Recently, I had a very close friend of mine talk to me about how great an experience she had with the Apple store, but that it had left her a little frustrated. She was equally frustrated with Telus and the reason is quite evident once you hear the story.
She was having trouble with her iPhone 5 and went to the Apple store to see if they could figure out what was going on. On inspection, the service technician told her that there was a problem with the battery and it actually swelled and this was causing issues with the touch screen which was why she was having trouble with the touch screen not always functioning. Here comes the part about the great service. Even though the warranty for the phone had expired by six months, they were willing to give her a replacement at no charge. Great service! When she stated that she was willing to upgrade to the iPhone 6 and pay the difference, she was told that the ‘system’ would not allow them to do that and therefore, she would not be able to upgrade at this time. She informed them that she would go to the Telus store, who had the contract for her service, and see if they could do anything for her.
When she arrived at Telus, she was informed that they could not discuss any options as her account was not clear. Her automatic payment was to come out on that day, but had not done so as of yet. She had been with Telus for over ten years, had never carried a balance and there were never issues with payment. This was confirmed by the clerk that was able to look at the credit history of her account. Her payment was due to come out that evening at 11:00 pm, well after the store closed, and until it was cleared, the ‘system’ would not allow them to talk about any options whatsoever.
When I said to her: ‘Well, you know that the machines are controlling us and we have lost that war.’ She looked at me and said: ‘No!’ My reply was: ‘Okay, follow along. Even though you were willing to pay for an upgrade the Apple store said they could not do it because the ‘system’ said no. When you went to Telus and asked for alternatives, they said no because the ‘system’ said until your balance, which was not late, but would not be cleared until well past closing time, was cleared. The ‘system’ is the machine. A machine has told Apple not to upsell you; therefore, actually stopping a sale and Telus not to give you alternatives, again stopping a sale. Therefore, the machines have won.’ She, being a big believer in technology and young said: ‘Well no, we still control the machine.’ She was very emphatic about her statement. My reply was: ‘If this was 20 years ago and there were no ‘systems,’ would you have gotten a new updated phone because you would have been dealing with an actual human being that is actually capable of reasonable independent thought?’ The look I received back said it all.
Yes, the machines in more cases than we may like to admit to, have won! The question then becomes, ‘Who is at fault?’ Take a look in the mirror for the answer. Yes, that image looking back is who is ultimately responsible. Therefore, as the attached article puts it, “It's time to take control of our technology and our lives so that we can rediscover the wonderful treasures that are buried in those separate realities we once had.” Burrus, D (2012). HuffPost Tech. Take Control of Your Technology Before It Takes Control of You. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/daniel-burrus/take-control-of-your-tech_b_1820138.html?
It’s our move!
She was having trouble with her iPhone 5 and went to the Apple store to see if they could figure out what was going on. On inspection, the service technician told her that there was a problem with the battery and it actually swelled and this was causing issues with the touch screen which was why she was having trouble with the touch screen not always functioning. Here comes the part about the great service. Even though the warranty for the phone had expired by six months, they were willing to give her a replacement at no charge. Great service! When she stated that she was willing to upgrade to the iPhone 6 and pay the difference, she was told that the ‘system’ would not allow them to do that and therefore, she would not be able to upgrade at this time. She informed them that she would go to the Telus store, who had the contract for her service, and see if they could do anything for her.
When she arrived at Telus, she was informed that they could not discuss any options as her account was not clear. Her automatic payment was to come out on that day, but had not done so as of yet. She had been with Telus for over ten years, had never carried a balance and there were never issues with payment. This was confirmed by the clerk that was able to look at the credit history of her account. Her payment was due to come out that evening at 11:00 pm, well after the store closed, and until it was cleared, the ‘system’ would not allow them to talk about any options whatsoever.
When I said to her: ‘Well, you know that the machines are controlling us and we have lost that war.’ She looked at me and said: ‘No!’ My reply was: ‘Okay, follow along. Even though you were willing to pay for an upgrade the Apple store said they could not do it because the ‘system’ said no. When you went to Telus and asked for alternatives, they said no because the ‘system’ said until your balance, which was not late, but would not be cleared until well past closing time, was cleared. The ‘system’ is the machine. A machine has told Apple not to upsell you; therefore, actually stopping a sale and Telus not to give you alternatives, again stopping a sale. Therefore, the machines have won.’ She, being a big believer in technology and young said: ‘Well no, we still control the machine.’ She was very emphatic about her statement. My reply was: ‘If this was 20 years ago and there were no ‘systems,’ would you have gotten a new updated phone because you would have been dealing with an actual human being that is actually capable of reasonable independent thought?’ The look I received back said it all.
Yes, the machines in more cases than we may like to admit to, have won! The question then becomes, ‘Who is at fault?’ Take a look in the mirror for the answer. Yes, that image looking back is who is ultimately responsible. Therefore, as the attached article puts it, “It's time to take control of our technology and our lives so that we can rediscover the wonderful treasures that are buried in those separate realities we once had.” Burrus, D (2012). HuffPost Tech. Take Control of Your Technology Before It Takes Control of You. Retrieved from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/daniel-burrus/take-control-of-your-tech_b_1820138.html?
It’s our move!