20 minute hold time -vs- 30 minute hold time

[Peppergirl]

Peppergirl - I'll bet $100 the customer didn't answer their phone when you finally called to confirm the changes after all that.

Even better...I made him sit on hold. He wanted me to call him back but I refused on the basis it was too busy to make an outbound call.

Sorta true - but if he hadnt been such an entitled jackass, I would have.

A little karmic payback.

[auntiem]

Wait, you mean you don't have a magic line that automatically connects you to the person you need to talk to?

Way back in the day (like 15 yrs ago), some airlines had agent only lines or you could call your sales rep directly if it was an emergency. But these were staffed during the day and not at night if I recall - and even those had hold times during wacky weather.
Peppergirl - I'll bet $100 the customer didn't answer their phone when you finally called to confirm the changes after all that.

[MoonCat]

Wait, you mean you don't have a magic line that automatically connects you to the person you need to talk to?

I used to get these at work when the lines in circulation would be busy for whatever reason. "Can't you connect me?" The number I dial to transfer people connects them to the same phone system they can dial from outside. There's no way to bypass it.

[Daemonmonkey]

had the suctomer waited the 20 min he would have had a much better deal.

[Peppergirl]

Background: Emergency travel call center. I'm currently working 3rd shift by myself and there are normally 2 people.

For added fun, most of you have heard about the weather that is traveling across the US. Yeah - great time to be short-staffed.

/end background.



Right now, I'm sitting on hold with an airline and the current hold time is 35 minutes. The customer's flight was cancelled for tomorrow due to the storm and I'm holding to see when they can reschedule him.

The kicker? The customer had already called the airline directly (after he heard about the cancellation) and hung up when he heard the hold time was 20 minutes.

So he called the travel agency (which rolled to me due to the hour) and wants me to do something about it. I advised that I'd have to call the airline just like everyone else, and the call time is currently 35 minutes.

Moral of the story: He likely could have already been helped (with a shorter hold time) if he had just been patient and not been such a freakin' narcissist.

Asshole. Serves him right.

Bonus suck: While I sit on hold with this airline and this crybaby, I currently have 6 calls on hold, waiting for help. Can't do anything about it though - so they'll sit there till I get finished, or until they give up and hang up.

I love my job.

Bonus suck x 2: I finally got through to the airline and got disconnected. Now I get to redial and start the process over again.