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Telus service is horrible!!!!

I000B
Friendly Neighbour

I have had a particular feature added to my mobile service because I am a long time Telus customer.   I just renewed my automatic payment and found this feature was dropped.  The only way this feature can be restored is by talking with a real person at Telus mobile service.  Unfortunately, this cannot be done via my online Telus account or by the Telus automated telephone service.   How can I contact a real person in Telus mobile account to have this feature restored.

 

I called Telus home service where I was actually able to speak with two different people.  The first transferred me to the automated telephone service, she was completely unhelpful.  The second person, named Catherine, said she would transfer me to Telus mobile account service.  I waited about 5 minutes for someone to answer.  The man who pick up the phone initially sound disoriented until I asked if this was Telus mobile service.   He said yes, and I asked who I was speaking with.  His said his name was Richard.    For some reason, I was immediately suspicious.   I was asked for and gave my mobile phone number.   I was then asked for my pin number, refused to give it and told Richard to ask for other information that was associated with my mobile account.  He asked for my address and I gave him my postal code.   He asked for my full address and I gave him my street number .   Richard said he needed my full address so I reluctantly gave it to him.   Something definitely seemed wrong and I asked Richard which department he worked for at Telus.  He did not respond immediately and, after about 5 seconds, he said he worked for general service.  I asked for his telephone number.  He could not immediately provide it, even after my waiting 10-15 seconds - I could hear him typing, as if he was searching for a telephone number.   I have never had such unresponsive service from Telus before and something was very wrong.  At this point, I hung up.

 

What I am requesting is very simple.  But Telus has not made it impossible for a customer to speak with a live person in its service departments.   This is unacceptably poor service.   What the hell do I have to do speak with a real person to have a feature restored to my mobile account?

 

One very pissed off Telus customer,

 

Ian

 

 

16 REPLIES 16

I000B
Friendly Neighbour

CORRECTION

 

But Telus has made it impossible for a customer to speak with a live person in its service departments.

NFtoBC
Community Power User
Community Power User

Your PIN is the number YOU chose with Telus when you set up your account so they could identify you any time you called back. Since you refused to provide that PIN (some folks forget it), they were obligated to ask for other identifying information which you also were reluctant to provide.

 

I don't understand why you expect a caller claiming to be your account holder should have access to your account without proving who they are. The simplest means to do this is with the secret code number sou shared with them when you set up th account.

 

 

NFtoBC
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I000B
Friendly Neighbour

You are only focused on the PIN number and ignored the rest of my post.   A person working for Telus should immediately, without hesitation, be able to state which department they are working in and what their telephone number is.  As I stated, something seemed very wrong and so I terminated the call.

rc
Rockstar

Have you tried calling *611 from your mobile phone, this should connect you to TELUS mobility. 

I000B
Friendly Neighbour

Calling *611 offers the same limited options selections as the automated telephone calls.   It is not possible to speak with a real person working at Telus using either the mobile number or the land line number.

Calling *611 offers the same limited options selections as the automated telephone calls.   It is not possible to speak with a real person working at Telus using either the mobile number or the land line number.

 

I know the automated system can be frustrating, but it actually saves far more time. If you called *611 and requested to speak to a real agent right away, you would first wait on hold, then have to tell that agent what you are calling about, then most likely the agent will have to transfer you to the right department...which results you having to wait on hold for longer.

 

I decided to call *611 from my TELUS cellphone and pretend I was yourself calling about the feature that was lost. Here is the dialog with the automated system (it may vary depending on how clear each response is).

Automated System: Hi, thanks for calling TELUS. How can I help you today?

  • I would like to add a feature

Automated System: Your calling about a feature, is that right?

  • Yes

Automated System: Alright, one more thing, I see you have both mobility and home services. Which one are you calling about?

  • Mobility

Automated System: There is a way to change your features by going online to MyTelus. I can send a text message that takes you directly to the right page. Would you like to try that now?

  • No

Automated System: Your estimated wait time is X minutes.

 

Automated System: To secure your account enter your 4-6 digit pin. Don't have a PIN, have your Drivers Licence ready.


At this point the automated system will transfer you to the correct department where you can speak to a real agent.

 

If you are having trouble reaching a live agent, you can try using the responses above to speak to a real agent.


TELUS Employee & Neighbourhood Volunteer :black_small_square: Found this post helpful? Let others know by clicking [❤️ Like] or [Accepted Solution].

I000B
Friendly Neighbour

Hello BrandonT


1) You wrote: "... I would recommend Live Chat by clicking the purple box with 3 dots...".  

I do not see this icon on my system for reasons explained next.   Only an inexperienced software developer would put this icon in the bottom right corner.   I say this because I spent a career designing and developing applications with user interfaces.  Here are 5 reasons why:

 

a) I use Firefox browser and have enabled a tracker extension. Every time I go to a different web site/web page, this tracker extension displays tracking information in a purple notification box which literally hides the Live Chat purple box. I do not see the Live Chat icon. The purple in the tracker information box is exactly the same color as that used for the Telus Live Chat icon. So on my system, the Live Chat icon is hidden behind the tracker notification box. Note, I tried to insert a screen capture illustrating this problem but the option for doing this is not working.  The bottom right side of the screen is a common area where many applications post notifications.   So it does not make sense for any applications to put icons there.

 

b) The Telus Contact US page displays options in text on the left side of the page. So the readers attention is immediately drawn to the left side of the page, that is, away from the Live Chat icon in bottom right side of the page. In other words, the Live Chat icon will only appear as a blur in the peripheral vision while the customer is reading/selecting/clicking on the text on the left side of the screen.

 

c) There are no other icons on the Contact US page so the UI design immediately infers the customer needs to read text and NOT look for an icon.

 

d) The Live Chat icon will not mean anything to customers not familiar with this icon.

 

e) The OS on my computer is Win10 and pop-up notifications always appear in the bottom right corner of the screen, exactly where the Telus Live Chat icon is placed. The Win10 notifications are so common that I now ignore them.

 


2) You wrote, "I know the automated system can be frustrating, but it actually saves far more time".
You have just contradicted yourself and are supporting my point.   It saves Telus's time, but wastes the customer's time.

 


3) You explained how the automated telephone service can be used to speak with a person.
The steps you described are utterly useless. These steps are specifically designed to force the customer to use the automated system and minimize/eliminate the customers efforts to speak with a real person.   It forces the customer to waste time 'exploring' all options.


What I am requesting from Telus is simple and trivial.   If Telus declines my request then I will have no problem with that.   But the hours I have wasted trying to get support on a trivial issue is what really makes me so angry.  My opinion is that Telus is attempting to force its customers to use its automated system and to minimize, if not eliminate, customer access to real people offering support.  

 

 

 

Ian

Hi  (Ian),

 

Regarding: Purple live chat button on bottom right corner.

  • You make very good points as far as the placement of the Live Chat feature. I have submitted feedback on your behalf to our web team to look at possible solutions such as adding a drop-down like the other contact methods such as phone support. This way it will display in the center of the screen, easily to see without being a blur. If you have any other suggestion, you are more than welcome to share them, and I will submit additional feedback on your behalf.

    Here are some possible solutions based on the concerns provided in the meantime (At your own discretion).

    • Disable the tracker extension conflicting with the features on the TELUS website.

    • Use private browsing mode which often disabled extension when on the TELUS website
      If you have concerns with disabling your extension, since you are experienced with computers and web design, you can look into downloading an extension or creating a JS Bookmarklet  which will inject CSS on the TELUS website. This will allow you to move the position of the live chat feature, and or increase the size to your exact preferences so it does not hide under your tracker extension.

    • Use a different browser such as Google Chrome, Internet Explorer, Edge, Opera, DuckDuckGo, Safari.

    • Use a different device without the tracker extension.

    • Use a different contact method such as phone, email, Twitter, in-store.

 

You wrote, (BrandonT) "I know the automated system can be frustrating, but it actually saves far more time".

(I000B - Ian) You have just contradicted yourself and are supporting my point.   It saves Telus's time, but wastes the customer's time.

 

  • Perhaps there was a misunderstanding with the lack of information I provided in my previous response. I will do my best to clarify. The automated system, benefits both yourself (the customer) and the company. Rest assured it is a mutual decision which a majority of business have implemented.

    Benefits to the Customer

    • Customers get to speak to real agents faster since the automated system directs your call to the correct department, and eliminates the need for hundreds of employees to work as operators who simply direct calls. These hundreds of employees can now be trained for more advanced roles to assist customers with their concerns.

    • Less time repeating your concerns since the automated system directed you to the correct department.

    • The automated system can answer general common questions to save you time waiting on hold to speak to a real life agent will provide the same answer.

    • Ability to receive a call-back (based on the type of call) so you can continue with your day, and not have to wait on hold.

    • Less intro time when speaking to a real agent since they already have your account open, and don't need to ask you for your phone number, or PIN, and can already start getting specific tools ready to assist you faster based on the options selected through the automated system.

    • If your call gets disconnected for any reason, and you call back, the automated system recognized your number, and prioritizes it (based on the type of call)

    • Allows the company to track types of calls, so they can more accurately allocate more employees to specific areas in high demand, thus reducing wait times even more.

 

 

You explained how the automated telephone service can be used to speak with a person.

The steps you described are utterly useless. These steps are specifically designed to force the customer to use the automated system and minimize/eliminate the customers efforts to speak with a real person.   It forces the customer to waste time 'exploring' all options.

 

  • Our automated system used to require customers to listen to the full range of options, then press the corresponding number which was very time consuming. TELUS has recently added a virtual assistant which will listen to full sentences to avoid this, and save the customer time while also providing the benefits listed above. We are constantly improving all aspects of the company, the automated system being one of them. If you have any suggestion on how to make the automated system better compared to other automated systems, please share them, and I will submit feedback on your behalf.

 

 

What I am requesting from Telus is simple and trivial.   If Telus declined my request then I will have no problem with that.   But the hours I have wasted trying to get support on a trivial issue is what really makes me so angry.  My opinion is that Telus is attempting to force its customers to use its automated system and to minimize, if not eliminate, customer access to real people offering support. 

 

  • You are absolutely entitled to your own opinion. I too have my concerns with some electronics, systems, processes. TELUS is following industry standards for our automated system, and even more by introducing the virtual assistant to avoid pressing as many buttons. Almost every large corporation has automated systems such as other carriers, Apple, Samsung, Google, Government. TELUS is a technology company, and we will always explore ways to improve all aspects of the business using traditional methods and technology. With all decisions there are pros and cons. By utilizing A/B testing companies (like TELUS), can determine what decisions have more pros, and which have more cons so they can work in improving or revoking such decisions. In reference to the automated system, it has provided more pros for both customers and the company, and therefore is currently implemented as a solution for call handling.

  • Based on your input and concerns with the live chat feature, and the automated phone system, it now seems that contacting TELUS support using Twitter, Facebook, or speaking to a real life agent in a TELUS store would be the best option to resolve your issues with the least amount of hours wasted.

Hopefully I was able to address your input, and concerns, and provide you with a solution based on your needs.


TELUS Employee & Neighbourhood Volunteer :black_small_square: Found this post helpful? Let others know by clicking [❤️ Like] or [Accepted Solution].

I000B
Friendly Neighbour

1) The simplest solution is to replace the Live Chat icon with "Live Chat" text. Put this text above "Telus forums" on the Contact Us web page.

 

2) You wrote, "Here are some possible solutions..."
Now that I know where and how to find the Live Chat icon, there is no need to test/try/use most of your suggestions.

 

3) On the Telus Contact Us web page, there is no option to email a request for support.   BTW, I do not use Twitter nor should I be forced to use Twitter just to obtain service.   Nor would I go to a Telus store (a useless suggestion during a lockdown) to resolve such a trivial matter (which, a store employee likely does not have the authority to resolve).

 

4) You wrote, "Benefits to the Customer..."
   a) "Customers get to speak to real agents faster...". My experience refutes this claim.
   b) "These hundreds of employees can now be trained..." This is false. Telus simply cuts back on the number of people it hires and, like all other companies, replaces people with automates systems.
   c) The rest of the alleged benefits you cite (e.g. a callback) are hidden so that the customer is not even aware of them - if indeed they actually exist.

5) I will not comment on the remainder of your post. You are simply regurgitating nonsense you were trained to parrot. The virtual assistant is designed for one purpose only - to save Telus time and money by replacing people with automated systems. The primary purpose of the virtual assistant is not for the customers benefit.

 

I have nothing more to say on this matter.   I am not requesting or expecting you to respond to it.

 

An angry customer

 

Ian

I have nothing more to say on this matter.   I am not requesting or expecting you to respond to it.

  • I will respect your decision. Although you are more than welcome to read this reply, I will direct it to the community who may come across this page with similar concerns who may find any of the solutions beneficial. 

 

1) The simplest solution is to replace the Live Chat icon with "Live Chat" text. Put this text above "Telus forums" on the Contact Us web page.

  • That's a great solution! I have submitted both requests to our web development team to add the text Live Chat above the purple square on the bottom right, while also adding an option for Live Chat in the center above the Phone support option. Thanks for your feedback, and improving the functionality of our website to help those struggling with this issue. 

 

2) You wrote, (BrandonT) "Here are some possible solutions..."

(l000B) Now that I know where and how to find the Live Chat icon, there is no need to test/try/use most of your suggestions.

  • Happy to hear this point has been resolved, and the solutions were not necessary for yourself. Perhaps they will provide value to others experiencing similar challenges.

 

3) On the Telus Contact Us web page, there is no option to email a request for support.   

  • Incorrect. The TELUS contact us website page does include the option to request email support. In the center of the page, after all the contact methods such as TELUS Forums, In store, Twitter support, Phone, Check online order status, there is a section called "Already contacted us? - If you've already contacted TELUS and your issue remains unresolved, expedite your request here." Once clicked you will see an option to Live Chat, or complete a simple forum with your contact information, and you have the option of receiving a call back to your phone number, or an email response.

 

BTW, I do not use Twitter nor should I be forced to use Twitter just to obtain service.   Nor would I go to a Telus store (a useless suggestion during a lockdown) to resolve such a trivial matter (which, a store employee likely does not have the authority to resolve).

  • The option of Twitter was never forced, it was merely a suggestion to provide you with alternative options for support based on the concerns you have with: The automated system prior to speaking to phone support, the live chat feature which was hidden on your web browser due to a Firefox extension. Based on the context of your previous message, we can also remove Twitter, and the TELUS stores from the recommended solutions based on your concerns.

  • It's true, in-store agents do not have the same authority and or training to make some types of advanced changes. They can however call their support team and request them to make changes on your behalf outside of their authority. Alternatively the in-store agent can also call TELUS support from your cell phone (or the store's phone) answer the automated systems questions on your behalf and hand over the phone once a real agent is on the line.

  • As for remaining support options, there is still an option to request a call back or email on the contact us forum mentioned above. Alternatively Facebook is a possible suggestion, unless you do not have a Facebook account, and do not wish to create one (based on the context of your response with Twitter support). The only other out-of-the-box solution would be to have a friend or family member call the TELUS phone number and enter the prompts for you, and hand the phone over once speaking to an agent or request the agent to call you directly. 


   a) "Customers get to speak to real agents faster...". My experience refutes this claim.

 

  • You are absolutely entitled to your own opinion. I'm sorry your experience with the automated system was not a fast solution.

   b) "These hundreds of employees can now be trained..." This is false. Telus simply cuts back on the number of people it hires and, like all other companies, replaces people with automates systems.

 

  • There is truth behind this. Like all businesses, there is a budget based on total revenue. As revenue and customers increase, the need for more employees is essential. As revenue decreases, the need for employees declines. If a business does not follow this standard, and is over budget, they would be forced to cut costs elsewhere, create a new revenue stream, or even increase service costs which no one wants (including myself). 


   c) The rest of the alleged benefits you cite (e.g. a callback) are hidden so that the customer is not even aware of them - if indeed they actually exist.

 

  • I can agree with you that the callback feature is hidden at different times. This feature only appears earlier in the day when there is a long wait time, and when there is enough time for an agent to receive the call back request. As the day gets later, this feature gets disabled to ensure we can callback every customer who utilized the feature that day. The callback feature is also disabled at specific times based on the timezone of the customer to ensure we do not disturb our customers too late in the evening, or too early in the morning. All Canadian businesses must comply with the CRTC laws which regulate hours Canadian telemarketers and businesses can contact a customer. 

The virtual assistant is designed for one purpose only - to save Telus time and money by replacing people with automated systems. The primary purpose of the virtual assistant is not for the customers benefit.

 

  • I appreciate your opinion. If the benefits above do not benefit yourself, you have every right to feel that the primary purpose of a virtual assistant is not for the customer's benefit. I agree that when I call customer service for any business, the automated system can be frustrating. We live in a world with technology, and more and more things will become automated. Even cars are self driving. I personally have two options. I could respectfully resent the changes, and voice my opinions in hopes the world will go back to traditional methods (which likely won't get me anywhere), or I can embrace the change and make the best of it. Both have their pros and cons. 

 

I'm sorry I was unable to assist you find a solution, however I am hopeful that others who come across this thread may find parts of it beneficial. If you still need to contact TELUS, there are additional options to choose from in this reply (if you find them beneficial), otherwise I open this topic to anyone else who may be able to provide a helpful solution. I wish you the best, and hope your issue gets resolved with the least amount of inconveniences.


TELUS Employee & Neighbourhood Volunteer :black_small_square: Found this post helpful? Let others know by clicking [❤️ Like] or [Accepted Solution].

A great idea. Wish I thought of it. Oh, I did. And I called and called and called, each time selecting different options, each time getting the "Our customers matter" recording followed by a call termination. Rotten, horrible service. Oh, wait, there was no service. So, I drove to a telus store. They could only sell me stuff, not help me. 

BrandonT
TELUS Employee
TELUS Employee

Hi @I000B (Ian),

 

I am sorry you have had a poor experience with TELUS support. Without taking away or minimizing how you feel, I would like to provide more context which may allow you to see why it was not an excellent experience. Hopefully that helps provide some more context to the concerns you have. I have typed this in a friendly tone (which may be hard to interoperate just by reading this text). I genuinely would like to help make your experience better in the future.

 

You are only focused on the PIN number and ignored the rest of my post.

  • I will do my best to provide answers for every part of your post. Please correct me If I missed anything.

 

How can I contact a real person in Telus mobile account to have this feature restored?

  • Visit the TELUS website, scroll to the bottom and click Contact Us. You will see every way to contact TELUS.
    In your case, I would recommend Live Chat by clicking the purple box with 3 dots located on the bottom right corner. Alternatively you can call by selecting the Phone option, finding the number relating to "TELUS Mobility". 

 

I called Telus home service where I was actually able to speak with two different people.  The first transferred me to the automated telephone service, she was completely unhelpful.  The second person, named Catherine, said she would transfer me to Telus mobile account service.  I waited about 5 minutes for someone to answer.

  • It appears you spoke to TELUS Home Services, instead of TELUS Mobility. This would result in speaking to agents with little to no training in the Mobility department, and explains why they may not have been helpful. They should however be able to transfer you to the correct department. It sounds easy enough, however it depends on how the conversation goes, and what information the customer provided the agent. For example, if we do not have a cellphone number or account number, we cant determine which mobility department to transfer the call too (consumer, business, corporate) and which sub-division (Client Care, Technical, Payment Services, and many more). So the first agent likely sent you to the general line where you had the option to select the correct option. The second agent would have received more information based on your input with the automated system to transfer you to the correct department "TELUS mobile account services". 

 

I was asked for and gave my mobile phone number.

  • This is the first question we ask, so we can ensure we have the correct account open.

  • If your phone number was entered with the automated system, we do not need to ask unless there is multiple phone numbers on your account to avoid making changes on the wrong number.

TELUS Employee & Neighbourhood Volunteer :black_small_square: Found this post helpful? Let others know by clicking [❤️ Like] or [Accepted Solution].

BrandonT
TELUS Employee
TELUS Employee

I was then asked for my pin number, refused to give it.

  • A PIN number is the simple way to verify callers to ensure we are in fact speaking with the correct party, and also have the correct account open (some customers have multiple mobility accounts, or home service accounts, so this works as a 2nd layer of confirmation to avoid changes on the wrong accounts). A PIN number protects your account from unauthorized access. We see on a daily basis ex husbands/wives trying to cancel phone numbers to get revenge, fraudsters trying to steal your phone number, so they can use it to access all your other accounts such as your email, bank, etc. Failure to provide your PIN creates a red flag since most fraudsters would respond the same way, so an agent will challenge the caller with a random set of security questions. This is to protect your account, identity, and security.

 

Told Richard to ask for other information that was associated with my mobile account.  He asked for my address and I gave him my postal code.   He asked for my full address and I gave him my street number .   Richard said he needed my full address so I reluctantly gave it to him.

  • I completely understand your logic here. You did not feel comfortable sharing this information over the phone. There are lots of scams (aka phishing attacks) where fraudsters pose to be an authority figure, and request your personal information. These attacks however are when someone calls you (since there are way to spoof a phone number on your caller ID). however when you call a phone number which is displayed on the official business website, or business card, you can be fairly confident you are speaking to a trusted source. 

  • Both yourself and the agent are at a state where there is not enough trust on either end. This makes for a very difficult call. TELUS follows very strict privacy guidelines to keep our customers safe in a world full of fraud. If we cant confidently confirm you are the owner of the account, we cannot provide any information shown on your account which you requested. 

  • For the future, if you call TELUS using the numbers found on the TELUS website you can be confident in knowing you are speaking to a real TELUS agent. If you still feel unsafe with providing information over the phone, you can visit a TELUS Store, where you can physically see the agent and know you are speaking to. 

TELUS Employee & Neighbourhood Volunteer :black_small_square: Found this post helpful? Let others know by clicking [❤️ Like] or [Accepted Solution].

Loathe
Neighbour

Agreed! You can add services but not remove them. There's no one to contact. Their Support is laughable. Given the price people pay for connectivity in Canada, they deliver (nice word) substandard support. 

 

I'm going to move to another provider, who hopefully has better support and a more intuitive interface. 

Hi @Loathe ,


Sorry you too have had a poor experience with TELUS customer service. I hope I can provide you with more context to the reason of your dropped call, and some solutions to resolve your concerns in the quickest way possible.

I would recommend TELUS Live Chat Support for this type of request.
Less wait times...and no hold music!

  1. At the bottom of this page, click Contact us
  2. Click on the purple box on the bottom right.
  3. Click Mobility.
  4. Click Yes, I am a Mobility customer.
  5. Select a department.
  6. Name
  7. Contact Number - Just in case the live chat disconnects, we can call you right back.

    Suggestion: If there is a wait time, you can speed up interaction process by pre-writing your PIN number and your concerns. Once the agent connects, you can send it right away, and save a few minutes. 

 

Alternatively you can request a call back or email reply
Depending on how many customers choose this option, there may be longer delays.

  1. At the bottom of this page, click Contact us
  2. Scroll to the bottom of the page.
  3. In the center look for Already contacted us?
  4. Click the text "expedite your request here"
  5. Scroll down half way.
  6. Enter in your details
  7. Click submit.

TELUS Employee & Neighbourhood Volunteer :black_small_square: Found this post helpful? Let others know by clicking [❤️ Like] or [Accepted Solution].

If interested, here are some cost saving tips, likely reason the call dropped, and information about different types of TELUS stores to ensure you visit the right one based on your specific needs.

You can add services but not remove them. 

 

  • I agree. There are some services and features that you cant remove or add using self serve.

    Here are some of the reasons why (if your interested).
    Some services we cant add, others we cant remove. We have a wide range of customers. Some who are very good with technology, others who may have less experience. Because of this wide demographic, there are some features which you cant add or remove to reduce the chances of incompatibility, or service disruption. When a customer is on a service agreement, some changes would result in termination of the contract which results in your next bill having your total device balances charge. If you're like me, I occasionally don't read the fine print, and click next, next, next resulting in other problems. Other times removing a service may remove some lost features which results in heavy overage charges. A great example is when there are multiple phone numbers on a single account all with shared data. If the subscriber who holds the primary data changes to a non-shareable data plan, the other lines are left with no data, and will incur pay-per-use charges. To avoid many of these errors, we advise customers to contact TELUS using a variety of options discussed in this thread. Other times a feature cannot be added or removed since you are on a grandfathered plan which is not compatible with some features. Oftentimes I find customers requesting for specific changes. After understanding the reason for the changes, I can often find a solution which suits their needs better, providing even more value, and or providing a more affordable solution. A great example of this is EasyRoam and our Canada-US plans. Some customers request that I add the Canada-US plan, but when I ask how often they travel to the USA, they state only a few times a year. If I notice this, I will suggest the customer instead keep a Canada-wide plan, and use the opportunity to educate the customer on how EasyRoam works, and how much more they will save. 

 

I called and called and called, each time selecting different options, each time getting the "Our customers matter" recording followed by a call termination.

 

  • Its never fun taking time out of your day, to call customer service and having the call drop after waiting on hold. What I assume happened was when you called, it may be been close to the end of our hours of operation, While on hold for the next agent, the department was then closed. If your view your call log, and see the time the call disconnected, and it was at a exact time such as 7:00pm, this was likely the case. Unfortunately during COVID-19 we have had to reduce our hours of operation. We have limited staff due to sickness, or in-ability to work from home, the remaining employees are working overtime in an attempt to fill the void as much as possible.

 

Given the price people pay for connectivity in Canada, they deliver (nice word) substandard support. 

  • I agree that compared to other parts of the world, Canada does have higher cost services. This is mainly due to population difference, and of course other things. There are however other more budget-friendly service providers in Canada who have less costs, and some even beat the pricing of countries known for low service rates. They all have their own pros and cons. Take a look at the mid-tier providers such as Koodo. They offer lower rates compared to TELUS, yet have a different business model in order to keep the rates so low. They do this by reducing and or limiting the amount of customer service representative's which is one of the largest expenses for most companies, utilizing more offshore agents, and creating a self-serve environment to reduce the need to call in. Some providers even have the slogan "Pay less, get less". With most, if not all mid-tier providers, if you call support regarding a change which can be done through self serve, there is a service fee. These providers are great solutions for those who are comfortable with technology, making changes to their own account and on a budget. They don't need to speak to customer service, and therefore that mid-tier carrier suits their lifestyle. Others prefer all inclusive options such as high-tier providers. They have higher prices, but include far more features, lower device financing for flagship devices, shareable data plans, ability to combine their home services, mobility, and even security services to receive bundle discounts which often result in more savings, more features, and free support while also being a cheaper alternative to having your services spread across multiple companies. 

    Cost Saving Advise

    • If you have TELUS home services & mobility and are looking to get a new device, ask if your eligible for a Mobile & Home $10 discount for 2 years ($240 savings).

    • If you live in BC or AB, and have your internet, tv, home phone, alarm system or cellphone with a different provider. Let a TELUS support agent know so we can take advantage of the most bundling discounts to save you across all your services. - This is usually where the most savings is.

    • If you already have home services and are off contract, you can ask the agent if there is a better deal if you re-contract. - Oftentimes there are some good savings.

    • If you add your entire family on one TELUS account and take full advantage of our TELUS Family Discounts. Get $5-$15 off each line (depending on amount of lines, and if plans are in-market). Our Peace Of Mind plans that include unlimited calling and texting with 10-50GB high speed data & unlimited throttled data across Canada. Never worry about sharing data, data overages or limited minutes again.

      • Your bill makes it easy to see what each line incurred with taxes. Each family member can pay there share at a glance. With Peace Of Mind plans, the billing should be the same each month. This means you can just have automatic interac e-transfers from your family members to pay their share. Tip: Use a credit card with a good points system such as air miles, or cash back. 

 

I drove to a telus store. They could only sell me stuff

  • We hope that every store provides the same level of customer service expected, however this does not always seem to be the case mainly due to unique differences to their business models. The reason behind this is that there are 3 main categories of stores. Retailers, Authorized Dealers, and Corporate Stores. TELUS wants to ensure there is a store close to every customer. In order to do this at a rapid pace, TELUS has allowed authorized users to resell TELUS services. 

    Retailers
    Often found in Best Buy, or Walmart. These employees are hired and paid by their employer such as Walmart. They are only trained in one aspect of the business which is sales and have very limited tools and access. This is because these employees are also trained in sales for every other carrier provided. Adding more requirements to their roles would require far to much training, and nearly impossible to retain, and remain up-to-date with daily changes across all providers. 

    Authorized Dealers
    Often stand-alone stores with dual branding TELUS & Koodo. These employees are also employed by other 3rd party companies. They specialize in TELUS & Koodo sales, have far more knowledge when it comes to services, troubleshooting, repairs, and more. They are still considered a mainly sales orientated channel and include their own service fees. 

    Corporate Stores
    Often found inside malls. They are employed by TELUS, have extensive training, access to more resources, and are known for providing great customer service, while also being a one-stop-shop for all your TELUS needs. They also offer free learning sessions for customers wanting to learn more about their devices. 

    Find a specific store: You can visit stores.telus.com and search based on your postal code. Stores labeled with the format "TELUS - [Mall Location]" is often a corporate store, while "TELUS - [Company Name]" is often an Authorized Dealer. You can also try calling the numbers for these stores to double check.

 

I'm going to move to another provider, who hopefully has better support and a more intuitive interface. 

  • TELUS and myself are truly sorry for not meeting or exceeding your expectations of customer support. I wish when you called, I was able to answer your call and provide you with the service you expect and resolve the issue mentioned in your other post here in a an efficient manner. If you do make the decision to leave, I genuinely hope one day you are able to provide us a second chance to redeem ourselves.

TELUS Employee & Neighbourhood Volunteer :black_small_square: Found this post helpful? Let others know by clicking [❤️ Like] or [Accepted Solution].