Poor (Tele) Communication

Almost every day I am kindly reminded by Bell Canada that telecom companies are terrible at communications. Examples:

• For the last little while I have been receiving at least two letters a week from Bell. They all come from the same VP and are all trying to upsell me new services or, worse, sell me services to which I already subscribe.
• I was told that I would have two months of free movie channels when I subscribed. Instead I was charged $13 a month for a movie package I never asked for.
• I asked, three months ago, to have my paper bill cancelled. I get the online version but still get the paper version.
• The fact that my internet and telephone service monthly rates both increased a month after I subscribed.
• Then there is the example I mentioned two weeks ago in this entry.

When I lived in Vancouver and had to deal with Telus it was not any better. I wonder, what is it that makes telecommunication companies so terrible at communications? I have some ideas.

Their business has grown by bits and pieces and has become too complex. The growth has been unplanned and its only purpose has been to gain customers and add services. There has been very little effort in creating a better customer experience. The rush to offer new services has overshadowed service to customers. Their employees don't understand the big picture. They don't understand all the offerings. How can they? They change too often. One division has no clue what the other is doing. Acquisitions have created a hodgepodge of incompatible systems with very little interfaces of any value between them. They have gone from providing one service with no options - landline telephones - to hundreds. They have sliced and diced their market to the point where there are incompatibilities in service offerings, overlapping service offerings and competing service offerings.

The result is that these large companies are lost. They don't know who their customers are and have not asked them what they want. Here is what I want. It should not be complicated.

1) When I speak to someone I want them to know what services their employer offers.

2) I want them to know that I called last week with the same darn question.

3) When I say I want a paperless bill I don't want them to continue sending me the bill via mail.

4) When I say paperless billing you can assume that I don't want your junk mail in my mailbox either. Email it to me instead if you must.

5) When there is a new service that will save me money let me know how it will. Give me an example. You have all my call history, viewing history and surfing history. If you don't have it and is not accessible to you better start thinking you should have it and make it.

Sometimes it is best to start from scratch. From a blank piece of paper. Is it time for Bell and Telus and the other large telcos out there to rethink their customer service? I think so. Simplify it. Simplify your offerings. Simplify your systems. Stop and think about what really matters...your customers. Turns out that, in the long-term, they are actually more important than your myriad of services that are constantly changing and have a lifespan of six months to a year.

Let me know what you think about what you have just read. Please and thanks!