A Better Answer Blog

Today, we have the second story in our series “Customer Service Horror Stories.” We’ve all had bad customer service experiences, but sometimes they can feel far more like a horror story than just a mundane experience.

The Mundane Robot Takeover

Today was like any other day. The sun was out, and Steve was leaving a review for his newest phone case online. No sooner did Steve hit enter that a response was posted. “Thank you so much for the time and effort in reviewing our product. It is much appreciated and so is your business.” Steve looked and every review had that response, good or bad. Odd.

Steve went on with his day, finally heading out for lunch, and as he walked into his favorite sandwich place, he looked around. The usuals weren’t there. Instead, he saw a robot behind the counter. Steve would normally find this odd, but not today.

As Steve stood in line, he saw the robot take order after order, always suggesting the same ham and cheese sandwich. It seemed unable to take any other order, no tuna clubs, no turkey avocado subs, and when someone asked for a peanut butter and jelly sandwich he thought he saw a spark fly out of the robot’s neck.

Steve saw there was no way he was going to get his order, so he decided to leave and try the store next door. Same story. Same with the next store, and the next, and the next. Every place Steve went were robots, and every one could only give a handful of responses.

Steve’s eye started twitching. No matter where he went, he couldn’t get a conversation started with any of the robots. He couldn’t customize an order, he could only get a handful of emotionless and canned responses from anyone.

As Steve wandered, he started seeing less and less people, and more robots. Soon everyone he talked to gave him cold, unfeeling answers about the weather, asked him about his uncle from his father’s side and the latest dollar menu items.

Steve could feel his palms sweat, and both eyes were now twitching. All around him the same questions, and the same answers. Who can withstand that kind of torture?

How to Avoid This Horror Story: Avoid Canned Responses

Steve’s brush with robotic automation is a great example of what can happen when you rely too heavily on scripts and canned responses. They can drive your customers a bit nuts. It’s important to be able to adapt to your customers needs. With the rise of automated chat services remember that human touch still matters. Focus on training your customer service representatives on the common topics they will need to cover, but teach them how to respond and improvise while being true to your product or service.

Want to avoid horror stories like this one? Contact us today for a quote, or click the box below. Stay tuned for more tales of customer service woes to avoid...