Young Underpaid Professionals

Posted by Rio S.

During my first call center stint, I was a tech support agent for a couple of consumer electronics companies. For your entertainment (and mine), let me share a couple of my stories. Whether it’s funny or sad (or both) purely depends on how you look at them. Here goes.

Somebody calls and I run her through the routine questions. I ask for the model number of the unit:

Caller: Where can I find the model number on my refrigerator?
Me: But ma’am, Aiwa deals only in consumer electronics. We don’t have refrigerators.
Caller: But my refrigerator is an Aiwa.
Me: Are you sure ma’am? Check the refrigerator door and see if it says A-I-W-A, Aiwa.

The line promptly goes dead.

Now, I’d like to think that that was an honest mistake, but this second story just takes the cake.

I pick up the call and the guy on the other end says on the onset:

Caller: Ma’am, I am an engineer, and I tell you your Walkmans have a design flaw.
Me: Sir, what seems to be the problem with your Walkman?
Caller: It says right here on the manual that this thing needs two AA batteries.
Me: Well, for that model, yes.
Caller: Then why can I only fit one in the slot?
Me (trying very hard to answer with a straight face so he wouldn’t know I’m rolling around in laughter): Well… Sir, you have to slide the first battery in, then you put the other one in the slot. That’s how it fits two AA batteries.

The line goes dead.

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