Dialog ... ?

Background
We had some high winds, power fluctuations
(Winds ... gusts to 50 MPH, standard November fare here ... see Edmund Fitzgerald)

Anyway, we had a service outage, basic cable worked, but no high end digital or internet

My message to Charter:

suggestion: establish a call to report outage number

This morning, my service went out about 7:30
By 8:30, after several reboots, I called your "help" line
Well, 10-15 min with your robot service, then at least 10 with your call center, we got a service call scheduled.

I was 99% certain that you had a system outage
Sure enough, around 3PM I checked again, and have service.

Now, if you had a line to call to report an outage, it would help both of us.

I'm no dummy, and your call center was not aware of the outage. I could have helped.

This is a question of customer satisfaction.
When I know that you have a problem, I don't like to waste time with robot voice or overseas call centers.

I would believe that it is much cheaper for Charter to receive reports of problems, than to send a truck on a wild goose chase.

Figure where it’s best to spend your corporate funds.
My time is worth money, you took at least ½ hour which I would bill at $100. What does a truck roll cost? What does a “call to report outage” number cost?

More importantly, what does a satisfied customer cost?

Sincerely
JTHoagland

Reply tonight from Charter
Does it look canned?
Note the sales pitch
Hey ... if I had the connection, why would I need the "self help"

Dear JT Hoagland,

Thank you so much for contacting Charter Communications, my name is Ronand. I understand that you are having issues with your service. I am sorry that you had to go through this inconvenience. I understand your frustration; rest assured I will do my best to address this concern. If you have additional questions, please let me know.

I would like to encourage you to please visit our website, www.charter.com for further information and assistance regarding any of your services. There are self-help options available for you there.

Great News! Charter telephone is now available in your area! You can save money with charter's 5-feature pack that gibes you the popular calling feature you want for one low price. Call our toll free number 1-800-545-0994 to learn more and sign up for Charter's Telephone Service!

Thank you for your e-mail submission to our website! Have a wonderful day!

Sincerely,

Ronand
Email Support Team
High Speed Internet Department
Charter Communications