Dell Hell: Deaf and dumb
: One of the great lessons of the cluetrain era is that your customers are your best customer support agents and marketers if only you allow them ... and respect them enough to listen to them. Dell does't. As we reported the other day, Dell shut its general customer forums... which should be the place for customers to help each other. Dwight Silverman found Dell's company line:
As for the Customer Care board, many of the non-technical issues posted there can only be addressed by authorized Dell representatives with access to customer information - not by peers as the Forum is designed to facilitate. That said, these questions are best handled through other secure online tools.Or, clueless Dell, your customers can just blog their questions and answers without you. Or should I say, former customers?zelan.ruserver_media
Dell Hell: The Postscript
: Houston Chron tech guru Dwight Silverman decided to call Dell and find out what their policy and strategy is regarding issues their customers raise in these newfangled blog things. That's whatcha call real reporting.
I spoke with Jennifer J. Davis, a spokesperson in Dell's consumer products group, who said that Dell does indeed monitor online blogs and discussion forums. She would not say how many people are engaged in doing so.zelan.ruserver_mediaClueless. Absolutely clueless. And keep in mind that this is a technology company. It's also a company that doesn't have a retail channel and so it should have a different, direct, new, and better relationship with its customers. Instead, it's worse. zelan.ruserver_mediaHowever, it's a policy of look, don't touch -- those monitoring do not respond publicly, nor do they try to make contact pro-actively.zelan.ruserver_media
"The best process for getting issues addressed is to contact us directly," she said.zelan.ruserver_media
Of course, for those U.S. customers frustrated with loophole-ridden repair/return policies, overseas call centers whose employees can't master English or techs who can't think outside the script, direct communication doesn't always result in customer satisfaction.zelan.ruserver_media
Davis said the company aims its resources at fixing these problems, hoping that improved customer experiences will translate into more positive buzz. She said internal surveys show an uptick in customer satisfaction, and is hoping soon-to-be-released independent studies will echo those results.zelan.ruserver_media
Those who are waiting for Dell's executives and technical types to blog a la competitor HP, you'll be on hold for a while: There are no plans for sanctioned Dell blogs anytime soon.zelan.ruserver_media
However, Davis said the company is formulating a policy for employee blogs that should be released soon.zelan.ruserver_media
She said Dell sees blogs as unnecessary at this time.zelan.ruserver_media
"With our direct model, we feel like we already have a good, two-way communications channel with our customers," Davis said.zelan.ruserver_media
Of course, it depends on what you do with the incoming communication. A two-way conversation only has value if you take action on the problems you're hearing about.
I repeat my offer, Dell: If you're reading this, I'll come and explain it to you. PowerPoint primed and ready. zelan.ruserver_media
: Christopher Carfi at the Social Customer Manifesto has been tracking the Dell saga and also has some great reporting. He found out that Dell is closing its customer forums! And so he used that vaunted Dell two-way communication to find out why they're cutting off that two-way communication in an IM with a faraway land. zelan.ruserver_media
: And all that pretty much answers the Blog Business Summit's Dell Cluewatch: They asked anyone who ever heard from Dell after posting about the company to come forward. They're going to wait a very, very long time: When Dell Hell freezes over. zelan.ruserver_media
Dell hell: Where's the flack when you need him?
: Steve Broback at the Blog Business Summit looks up Dell's PR company's web site on blogs and it says:
One refers to an ancient (feb 2003) Fortune article with blog in the headline, and the other assures clients that OutCast is on top of the whole crazy, kooky blog thing:Except when it's not media, when it's customers talking. zelan.ruserver_mediaBlogger Relations
Here’s what every technology vendor fears about blogs: they don’t know what they don’t know. OutCast navigates the confusing world of the blogosphere on behalf of our clients so they can focus on their business. There are an estimated 9 million blogs today, but which ones matter to you? It’s our job not only to tell you, but to help you negotiate that terrain. How do we do this? Remember when News.com was new? Remember when Usenet mattered? We do. So relax. Breathe. Whether it’s radio in the 1920s, TV in the 1950s or the Web in the 1990s, new media is new media.
Dell hell: nearing the end (and aren't you glad?)
: Yes, I bought the Powerbook. And, yes, there have been moments when I've despaired: It feels like moving to Paris and not speaking French (though it sure is pretty there). There is as much illogic in part of the Mac world as in the Microsoft world. I damned near didn't get my printer working (and I still cannot get the proper drive installed; I keep installing the installer and then it won't show up anywhere). I damned near didn't get my Treo to sync. But I have it. And so, next week, I'll send the Dell back. zelan.ruserver_media
Meanwhile... Dwight Silverman, tech guru of the Houston Chronicle, writes about the saga here:
For at least the last three years, I've heard a growing number of complaints from consumers about Dell's customer service. The gripes run from the basic -- confusing phone menus, ridiculous hold times, clueless tech support relying too much on scripts, outsourced call centers with poor English-language skills -- to the more complex, including accusations of not honoring the specifics of premium warranties and using loopholes to avoid fixing or replacing defective parts.zelan.ruserver_mediaHe quotes Ed Bott who says, quite rightly, that I shouldn't get special treatment because I'm a blogger or media guy.I've asked Dell executives about this repeatedly, most recently at January's Consumer Electronics Show. The answer is always either a.) we're aware of this and we're working to solve the problem, or b.) we're aware of the problem and we believe it's getting better.zelan.ruserver_media
But I don't think it has.
I'm writing to express my disgust with the response that Jeff's series of rants got from other people who have high-traffic Web sites that are run by popular content-management systems (blogs, I think they're called). These folks seem to think that because Jeff is semi-famous and gets quoted a lot on other Web sites and occasionally has his face on TV to talk about these blog things, he's entitled to special treatment.zelan.ruserver_mediaAbsolutely right. Here's what I said in response in his comments:There's no doubt that Jeff's high Google juice will result in lots of people reading about his experience. When they do, they'll get an accurate picture of how broken Dell's customer service is and how their Complete Care guarantee doesn't deliver on its promises....zelan.ruserver_media
Google Dell customer service problems and you get 2,950,000 hits, with titles like "My unbelievable experiences with Dell" and "How bad is Dell support? A lot!" and "If you have problems, expect no assistance from Dell" all on the first page of results. (And Jeff, if you had done that search before you made the purchase, maybe you wouldn't have bought from Dell.)zelan.ruserver_media
My point is that there is already plenty of evidence available to anyone who knows how to use Google that Dell's customer service sucks, to put it mildly. Granting special treatment to so-called A-listers only convinces me that A is for arrogant.
I agree that bloggers on whatever list shouldn't be treated differently. But if Dell were smart, it would use blogs as an opportunity to see what customers are saying ... and to fix problems (and get good PR for it)... and to learn about their own products and service...: Jason Calacanis follows the saga here; Steve Rubel does here; Robert Scoble does here. zelan.ruserver_media
Dell has people clipping media services to see what Walt Mossberg is saying and, yes, Walt is influential, but he's not a consumer; he's a reporter.
On blogs, Dell would find its consumers... including the many thousands who are pissed at Dell. That should teach them something. But it won't if they won't listen.
Dell hell: Seller beware
: The age of caveat emptor is over. zelan.ruserver_media
Now the time has come when it's the seller who must beware. Caveat venditor.zelan.ruserver_media
A company can no longer get away with consistently offering shoddy products or service or ignoring customers' concerns and needs. zelan.ruserver_media
For now the customers can talk back where they can be heard. Those customers can gang up and share what they know and give their complaints volume. Of course, they can use their reviews and complaints to have a big impact on a company's reputation and business. zelan.ruserver_media
Public relations has to take on a new meaning. It can no longer be about the press and publicity, which just separate companies from the public they are supposed to serve.zelan.ruserver_media
Public relations must be about a new relationship with the public, with the public in charge. zelan.ruserver_media
: All that is quite obvious to any of us. But it is far from obvious to too many big companies ... like Dell. zelan.ruserver_media
I tested Dell and they failed. Their customer service mechanism did not recognize a machine and service pattern and customer that were a mess. They didn't try to fix it. zelan.ruserver_media
I could have stayed on the phone for hours and gone up a tier at a time playing the customer having a psycho fit (ask anyone who has heard me go after customer service people who don't serve: I play the role well). zelan.ruserver_media
Instead, I chose to write about the saga here. I chose to elicit the sympathy and conspiracy of fellow pissed-off Dell customers. I chose to see whether Dell is listening. zelan.ruserver_media
They are not. zelan.ruserver_media
Their media people were not reading the media that matters -- media written by their very own customers. This page is already No. 5 in Google under Dell sucks. I gave them time. They failed. zelan.ruserver_media
So then I emailed their media department and told them to read this blog. I gave them a cheat sheet. They didn't. They failed. zelan.ruserver_media
Only when I wrote to the Chief Marketing Officer, Michael A. George (michael_george@dell.com) did I get a rise out of the company: A very nice (of course) woman named Linda with an accent (Southern... and I don't mean Bangalore) called to promise to ready the endless email exchange with Dell. zelan.ruserver_media
But as we say on the internet: That doesn't scale. If every dissatisfied customer had to email the Chief Marketing Officer, Michael A. George (michael_george@dell.com), he'd never have time to market. zelan.ruserver_media
: So here's where things stand right now. Linda offered scripted apologies (in the same breath that she read the standard notice that the call was being recorded). She didn't hold onto her arguments about Dell policy on at-home service (when I said that her very own employee admitted that the at-home technician would not bring the parts necessary to fix the machine). She didn't rise to the legal bait of calling the at-home program "fraudulent" and my complaining about lost work (can you say "compensatory damages"?). zelan.ruserver_media
She offered to send me a new machine. zelan.ruserver_media
I said I had no faith in Dell, in the quality of its products or its service. zelan.ruserver_media
I asked for a refund. zelan.ruserver_media
She then offered a full refund. zelan.ruserver_media
I said I would decide what to do my early next week. zelan.ruserver_media
In the meantime, Apple and PC cultists will battle over the dead body of my Dell.zelan.ruserver_media
: You know what: If Dell were really smart, they'd hire me (yes, me) to come to them and teach them about blogs, about how their customers now have a voice; about how their customers are a community -- a community often in revolt; about how they could find out what their customers really think; about how they could fix their customers' problems before they become revolts; about how they could become a better company with the help of their customers. zelan.ruserver_media
If they'd only listen. zelan.ruserver_media
Dell hell: Deus ex machina
: So the wonderful guys at EVDOinfo snuck me a new driver, due out next week, to make my high-speed Verizon card work on the newest Macs (thanks, Mike!). I went back to CompUSA (no, I don't have that much spare time; I was next door working at a Borders while I wait to pick up my son at computer camp) and installed the driver with great help from the Apple rep in the store (thanks, Bruce), who said if this worked, it would help him sell more Powerbooks. It works! There I was, connected to high-speed cellular from the store. zelan.ruserver_media
I swear to God at that very moment, my cell phone rang and it was a customer service person from Dell. She was calling because of the email I sent to her chief marketing officer and vice president of US Dell. She told me she'd read the emails -- and blog posts -- and get back to me. And that's fine.zelan.ruserver_media
But what a criminal shame that it took sending an email to the head of Dell U.S. (not that he has his email address online; I guessed it: Dell puts an underscore between the first and last names of employees) to get the first and only attempt to solve my problems. zelan.ruserver_media
It didn't come because they noticed I had to send the machine back and get most it replaced and send them scores of emails and wait forever to get any service and still did not have a working machine. zelan.ruserver_media
It didn't come because they monitored what their customers are saying online. zelan.ruserver_media
It came because a VP didn't want to be bothered and so they have this chain of complaint, standard. zelan.ruserver_media
I told the nice lady that I was in the store right then getting ready to buy an Apple. zelan.ruserver_media
Divine intervention may well get me out of Dell hell. But it wasn't from Dell. It was from Mike and Bruce. zelan.ruserver_media
Apple heaven?
: So I just went into a CompUSA to see whether a Powerbook would work with my Verizon Novatel V620 EVDO card. The nice man let me install the helpful ap from EVDOinfo. But when I put the card in, the Mac doesn't recognize it, doesn't ask me to configure it, only lets me power it down. Any help? For the want of a card, heaven is mine, sayeth the Jobs. A nice commenter told me the guys here are experts, so I emailed them as well (imposing to ask for free advice).zelan.ruserver_media
: I just got a most generous dose of help from the folks linked above who run the incredibly helpful (am I gushing?) EVDOinfo. Bottom line: In a week, they should have something that will work better on the lastest OS X. Thanks, guys. zelan.ruserver_media
Dell hell, neverending
: OK, I'm going to the Apple store and putting in my EVDO card and if it works, I'm walking out with a real computer. zelan.ruserver_media
After four days, I still have not heard from the reputed supervisor who Sunday said I'd get a new disk drive but still, after three emails from me, has not followed through to get it to me. The wireless networking is now completely schizo: it thinks it's not working when it is and is working when it's not. And this morning, I woke up to another blue screen of death, a fine way to start the day. zelan.ruserver_media
I just sent this email to Michael George, chief marketing office and vice president for US consumer business:
Mr. George:zelan.ruserver_mediaI also just noticed that Dell has a chief ethics officer. So I forwarded the note to him. zelan.ruserver_mediaSince you are in charge of both marketing and Dell's U.S. operation, I think you would find it instructive to look at your own files to see how I am being handled by your company after having just bought a machine -- my third and last Dell -- that is broken in innumerable ways. zelan.ruserver_media
I am writing about this on my weblog in detail and you are losing customers by the day... including me. I am going to the Apple store in one hour. You may go read what I've written here. But first, I urge you to read what consumers say in the comments there. And before that, again, please read your own customer service email trail first and tell me whether this represents the best of the Dell brand. zelan.ruserver_media
In its first two weeks of use, this machine has so far gotten a new motherboard... cpu... memory... keyboard... wireless networking... and case. The disk drive is so bad it won't even run your diagnostic. The wireless networking still does not work. The machine goes to the blue screen of death frequently. The keyboard is still faulty. zelan.ruserver_media
I paid for both at-home service and complete care but have received neither. Your at-home care is a fraud; your own person has said in writing that the technician would arrive without parts sufficient to fix the machine. Complete care? The machine is clearly a lemon under federal warranty statutes and regulations and you'd be better off just to replace it. If it just burned up -- which it has come close to doing -- you'd send me a new one. But instead, your people put me through service hell. And I am left unable to do my work because I have an unreliable Dell computer. zelan.ruserver_media
The email trail is positively frightening. Your people don't even pay sufficient attention to get my name right. Sunday, a reputed supervisor told me I needed a new disk drive but I cannot get them to reply to three emails to follow through and get me that. zelan.ruserver_media
My readers on my weblog have been very helpful. They have said I was an idiot to buy Dell and its service plan and that I should get an Apple as soon as possible. zelan.ruserver_media
The last straw: Four days without a response from your alleged supervisor about a disk drive and one more blue screen of death today as the machine can't figure out whether its wireless is on or off. zelan.ruserver_media
This machine is a lemon. Your at-home and complete care service is a fraud. Your customer service is appalling. Your product is dreadful. Your brand is mud. zelan.ruserver_media
But at least perhaps you can learn from the experience. zelan.ruserver_media
Sincerely,zelan.ruserver_media
Jeff Jarvis
: And here's a new one: Now the machine doesn't recognize that it has Bluetooth. Somebody shoot this poor animal and put it out of its misery!zelan.ruserver_media
Dell hell, continued: Self-service
: So Dell knows that my hard drive is broken but after two days, I still haven't received a reply to the latest email, in which they said they'd set up a service call to get it replaced, whatever that means. zelan.ruserver_media
I was thinking about this service process, in which Dell and other computer makers make us suffer through service with them. They take some S&M glee in making us wait on hold and talk to their people for hours (costing them money, by the way). zelan.ruserver_media
In what other consumer product or service do we have to have such a role in service?zelan.ruserver_media
When my car breaks, I drop it off and tell them what's wrong and leave. They fix it. They verify it's fixed. They don't make me get into the greasepit with them. zelan.ruserver_media
When my electricity goes fritz at home, I call in the electrician and tell him what's wrong and he fixes it and tests it and I pay him and thank him. I don't have to hang out with him and hand him wirestrippers. zelan.ruserver_media
But with computers, we are expected to suffer through the process; we aren't allowed to say, "Just fix it: The machine you made is broken so fix it and make sure it's fixed."zelan.ruserver_media
Why the hell do we tolerate this?zelan.ruserver_media
Dell hell, still burning
: Now it's my hard drive that is so flawed I can't Ghost it and the diagnostic Dell wants me run on it won't even bother to run. So let's add up the tally: motherboard... CPU.... memory.... wireless network.... battery.... keyboard.... case.... hard drive. What's left? The Dell logo? No, that's broken, too. zelan.ruserver_media
Home service? Complete care? Complete crap. Earlier rants here; follow the links. Went to the Apple store today with my son. If I can prove that my EVDO Verizon card will work (so I can avoid it not working and having to pay a 10 percent restocking fee), I may well follow the light. zelan.ruserver_media
I just got more Dellspeak: "Ms. Kolar," says the Delly, still refusing to pay sufficient attention to get my name right -- or thinking he is being cute to find some way to insult me, "I am a Supervisor at Dell and I am concerned with the problems you are having with your computer and wish to resolve them very soon." Boilerplate babble; seen it in every email. So sincere. "In order to resolve the issue that you are facing, we need to setup a service to replace the hard drive of your system." Notice they're not telling me when they are going to ship me a hard drive or a computer or a refund. No, that will take more hours' of email back and forth with somebody else on the next shift. "Please try and understand that as per Dells policy, we can not provide you with a system exchange. System warranty is there for such failures only." Well, look at the list of everything that has gone wrong with this so-called system. I'd call that failure. But Dell won't... not yet. "After a period of thorough troubleshooting, either over the phone or through email, when a Dell technician determines that it is necessary to replace a defective hardware component." I just gave the guy exactly what he asked for: the results of his diagnostic. But, no, they have to slog me through the mud a little longer. "At that point, a replacement is dispatched or the system is taken into the depot for repairing." And what about the AT-HOME REPAIR I'm paying for? Not mentioned. "And this system is still in a repairable state, so system exchange is not a possibility at the present stage." Repairable? Says who? They've replaced damned near everything you can and it still doesn't work. I don't call that repairable. "While I say this, I don't mean that even if the system is not repaired to your satisfaction, we cannot replace it. We can exchange the system, but only after exploiting all the possible avenues of repairing." Like buying a Mac? Infriggingcredible. zelan.ruserver_media
Dell sucks. Dell lies. Don't buy Dell. Sell Dell. zelan.ruserver_media
Have at me, Apple cultists
: OK, I'm so disgusted with Dell I am thinking of switching to Apple. Mind you, the entire reason I left Apple in the '90s was its very sucky laptops. But Apple has changed, eh? So have at me. Why should I?zelan.ruserver_media
I've also been thinking that someone should start the Lexus of laptop companies: I would pay more if I actually believed that I would get quality, albeit expensive, service, as I did with my trusty RX300.zelan.ruserver_media
: NEXT question: Anybody using a Mac Powerbook and the Verizon EVDO highspeed wireless card?zelan.ruserver_media
Dell still sucks. Dell still lies.
: Well, my Dell hell continues. The machine's networking just goes off on its own; the green connection light goes off and the machine either turns off or does not recognize its networking (while other machines in the room work fine). I even got a new wireless router to make sure there was no problem on that end. Other machines: fine. Dell machine: sucks. zelan.ruserver_media
The machine then freezes and gives me the blue screen of death, which I never once had with my Sony Viao's -- which is what I will buy as soon as I get a refund for this piece of crap. zelan.ruserver_media
The keyboard still does not work. zelan.ruserver_media
And I'm getting email from Dell people who clearly are not paying attention. "Dear Mr. Langley," said one. I corrected them and said the name's Jarvis. The response: "Dear Ms. Kolar."zelan.ruserver_media
It'd be funny if it were SO DAMNED IRRITATING. zelan.ruserver_media
The issue here remains: Dell sold me "at-home service." They sold me a high-end warranty. They sold me "complete care" promising to replace this machine if I lit it on fire... which is very tempting, believe me. zelan.ruserver_media
But they take their sweet fucking time sending me email that doesn't give me the confidence that they even know who they're talking to.zelan.ruserver_media
Well, the machine they made is is a DAMNED LEMON and under federal warranty law, they are warned. zelan.ruserver_media
And their warranty is a fraud. I'm not getting my machine fixed. I am not getting at-home service. I am not getting complete care. zelan.ruserver_media
Is anybody at Dell listening? I know you are. What do you have to say, Dell?zelan.ruserver_media
: While you're at it, Dell, go here and and here and here and read the comments and see how y our customers hate you. (And that extra space in "your" is because of your broken keyboard, by the way.)zelan.ruserver_media
: A snarker in the comments says, "Buyer beware."zelan.ruserver_media
No, we are in the new era of "Seller beware." Now when you screw your customers, your customers can fight back and publish and organize. I just sent this link to Dell's media relations department and told them to read the comments and see what their real public relations look like. zelan.ruserver_media
: Oh, and by the way, the ONLY reason I bought this Dell was because of the alleged at-home service. The machine is not as well-designed as a Viao. It is heavier. There are cheaper machines out there. But now that I'm self-employed (that is, without the blessed in-house PC support department,) I decided to buy a machine from a company that offered me at-home service and a complete care guarantee. And I decided to pay extra for it. zelan.ruserver_media
That is the heart of the issue here. That is the essence of the fraud. zelan.ruserver_media
Dell sucks. Dell lies. Continued and continued and...
: I just got my Dell back. They replaced the system board, the CPU, the memory, the palmrest assembly, the keyboard, and the wireless NIC. zelan.ruserver_media
Within a half hour, it's proving not to work. The heat, according to an ap my son found, is up to 154 degrees. The machine is overheating. The fan is on high. And the CPU is running at 100 percent. Dell sucks. Dell lies. zelan.ruserver_media
Dell makes lemons. No lemonade. zelan.ruserver_media
Dell sucks. zelan.ruserver_media
Dell hell, continued
: As I sent my machine to Dell in the Airborne ambulance, I took the hard drive out at Dell's demand (what if it's the hard drive or the registry that's broken? they will make me spend hours on the phone to diagnose that, said the man). I put it in my son's Dell, which is exactly the same: an Inspiron 600m. Ah, but I saw that it was not exactly the same, not at all: When the machine started up, my laptop's brain in my son's laptop's body started recognizing no end of new and strange hardware. And that's to say that there is no consistency at all in the Dell product. Tom Friedman wrote about that, admiringly, in his World is Flat book: In their just-in-time gusto, they grab a part from this supplier or that supplier and slap them in there. And so there is no consistency to the product: The 600m I bought and was satisifed with two months ago is not one bit like the 600m I bought next. It's as if I went to Burger King and they substituted pork for beef because it was cheaper today. zelan.ruserver_media
But you know what, that's Dell's problem, really: All I should care about is having a computer that works. How it works and how it's made is their problem if I have a warranty, right?zelan.ruserver_media
But that's what bothers me most: I bought that warranty, the top-of-the-line, most expensive warranty that warrants to send someone to my home to repair my machine.zelan.ruserver_media
Except that's a big fat Dell lie. The person they would send to my home would not have the parts (or, according to some of my commenters, the expertise, training, and intelligence) to repair that machine. zelan.ruserver_media
Smells like fraud to me.zelan.ruserver_media
Smells like a class-action suit to some of my commenters and emailers. zelan.ruserver_media
Calling Mr. Spitzer. Calling Mr. Spitzer. zelan.ruserver_media
Dell lies. Dell sucks. zelan.ruserver_media
Dell lies. Dell sucks
: I just got a new Dell laptop and paid a fortune for the four-year, in-home service. zelan.ruserver_media
The machine is a lemon and the service is a lie. zelan.ruserver_media
I'm having all kinds of trouble with the hardware: overheats, network doesn't work, maxes out on CPU usage. It's a lemon. zelan.ruserver_media
But what really irks me is that they say if they sent someone to my home -- which I paid for -- he wouldn't have the parts, so I might as well just send the machine in and lose it for 7-10 days -- plus the time going through this crap. So I have this new machine and paid for them to FUCKING FIX IT IN MY HOUSE and they don't and I lose it for two weeks. zelan.ruserver_media
DELL SUCKS. DELL LIES. Put that in your Google and smoke it, Dell. zelan.ruserver_media