AND JUST LIKE THAT …
I learned how long 5 days can be.
My TELUS was down.
For those that don’t know who TELUS is, they have been my internet provider for the past 25 years.
And with my internet down, I had some extra time on my hands this week. So, I decided to figure out how much I’ve paid TELUS spending the past 25 years with them. I would never have imagined it but it was over $52,000 ($150-$250/month X 300+ months) for internet services for my business.
WOW! That’s a long-time loyal client wouldn’t you say? I’d love to have clients like this in my Virtual Assistant business.
I didn’t even have a locked-in contract with TELUS and simply paid on a monthly basis. I stuck with them cause they were always there for me with awesome internet services to keep my business running. They made me money!
Sure, there were technical issues now and then. But TELUS was always on top of it, taking responsibility to get my business back up and running online. Their loyalty team would even go that extra mile when my services were down. Like, compensate for any downtime. Be it monetary compensation to my bill or adding perks like unlimited WIFI to my plan.
I was a long-time loyal customer to them AND JUST LIKE THAT…
SUNDAY: A TELUS technician arrives at my home as my Wi-Fi was sketchy and made my TV pixelate which was annoying. He solved this initial problem. YAY! He said to text him if I have any issues and he’ll be right back to fix whatever is going on.
My Thoughts: Hmmm, I felt special. The loyalty team at TELUS decreased my annual billing to half price as compensation for my pixelating issues.
MONDAY: Woke up and Internet is down again. That also meant no TV.
My Thoughts: YIKES! No TV? That meant no hockey night TV games for my hubby. Anyone from Canada will relate to my night ahead. Fun it wouldn’t be. 😉
After my hub was off to work, I texted the TELUS technician like he said to do but got no response. I even called him and left a message just in case he didn’t get my texts. Finally, around noon, I phoned TELUS head office. I was put on hold for around 50 minutes listening to a sad loop of how the current Covid Omicron wave has affected helpdesk wait times. Where was that upbeat music I so needed right now?
Finally, I get through to a TELUS rep and get another technician booked tomorrow to come to fix my internet. YAY!
TUESDAY: No show for a technician. Wasted hours on hold to TELUS today. Still no Wi-Fi.
My Thoughts: I’m freezing! Forgot that my Honeywell thermostat was hijacked by an app that requires Wi-Fi. Spent 42 useless minutes trying to figure out how to start my furnace (like in the good ole days before the internet). Ended up plugging in a heater to warm my toes.
WEDNESDAY: TELUS technician arrives and I admit he made an effort. He fixed my internet 4 times that day. But think he got sick n’ tired of my hourly texts to come back and fix again so he gave up. Finally, he pushed my problem onto the next TELUS tech tier telling me I’d be hearing from them tomorrow morning with a new appointment time.
My Thoughts: Annoyed that Alexa couldn’t hear me tell her to turn on the back deck lights. Oh how I miss you Alexa!
THURSDAY: Tried to amuse myself baking as I waited all day for a new appointment with another technician. I must have spent 4 hours on hold today trying to get any action. TELUS dropped the ball.
My Thoughts: Frustrated and feeling fat! It’s now Thursday night, no internet fix from TELUS. All I’ve achieved today is adding 2 pounds to my hips eating all those goodies I baked.
FRIDAY: 6 days now offline!
My Thoughts: PISSED! So much time wasted and money lost in my business being offline now for almost a week.
Still no appointment setup from TELUS. Not even a follow-up call. 🙁
AND JUST LIKE THAT…
I’m doing a HAPPY DANCE!
I picked up the phone and called SHAW (TELUS’s #1 competitor).
AND by 3 pm that Friday a cheery SHAW technician had left my home. Leaving me with unlimited Wi-Fi data plan 20X faster than I had before PLUS Total TV with over 120 channels.
MY Thoughts: BONUS! And all for a cheaper price than what TELUS offered me as compensation for my troubles last Sunday.
For my VA geek pals out there, check out the difference in speed from one provider to the other…
That’s almost 20X faster internet speed. AWESOME!!!!!!!!
Check your internet speed here.
So what’s the point of my story?
Well for ME, it was super helpful therapy sharing my story and getting it out of my system so thanks for listening LOL! I love the support of my VA pals who helped me keep it all together during tougher business times. It’s crucial to your sanity to have the support of others who understand working from home isn’t all that and a bag of chips.
Speaking of Support: You too can have coaching and support by CLICKING HERE to become a VANA Community member.
Back to the point of my story…
But for YOU, as a Virtual Assistant, it’s a good reminder to always make sure your clients are doing the HAPPY DANCE by…
- Putting your client’s needs FIRST in your business.
- Being responsible. Don’t drop the ball when they need you the most.
- Listening to your client and meeting their needs and expectations.
- Having strong communication systems in place.
- Following up regularly with your clients on a consistent basis.
- Going that extra mile when issues do arise.
Else you’ll be just like TELUS > Losing a loyal $52K client to their competitor SHAW.
UPDATE: it’s now Tuesday (10 days later) and TELUS has still not gotten back to me with a technician or even a follow up call. I’m dreading spending hours on hold to cancel my services with them.
I’d love to hear your thoughts about my blog post so please share your comments below.
Wishing you all a tech-free week ahead my Virtual Assistant pals! 😉
Tawnya Sutherland
