|
Big firms fail to answer consume e-queries
Hackers have found one way to get a company's attention, but what about the lowly consumer with a simple E-mail question? If that company is on the Fortune 100–even a high-tech giant–there's a 62 percent chance you'll get the old electronic cold shoulder. That's what Vincent, a
software programmer in Kuala Lumpur, found when he sent top corporations a
query from a pseudonymous "vincentliaw" asking, "Who is your
CEO and how do I contact him or her?" Despite all the hype about the
instant solicitude of the Internet age, "vincentliaw" got the
cyber-brush-off. "It's kind of scary," says Vincent, "when 400
million E-mails were sent last year." Snail mail. Any consumer
might understand some delay in checking the identity of the ranking poobah.
But only 13 companies answered within three hours, and one giant corporate
took a full three weeks. With nearly three times
more firms failing to respond than last year, E-customer service appears to be
declining. It's like giving somebody your phone number and they call for five
days without getting an answer." |
|