By Dave Jensen, W7DGJ

Let me start by using one of my Dad's expressions: “I feel like kicking some serious butt.”

He was a gentle fellow, but I heard this on more than one occasion when Dad was frustrated with customer service from some product or vendor. And that’s exactly how I feel ever since a POTA went bad for me a couple of months ago.

It may not be the right attitude to start writing a column, but I’ve invested a grand in an amateur radio transceiver that gave up the ghost. I understand that this is complicated equipment. And I’m equally certain it’s not easy to care for users after the sale. But apparently some companies don’t know the basics of how to manage their customers -- a group of what these companies might consider to be “fussy hams.”

Dear Sir or Madam . . . 

That’s an age-defining intro if there ever was one! It's how I started my first email to the support email address of this (anonymous) manufacturer of transceivers. I’m not interested in embarrassing the company. My goal is for all manufacturers to recognize that the systems they employ to take care of their users may not be entirely functional.

“Dear Sir or Madam: I was surprised that my blah-blah model radio stopped transmitting yesterday upon hitting the PTT button on the mic on a POTA outing. It works fine on CW, but no longer on any voice mode. Receive is fine, and I substituted a working mic and the problem exists with that second mic as well. I’m using your current firmware. Please help!”

Four days went by. Then, I filled out a web form that basically appears to trigger the same service alert. Two weeks later without a response, I looked up an American service organization listed on their website and contacted the owner of that company. Nice guy -- another ham -- and he wrote back promptly, suggesting that I approach the manufacturer on their “support” email address. “I am going in circles here,” I thought -- but I took his advice and began again.

After another week and two additional emails, “support” wrote back that they were backed up as a result of one of their managers being out sick. The responder said “We will get our engineers thinking about your problem. Please contact our USA support organization for the next steps.” OK, I thought, a bit circular but now we are on to something. Except another couple of weeks went by with no word from those engineers. Even though I knew I’d be crossing the line into the “annoying customer” category, I wrote them yesterday, this time in a firm tone as a product reviewer requesting a next step. Finally, I got a ship-to address and instructions to return the radio.

Wow – thanks for the help guys. Weeks have gone by since I reported this issue. I think it’s time that readers helped our industry define exactly what customer expectations are upon hitting the “I need help” button.

Amateur Radio Customer Service Tips

I’ve never run a service outfit, but I am absolutely certain there are common steps you must take to run that department. I’m equally sure that there’s nothing "common" about the market of customers in the ham radio hobby. In many cases, radio is an important non-work activity that he or she may be committed to daily . . . that person is crushed when his shack is out of commission or the radio is in for repair. Therefore, that first communication you have with your ham is critical to the comfort level that will drive every future interaction.

Here are a few of my tips for manufacturers. This is just a list of the very basics that we hams expect when we have an issue with a product:

• Reflect the customer’s sense of urgency back to them. A support email or web form is fine, but your response is absolutely time sensitive. Many companies believe they’ve solved this with an auto-bot reply stating “message received.” Not true -- far better would be the personal response of an individual with name and title. I’d like to see a Service Manager reply within 24 hours even if the message is that someone else has been assigned to deal with it. “We’ve received your request and I’ve asked one of my engineers to get back to you shortly with further questions or a suggested next step.” It's OK to use a form letter response as long as it is made to look personal.
• Feed your forums and social media but don't count exclusively on them for solutions. Yes, your customers will band together and support one another. Minor issues will receive resolutions through user groups without requiring your involvement. But assign someone to follow that group and stay tuned so they don't go astray; diffuse larger issues from the factory side. I belong to several different brand-focused groups and the best have regular contributions from brand personnel. The worst, as in the forum for this anonymous manufacturer, leave users in the lurch when there's a question the group can't answer. 
• Make your policies and procedures clear and set expectations up front. I wish that more manufacturers would clearly state instructions for service on their web pages, advising users how everything works at your end. Is an RMA required before the return is initiated? Does the company pay for return shipping on warranty issues? Can an out-of-warranty repair be sent into the address shown for warranty work? Will an invoice be generated once the problem is identified? What is the expected turn-around time?

• Get a well-written and very complete FAQ up online in order to ward off "user error" issues: A large number of product returns end up being caused by user errors. Sure, you can send people back to their dealers, but if your sales take place directly on the Internet that's not an option. I'd suggest that you supplement your excellent online FAQ with a phone number for questions. It could also be staffed by a part-time, retired ham who knows the gear inside and out. That is a giant step forward that will give your firm a reputation for outstanding service.

The Problem with Writing about Service Issues

I thought that I'd take the pulse of our ham user base and asked a number of individuals for their views. People in my branded fora were happy to oblige. Plus, there are a number of service reviews on eHam in a special section which I wasn't previously aware of.  Unfortunately, the problem is that all of them are full of gripes as people who have had a problem are the first ones to put up reviews. (Example: Kenwood gets very low scores, and ICOM very high scores, but I heard nightmare reports on both companies from users.) It seems to me that the state of service for the amateur radio manufacturers can only be labeled as "iffy" at this time.

Who stands out in this quagmire of ineptitude? I'll tell you who . . . it's the smaller companies, the "boutique" innovators who stand to become the ICOMs and Kenwoods of the future. In order to build their base and their reputation, there are companies that make every single interaction with their customer service an opportunity to shine. One of these, which I will leave equally anonymous, has already built a reputation for turning gear around within a day or two. Of course, they earn five stars for doing so but that praise carries far beyond the original customer. Each of these rave reviews gets passed on and earns that company another point in their reputation. To use the words of one of many hams who had these positive experiences, "I contacted them 3 times via email with questions related to setup and cable routing for an application not specifically covered in the manual. The response time was awesome! It wasn't hours or even days, but literally within minutes of pressing the 'send' button on my emails to them."

In Conclusion

Apparently you can still find companies out there who will treat you with the kind of respect that us fussy hams think we deserve. For me, the user group experience was incredibly helpful. I made contact with another ham who has the same radio and lives only a few miles away. He invited me over and we played with his radio and mine to try and identify the cause of my problem. Unfortunately, we only proved that it is indeed defective. (I'll report back in a future issue how the repair process went.) While my user group experience helped me a great deal, the most important outcome was a new friend in the local ham radio community. 

I love Amateur Radio!

73 for now,   Dave W7DGJ