A Sprint Customer No More

Sprint infuriated me.

Sprint lost me as a customer.

I was a three-year, satisfied Sprint customer. Two phones, max minutes each on the account. Our monthly bill is always around $250. For me, my mobile phone is a tool ... a money maker. It's as vital to me as a scalpel to a surgeon or a hammer to a carpenter.

I hate to fool with account settings, choices or selections on any product or service. Just too busy to keep up with such things. Set it once and forget it--that's my modus operandi.

One day last Fall, I noticed my monthly bill had skyrocketed. We weren't doing anything differently, as far as minutes, roaming, etc. I eventually checked my Sprint account online. Guess what? Sprint had allowed my account plan to expire. Instead of notifying me, they dumped me into their "list price" plan--the most expensive option. I was paying "rack rate" to borrow a term from the hotel industry. Is that any way to treat a longtime customer?

Jeesh!

Sprint infuriated me. Sprint lost me as a customer.

But wait. It gets worse.

One day Sprint cut me off. They disabled my service on a busy Friday. No warnings, no phone calls, no e-mail messages. Just cut me off cold. Friday is a day for closing deals and completing business. Not a day to be with cell phone service.

In fairness, I readily admit that I pay my bills a bit late. Our account is always paid about 15-20 days beyond the due date. I pay bills once a month. Hey - I'm a busy father/ author/ teacher/ husband/ entrepreneur/ business owner/ marketing guy. So please cut me some slack.

One would think that since I'm using their PHONE, they could have CALLED me to remind me that the account was past due. Jeesh!

Instead, they disabled my service so that any button I pressed immediately routed me to their call center in India. I happily talked to the account rep in India. He offered me one option: "Sir, how would you like to pay your bill today? Credit card? Or would you like me to debit the funds from your bank account?"

Neither.

I wanted to express my complaints and concerns to a manager. Grudgingly, the call center rep transfers my call. After a couple dozen rings and several hard-click transfers, the call winds up squarely back in India at the same call center. Play the movie all over again ... sir ... pay your bill ... debit the funds.

You gotta be kidding me. I am beyond annoyed. I'm ballistic.

Finally, I got to talk to a nice lady somewhere in New Jersey. She was willing to listen to my concerns, in a professional manner. I'm telling her about how Sprint is losing me as a customer, losing a three-year relationship, two phones, three grand a year in revenues. Then, suddenly, the Sprint network dropped my call.

A metaphor? Yes. Ironic? You bet.

Stay tuned. There's a lesson here. And yes, it gets even worse.

--- To be continued ---