Things to Remember When Calling Customer Service

For a lot of people, when they call customer service, they don't think about the fact that the person who picks up that phone is not the one they actually have an issue with, they just spew their venomous words, complain until their face is blue and demand a discount. If the person on the other end of that line can't meet every single demand and answer the eight million questions asked in the span of 30 seconds, well you better hope their is a manager on standby because that is where this conversation is headed, and fast.

In a world where "being a Karen" gets a meme made about you and you become internet famous almost over night, not everyone understands that we are actually telling you that being called "a Karen" is actually a negative thing and means we all try to avoid you at all costs when we find out that you have a rude and demeaning attitude toward those you deem "beneath you." I am here to remind you, you are actually worse of a person than Hitler...

Okay, maybe not Hitler, but we still definitely just don't want you around when it seems your goal is to make everyone around you miserable just so you can get $1 off your order and make a person that is just trying to make ends meet look like a failure at the job that they may not have had a choice in taking. So, here are some tips for when you call in to customer service (or talk to someone in person) to avoid being the dreaded "Karen".

1) Remember that the person on the other end of the phone (or other side of the counter) is just that; a person. We all make mistakes, but in most cases, the customer service representative you are speaking to had absolutely nothing to do with the thing you're mad about and has limited power to fix the issue, and is less likely to want to fix it if you are yelling and screaming at them about something that they don't know about in the first place.

2) Have patience. If you are a customer somewhere that you have to have an account with and the CSR has to pull up said account to help you, just breathe and give them the information they need to look into the account. If you just start spewing off the things you need fixed but haven't given any info to get your account up, you are pretty much talking to a wall because nothing can be done without being in your account.

3) For the love of everything good in the world, do NOT ask for a manager unless it is a severe situation. 99.5% of the time, the CSR has already told you the exact same thing that the manager is going to tell you and given you the discounts that the manager is going to offer. Asking for a manager is just a waste of everyone's time and the CSR will know to get a manager if it is necessary.

4) The more you complain and act like a little kid that didn't get the new toy they wanted, the more we have to laugh about with our coworkers when you're gone. Yes, we do this because you make yourself look and sound so ridiculous that we actually just make a joke about you later on.

5) If you need to yell at someone, yell at yourself in the mirror. Honestly, though it takes us by surprise that this random person whom we have never met, seen or spoken to in our lives is yelling at us about a situation that we know nothing about, we literally just resent you and want to do less to help you. If you approach us in a calm, respectful manner, we actually will do everything we can to resolve the situation.

There are so many things you can do to be a better person and avoid getting the "Karen" name when people refer to your people skills, but start with these few things and you'll be good. Especially keep in mind #3; the manager is going to tell you the exact same thing and offer you the exact same discounts that the person you are talking to just did, so just accept them the first time and stop believing that the person titled "manager" has anymore power than those below them in the "corporate ladder."

A lot of places set it up so the CSR can do pretty much the same things that the managers can do because the managers have more to deal with than just your complaint and the fact that you don't want to deal with a "peon" of the company that you deem to be below you on the social scale.

As always, tips are never required but deeply appreciated. Thank you for reading and please share for your friends who act like "Karens."