I spend a good majority of my day explaining boundaries to my customers. The vast majority of those that call in for web hosting support, have no idea that there is a difference between building a website, hosting a website and sending an email. Because of this, I get asked a lot of questions that I should have learned to expect by now, but still astonish me. When a customer asks me to make some new installation of a third party e-commerce solution look like the rest of their site, I should learn to not only say “That is not within our realm of support”, but also educate them as to why their question is a farce.
When I first started building websites, over 10 years ago, the internet was not the place it is now. Back then, in order to build a decent website I copied someone else’s website, learned what they did to make it cool and would then deposit some of those elements into my own. Before too long I would end up with a tapestry of patchwork and cross stitching that I could call mine. This forced me to always learn more, evolve my design style, and mature in graphical development. 10 years later, and I am still learning, but I am also now teaching.
Fast forwarding to 2006: Everyone wants a website, and wants it NOW! People do not want to learn how to create. Today’s internet market is composed of consumers, not customers. These people expect to have exactly what they need ready to go, as if we were some sort of psychic fast food chain with their anticipated meals being warmed under a heat lamp. There are two problems with this. The first problem is that nothing is ever exactly what is needed. There is always going to be a missing tomato, or too many onions. The second problem is that even if you do get a product close to what you ordered, it doesn’t change the quality of said product, or the fact that you only spent $3.95 and had it handed to you through the drive through window.
How does one offer this type of education to a customer while sounding sincere and empathetic? I am not sure there is a way, so for now I guess the best way is to simply add the phrase “Please contact the developer of this product for any additional support and configuration”.
How far are we going to digress in the name of convenience?
I hate cars. I am tired of paying every month for a car that is aging its way towards obsoleteness. And then I have to pay for insurance. Someone please tell me what this is about; I am forced to pay some bloated company my hard earned money every month just in case something happens to my car. And then when something does happen, I not only get to pay a deductible, but then also higher insurance rates. To top it all off if something happens to my car that I can’t file as an insurance claim, I have the privilege of paying some mechanic an ungodly amount of money to tell me what is wrong, and then an unholy amount to fix it.
I hate mechanics. I think the bit Dane Cook talks about auto mechanics sums it up perfectly.
“It’s that same vibe that you get with any auto mechanic you’ve ever dealt with. Even though you’re listening and nodding, in your head you’re like “this guy is f*ckin’ me big time”. You just believe whatever they say:
Mechanic: “Yeah we had to replace the roof on your car, it was starting to peel back. It resented the rest of the car, so we replaced that. Also, there was a tiny unicorn in your exhaust and he was jumping and poking holes in your exhaust, and he was sh*tting in your filters as well. So we had to get that out of there.”
Dane: “Wow, thank you very much. I did not know that there was a tiny mythological animal jumping around in there… that’s very dangerous. Sh*tting in filters, no way. Especially with a road trip coming up, that’s very dangerous. That little son of a b. How much is that? Seven thousand? I was going to suggest, I’d like to pay seven thousand’ish, I’d love to pay for that. Thank you for not f*ckin’ me big time!”
-Dane Cook
I pick my car up from the mechanic tomorrow. I admit that it was my fault. I should have been paying more attention to the road. I am glad my car handled as well as it did. If it didn’t I would have not only skid all over the road, but have hit a couple of cars a long the way. I am lucky (actually I thank God he spared me from an accident) that no damage came to my car other than the damage of skidding 100 feet, and that I am still alive. A couple bald spots on my tire, a little out of alignment, but all in all, no worse for the ware. $235 later and my car is back in business.
So I got lucky this time. Keep an eye out on those tiny unicorns, they’ll get ya every time.
It’s been kind of a rough month for me. I have been going through a lot of personal issues that have absorbed most of my time. Because I am a glutton for punishment I have also quit smoking. This is not the first time I have quit, but with God’s help it will certainly be the last.
I have noticed an increase in my agitation towards everything and everyone. Mainly my frustration has been coming from my customer’s at work. I have been in the customer service industry for quite some time, but the last 3 weeks have been hellish. I have had no compassion or patience lately. I hate thinking that this is a result from my quitting smoking, but I believe this to be true.
Have I really become so dependent on nicotine that I need it in order to function properly? I think so. Since I am being so cynical I would like to point out a recent observation. This may make me feel a little better, or much worse. Either way, I almost care.
If you are going to pay someone for a product or service, it is best to understand the product or service you are purchasing. When you buy a car from the car dealership you spend thousands of dollars, yet you should never expect them to teach you how to drive. It is assumed by the Car dealership before you purchase a car that you know how to drive (They also make sure you have a drivers license, which is a good idea – more on that real soon). Buying web hosting is the same. We will help you as much as we can, however we will not help you build a website. It is assumed by us that when you purchase web hosting that you already know what domains, email addresses and FTP Clients are. Maybe we should also check for web design licenses before we allow customers to sign up.
I need some sleep. When I get home tonight I am going to fall asleep while watching Mythbusters. If I am lucky it will include a myth that involves blowing something up and causing a huge fire in the sky.