By Michael Tessler, Managing Partner

In Scott’s The Morphing Contact Center, he summarizes how contact centers are focusing on the overall end to end customer experience. Technology is a key factor in contributing to this strategic shift, but let me explain why companies have a long way to go from some personal experiences.

Now, as you may know, I recently moved to Austin (before Elon I might say!). What I discovered was how hard it was to deal with the many companies you need to contact in the transition. . First, I callledto discontinue service for my old home. This is where your nightmare starts.

These companies require you to call in order to disconnect any service. The irony is that you can buy anything online from these companies, but if you want to remove or disconnect a service you have to call a 1–800 number between the hours of 9 AM to 5 PM Monday through Friday. While I understand these may be normal working hours for the call agents, this is extremely inconvenient when you, as the customer, are working full time.

Already annoyed, I dialed the 1–800 number and then told that my wait time is 55 MINUTES. Who has 55 minutes to wait on hold? And don’t get me wrong, I’ve seen options where they ask to call you back and hold your place. The problem with this feature is that I may get pulled into a meeting or impromptu phone call in which I end up missing the call back. Again, technology that is not designed to work with people.

Anyways, I finally get to talk to an agent and explain that I am moving so I need to disconnect service. You would think that would be the end of it. No, no, it wasn’t. Instead, I painfully endure 3 to 4 attempts for the agent to sell me service for my new home. The agent didn’t even ask where I was moving and assumed they provided service wherever I was going to. It turns out they don’t provide the same service in Texas. At this point, I’m frustrated — I have already waited about an hour to talk to someone and then go through another hour trying to convince the agent to discontinue my service.

It doesn’t end there, folks.

I received a shipment where the product I ordered was damaged. I called to let them know and the agent told me they would send me a replacement. Done, right? No, instead they make me stay on the phone while they fill out the shipment information. This was ridiculous, the information was already provided on my existing order number.

While dealing with another frustrating company to cancel my service, it gave me some ideas around the most common challenges contact centers need to remedy. Here are my top five:

1. Incredibly long wait times (i.e. 90 minutes) with an additional hold when you do reach an agent and while you are on hold there are automated announcements to justify the wait (who cares!). Because of COVID our wait times….

2. Needing to transfer to another department when you reach an agent. And the frustration when the call drops or you need to start to explain your issue and information with a new agent.

3. Audio quality is low or overall bad, making it hard to understand the agent. I sometimes wonder if that is a tactic to make you give up.

4. Irrelevant questions regarding the existing service/order. I started to ask why they need this information. Companies need to understand that these experiences will shape your brand opinion forever.

5. Interactive Voice Response trees that never list the option you need. For example none of these IVR’s had an option to cancel service.

Wall Street Journal even covers the similar scenarios in their article titled Everyone Hates Customer Service. This is Why. Businesses purposely rely on user frustration to keep billing you. They have fully functioning digital experiences to onboard you, but fail to provide a way to cancel without calling and customers end up getting shuffled around. This continues the cycle of getting to buy services you don’t even need or want. We need to stop doing business with enterprises that lock you in.

On my last call, I explained to the fifth agent that I would never do business with this company again and that I would tell anyone I know to never do business with them. In one hour they create a brand terrorist.

Make it easy to cancel for your customers. Building a happy, former customer and creating a lasting relationship with one that will promote your brand is a better alternative than making it hard to cancel. Create an experience your customers will remember you for.

Share with us any of your customer service experience nightmares.