Long hold times. Poor problem resolution. Slow repairs. These are problems that seem to be an epidemic in the computer industry, and according to a report from customer service think-tank the Customer Experience Board these perceptions are not merely anecdotal. There is, in fact, a major problem with tech support in the industry. The report states, among other things, that 41 percent of people who contact technical support are not happy with the experience and 13 percent are extremely dissatisfied, calling tech support “terrible.”
These problems don’t come as a surprise. In my guide to the best laptop brands I took a look a customer service from multiple angles including magazines which had run independent tests and online customer feedback. The general consensus is that technical support is in shambles. Only Apple really seems to give a crap about their customers. Even the best technical support, from companies like Toshiba and ASUS, has the wrong answer too often.
Another factor is undoubtedly reliability. The Squaretrade report which I used for reliability data in my laptop brand guide found that 20% of laptops fail within three years due to hardware problems with an additional 10% failing due to damage from an accident. Worse, only 5% of the hardware malfunctions occur within the first year, which means that users are typically out of warranty when a problem occurs. This no doubt has an effect on overall customer satisfaction – no one likes to call tech support only to hear “Sorry, but you’re out of warranty.”
Source: Ars Technica
You must log in to post a comment.
{ 1 trackback }