How To Communicate with Your Telco
9 Jan 2009, 1:57 pmFind sometimes the message doesn’t quite get across?
You ask for one thing and get something else instead?
Requirements get lost in translation?
You’re not alone and from a Telecommunications perspective we often find ourselves trying to understand what customer’s want.
Like all Telco’s we can find ourselves entrenched in our own little world of Telco jargon and phrasing that is gibberish to the rest of the known world. While we all try to speak normal English, jargon can encroach in our conversations with customers and information can be mis-conveyed.
Therefore the question how do we avoid these types of situations. At Arrow we employ English first when speaking with our customers. If a Telco jargon word is required in a conversation, for example “Preselection” we will then explain what the word means – Preselection means selecting services types like Local calls or calls to Mobiles to specific carriers for specific pricing.
If you are speaking to your Telco and you don’t 100% understand what they are saying to you, ask them to explain it to you in plain English.
On the same token of jargon, often basic requirements and communication can be misunderstood.
For example, you may have a virtual message bank set up on your phone lines, but when calling in you may be talking about voice mail. As similar as the 2 are, they are different things. Hence a discussion requiring changes can lead to changes made on the wrong service.
What is the best advise I can give you to get the best from your Telco?
1 Always have your account number when you call.
2 Always have the phone number, mobile number or data service number when requiring something on any service
3 Have a copy of your latest invoice handy to reference back to numbers, services, charges and service type names – this will save you a heap of time and effort!
4 Once you have made a request, ask the person you are speaking to, to repeat back to you the request you made. A little like ordering your dinner, double check the person got your order.
5 Get it in writing! I can’t begin to rave about the benefits of email when it comes to confirmation of requests. Cover yourself with a follow up email and request a confirmation of your email.
By following these basic steps you will find your relationship with your Telco far more beneficial and less time consuming. In a way this advice is really applicable to most of your suppliers!
There is always an equal share on both yourself and your Telco to get it right when it comes to communication but as humans we are not always perfect hence the little steps will help avoid problems from both sides in the future.
MC
