Outsourcing customer service abroad to Asia, Egypt, etc.

A

Amethyst1

New Member
Location
USA
Well, I am not pleased when I call an American company (travel agencies, bank, etc.)
to get my call answered in the Philipines or India or somewhere. I understand that
their wages are lower so that the business saves money.

Their accents are thick and unclear. (To me)
They talk much too fast. I have no idea what they are saying sometimes.
The "supervisor" is often no better. Diction is poor.
They repeat themselves constantly like a robot then apologize.
They want to help but it is frustrating.

What do you think? Would you pay extra to speak to someone
with excellent communication skills?
 

Those companies would simply charge more and still use the call centers staffed with people we can't understand and who speak from a script from which they aren't allowed to vary. They will sympathize only as far as the script allows. Actual help? Not usually. It's all about the almighty dollar, and the bigger the profit, the more they pay their execs and shareholders. It's not as though the low-level American employees or the customers would benefit. It's why the gap between the haves and the have-nots keeps widening.
 
The almighty dollar wins. Even if we all got together and screamed, it wouldn't help. In today's world it takes money to do anything about anything. And if someone has that kind of money, they are not concerned with our discomfort.:aargh:
 

Before purchasing any large expensive items,look up the name/phone number for customer service of that item,THAT will tell you who you are going to be talking to about follow up service.
 
Davey Jones said:
Before purchasing any large expensive items,look up the name/phone number for customer service of that item,THAT will tell you who you are going to be talking to about follow up service.
Click to expand...

The outsourcing has been going on so long now, to Asia and other foreign countries, I would be shocked to have an American answer the call.:D
 
Oh I can't stand it. It is one thing to have an accent but trying to resolve an issue on top of trying to translate what the other person is saying is frustrating. I think one of the prerequisites of call center employees should be to speak clearly whatever language it is they will be using or servicing. It is the same thing if you try Live Chat - you get the same robotic answers that lead nowhere. If a company has that kind of customer service I won't use their services if I can help it.
 
11923016.jpg
 
its a changing world, learn another language perhaps, never too late, and the latest studies show study of another language greatly slows or stops cognitive skill degeneration.
 
Outsourcing has been a problem for DECADES yet many didn't complain because they had some where else to go or simply bought the corporate bullcrap that this IS how business is conducted. Subcontracting is another form of outsourcing. How many times have you bought something from a major store but a contractor delivers and/or installs it? How many actually pay to check the country of manufacture when they buy anything? There a dummies out there that think if they are buying a product from a US company yet manufactured elsewhere is supporting the US economy?

Right now my biggest problem with outsourcing to third world countries is tech support where the customer service are only as helpful and the scripts and procedures they are given. I know the source/cause of most cable tv, phone and internet problems yet I have to listen to a tech from Brazil or Russia put me through a bunch of useless procedures and tests then threaten me with a billable service call.
 
I get annoyed, too, but its hardly the people from the overseas call services fault. I do the same as Kaya... politely ask to speak to someone else...because, its true, its not THEIR fault. We need to put the blame on who actually runs the country: Corporations. (as it is in most 'first world' countries)
This game we play in the states between Republicans and Democrats is set up to keep us busy being on the self-righteously correct 'side.' It keeps us divided so that that gap between the rich and poor will continue to widen.
However, I still have faith that more and more people are waking up and seeing what is happening and that things will eventually turn for the better... in the meantime, I'm not sure what we will have to go through.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ina
Bettyany, I sees your point about both political side throwing shadows at us to cover up what they don't want us to see. So I quit following either side, and try to look past the shadows and smoke screens. But I still feel manipulated. :magnify:
 
I had used my credit union's Visa card for years till last winter when I had a problem with an unauthorized charge, & found that customer svc had been outsourced to ????. No help there. Finally went to the cr. un. & kicked up a fuss till they fixed it right there. Then found out that my AAAvisa & Disc card both had their cust svc in US still, so I'm using either of those now, & the cr un can go to H.
 
I've only ever had to ring about my internet connection and I've always had pleasant young men with an Indian accents who have patiently led me through the steps I need to take to fix my problem.

I never ring my bank but because it is really a credit union I don't suppose they are big enough to outsource customer service. I'd be more likely to drop in to their storefront anyway.
 
Some UK companies are bringing their call centres back to UK....
my bank is based in Yorkshire; I can usually cope with the accent!
 
I had to contact the makers of my computer about a problem I had and he was Asian that I spoke to, he was very patient with me, spoke slowly so I could understand him and in the long run saved me money.:)

Try speaking to someone with a strong Scottish or strong Irish accent and see how you manage and that is in the U.K.
 
Or Yorkshire/ Geordie. Another accent that defeated me when I first heard it was Northern Ireland.
I tried Pardon? twice then let it go hoping that the next sentence might be intelligible to my ear.
 
Concurrent with all the problems of foreign-based customer service is the trend in writing of outsourcing articles, books, copywriting etc. to these same places.

The result is written material that often jars readers to a halt because of oddly-constructed grammar and punctuation, their failure at using Americanisms and the dead-giveaways of their cute little graphics - whenever you see these big-eyed caricature mascots you can be pretty sure that you're dealing in foreign goods, because it seems to almost be a law that they use the same ones over and over.
 
This offshore thing is a real pain point for me. It's almost un-American! Companys don't have to pay benefits or regular wages, yet still reap the rewards of high priced product. They should pay higher taxes. We need those jobs here! :mad:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top