“Hi, you’ve reached Orwellian Enterprises. Press six to be lost in an endless maze, seven if this drives you crazy.”
Used to be (in the good ol’ dayz), when I wound up in some company’s maddening phone tree, I could just keep hitting 0, eventually defaulting to a live, you know, human. But they figured it out and eliminated that option. Want proof? Try calling Verizon.
I also manage a number of websites that include BobbyVegas and KeepRaleighSquirrrely, etc., so I deal with web companies — a lot.
When Blue Domino eliminated live customer service, I eliminated Blue Domino and switched to GoDaddy. Go! Daddy!
Recently I encountered this worrying trend at two of my favorite places, the Plaza and Rio. And here’s another shoutout to Jonathan Jossel, president of the Plaza. Yo! JJ! Thank you! You dumped the AI girl on your phone system! My man! Back to old school is cool. Where humans rule!
Meanwhile, at the Rio, a very cheerful voice answers, “Hi! I’m Stacey! How can I help you?”
Being an OWG (Old White Guy) and an easy mark for the female persuasion, I hear a friendly voice, I assume it’s a human. Alas, after one or two questions, it’s clear Stacey is actually a GoogleBot.
When asked for a less-than-direct answer like, “I need to make a reservation using my LVA coupon, but I don’t have my Rewards number,” Stacey responds ever so cheerfully,
“Okay! I can help you with that!” then proceeds to do just the opposite.
My problem? I always have a question. AI’s problem? My query rarely fits auto response.
I recently read a critique of AI that it’s not “intelligent.” It’s just a ginormous database, scouring matching words like auto spell check … which also drives me crazy.
A friend recently used AI for a VP strategy query and literally got the wrong answer.
People, AI doesn’t THINK. It repeats what it finds. Right or wrong.
So I keep asking for a Rio AGENT and lo and behold … a human!
A note about using the LVA MRB coupon for an amazing 30% off the best rate and NRF (NO Resort Fee) saving $57 a night at the Rio: BE PATIENT. They always go, “Wow. Great rate. Let me check with my supervisor.”
Just chill. It’s worth the wait.
My five-night stay — Sunday through Thursday, king bed, Masquerade Tower (my fave, old school, great view of the Strip, and a tub!) was … Oh wait. In my last blog I claimed $135 for four nights. I lied. It was $122 for five nights. Oops. My bad.
I haven’t seen rates like that since the Stardust back in the day ($17 with $10 back and a $5 buffet coupon.)
Oh and one other thing. Why is it always Stacy or Tracy?
Why not KinkyRiotGrrl or UsedToBeASpearmintRhinoStripper? If you’re going to do Vegas AI, I mean, be Vegas. OK?
Better yet … delete!
I keep waiting for Jasmine or Amber to answer my phone calls, but I keep getting Mary Ann and Katie.
Eggzackly Raymond!
I’ve built these keyword phone trees before for my previous job. If you want to avoid them the magic words are usually “talk to a person”. That triggers their failsafe and immediately routes to a human being.
Thanks for the tip Daniel!
Had same RIO issue, and the human was lame too. Stayed downtown.