Frustration with HO: How Hold Times and Lack of Communication Affect My Business

[kam]

I need to vent. I know that HO is going through issues right now...but it is still frustrating. And I think I am just in a bad mood! :grumpy:

Contacting HO: I have to say this is the worst part of PC right now. Actually, it has been bad since before the holidays when the hold times were pretty high.

Fact: the time I spend on the phone with HO either holding or waiting for a callback is time I am NOT calling customers. The more time I spend trying to provide customer service to my customers (that is error related) - is less time overall I can spend on other aspects of my business.

Provding good customer service is hard to do when it is hard to get through to HO. I work FT, so calling during the day is not an option. So, if I have 2 hours every other night reserved for PC stuff, and I spend most of that time trying to get a hold of HO, then that causes me to NOT to be able to do other PC items! Especially when I can't get a call back time.

I have a past host whose Stone broke (3 months old) and she needed to get it replaced. Get Ref # etc....It appears on my Product Adjustment page for awhile. But sometimes, you can't tell if the guest is taking awhile to send the item back, or what is going on. I get an email form guest, she sent the stone back on March 6th and got a delivery confirmation that it was rec'd by PC on March 9th. So, here it is, April. Where is it?? I call HO and they don't know why it has not been sent out. She will talk to a supervisor and send it out. I ask if it will be updated on my Prod Adj page to reflect a tracking number so I can monitor this adjustment. She says "Yes".

Guess what? Today this product adjustment is not listed any longer? The other ones are still there. This is the one that is missing! Huh? I need to track this since there were problems already with it.

How can I track it and let the gal know when it has shipped if it is gone from my list? Really frustrating. So, now I will be spending tonight calling HO instead of calling customers!

Vent over. Thanks for listening. DH doesn't understand.

 

[ChefBeckyD]

I need to vent. I know that HO is going through issues right now...but it is still frustrating. And I think I am just in a bad mood! :grumpy:Contacting HO: I have to say this is the worst part of PC right now. Actually, it has been bad since before the holidays when the hold times were pretty high.Fact: the time I spend on the phone with HO either holding or waiting for a callback is time I am NOT calling customers. The more time I spend trying to provide customer service to my customers (that is error related) - is less time overall I can spend on other aspects of my business.Provding good customer service is hard to do when it is hard to get through to HO. I work FT, so calling during the day is not an option. So, if I have 2 hours every other night reserved for PC stuff, and I spend most of that time trying to get a hold of HO, then that causes me to NOT to be able to do other PC items! Especially when I can't get a call back time.I have a past host whose Stone broke (3 months old) and she needed to get it replaced. Get Ref # etc....It appears on my Product Adjustment page for awhile. But sometimes, you can't tell if the guest is taking awhile to send the item back, or what is going on. I get an email form guest, she sent the stone back on March 6th and got a delivery confirmation that it was rec'd by PC on March 9th. So, here it is, April. Where is it?? I call HO and they don't know why it has not been sent out. She will talk to a supervisor and send it out. I ask if it will be updated on my Prod Adj page to reflect a tracking number so I can monitor this adjustment. She says "Yes".Guess what? Today this product adjustment is not listed any longer? The other ones are still there. This is the one that is missing! Huh? I need to track this since there were problems already with it.How can I track it and let the gal know when it has shipped if it is gone from my list? Really frustrating. So, now I will be spending tonight calling HO instead of calling customers!Vent over. Thanks for listening. DH doesn't understand.

I would send what you just posted to HO - not just to solutions center, but to some of the upper management people too. They need to hear how this is specifically effecting our ability to do business!

 

[c00p]

I know this probably won't be helpful since everything on your end is already done, but I personally have found that communicating via email or doing on-line adjustments frees up a ton of time for me, and I have a paper trail if needed.

I do agree since you have already spoken to someone and they don't know what's going on that it needs to be elevated to the next level.

 

[wadesgirl]

I don't know what time you work in the morning but HO is open at 7 CST, I usually call right around this time and usually get a call back in less than 20 minutes. Most of the time in the evening I never get a call back option.

 

[kam]

I know this probably won't be helpful since everything on your end is already done, but I personally have found that communicating via email or doing on-line adjustments frees up a ton of time for me, and I have a paper trail if needed.

The last time I emailed HO, it took over 3 weeks for a response. So, I really can't see this as a viable option right now.

I don't know what time you work in the morning but HO is open at 7 CST, I usually call right around this time and usually get a call back in less than 20 minutes. Most of the time in the evening I never get a call back option.

That is 8 am our time, I am already at work. Unfortunately, my co-workers and I are only divided by small partitions. We can hear everything. One co-worker in my office area actually works for our main office (but located here), so I REALLY can't have him knowing I am making personal calls - especially with how scared we are for our jobs right now.

But, thanks for the ideas.

If HO is making more mistakes (shipping errors, items sent to wrong addresses, etc), then more time is spent dealing with helping our customers, and then hold times become longer, and the longer amount of time we are on hold. This all translates to hindering our ability to grow our business. Though, my current issue isn't really a shipping mistake per se...it was a simple exchange that I now have NO IDEA what is going on with it. I told my customer I would track it and keep her posted - and that is exactly what I should be able to do.

 

[esavvymom]

HO also has Saturday and Sunday customer service hours- 8am - 4pm CST I think?
If you call early in the day, they aren't usually as long to get ahold of on the weekend.

 

[chefsteph07]

I do agree, I dread when a customer calls me telling me that one of her items is damaged or something, that means I have to deal w/ HO. Blah...

 

[esavvymom]

I do agree, I dread when a customer calls me telling me that one of her items is damaged or something, that means I have to deal w/ HO. Blah...

Well, look at it this way when you have to call. If SHE made the call, she'd give up and probably not deal with PC very much in the future.

I try to do any HO contacts for my customers so they don't have to simply because I know they'd get upset. (I would too!)

 

[jenniwest04]

I've been trying to deal with HO about a customer who wanted to do a return in November (within her 30 days). They supposedly finally sent her a mailing label w/ a refund two months ago and I found out from her sister that she never received either and, even though she came to the Pampered Chef party I was doing, has said she won't buy anything again despite loving the products. I even had a confirmation email that they had shipped the mailing label...so back to fighting HO...they really should just refund her money and let her keep the items since it's been so long...