urn:uuid:3ce0fb77-60c3-514d-5a18-d70a48dfc082 http://gethuman.com/Google/news_355/atom http://gethuman.com/images/gethuman-hands50.gif urn:uuid:8d575eb8-cebd-beb4-7b75-eb8bfb8d5015 2012-05-21T16:23:42+00:00

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urn:uuid:f91555b6-99ee-d5c1-91c0-6a5c56862054 2011-08-24T16:06:53+00:00

Google can't have a customer service department. For those of you without Google+ he said, "If you have a billion users, and a mere 0.1% of them have an issue that requires support on a given day (an average of one support issue per person every three years), and each issue takes 10 minutes on average for a human to personally resolve, then you'd spend 19 person-years handling support issues every day. If each support person works an eight-hour shift each day then you'd need 20,833 support people on permanent staff just to keep up. That, folks, is internet scale." Interesting.

Don't get me wrong, he does have a valid point with his quick back of the napkin math, but part of me isn't buying it. Isn't part of having a business not only providing a product, as well as servicing said product? I understand that there are billions of users of Google, and the company employs thousands while continuing to shape the internet that we currently use, and provide sound products that are often times free of cost. But just throwing your hands up in the air and saying that you'd need to hire too many people isn't the answer. Neither is the current setup where customers who need support from one of Google's many products has to search online in different forums and frequently asked questions section. So how about a middle ground? Google can continue to provide help content online, as well as adding a few more staffers to the customer service department. Between the two, I'd hope that Google would be able to handle all of the queries and not use up as many man hours as predicted by Clinton. Of course what do I know? Obviously Google has it figured out if they are as successful as they are. Maybe they've already looked into the answer and that's why they are where they are right now. Readers? Any thoughts on this subject?

For more on the Google+ posting, click here. ]]>

urn:uuid:de948f82-4d98-aad6-d9f1-9cbe3d64c3a3 2011-06-24T15:03:32+00:00

Google Android phones. Apparently the hacker groups are now targeting Google phones as they use an open source platform that is relatively easy to hack, and thus they can more easily steal user's personal information. It makes sense if you think about it as smart phones are really no different than a small computer. Google is aware of the problem, and is removing applications that could potentially cause customers harm. The main problem lies in the fact that Google, in an effort to remain competitive with Apple in terms of apps, allows anyone to create an app and submit it to their app store. Apple reviews all of the submissions, but Google does not. Thus, hacker groups are submitting apps knowing they are not being reviewed, and thus are more easily able to steal people's personal information. Android phones are the most popular phones in the country right now with 36% of the market, and thus seeing the fact that Google is investigating the problem is encouraging. The company has been flagging and removing troublesome apps, but as always, if any of our readers ever have any questions or concerns, please contact the company.

For more on the potential problem with Android phones, click here. ]]>

urn:uuid:bb9cad4d-77c7-8515-4bdd-a0b6bb9da2c6 2010-10-11T16:37:56+00:00

Google customer service, you aren't alone. The Better Business Bureau recently gave out customer service grades to various companies, and Google received a C-. Ouch. Google's competitors in the space received far better grades including an A+ for Microsoft, an A for HP, and a B for Verizon. The main reason for the lackluster grade for the billion dollar company was ignoring customer complaints. Google straight up ignored 49 customer service complaints, and on over 100 occasions refused to adjust to customer service complaints.

While theses stats may seem glaring to some, it's important to look at the stats on a relative basis. Yes it looks bad there are 150+ complaints that went ignored or were unresolved due to customer policy, but the company has also received 648 complaints. By no means are we advocating the company's lack of customer service, but we like to point out the overall picture. Clearly Google needs to focus more on it's customers, and if the Better Business Bureau has anything to say about it, that should be their main concern.

For more on the Better Business Bureau results click this link. ]]>

urn:uuid:8618c6ea-934c-9a3a-abd0-1708924b1828 2010-05-11T15:00:53+00:00

Sprint became the second large cellphone carrier to decide not to sell the Google Nexus One Phone. Previously, Verizon had been the only cellphone carrier to turn down the Nexus One phone, and has opted instead to sell phones with the Google based Android Platform. The reason for the two major cell carriers deciding against selling the Nexus One phones? You guessed it, terrible customer service. As previously noted in this column Google has experienced an influx of customer complaints from the launch of the phone, and it is now looking more and more like the company's effort to break into the cellphone market, may be coming to an end.

The timing of the announcement coincides with a recent study by Accenture, claiming that communications and high-tech companies are being forced to invest more into customer service in order to meet increasing customer service expectations. According to the study, customers just aren't as loyal as they used to be. 13% of residential customers and 25% of enterprise customers are loyal to their communications and high tech companies, and as a result, companies are forced to focus more on not only attracting new customers, but doing everything in their power to retain them. Quite simply, the old adage holds true, the customer knows best.

While no one is going to argue about the success Google has had since inception, it appears the company may have finally overstepped it's boundaries with this foray into the cellphone market. While the company excels in web based applications and has received rave reviews for it's Android cellphone platform, companies like Nokia and Ericsson will be quick to tell you just how hard it is to operate in such a competitive space. Google has built an empire on providing web based solutions to its customers, and while the failure of the Nexus One will not leave an indelible mark on the company's sterling history, it proves once again that the true power lies in the customer, and choosing to ignore customer experience and customer satisfaction can lead to a products doom before it can get out of the box.

For more on the Accenture study, or Google's trouble with the Nexus One, click here and here. ]]>

urn:uuid:495bea21-b2ed-ceb7-97de-14c9faa2fa34 2010-02-10T17:33:41+00:00

Google Nexus One customers out there, Google has finally had enough and has launched a Customer Service line just for you. Frustrated, slightly curious, or fully curious Nexus One customers can call 888-48-NEXUS (63987) and reach a real live person to discuss all of your customer service needs. The company has been taking a beating in recent weeks for not having a dedicated number to handle all of the problems with the newly launched HTC phone, and it appears Sergey Brin and Larry Page have listened. We here at Get Human have not had a chance to test the line yet, so any readers who are experiencing problems with their Nexus One, please let us know how effective or ineffective the line is in our Review section. ]]>