My house is full of geeks… and I love it…  We’ve officially gotten to the point where we need one computer for each person. I have my iMac, hubby has his computer, one girl is on my laptop, and the other is on another computer in the office. They are obsessed with PBSkids.org… which I guess isn’t so bad, since it’s all learning games. We usually spend 30-60 minutes on it during the early part of the day, and then I give them time to do it while I’m getting dinner ready in the late afternoon. It is just too funny!

Seriously!?!?!

I just do not get it. I worked for several years in customer service. I started out as a lifeguard at a local water park in high school, moved on to a laser tag arena, then to retail at 3 stores at the mall, and finally to a customer service call center for FedEx. That’s all before I got married. At FedEx, i heard stories about how a package should have reached its destination, regardless of that tornado, flood or hurricane that hit the area that it was going to. I once got a call from a shipper that was mad the package didn’t make it because the FedEx station wasn’t operating… The ROOF was torn off in a hurricane!! I didn’t expect them to understand because to everyone, their package is super important, and needs to be where it needs to be when it needs to be there. If they got to a point where no amount of explaining by a “lowly customer service agent” would do, and they asked for a supervisor, we politely obliged, placed them on hold, and called our Manager Assist Group. It wasn’t difficult, and the “MAG” as we liked to call them, were always willing to help out.

More and more these days, I call a customer service call center to deal with an issue. Sometimes the CSA is able to help me out, and sometimes the call ends with me more confused than when the issue first started… I ask for a supervisor more often than not, and rarely get one. I just don’t understand it.

Case and point. We had received a call from a telemarketing company on behalf of Comcast Communications, offering us the fastest cable internet speed they have along with their basic cable for less than what we were paying for the slowest internet speed alone… We got an appointment scheduled for the following Thursday and were pretty excited at the prospect of a faster internet speed. The next Tuesday, we got a phone call from Comcast offering us a different deal that was more expensive. I told the agent that we already had an appointment scheduled, and we were good. Then I hear.. “Yeah, about that.. it’s been canceled.” No further explanation. I was livid. So I call back and ask the agent that answered the phone what happened. He said he didn’t know why it was canceled or who canceled it, and there was no way to get that particular deal again. End of story. I asked for a supervisor, and was told he would send a request through, and I’d receive a call from a supervisor within a couple of hours. No call ever was made so I called the next day and again asked for a supervisor. The agent gave me the run around and kept trying to dodge getting me a supervisor by offering me other various deals they had going on. I wasn’t having it…

After almost an hour of holding and declining any other alternative, I was finally passed to a supervisor who made all kinds of promises. She ended up offering me a deal that was comparable, and promised to call me back the next day when all the changes had been made to my account.. I never received a call back so I tried calling her back several times, and left a voice mail for her each time. She never called me back.

Finally after 2 weeks, I called back and asked for another supervisor. This time, I refused to tell the agent anything until I got a supervisor. At this point I was tired of repeating my story time and time again. Why didn’t they just get my account number and pass me on to a supervisor. If they really wanted to know what was going on, they could read all the notes that had been typed up in my account from every other person that I talked to.

Long story short, it took a whole lot of time and a whole lot of calling to get something worked out with a supervisor…

Just today I had an issue with Apple that was really getting to me, until I finally got a supervisor who restored my faith in customer service! Last Thursday, I bought an iMac, and then Monday they upgraded the iMacs. I called yesterday and spoke with an agent that told me the various options that were available to me. We ultimately decided on me just refusing the shipment so Apple would refund me as soon as they received my order back in the warehouse. He told me to just call back to Apple once the shipment had been refused so they could note my account and start processing… So this morning I called, and was then informed by another agent I spoke to that I HAD to go through the returns process which would then take 3-5 business days before I could get a refund. I was confused about the correct process so after I ended my call with this person, I decided to call back and speak with a supervisor.

I called back and yet another agent asked for my info, and when I asked for a supervisor, she continued to go through my order and tell me that everything was going through ok for delivery today. I advised her that was not the reason I was calling, and she asked me to explain… so I did. Then she told me that Apple requires the customer to go through the proper returns process, and that she would send a mailing label through to me. I asked her why the different messages, and she began telling me that she and her colleagues are very sincere to the customers, just that sometimes they get their information mixed up. Basically telling me that the first agent I spoke to was wrong. She was ready to release me from the call, but I insisted that I speak to a supervisor. She didn’t sound happy. All I could think was “Well, if you would’ve given me a supervisor to begin with, like I had asked, you wouldn’t feel like you wasted your time with me.” I didn’t say it, just thought it.

Finally I was put through to a supervisor who told me he was a little confused as to why I was calling. I explained everything to him, and he then told me that he understood why I was so confused with the return. He told me that the first agent was indeed correct, and that the way we had chosen (refusing the shipment) was actually better in my situation. The return label route is taken when the customer has already taken possession of the shipment, and since I have not, just refusing it works better. Finally, someone that could understand what I’ve been flustered about.

He was actually really great. I told him that this was my first time ever purchasing an Apple computer, and I really had heard a lot of great things about Apple, that this just couldn’t have been this difficult to exchange the computers out after their upgrade! He helped me out with the whole situation, and let me know that he was personally going to watch the account and the current shipment, and as soon as the RTS tracking number was placed on the package, he was going to credit my cards, and give me a call so I could re-order the new iMac…. WOOHOO! I’m so happy now!!! So Thank you Apple, and Thank you Arturo for finally restoring my faith in Customer Service..

Well, I guess I should say “WE” are getting an iMac!!!!

Last Thursday, we finally received our tax refund, and we have just been itching to start out with an Apple computer… We’ve drooled over the Mac Book Pro’s. We’ve gone into the Apple store and oogled over the iMac’s.. . We even got the girls playing games on the ones at the kid’s table. They liked it so much that they didn’t want to leave the store… but we had to.. They wouldn’t let us stay there all day, or spend the night there with the computers… Other people had to have their turns playing with the computers. Shucks!!!

We really have had so much trouble with all of our computers, and just didn’t even want to bother with Vista after all of the scary things we’ve heard about it… Daddy’s been using Ubuntu/Linux, and I’m still using my Windows XP… but We wanted something new… Plus I’m working on learning more about Graphic Design.. so Apple is definitely a good thing..

Anyway… I called Apple on Thursday morning, and ordered our 24″ iMac with all the bells and whistles… and we got a great price since we went with the refurbished model. We’ve been so excited , just waiting for it to arrive to our house. We got our tracking numbers Friday evening and they showed it would be delivered on Saturday… Well.. Saturday, they didn’t have any scans… so I called, and they told me that FedEx didn’t have possession of the boxes yet. NOOOOO… *sigh*

We took care of all the things we needed to take care of over the weekend, all the while, checking our tracking number online just in case there were any updates, and nothing. So this morning, Daddy got up, and got ready for work. He came in to wake me up and told me he had good news and bad news. In my groggy state, I don’t think much was registering, until he told me “Apple released a new iMac this morning, and they dropped the price of the one we bought by $300″. WHAAAT?!?!? I was wide awake now. He explained to me how the new ones are the same price as the one that we bought just 3 days ago, but they have a better processor and graphics card. Ok, now this was just not cool. But the good news… There was finally some activity to our tracking numbers and it should be delivered tomorrow. Well… I don’t want the one I ordered now… I want the new one! If we’re going to drop that much money on a new computer… then why not get the new one.. it’s the same price anyway right?!?!

My job today, after my yoga class was to find out how we can return the original computer and buy the newest one… and get it here before 30 days… HAHA… This is going to be fun.

I tried getting a hold of the sales agent that originally took my order, and it kept going directly to his VM. Sooooo I called back to the general number and spoke to another agent… The best he could give me was either a refund to my card for the $300 difference, or we could send back this computer, wait for the refund to clear on my credit card, and then go through the ordering process all over again. Well POOP! I wanted my computer NOW! UGH… I guess I understand, but gosh darn it… I was so excited and now this…

I called Fedex with my tracking numbers and just asked them to return the packages to the sender, in hopes that it would arrive back to the warehouse quicker.. We shall see… I just really hope everything works out and I can get the new computer here soon! The girls are so excited about it. They want to play their Ratatouille and Dora games. I just want to start making graphics and learning how to use the Mac.. It’s literally been years since I’ve seriously tried to use one, and last time I got flustered just trying to check my email in computer lab at the college… I sure hope this time around isn’t as bad…