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What to do when things go wrong

You’ve joined a program or service and something isn’t quite right, so you go hunting for a way to let the site owner or company know.  The good ones will either have a Support Ticket System, a contact form or an email address where you can let them know what your “problem” is.

I’m taking the time to give my thoughts on the proper use of these kinds of systems because I’ve sat on both sides of the fence – meaning I’ve submitted my fair share of support tickets and I’ve also had to handle some myself for various things.

So here are the 5 Ways to get the best results from any support system.

Number 1.

Do Not Write in the heat of the moment!

This happens when something goes wrong. You’ve made a payment and it hasn’t regsitered and you can’t get your download.  Or you have tried creating a web host account and you cannot log into your Hosting Account Manager or your website won’t show up. These are the kinds of things that can very understandably get you a little angry. Been there, done that myself on a few occasions.

Then it’s straight into the support system and telling them how upset you are.

I’d recommend that you take a deep breath and explain exactly what happened and try not to get personal or vent your anger too strongly.  Sure , say you are upset but keep the threats and other choice words in your head and don’t go writing them.

Keep in mind, someone on the other end whose job it is to help you isn’t going to feel too wonderful from reading something abusive.

Number 2.

Give as much information as you can!

Remember that the person at the “other end” needs to know what it is that is happening. So keep it simple and be as specific as you can.  Try to put yourself in their shoes.

Refrain from saying – “It doesn’t work. Please Fix it!” Instead explain what doesn’t work, what you did when it didn’t work and any error messages or whatever other information you can see. That will greatly speed things up to help the “support” person resolve your issue.

Number 3.

Respond quickly to any requests for more information or to let them know that your problem has been fixed or still has issues.

The individuals manning the support systems may want to know a little more. Even though you’ve followed point “Number 2″. It’s easy to forget something so again, respond with the information requested.

Number 4.

On the very rare occasions you may get a response saying “We didn’t find anything wrong it must be you……”. Remember point Number 1 and restate your issue. It’s possible you didn’t supply enough information or clearly enough.

Try to keep the language simple… I’m from Australia and I could probably write something that could have you “scratching your head”. See I just used one there and someone in another country might reply like this – “Dear Mr Brownlaw, I’m unsure of what you mean and my head isn’t itchy…”

Kind of boring, I know, but there will be times when there is a language barrier in just the terms and phrases you might choose to use.

So be boring, keep it plain and explain again.

Number 5.

You may still be unsatisfied and your problem still exists or you are just simply annoyed. Especially if it’s something that reoccurs…

I can only suggest then that you demand to contact the site owner or someone higher up in the chain.

If all else fails.

If all else fails, then you are probably working with someone whose interest is not to keep their customers happy.

Write about your experience in your blog/website but keep it tame.  Stick to the facts and “try” to keep the emotion out of it. Getting abusive will generally turn others off and they may not want to contact you and say ” Hey me too… but I did this…”

Post on a Forum and ask if anyone else is having the same issues…

If this all sounds a bit optimistic well so be it. The majority of companies/service providers etc take great pride in helping their customers. It’s the few that don’t that can lead to major frustration.

Now I’m not going to state that I’ve always stuck to these “guidelines” all the time. But I’m very conscious of them and if I do catch myself  “flying off the handle” (getting angry) I quickly take a few breaths and remember some person on the other end has to read this…. On the odd occasion the send button has been hit and “Whoops”, but I do give thanks and apologize.  Sometime when I read back my tickets they may sound a little heated.

I’ve also hit brick walls with one or two programs I’ve been in and I’m still trying to get a satisfactory outcome…But I’ll stick at it.

So remember, yes we’ll always encounter problems of some kind, but the best way to get help is to be polite and state the facts.

If you really want, you can offer to help them out! I’ve done that before.

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