Direct TV - Yet Another "Encounter"

I don't care what company or entity it is, if they are raising rates in THIS economy, they can go jump in a lake.  That's putting it nicely, thank you.  That includes the City of Phoenix, which is not the subject of this entry, but will be soon enough as I intend on showing up at their next meeting where they intend to vote on ANOTHER 5% increase on water usage rates - they can not only jump in the lake that is filled with water I paid for through extreme taxation, they can drown in it, too.

What occurred today?  I got an email from Direct TV.  I usually delete them without even opening it, but this one caught my eye.  It said something different on the subject line.  I clicked on it to find a notice:  we are going to raise your rates next month whether you like it or not and we'd like to let you know in advance about our sticking a bat up your @$$ and there is nothing you can do about it.  Okay, it didn't say anything even remotely close to that, it did say that there are "rate changes" coming.  

My cynicism of this company relates back to the countless experiences with this company I have had over the phone - over a more than 10 year span of time.  I mean - countless.  I don't know how many phone campaigns I have had with them, I do know that 99% of the time, I win and they lose.  I had one such campaign that went on for 3 or 4 days, spoke to dozens of people, was ostracized by 1 supervisor and I even bet another supervisor that, in the end, I will get what I want.  I offered a wager of $100.  She refused.  She also said I would NEVER get what I was asking for.  That WAS her words.  Too bad I can't go back to that person and show her that I got FAR beyond what I was asking for.  $150 credit to my account on that one, besides a lot of other perks.

See? It isn't written in stone that you can't get anything from Direct TV and mostly, a LOT of other companies whose first-encounter personnel you speak with will tell you otherwise.  But, if you don't like confrontation, this isn't going to work for you. I don't really LIKE confrontation, I just don't like getting SCREWED even worse.

No, I haven't even described my encounter with a woman that obviously has serious issues in life that go far beyond talking to a customer that didn't want to talk to her.  That customer being me.

So, without further ado - and long-windedness - let's get to it.  I did, of course, immediately call Direct TV.  In 10 years of calling them - actually longer - I know what kind of reply I'm gonna git from the "1st Responder". CRAP.  Pre-scripted crap at that.  I was polite, respectful and amiable to this person I got on the line, but, after I got the "no, that can't and won't happnen" junk, I asked for her supervisor. Oh, no, my issue isn't with this particular person, I already knew what she was going to say and I knew the correct course of action to get beyond it.  She connected me with her supervisor and then I dug into the problem.  I also knew this person, a supervisor, also has no authority to do what I wanted, but I needed to explain it so I could get to the next department.

Yes, it's a process.  It's a learned process, I spent the time and the dime to get the knowledge, whether anyone wants to try it is their business, I'm only reporting my business as I am not a particularly private type of person anyway.

My explanation to the supervisor was enough to get me to the next level.  She explained that she couldn't do anything for me, but the next tier could.  Great,thank you and transferred to the wrong department.  I ended up with a woman that is the same person you would talk to when you first call in.  If you have a low-level problem, they can help you, when it comes to money, normally they can't or won't. I was not going to go through all of that again and attempted to explain to her that I was just on the phone with a supervisor - please get me your supervisor so I can get transferred to the right department.

The BS that came out of that woman's mouth when I asked to speak to management was more than I even expected to hear from Direct TV, and trust me, I have heard a LOT from them.  I could write a book.  She first got indignant that I didn't think that SHE could do anything for me.  I tried to explain to her that I had already talked to management and that I had been directed to the wrong department. At this point, she let off on me.  Bypassing that negativity - a lot of it - I put the phone away from my ear.  I will not take that kind of abuse from anyone, but especially a company that I am paying good money for their services and that, I am NOT disrespecting the person I am talking to.

Management please.  Management please.  I heard a lot of squawking in the phone, when it finally ceased, I then put it back up to my ear.  It was then that she conceded to get me to her supervisor......bypassing needless lengths of communication...........manager on phone.  It was obvious from the beginning with this person that, if nothing else, he was going to talk to me like a human, not a piece of trash.  I informed this individual of the conversation with the woman and that he is welcome to review the recording of it, if such is, indeed recorded.  He replied: "I have no reason to disbelieve you and I WILL deal with my employee accordingly".  I thanked him for that and we moved on.

My call was about the fact that I was not going to be paying more money for Direct TV and that IS a fact.  I am either going to get that waived or I am going to move on.   We are allegedly out of the recession -  a statement of belief that I do not find credible and that with no more than surfactual evidence to support that finding.  I could go into all of that, but, that is not this entry.  The man offered me a full year without that increased price structure plus $2 off - plus - Showtime, free for 6 months.

Thank you, yes, have a great day!  I neither asked for nor even thought that I would get such an offer.  We bid ados and that was that.

I have to say that I had no idea that I was even going to have the need to call Direct TV to day nor that I was going to get into it with a person that hasn't got a clue, or more likely, that her employer is getting what they are paying for, or beyond that, that I would get even more movie channels for free.   But, I will, of course, take it and that's that.

G'nite.

ben