolstation, or planet rock (to name just three at random), I get a (human) answer in half an hour or so..I expect nothing less, and neither should anyone else!



Sometimes it can take half an hour to answer the telephone (before the flames erupt I did say sometimes :D) Also, I hope there is no quota on the email system.

[NTLVictim]

Come show us how its done!
No better still,put together a model on how it should be done and how it will work, sell it to VM, you'd make a fortune..

Isn't that what your managers are paid to do?

---------- Post added at 10:16 ---------- Previous post was at 08:27 ----------

That's a pretty ridiculous thing to say. There isn't a (large) service / product supplier in existance that doesn't have problems of some sort to deal with, and on top of that, there is no excuse at all for sending in 'hate mail' type e-mails to a support function (or at all for that matter).

Actually "bile" should have been in quotes because it was our customer service friends word of choice, not mine!:p:
I've just scrolled back through the thread and I can't see the hate mail in question, can someone enlighten me as to it's location?

[r00t]

Oh don't back down on me now NTL Victim, you seem to have all the answers (http://www.cableforum.co.uk/board/search.php?searchid=1753429) and your ever so helpful witout a bad word to say.

NTLVictim, interesting choice in name. Your name would imply that you have no choice; like a mugging victim or a rape victim. Vote with your feet my friend ;)

[Florence]

I have been given this link from my friend to show some of what Aquiss do to let customers know whats happening, but she says there is a lot more information in the control panel which she can't share with me as you have to login with your adsl user name and password. In the control panel there are updates on faults BT are dealing with plus results, amount of date used up and down peak and off peak, sync at exchange up and down speeds she said there is even a page that lists all the connectioins so easy to see how often you have dropped the internet.

http://members.aquiss.net/support/

[NTLVictim]

Oh don't back down on me now NTL Victim, you seem to have all the answers (http://www.cableforum.co.uk/board/search.php?searchid=1753429) and your ever so helpful witout a bad word to say.

NTLVictim, interesting choice in name. Your name would imply that you have no choice; like a mugging victim or a rape victim. Vote with your feet my friend ;)

Your link doesn't appear to work.

I have voted with my feet, that's why I have Sky and BT, I used to have all three with NTL, but no longer. As soon as a viable protocol comes along that will work over POTS, my BB account will go as well, but at the moment VM is my only viable choice.

You want an answer? 1. Get a different job, you are not suited to CS.
2. See number one.

And where's this "bile" email?

[r00t]

That seems to be your answer to all the VM workers here, if we are not willing to listen to your bitter, venomous hate filled words.

Well heres one for you, get a better ISP and until you do put up or shut up.

[alferret]

If VM were to offer such a service (even online chat type support) then this would indubitably (sp) be over run by people who fail to RTFM or have issues outside VM's network, ie: their computer\router or software installed, and that those with genuine network issues pertaining to VM infrastructure wouldn’t get through, or at the most a very small minority would be able to raise valid issues.

The non technically minded user (and I'm not having a pop) don’t know how to differentiate (sp) between a problem at their end user end or VM network and issues there in.



Apologies for the spelling, I have had a small drinkie-poo's :o:

The members that have the VM's ear, so to speak, do a damm good job, especially since most of them take up issues from members of these forums outside of working hours :tu:

[Incomplete]

That seems to be your answer to all the VM workers here, if we are not willing to listen to your bitter, venomous hate filled words.

Well heres one for you, get a better ISP and until you do put up or shut up.

Interestingly in the time I worked for 'the cable company' I never came on here and baited and insulted customers like this. Your attitude towards these people is pretty disgusting actually, especially considering that while they are attacking 'the company' you are attacking them personally and I think if anyone else bar a VM employee were to spew the venom you are and openly admit you are baiting people they'd not find themselves so welcomed.

If you didn't expect to find some people who are rather passionate in their dislike for your employer you are a lot more naive than 38 years of life experience should have made you. Too much time messing with Linux ;)

This forum is not your place to relieve stress after a day of customers giving you grief, which is to an extent part of what you're paid for, by anonymously giving customers grief. Whatever people say on here they are not attacking you personally but your employer. Those who would attack you personally aren't worth bothering with and I would hope you know that.

If you take comments on your employer as such a personal attack on you you may want to consider looking for another job. In the 10 minutes I've read this every single post of yours I've read has been aggressive and antagonistic. Certainly no attempts to help but plenty to bait and insult.

Hardly a credit to you as a person or to your employer. Grow up, rise above it, if you can't do that just don't read it. It's really not worth getting stressed about.

---------- Post added at 03:06 ---------- Previous post was at 03:05 ----------

The members that have the VM's ear, so to speak, do a damm good job, especially since most of them take up issues from members of these forums outside of working hours :tu:

Yes they do. I tried to do it too when I was working for them. Still doesn't give me the right to spew venom at people personally because I don't like what they say about my employer though.

[r00t]

Incomplete, I don't post here in a works roll. Personal opinions!

[chickendippers]

I have been given this link from my friend to show some of what Aquiss do to let customers know whats happening, but she says there is a lot more information in the control panel which she can't share with me as you have to login with your adsl user name and password. In the control panel there are updates on faults BT are dealing with plus results, amount of date used up and down peak and off peak, sync at exchange up and down speeds she said there is even a page that lists all the connectioins so easy to see how often you have dropped the internet.

http://members.aquiss.net/support/
That's all very nice, but perhaps information overload isn't always a good thing? Whilst it might be reassuring for techies who know what all that stuff means, your average user won't know what the hell any of those blinking lights and graphs denote and will either get confused or just totally ignore them.

I am aware that a number of other ISPs (it seems to be the smaller ones) use email extensively for support, and as my company operates a ticket system I am well aware of the benefits it can provide, but it is sometimes just nice to phone someone up and speak to a person...especially if your internet is broken and you can't access the swish online helpdesk ;)

The VM service status page does a good job in providing information on current and planned maintenance and seems to be updated with problems as they occur with relative frequency. The one thing I would like when on hold would be an announcement of your place in the queue; if I'm 5th I'm more likely to stay on the line than if I'm 105th!

[Incomplete]

Incomplete, I don't post here in a works roll. Personal opinions!

Somewhat difficult to seperate the two when a person who works for the cable company is posting on a cable orientated forum firing personal insults at the customers they speak to in work hours.

It would seem that you take your work role rather personally. Either way 'personal opinions' isn't a screen you can hide behind while making comments obviously coloured by work experiences. If it's known you are a VM employee your comments reflect on the company regardless of whether or not they are your personal opinions.

I remember when all the employees on this forum were almost without exception polite and professional to people and the only time anyone was on the receiving end it was very much deserved. Simply because they appreciated that people were angry with the company rather than them personally, so there was no reason to feel personally insulted by the comments being made, but rather an incentive to try and resolve them.

Somewhat different from being provocative and rude and worse still being proud that you are being provocative and rude. I really don't understand the 'calling trolls out' attitude of a couple of staffers. All it does is cause alienation and aggravation.

What happened to that relationship between staff and customers on here? What's with the big us and them suddenly? What does popping up to snap at people who say negative things achieve? Where's the empathy to try and understand why they're like that gone? Why so touchy if it's just a job and your personal opinions are so seperate?

If you can't rise above words on a computer screen how you can rise above someone having a go down the phone or in person is a total mystery to me. Either way this needs to stop, it gets no-one anywhere. Employees shouldn't be standing out as being antagonistic and aggressive. Entitled to opinions, always, able to tell people when they are being OTT, of course, counter attacking people by getting personal, just no.

---------- Post added at 09:02 ---------- Previous post was at 08:39 ----------

The VM service status page does a good job in providing information on current and planned maintenance and seems to be updated with problems as they occur with relative frequency.

That's changed then, the ex-ntl side of it was naff. ;) I remember a couple of issues being open for a year and major faults not being put on there.