10 real thoughts we have when we’re calling telecoms


Last Updated on 2016-05-19 , 1:54 pm

Whenever we have to make that dreaded call to any one of the 3 telecoms, it is never without trepidation. But we need to get our issues with them sorted out so we bravely punch in the necessary numbers on our phone and hit call. After that, we wait. As soon as we start to hear the computerized voice come on, we know that a hundred and one questions are already on the way to being asked in our minds.

Why is there never an available customer service officer when I call?
Do you realise that most of the times you call Singtel, M1 or Starhub, you almost never get to speak to a customer service officer? It always makes me wonder if they are running low on staff or if the staff are out for incredibly long lunches. Either way, it makes my blood boil especially when I’m desperate to get an issue fixed.

Why are there so many options?
Waiting for one option after another to be belted out will make sane person go insane. Even though we know that these “options” make it easier for the customer service officer we would eventually speak to, to solve our issue head on, it still kills us when we are already at our wits’ end and still not getting to proper help after pressing option after option for 10 minutes.

Why am I being passed from one person to another?
I know that there are dedicated customer service officers for the various issues customers call in for. But when I get transferred from one to another even though I know for sure I have pressed all the right buttons for all the right options, you can be sure I’m going to get pissed off.

Why do they not have the option I’m calling in for?
The worst thing about having to listen to a ton of options is when you realise they don’t have one for what you need. Why are you wasting our time? No wonder everyone pressed “zero” without listening to the different options.

You have my information. Why do I need to repeat them again and again?
Similar to credit cards, when you call in to make enquiries, you expect the company to know all your vital information based on your mobile number or birth date. It really doesn’t make any sense when you get asked for them each and every time you called.

Why are you telling me to check your website for the information when I’m already on the phone with you?
It’s only because I have an unsolvable issue that I’m calling you. Otherwise, why is there a need to? So why are you telling me to check your website for the answer or solution since we are already talking on the phone? It just doesn’t make any sense.

Why do I never get a callback when you promised I would?
Usually when the wait for a customer service officer is too long, you will be made to leave your phone number so that they can call you back within “3 business days”. When the call never comes, the customer tries calling again, only to have to leave their number again and not getting a callback once again. Do they even know how frustrating and unprofessional this is?

Why must you be so rude?
We understand everyone has one of those days when they wake up on the wrong side of the bed and get all grouchy the entire day. But when you are a customer service officer in one of the major telecom companies, you do know that how you serve reflects upon the whole company right? Don’t take it out on us. Punch the wall or something if that will make you feel better or just take the day off.

Why do I keep getting a machine? I want to speak to a human!
My phone bill has a huge discrepancy and I need to speak with a living, breathing customer service officer to eradicate the matter. But no matter how many options I choose, I keep getting the machine. How is a machine going to solve my problem? And where are all the humans?

Why do you not know how to resolve my issue?
Can you imagine thousands of people counting on you as the expert to solve their telex problems but you have no darn clue how to resolve most of them? As if waiting for eons to finally get to a customer service officer isn’t already bad enough, I get one that is clueless about why his or her company even exists in the first place.

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