ame problem, different week. I like my Comcast internet most of the time, but when I hate it most is when I actually have to call for service.
Two weeks ago, I woke up to my internet being barely responsive, which to me meant a lost day of wages since I work from home.
Well after about 4 hours of the same futile trying to get a webpage to load, I decided to see where the problem was. I did a ping to my wireless router, which was fine. I did a traceroute to a server I was ultimately trying to connect to, where it showed that there were actually two of Comcast's routers were taking longer than normal for responses.
I did a ping to the first router showing delay and it was losing about 35% of packets. Since this had happened just the previous week and I had called for service, I knew that by the time the technician showed up, everything would be working fine, because of course my equipment was NOT the problem.
Well, for the SECOND time (I went through this the previous week also), I was told they would have to schedule a tech call and they would come and check my equipment. I told him that would be fruitless and a waste of everyone's time including the technician because the problem was not inside my house or at my pole. It was, in fact, in Chicago or Philly. Both hundreds of miles from my house.
I got a service call setup anyway since I couldn't convince him otherwise, which just happened to be a week and a half away. When I told this individual that all I wanted was for them to acknowledge that they had a router problem, he said maybe he could get it set up for that day. Whatever.
I got a call three hours later and when I answered, I had a computer from Comcast on the line telling me to hold on. Then after waiting about two minutes, it hung up on me. Well, needless to say the problem was resolved by the next day, without a magic technician appearing at my house. Wow, go figure.
They finally called me again last Friday, which was the original service call date the guy had set up and I told him thank you for wasting my time and your time. Perhaps you should have someone address the incompetance in the answering division of Comcast. (during the previous service call last month, the technician told me the service center that takes calls is pretty much stocked with clueless individuals. Again, wow.
I would like to know how to contact the CEO and major shareholders of Comcast. Perhaps they would want to know that there are some pretty irate customers out there that actually know more than their people answering the phone. Maybe they wouldn't lose business because we are tired of useless tech calls. Just make it work!
I also find it amazing that people go 'wow' (as in a good 'wow') over the fact that Comcast seems to operate a publish customer service system via twiter @comcastcares. Apparently when you can't get service the usual way you can send a publish message on Twitter and then someone pays attention to you.
The need for @comcastcares on Twitter is actually a good indication that Comcast doesn't care! Their call centers should be designed and managed so that all of their customers are promptly and effectively serviced. No one should be left seeking help from the CEO or Twitter!
Now it would be great to see Comcast on Twitter interacting with customers about ideas for improving their products and services. But I would think that leaving unhappy customers to search them out in Twitter to get support shows the clear need to a new legal process. Something like Bankrupcty, but rather than for the resolution of financial problems, for the resolution of management problems! Wouldn't it be great if the poorly treated customers of Comcast could invoke an involutary process by which they could get the management replaced!?
Obviously the management of Comcast has failed on a number of points:
- Distinguishing the different way that Internet or Cable TV support calls should be handled
- Having any system in place to verify routers and other equipment off the customers premise before sending a technician out in the field
- Having any system in place to classify customers as inept or technically competent and respond appropriately.
- I am sure some workers in Comcast's call centers could help us with more ways that their management has failed them and their customers
Any Comcast employees that are concerned about the failure of their company's management and would like to offer information on what they are doing wrong or what they could do better, please comment here and we will do our best to present it to the management and major shareholders of Comcast.
