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Generally, I’m a very happy Bank of America customer. Sure there have been a few snags here and there over my 15 year customer relationship with the bank. I’ll give them the benefit of doubt on those because the circumstances were beyond what I would consider normal daily operations.
Today’s snafu is a little different. It’s one that could have been avoided. I’m sure Bank of America doesn’t care because I was able to resolve the issue on my own. Still, Bank of America’s lack of forethought or a proactive approach wasted my time. That ticks me off.
So what was the situation? Bank of America sent me a new credit card for my home equity line they acquired in the Countrywide deal. Cool! I don’t like the checks on the HELOC and a credit card is more convenient in handling the transactions i use the HELOC for. Kudos to Bank of America. So I call in to activate it. This is where the customer experience starts to go downhill…
First, the audio greeting is way to long and you MUST listen to it in two languages. Sorry there is no quick key to move forward in the process. Did I mention this message was long? I was surprised I was still awake when the Spanish version finished playing. And then I had to punch a key to state what language I wanted to continue in. Grrrrrr.
How Bank of America can fix this. Simple: Great the customer and ask what language to continue in. Then give them the long speech.
Next, they asked me to enter in a lot of information. I’m nowhere near my files and I don’t have my computer in front of me, so I can’t access the information they are asking for easily. Yet, they give you an option to continue and enter in more information that you may or may not have. Again you can move forward. Then they say sorry, we can’t activate the card. Please call this number – and then they state the number in triple speed. Huh? What just happened here.
How can Bank of America fix this? There are two ways. First, In the documentation that they send with the card, you know all the fine print that you need a magnifying glass to read, they could put an insert that states what information you will need to activate your card. Heck they could even print it right underneath where they glue the card, “You will need the following information to activate this card: [list of info].” Second, they could put it in the information script when you call in. If I had known what information I would need, I would have gathered it or I would have hung up before wasting my time on the first call.
All in all, a transaction that should have taken 10 minutes took closer to 40. I’d like that half hour back.
The point of both of these stories is this… As customers we will gladly use your websites and call systems. If they are well designed, we like them and they save both of us time and money. However, if these systems become an impediment to us completing the task at hand, then we start to get annoyed. Annoyed customers may start to rethink their choices of using you as the provider for their products and services.
Thank you for listening to my rant. I feel better now. I still want my half hour back, although it’s more like an hour by now. In addition, now I’m wondering why the mail Bank of America sends me is not bilingual as well.
About a year ago, I found this odd, square shaped book on sale titled “The Back of the Napkin” by Dan Roam. I devoured this book. I mean I devoured it. For those that know me, they know “devoured” in this case means that Mark read the book in one day, most likely in one sitting. That’s true – except I read it twice in the same day. If you’ve visited my LinkedIn profile, you also know that I recommend this book.
I’m going to say this once. Reading the book does not do Dan Roam’s work justice. You may say, “OK – it’s a visual design book. That’s what I read Edward R. Tufte for.” You are correct – that is what I read Tufte for as well. In order to maximize the message from Dan Roam’s book, you must see him speak. Here are two opportunities for you to do so (for FREE).
Dan’s first presentation “The Back of the Napkin” is available at The Commonwealth Club of California’s site. The recording of this presentation does not show the whiteboard as it is used during the talk. For that reason, I recommend you read the book prior to viewing this presentation.
Microsoft invited him to speak at Mix09 and they recorded his presentation with the whiteboard. Dan’s second and evolved presentation, “The Way of the Whiteboard: Persuading with Pictures” may be found here…
Side note: If you like this approach to communicating, then you may choose to invest in a LiveScribe pen (www.livescribe.com). While I wish the pen supported multiple inks (or my preferred gel ink), it’s great for capturing digital ink. I like it much better than a Tablet PC as it fits my normal workflow by allowing me to use tools that I have used for years – a journal and a pen.
