I've heard a lot of horror stories about Comcast -- terrible customer service, too expensive, half-assed installations that sometimes end up destroying walls -- but when I moved this past weekend into a new apartment in Boston, I had to say goodbye to RCN and sign up with Comcast.
I try to keep an open mind, so I was willing to let the bad stories I'd heard recede, and look at my Comcast experience with out prejudging. Some of the experience was bad, some was good. Overall, for Comcast, this can serve as a case study in how they could improve their sign up process.
1. Signing up online
The first thing I did was visit the Comcast website and try to put together the package I wanted. We needed cable and internet, but no phone, and they did have a bundle for those two things. But they only had ONE bundle -- oddly enough, with the most basic cable offering they have, which excluded a few too many channels for my liking. When I tried to build my own bundle with the next level of cable, any bundle savings were erased, and there was no option to upgrade the basic bundle. Here I was, a customer wanting to spend MORE than the basic bundle offered, but the online system offered no way to do this. I gave up.
Verdict: FAIL
How to fix it: System should genuinely show all options, and make it easier to customize your package.
2. Signing up by phone automated prompts
Defeated by their website, I decided to just call to set it up. The very first thing that comes up in their automated prompt is "Enter the phone number where you would like service." This is a problem on many levels. First, Comcast offers phone service, so you could conceivably NOT have a phone number yet for the place you want to have it installed. Second, and here's what applies in my case, I am a cell-only person and do not have or want a landline. So the place where I want service has no phone number. Hoping to get to a prompt that makes more sense, I hit #. It asks me for my number again, and I hit # again hoping I'll get an operator or something. Instead it reads me back the phone number of the line I am calling on, assuming it is where I want service. Since I am calling from a landline at work, this is definitely not the number I want, so I hit a series of other buttons hoping to get out of installing cable at my workplace. Eventually, I somehow get a live person.
Verdict: FAIL
How to fix it: I suspect this may be the case, but a simple change in language could go the distance -- "Enter the phone number you would like to use for your contact information. If you are ordering phone service as part of your package, press *." This addresses both problem scenarios -- you don't have a landline, or you are adding a new landline.
3. Signing up by phone with a representative
Once I finally got a representative, which didn't take very long (no 30 minute wait for me), the process actually went quite smoothly. The man was helpful, understood exactly what I was asking for, explained the pricing and the promotional period, set up installation, it was a breeze. The only thing I realized after the call was that he had never taken my email address, which would've been nice so I could've gotten some email confirmation. But, not a big deal.
Verdict: SUCCESS
4. Installation
The installation was supposed to happen between 11am-1pm, and just as scheduled they showed up just after 11am, even though there was a huge snowstorm. They installed everything quickly, and were very nice -- they even took my roommate's old cable box with them to save him the return hassle.
Verdict: SUCCESS
5. Setting up internet
The one thing I had to set up on my own was the internet. They brought the modem but I had to activate it. Which would've been a breeze, except the first thing the system asks for is your account number. Since I had never been asked for my email address, I had no email record with that information. I looked through the documents the installers brought, and nothing had any personalized information -- no account number there either. I had never been given my account number! And the prompts offered no "don't have your account number?" prompt like many online services offer for people in my shoes. I had to call to get it, and this time I did have to wait about 10+ minutes on the phone to get a representative. Fortunately they gave me my number quickly, and then I was able to complete the setup.
Verdict: MIXED
How to fix it: Installation should come with some sort of confirmation sheet or other personalized document including your account number. But ideally, the internet activation should offer a "don't have your account number?" link that lets you enter in other information (SSN, phone number, address, etc.).
6. Ordering TiVo service on the website
Once I got everything set up, I tried to hook up my old TiVo box and realized that my new fancy HD setup did not work with my old school TiVo -- and the TiVo couldn't even communicate with the cable box to change channels, making it useless completely. I had seen billboards around town advertising that Comcast had partnered with TiVo to offer that service. Since I hate typical cable DVRs, I thought this would be a great alternative. I go online to the Comcast TiVo site, and it asks me for my zip code to check availability. Success! It is available locally (which makes sense, given the billboards). Now it's redirecting me to the order page, and... "This package or service is no longer available." What? In fact I can't find anything on the site to actually order the service. Which I know they are offering.
Verdict: FAIL
How to fix it: See #1. Don't tell me you have a service and then don't let me sign up for it. Get your system up to date, Comcast! Furthermore, include pricing information up front -- the page for TiVo did not include this.
7. Ordering TiVo via live chat
Just to try one more avenue of communication, I decide to use the live chat function rather than waiting on hold for a phone representative. No one is immediately available on the chat, but it does tell me what number I am in the queue, which is nice. It takes about 5-10 minutes for someone to show up, but since I am online I am able to do other things so I don't mind the wait. The representative is very helpful, answers my questions quickly, and I am surprised to learn that to get TiVo HD I do not need to buy a box or even pay an expensive initial setup fee, and the monthly fee is actually less than I was paying on my old TiVo. A pleasant surprise. The installation is set up quickly, and I'm done.
Verdict: SUCCESS
Overall, I was impressed by the actual human interactions -- people were friendly, and although not every phone call/live chat was answered immediately, the waits weren't too terrible. As for the website, it proved almost completely useless. It did not show all the options available, and in the case of TiVo, didn't even show the service at all. Even worse was the automated phone system, which started of on such a wrong footing that I got worried I was going to accidentally set up something at the complete wrong location.
Now I am not someone who hates using websites and automated phone systems to complete transactions -- in fact I prefer it greatly. If I can set something up without having to talk to someone, I am happy, as it saves me time and I can do it whenever I want. And, as far as I know, it greatly reduces the cost to the company. One client I worked with once mentioned that it cost them $14 per call due to the costs of maintaining that system and paying for call representatives. It would be to Comcast's extreme benefit to improve their system. And considering they are a company offering internet service, it speaks quite poorly of them that they cannot even offer a successful online interface.
Now let's just see how billing goes...
No comments:
Post a Comment