Death of a Customer

In 1949, a classic American drama, Death of A Salesman, was introduced to the public. Written by Arthur Miller (hey, what can you say about a man who not only wrote brilliantly but who also married Marilyn Monroe?), the play became a huge success. I read it as part of an English Literature class in the early 1960s, and it is still used in such classes today. The story was about a dreamer of a salesman, Willy Loman, whose dream of the great American success story is dying in his heart along with his confidence in himself. It is happening to me. My dream, however, has always been about the power and success of the great American customer. Finally, that dream has died in my heart along with any faith on my ability to do anything whatsoever about it. It died after several days trying to solve a program with EMBARQ, a telephone company supposedly serving customers in Tennessee. The problem itself is not the big story. The story is that we have called, and been put on hold until we are frustrated almost to the point of tears, but the problem is still not solved. AARRGGHH! Can you believe there was a time when your telephone company would come to your business—free of charge—and teach you how to deal with your customers on the telephone? There was. I remember it, and a good job they did, too. Now telephone companies are themselves horrible at dealing with customers by telephone.The frustrating thing is that this type of so-called service is now normal. Have you tried to call an airline, insurance company, or bank lately? Or, heaven help you, any branch of the guvmint? Pitiful. I don’t know the answer. Surely wish I did. We'd love to publish your comments. Please click the comment tab at the top.