Busy Bee

I've a lot on at the moment, which is good in one way as it keeps me healthy and has a positive effect on my well-being. At the moment, I am busy writing a funding application for the support group I help run. Each year, a pot of money is made available for groups that promote mental health and support people who suffer with mental illness. Last year, we were awarded a significant amount of money which paid for arts, crafts and computer based projects. This year, we have decided to focus on outdoor activities and an a new Open Space Garden project at our base in Spalding. The project will provide a working garden and greenhouse enabling our members to grow their own herbs, fruit and vegetables. At the same time, they can learn about raising produce from seed and the the health benefits of eating fruit and vegetables. It is a project likely to go down well with our funders and I'm hoping also that funds will be made available for us to provide a comfortable, welcoming space in which our members can relax and enjoy the garden they have created for themselves. We won't know if we have been successful until September/October, but the application has to be submitted by the end of this month. We have made a start on the project in the hope that we will secure further funding. With the weather so good (at the moment), we're keen to get out there and make a start.
I'm pleased to say that I'm on course for having everything ready for submission on Friday by the 5pm deadline. We (the committee) had a very good meeting yesterday and agreed everything I have done so far. I just need a few lines written about one of the projects we're proposing and for someone to get back to me with one or two prices. Our costs are already over £9,000 and I still need to sort out the insurance for the bus which will cover public liability and when it's on the road and in storage. There's quite a bit yet to do, but I'm quite used to doing these applications now and I have a routine that seems to work for me so that's all good.

Another school half term break is upon us. I really can't remember having this many breaks when I was at school - in fact all I can remember is the long summer holiday. My son will be spending a lot of time with me this coming week and when I'm busy with group, he'll be with his mum at work or with his nanny and granddad.

I normally have to moan about something nowadays. I'm sure it's part of growing older and my wife would happily tell you I've turned it into something of a hobby... At the moment I'm moaning about the lack of service we are receiving from our telephone provider. Since Thursday we have been without a working land line phone. I'm sure it has something to do with the storms we had on Thursday, though although the phone doesn't work, we still have working broadband on the same line. It's all pretty odd. It's now the third day and our service provider has done nothing. It's only when I complain on Facebook or Twitter do I get a response. They don't like it as they don't want the rest of the world to know how bad they are, but should we really have to revert to shaming them? Is that how to get value for money and the service we pay for nowadays? It would seem so. It's certainly the only way to get them to respond and I'm sure they have people whose job it is to monitor social media, for a response can often appear in seconds. If only they could learn to value their customers, now that really would be something... Moan over.

The Fourth Utility & Being On-Hold

I've been without Internet service between 10am and 3pm today. I say 'Internet Service' rather than Broadband or ADSL as it was the service at fault rather the actual ADSL connection to the exchange. I know this as I know what to look for, plus of course my router tells me what's gone wrong. It is therefore so thoroughly frustrating and stressful when I am forced to report a fault to my provider TalkTalk (formerly Pipex). It should be noted that up until a couple of years ago when Pipex was swallowed-up by the TalkTalk / Carphone Warehouse empire, I had had not one single problem with my service.
TalkTalk insist on using an Indian based call centre. When you question them, they tell you they are in Delhi but they very cleverly make sure they know what's going on here including the weather conditions so they can have anyone believe they are in the same country. The people in Delhi are trained to ask a pre-set list of questions separated by the odd pleasantry. This is so frustrating, especially when I know what the problem is. The diagnostic tests are unnecessary and a waste of time. I can see the exchange, I have ADSL so the fault is at your end, not mine. The only thing that stops them and makes them begin to treat me as an IT professional of 15+ years is when I tell them I am 'ex BT'. This is the only way to get them to break away from their lists and diagnostic checks. They seem to recognise this. It is code to switch them from normal mode to expert mode, and it works for me every time. A word of advice though, if you are going to use this ploy then I'd suggest reading up on the terminology used by engineers including a basic description of how your local telephone exchange works. It does work though.
How strange it was then that mid-call, my Internet service suddenly sprang back to life... The router at Talk Talk Network Centre was doing its job once again and negotiating successfully with my Internet routing request bounced across the network from my little exchange here at Gedney Drove End. A little more than just coincidence me thinks. More likely to be someone spotting that a router had tripped or a repeater was down. I'm back and running once more. My withdrawal symptoms are receding and I feel connected once again. My relationship with TalkTalk has once again been stretched to near breaking point. Four hours without Internet service is not good, not in 2012. I should change provider, I know I should. But the effort and stress involved in doing so is preventing me from doing it. I know how much hassle is involved, and so do the providers. That's why they make it so difficult to switch. Once they have you, they pretty much know you'll stay with them no matter the service you receive. This is of course bad, very bad but is true of all main utilities. The industry needs to change and switching can be made so much easier, but it's not in the providers interest so they don't bother. I simply couldn't cope with being without my Internet services for up to a week. I'm far too addicted to my instant news, information and mail.

Finally, I'm afraid it's also Santander's turn for a moan. I have to call them each month around this time to pay a little off a loan I have with them. I was unable to make my contractual payments so I have an arrangement with them to pay a little each month. Rather than let me pay using Internet Banking, a swift, safe and guaranteed method used my millions, they insist I call and pay using my debit card. This is always a stressful process for me and it's a relief when I can pay them without being reminded of how heavily in debt I am with them and how bad I have been in falling ill and daring to default. I begrudgingly accept I have to do this each month but can I please request that they change their on-hold music. It is bloody awful and can only have one intention of causing maximum stress to the caller.
A short audio clip will appear here once I've worked out how to add it!

Thoughts on Trains & Their 'Customers'

When, I wonder, did the rail passenger become a customer. I understand that the term 'passenger' is no longer used by the rail companies in favour of the more appropriate term of 'customer'. So when did this come about? Was it as a result of years of neglect? Did someone wake up one morning and realise that passengers were in fact paying for a service? We'll probably never know but I'd like to think there was a sea change in thinking and a long overdue reaction to genuine and growing public discontentment.

A keen Twitter user, I am fed a constant stream of updates from various railway operating companies all around the country. In all cases, they refer to customers rather than passengers. I could be argued that communication has improved considerably. Twitter now provides the means for direct and instant messaging between operators and 'customers'. Only today there were messages sent every few minutes regarding a power failure at Kings Cross which was affecting all trains in and out. On other days, I have read about problems with flooding caused by the freakish rain we've been having. These messages instill a degree of comfort. There's someone out there who knows what is happening, and more importantly, they care.
A lot of their knowledge comes from the passengers - sorry, 'customers' who now have a link to someone in control. From their mobile phones and Internet connected devices, they feed them information about packed trains, late trains and blocked toilets. In this case, the interaction between customer and supplier is instant. This has to be a good thing.

There is another type of message I see all too often on my Twitter feed. These are the messages apologising for cancelled services due to a person being hit by a train. I see these almost daily and it bewilders me to think that so many people are able to stray onto our railway network and in so many cases end up under a moving train. There can be no doubt that a great many of these are intentional suicide attempts, and every one causes pain, anguish and distress to all involved especially the driver, passengers and emergency services. It is sad, but Twitter allows me to know about everything that's going on.

As I type this, a tweet has popped up from Greater Anglia telling me that there is a 'generally good service' and to reply if they can be of any help. This is service, good service. But it is a level of service we seem to struggle to provide on a personal level. Maybe it's something about the culture of this country. Rather than being asked in person if we think the service is satisfactory, we prefer to do it electronically. Despite our shyness, it is still a valuable thing and a channel between the customer and the supplier.
Has customer service improved, or has Twitter simply made communication easier?