Another Day, Another Survey Request

by admin | December 12, 2024 1:51 pm

I had a semiannual physical exam a while back. Everything checked out well, I am happy to report. A few weeks later, I received an email from the health-care provider’s office, asking me to fill out a survey to ascertain how satisfied I was with the visit. Since I was not given a grave diagnosis, nor ordered to immediately lose weight or otherwise change my habits, I considered the visit a success. I ignored the survey request.

That resulted in several more requests, including one that announced the deadline to fill out the survey was fast approaching. Or what? I wondered. Will my prescription orders no longer be filled? Will the provider exact revenge on the next visit by subjecting me to a particularly painful injection as punishment? Likely not but being told I am about to miss a deadline always gets my attention, having spent my entire professional life trying not to miss deadlines. Still, I let that survey pass without any repercussions.

There is virtually no interaction between customer and merchant that does not come without a survey request. My plumber sent one after coming out to unclog the sink. The sweet ladies at the Judson Post Office – the best post office ever – routinely circle the survey request on my receipt when I ship off books I have written to buyers. (You can get in on this action by going to garyborders.com. I promise I won’t send you a survey request.) Hotels, every online site from which I order another unneeded item, restaurants, auto repair companies, even the folks who fixed Bob the Robot Sweeper wanted to know how he is doing. Bob is doing just great, by the way. Thanks for asking.

Some companies try to entice folks to take surveys by offering a chance to win, say, $1,000 in merchandise or a free trip to somewhere exotic. I have been sucked into doing this a couple of times, only to realize I could have read several chapters in whatever book my nose is buried in during the time I have wasted taking the Survey That Will Not End. No more.

I do read reviews, especially before making an online purchase or considering which hotel to stay in while traveling. I do so with a skeptical eye, since generally people se[1]em to be more motivated to give a lousy review than a positive one. That seems to be human nature. In general, my approach when provided lousy service or after staying in what turned out to be a crappy hotel is to simply not use that service or hotel again.

I make occasional exceptions to the never-fill-out-surveys rule. If someone provides really outstanding service – a desk clerk at the Adolphus Hotel in downtown Dallas comes to mind after he went out of his way to upgrade our room – I make certain to praise that person if requested. Maybe the boss will take notice and provide a raise – or at least a bonus. And if I believe that we have been treated poorly, and no recourse is provided after I complain, then I will indeed use my written skills to blast that company.

That was recently the case when a car rental company, which I will not name (feel free to directly message me if you would like to know) charged us $60 because we did not buy their toll package and went through two tolls. That is after their own customer service rep told us not to bother getting the toll package since we were traveling to a state that doesn’t have toll roads. It turns out, there was no practical way to get to said state without taking a toll road from the rental place. The toll was $1.50 each way. The “administrative fee” was $30 a pop.

My plea fell on deaf email ears. (Forget actually calling these people. You would lose a crop while on hold.) I pointed out in vain that losing our future business would cost the company far more than $60. I received platitudes and an invitation to “access our 24/7 chatbot for self-help and FAQs.” How in the world was a chatbot going to help?

I finally gave up after the last email from the company rep said, “I understand your frustration.” I disagree. She did not understand my frustration. I then spent 30 minutes ripping the company on several review sites. In doing so, I discovered the company had a lousy reputation and a penchant for tacking on charges after the vehicles has been returned. I guess I should have checked the reviews first.

My bad reviews will do no good at all but made me feel a tad better. I also intend to dispute the charge with the credit card company just to further jack with the rental company.

I am hoping the car rental company actually sends me a survey. I fully intend to fill that one out.

Source URL: https://garyborders.com/pages/another-day-another-survey-request/

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