We've found that by taking a little time, we can step a customer through
the ATI gathering procedure using hyperterminal. We then have them read
each ATI response to us character by character. In some cases, we have
sent techs over to people's homes. If the customer isn't will to work
with you to find the problem, then it's their fault they can't get
online and there's nothing you can do (and I'd tell them so).
>
> Yes, I have. We are at the point now though, where we knowwhat needs to
> be done from here. Also, most customers are not willing to do what
> Livingston asks to solve thier modem problems. They would just assume
> cancel adn go with another service since we are in a highly competitive
> area...
I know--it's not easy to get people to help you get traces for Lucent.
For that reason, we started selling LT winmodems to users who couldn't
connect. We bought the LTs at around $30, and sold them to the customer
at cost. We then would take their in modem on trade, put it in one of
our machines, and do whatever Lucent asked. Most people, when they saw
that the LT worked perfectly, realized that their modem was a piece of
junk. Once Lucent fixed the problem, we would then re-sell the modem.
Heck, for $30, you could even give them the LT for free with the
trade-in of their modem. Sure, you'd end up $30 in the hole at first,
but at least you wouldn't lose a customer, and the $30 would be made up
in a couple of months time. Another option would be to give them an LT
to use while you took their modem to get traces for Lucent. Then, when
their modem is working right, trade them back. There are a lot of
things you can do to keep customers happy in these kinds of situations,
and most of them will appreciate the effort you've gone through. The
important thing though, is that Lucent needs traces in order to get
problems fixed. If nobody is willing to do the traces, the problems may
never get fixed.
Craig
Xpressweb Internet Services
bairdc@xpressweb.com
http://www.xpressweb.com
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