I usually make small conversation -- "your diction's good" -- "you seem to know all the answers to my questions" -- "have you been working here for long?" Or if person's hard to understand -- "what country are you in? India? The Philippines?"
Yes, I always thank the techies. And try to express my appreciation in a spur of the moment, fun way.
Why? Because we're dealing with strangers in places, in rooms in parts of the world we'll probably never see. If they're in New Delhi, I ask what time it is there, mention the weather in Manhattan, and ask what kind weather the techie's having in his town.I want to make contact with the people with whom I'm connecting. It's becoming a larger part of my life, and obviously it's a very large part of theirs.
If someone's extra helpful, I joke and say I'd invite you over for coffee if you lived a little closer. And ask for their name. (Pronouncing it -- oh my, that can be tricky.)
Once a month I call in the reading for our gas meter. If the voice that answers is cheery -- sometimes at 9 AM a real human answers right away, without my being on hold -- I say, "You sound so peppy, as if you're in a good mood this morning!" Usually we exchange a chuckle and a few more words, like friends.
It's my life and the moment is mine (same as it's your life and the moment is yours), but I want to make it important -- not just because someone's sold me, told me, or helped me. Hey, we've shared something. We're miles and miles apart, but we've touched each other!
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1 comment:
I'm like you. I like to be really nice when I contact a customer service person who is clearly from another country. I don't get as personal as you do, but I am effusive in thanking them. When I was struggling with Microsoft, and two customer service people in India helped me, I wrote their boss to compliment them. It feels good to do this tiny bit of diplomacy.
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