Am I Such A Tough Customer?

I am what is considered a VIP customer of Network Solutions. What is a VIP? I guess its someone who has a bunch of domain names they control, because I control about 20. I'm either the owner or the technical administrator.

We VIPs are supposed to get priority customer service. Notice the supposed to clause in the last sentence. As many of the readers of Server Pipeline know, I have what my be deemed a Customer Service mania. I loath bad Customer Service. Noting makes me angrier than bad Customer Service.

All it takes is communication, which is at the heart of Customer Service, to sooth the savage beast, or at least me. Give me the proper expectation. Make the effort to address my concern. Make me feel like the only customer you have. If you do this, then, with the exception of the most egregious lapse of service on your part, I'll be a customer for life.

I spent years as a customer of AT&T Wireless, until that company treated me as a non-entity. I dropped it like a hot potato. T-Mobile is losing over a dozen phone lines, because it, too, treated me shabbily.

But back to Network Solutions. I had a problem, and I sought assistance, and they've lead me, a VIP after all, to believe I would have an answer.I'm still waiting, four days and one reminder call later.

My problem, on the scale of slight to devastating, was definitely on the slight side, but it a problem's a problem. I wanted to modify a domain name that I control, but don't own, in my account. Now, for those who have not used their Web interface, to say that's confusing and not really user-friendly would be to misstate the truth. Its very confusing, and very difficult to do anything but the most simple of tasks.

Network Solutions' online help is also confusing. So what do you do when all else fails? Contact customer support. I did this on Friday at approximately 5:55 PM. At 5:58 PM, I got an auto-responder that said "A Customer Service Representative will respond to your service request within 24 hours."

Well, I'm writing this at 12:13 PM on Tuesday. I have yet to receive any customer support. Yesterday, I sent a reminder. I used the return address and the entire e-mail. I still have no answer.

Here's my advice to Network Solutions: If you tell me 24-hours, then you really should answer in about 24-hours. Do not have me wait multiple days. I'm still waiting. Set your expectations to what is real, not what is imagined because it sounds sexy. Now, I question whether you want me as a customer. You know, I can register my domains for less money elsewhere. So, can I get my small problem corrected, or do I have to move my account? What's it gonna be?0