Joe Nocera writes in today's New York Times Business Section about the frustration and anger Apple Computer has stirred in him in its customer support-avoidant policies. He has become aware of them by investing over $10,000 in iPod related stuff then getting told, it will cost at least $250 for the company to fix a broken $300 iPod.
He talks about trying to find a human to contact but was unable to do so from the website or by pricing up the phone. Much of his column seems stirred by the apparent Apple attitude of, "The human you have tried to contact is no longer in service. Please stay on the line..."
Joe, I feel your pain. Too often large companies have used technology to get further away from the customer, and that is a good part of why I'm so heavily on the blogging bandwagon. Blogging is an affordable way for companies to talk with their customers.
interestingly I have had very good (relatively speaking) experiances with Apple Support - by using the in-store "genius" bars in both Chicago and San Francisco. I've had multiple bad iPod shuffles replaced with very little pain, and when I had a more complex audio editing question they answered it very well and quickly.
I think there is, however, a vast difference if you are within reach of an Apple store (and if the lines are manageable and/or you register online) vs. if you are not.
Shannon
Posted by: Shannon Clark | February 04, 2006 at 08:32 PM