Thursday, July 06, 2006

Phone Moan...

I have just replaced my mobile phone and it should be a painless and enjoyable experience, so how come I am left feeling as if I have just gone ten rounds with the heavyweight boxing champion of the world. It all started about two months ago I received a text message from the gentleman and I use that term lightly who sold me my current handset which has just come to its first birthday. You are eligible said the text to a free upgrade text back yes and I will organize everything for you. So I did and that’s when all the shit started to happen.

First of all Mobile phone makers seem to release new models so frequently it makes your head spin. And although brochures and all the information within are aimed at people who want to use their mobile for anything other than talking, I would like to use mine to talk to people, radical I know. Call me old fashioned but I always thought that was the main reason for having a phone. Secondly it’s only been twelve months since I last replaced my handset but every talk plan has changed so I can’t just have the same again and that pisses me off, if it ain’t broke why try to fix it comes to mind.

When you want to buy a car or a piece of a Hi Fi equipment or a camera or anything technical you can go into a shop or showroom and play with the model of your choice listen to what it sounds like, how it takes pictures etc etc. And with nearly every other products I can think of the salespeople have at least a general knowledge of the products they are trying to sell. You know it might help them sell more just a thought.

Not so the mobile phone shop oh no their staff are young teenage fashion conscious idiots who think no further than a mobile phone being a fashion accessory to dangle around your neck covered in a complimentary color to your nails and or lip gloss. Just as an experiment I are asked the young sales assistant if it would be possible to try out the mobile phone I was interested in, after all when I bought my camera I was able to try it take pictures and make sure it fitted my requirements. I think the young sales assistant thought I had just dropped from another planet
“ why do you want to try it out “ was her reply
“ to find out if it's going to do what I want “ came mine
“ Oh no we don't do that” she said
“here a picture of it in a brochure”
I swallowed hard and realized this was one battle I was never going to win. OK I said it looks nice in the picture so with the talk plan I want and the handset from the picture what sort of deal will you to keep my business. And then she uttered the immortal phrase
“ oh you’re an existing customer are you “
“yes” I said “I have been very loyal to you that’s why I thought you would give me the best deal possible to stop me spending my money with the opposition”
. “Sorry” she said “All these deals we have printed in the brochure are introductory offers for new business”
“so there for new customers only” I said with a slight smirk.
Little miss dimwit didn’t get the reference to the television advertising campaign and with a very straight face said “Yes sir there for new customers only”

I find it absolutely amazing that a company that relies on customer’s spending money should be so shortsighted to only focus on new business. Let's face it there can’t be that much new business in the mobile phone market anymore. It must be nearly at saturation point. Everybody I know has one and some people have two, who is there left to be new business. The only new business are the customers so pissed off with being treated differently to new customers that they have to go to the competition and start again to get a good deal. The whole system is about as ludicrous as George W, one brave company needs to have the foresight to sort out the situation and look after there existing customers, they would probably clean up. Because lets face it trudging around looking for the best deal is a real pain. Come on mobile phone companies get your act together. The futures bright, no it’s fucking not.
Matt x

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