@phs3 Nah. You were being unnecessarily hostile to people who had to ask that or lose their low income job. Absolutely jerkish. And there is zero chance that after talking to many hundreds of people that your retort was anything close to original.
Back when software came in a box with lots of documentation and other bits of paper, one of the bits was a Customer Feedback Card. I worked for a large software developer with a very popular and expensive product, and I was curious about the process for dealing with the cards that folks bothered to fill out and return. I went to the product manager and he pulled open the large bottom drawer of his desk and there they were, thousands of cards.
I was horrified - why wasn’t someone entering all that valuable feedback into a database somewhere? The product manager told me that he read every single one and couldn’t think of a better way to really understand what they said. As I thought about it I realized he was probably correct, his brain could extract the important gist in a way that no statistical analysis ever could.
I only fill them out if I get paid for my time in some way. But at least some get read. I got to a bakery which has a link to a survey on some of the receipts. If you fill it out you get two small cakes for the price of one. The woman behind the counter is very nice, so we give her five out of fives on everything, and somehow it gets back to her. At this point she saves a stack of receipts customers don’t take, cuts off the credit card info, and gives us the survey part. We get affordable desserts and she gets well deserved recognition. The last time I went there I dealt with another cashier - my friend ran out of the back of the store to make sure I had a survey.
On the other hand I have home health test equipment which was garbage, so much so I gave up and now go to the lab for my tests. I get surveys from them. I give 1 out of 5 with ample documentation on how their stuff is a piece of crap. I said they can contact me. Anything? Of course not.
I went to this chain Chinese place and the manager gave me a code for a free appetizer if I filled out a survey first which I could use immediately. It seemed weird to me until the place closed down a month later. Clearly she knew and didn’t care anymore.
I know it’s annoying and I know Dopers are probably already highly annoyed with having to pay using a machine at their table but please, PLEASE when dining out and paying using a machine at the table PLEASE do the survery and PLEASE give your server 5 stars across the board. Unless they specifically really pissed you off then give them a lower score. Don’t give a lower score if the bathroom was dirty or the food was bad. Leave a comment with your gripes but GIVE THEM ALL FIVES.
My friend was a server for years at Red Robin and those scores were used against her (lower scores = fewer shifts, fewer tables). Your server is just there doing their best, often shielding you from abysmal corporate practices when it comes to food suppliers, prices, staffing. They did their part, they put on a show, you don’t have to refill your own drink or get your own dinner. Please return the favor of protecting them from abysmal corporate practices and give them all 5s.
See @Briny_Deep ‘s link. All 5s for everyone.
I just had to do a phone survey yesterday after a customer service interaction…
One question: “If you owned a company and were looking to hire a customer service representative, based solely on your interaction today, would you hire this person?'“
Short and to the point.
In general, no. I think it’s a courtesy to fill in a customer service and not a duty. The only place I feel sort of bound to do it is on Ebay where they specifically request you do it and it’s part of the website’s culture. And even there, I leave only the most minimal comments, as elsewhere when I fill them out.
In general, I find these annoying, one of the many little things that take up your time and take it away from doing things that have real significance to your life.
The sooner we all Just Say No to surveys, the sooner management will ove on to a new BS fad.
I’ve gotten a couple of watch log survey letters from Nielsen, they include $2 in cash as an incentive.
It will take more than $2 to get me to fill out a survey. I suppose I value my time more than most people do.
Honestly, I don’t value your time all that much, which is why I keep sending you surveys!
Does not answering or mis-answering irrelevant questions on an intake form for an appointment at a clinic (or refusing to provide the SS# of my spouse, the “emergency contact”), make me a bad person?
I’m over 70. There’s not a company in the U.S. (assisted living facilities and AM talk radio excepted) that considers me their target audience, or actually gives a damn what I think about them.
This thread has given me a new idea: fill out surveys in random gibberish with phone numbers to other establishments…
Example: “Please rate your customer service today from 1 to 10:”
My response: “I found snails performing matrix cross multiplication by sunset at Long Beach Island incorrectly applying Warp Core coefficients to their end result. Everyone this side of Skokie, ID knows that -3i + 2.866j - 3.934k is not runcible. I burning your dog, but only for 20 minutes 8n the 1960s.” My phone number: (800) 867-5309.
Yeah, come on guys!! Feedback anarchy! Woooo!!
Tripler
Rebel without a cause, but with a graphing calculator.
I’m over 70 also, and many medical facilities consider me to be their target audience.
And I wouldn’t surprised to see a survey next to me in my casket.
I filled out the survey from my dealership after I took my car in for routine maintenance.
- They said I needed something replaced in the steering column, would be under warranty (car is less than a year old)
- They didn’t have the part in the shop so they would call me when it arrived.
- No call for three weeks.
- I call them. Apparently my service advisor has left and never ordered the part. Made appointment for a week hence.
- Took my car in. Their courtesy shuttle was not available, had to uber home.
- Five hours later I get a call. They had the wrong part (I suspect they had again neglected to order the part) and would need to keep the car overnight because the right part wouldn’t be in until the next morning.
- Called the next morning (Saturday) at 11am to see if they had the part otherwise I wanted to get the car back.
- They said they had the part but the technician called in sick. Car would be ready at 4pm, their closing time.
- No courtesy shuttle on Saturdays.
- My wife drops me off at 2:30 because she’s going somewhere else. I wait until 4pm in the lounge. The service advisor tells me twice that my car is almost ready. At 4pm, the service department is dark and all offices are locked.
- I go to the sales area and start raising hell. Nothing they can do. They can’t get into the service area.
- Get the car on Monday.
- Oh yes, each time I call them the hold time is several minutes and I got disconnected twice.
Get a survey. Give them the lowest possible rating.
I’ve received two angry texts since then from the Service Manager saying I’m endangering his job and being a drama queen.
It seems to me his job deserves to be endangered.
At least it demonstrates that someone is reading those surveys…
Apparently negative results are sent down from Honda USA (or whatever) to the dealership within hours for “immediate action”
Has the effect of making the survey anything but anonymous.
That gives them the perfect opportunity to make things right, but instead, they berate you for giving them a bad rating. Another strike against the Honda Corporation of America.