Ron Burley, the man behind “Unscrewed: The Consumers� Guide to Getting What You Paid For,” has published two articles on how to effectively deal with customer service reps. On the Do Not Want side, you shouldn’t threaten legal action, because it will likely shut down any further communication as the company goes into automatic CYA mode. (You don’t want to tip your hand about any legal action anyway.) What you should say is “Thank you,” because being nice might help you stand out among the parade of complainers.
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Get Your Complaint Solved: Quick Beats Nice
By 10.11.07
Some of the tactics we recommend to consumers battling large and/or indifferent business are faster rather than nicer, and with good reason.
The Ultimate Consumerist Guide To Fighting Back
By 10.8.07
If you have a legitimate grievance with a company that they’re not helping you solve, here are 15 hand-picked articles of ours that will be your blueprint to kicking ass. They’re arranged in 3 escalating tiers, depending on how far you want-to/have-to take it. If you’re ready to stop getting mad and start getting results, check out the posts inside…
How To Never Ever Get In Trouble For Recording Calls With Customer Service
By 8.27.07
Me: [Laugh] Thanks. Anyway, here’s what’s going on with me today…
Get What You Paid For
By 8.24.07
Consumer advocate Ron Burley describes the reasons the state of customer service is in such disrepair, and the basic gist on how consumers can get what they paid for when things go wrong.
Can You Do Simple Math? Good, Then You'll Soon Realize Why You Need To Resolve My Complaint…
By 8.23.07
I’m continuing to read Unscrewed, and in this paragraph, author Ron Burley distills the basic premise behind forcing companies that have wronged you to give you what is due:
…one simple principle I have discovered that was extraordinarily effective in getting a fair resolution to a consumer problem: companies will act only in a manner that will benefit the bottom line. In other words, to get what you deserve, you must convince your opponent that helping you will be to his or her advantage.
Do the right thing? Corporate citizenship? Ethics? Plain ol’ fairnes? These words and phrases mean little to many big companies for whom churn, the rate at which customers leave and take business elsewhere, is a basic part of their business model. But they do understand the simple equation of incurring the least costs. Make the company realize that it will cost more to ignore you than to help you and soon you may find the tables turning in your favor.
Company Ignoring You? Fax 'Em To Death
By 8.21.07
Giant corporation ignoring your repeated and valid pleas? After exhausting traditional methods of complaint resolution, including, but not limited to, at least calling at least once and escalating to a supervisor, try “Faxing For Dollars,” another get-em-by-the-balls technique described by Ron Burley in his book, Unscrewed: The Consumer’s Guide To Getting What You Paid For.
