to have told this customer service agent that she was cheeky?

[OverTheLove]

I've just got a new phone and it's not being activated yet, been told quite a few times it will be active in 3 hours, end of the day etc.

Rang today and got through to one woman who said that I had failed data protection but she would give me general information. I told her the problem and then she started to apologise and said that I had come through to the wrong department etc -

So I said to her stop speaking over me because I'm the customer and the customer is always right. I carried on talking and then was met with silence for 10/15 seconds. When she said ok, well I wanted to make sure you had finished because I don't want to speak over you.

To which I told her that she was very cheeky and that the company would have taught her better than that.

A huge amount of communication is non verbal. Yes?

So one the phone, well you don't have the non verbal bits to rely on.

Did I really need to explain that?

Going silent on the phone is good practice in managing unacceptable behaviour from callers. I use this technique regularly.

OP has basically said this is a reverse AIBU.

Where?

I'm afraid you behaved like a complete dick, OP, and perhaps you'll do better next time.

Well, the non verbal bits seemed to have worked a treat on this occasion.

And when they fail, mute button plus V signs are a blood pressures friend.

And I can always recommend the central heating curse if all else fails.

My mistake Soup - I misread one of her posts

Silent and 'blank face' works very well when dealing with arsehole rudeness... but don't forget the trick we called the 'over sir' where you call the customer 'sir' or 'madam' in every... Single.... Sentence... That you have to talk to them. Sounds as sarcastic as anything but they can't complain about you being too polite! It takes a certain amont of skill to say it without sounding too sarcastic though...

It just made me smile that people would ring up, shout and scream but when asked what they wanted me to do about it hadn't got as far as thinking about that. Especially when it turned out not to be the company's error.

Surely if you want someone to sort something out for you the best way is being polite, explaining calmly what is wrong. Then fire off a snotty complaint to HO if you want to vent.

Some of the written complaints we received were hilarious though.
.

Twice I've tried adding to this. Twice I've failed.
I think those who are telling us how contact centre staff should go back on the phones for a month. Under call centre conditions. And live on our wage and our wage only.

Then tell us how crap we are.

(BTW - my last review my manager classed me as outstanding with regard to my Customer Service Skills, quoting examples to me of what he'd heard. And my customers usually say thank you to me at the end of the call, and that they appreciate what I have done for them. Even when I have stayed silent after they have ranted, because I explain WHY I stayed silent and I explain it in an appropriate way. then when I see the call's ended I growl about them)

AArrgghh - how contact centre staff should behave......

God, I used to work in a call centre and it destroyed my faith in humanity a little. I really hope this is a joke!

I told her the problem and then she started to apologise and said that I had come through to the wrong department etc - So I said to her stop speaking over me because I'm the customer and the customer is always right.

So she listened, apologized and explained that you needed to speak to another department. You interrupted her to tell her how rude she was! If she hadn't said a thing and waited until you'd finished you'd have had a go at her for wasting your time.

I hope you do report her. I hope her manager looks into this. And then she gets a costumer service award for dealing with impossible people like you! And that somehow you learn that the customer is not always right and that manners and respect work both ways.

Sorry, I think that the call centre agent was proper lol.

You sound like a charmer
I work in a call centre, we do have time targets, we do interject when people call the wrong department
We don't deserve to be treated patronisingly

Did it make you feel important

oh get me