Wow, you have to hear it to believe it. I’ve heard of the term “trying to save a sale” many times before, but this incident is just incredible. Recently a man named Vincent Ferrari heard horror stories on how much grief customers have to go through to cancel an AOL account and so he decided to sign up for the service and after awhile he then tried to cancel it. While doing this, he actually recorded the whole conversation between the customer service agent and himself. Despite how many times he tried to tell the representative to cancel the account, the representative persisted by dragging along the conversation to the point of frustration. Click on the player below to listen to the mp3 file of the conversation and hear for yourself.

Here are also some excerpts from the conversation for those who can’t listen to the audio:

____________________________

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: Hi this is John at AOL…. how may I help you today?

VINCENT FERRARI FERRARI: I wanted to cancel my account.

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: Sorry to hear that. Let’s pull your account up here real quick. Can I have your name please?

VINCENT FERRARI: Vincent Ferrari.

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: You’ve had this account for a long time.

VINCENT FERRARI: Yup.

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: Use this quite a bit. What was the cause of wanting to turn this off today?

VINCENT FERRARI: I just don’t use it anymore.

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: Do you have a high speed connection, like the DSL or cable?

VINCENT FERRARI: Yup.

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: Ok. How long have you had that….

VINCENT FERRARI: Years….

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: ….the high speed?

VINCENT FERRARI: ….years.

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: Ok. Well, actually I’m showing a lot of usage on this account.

VINCENT FERRARI: Yeah, a long time, a long time ago, not recently….

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: Okay, I mean is there a problem with the software itself?

VINCENT FERRARI: No. I just don’t use it, I don’t need it, I don’t want it. I just don’t need it anymore.

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: Okay. So when you use this…. I mean, use the computer, I’m saying, is that for business or for…. for school?

VINCENT FERRARI: Dude, what difference does it make. I don’t want the AOL account anymore. Can we please cancel it?

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: Last year was 545, last month was 545 hours of usage….

VINCENT FERRARI: I don’t know how to make this any clearer, so I’m just gonna say it one last time. Cancel the account.

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: Well explain to me what’s, why….

VINCENT FERRARI: I’m not explaining anything to you. Cancel the account.

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: Well, what’s the matter man? We’re just, I’m just trying to help here.

VINCENT FERRARI: You’re not helping me. You’re helping me….

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: I am trying to help.

VINCENT FERRARI: Helping…. listen, I called to cancel the account. Helping me would be canceling the account. Please help me and cancel the account.

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: No, it wouldn’t actually….

VINCENT FERRARI: Cancel my account….

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: Turning off your account….

VINCENT FERRARI: ….cancel the account….

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: ….would be the worst thing that….

VINCENT FERRARI: ….cancel the account.

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: Is your dad there?

VINCENT FERRARI: My Dad…? I’m the primary paying…I’m the primary person with the account. Not my dad.

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: Okay, cause I’m just trying to figure out….

VINCENT FERRARI: Cancel the account. I don’t know how to make this any clearer for you. Cancel the account. The card is mine….in my name ….the account is mine and in my name. When I say cancel the account, I don’t mean help me figure out how to keep it, I mean cancel the account.

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: Well, I’m sorry, I don’t know what anybody’s done to you Vincent because all I’m….

VINCENT FERRARI: You’re annoying the s*** out of me that’s what you’re doing to me.

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: Well, thanks a lot. That goes both ways my friend.

VINCENT FERRARI: Good. Will you please cancel the account?

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: Alright, some day when you calmed down you’re gonna realize that all I was trying to do was help you…. and it was actually in your best interest to listen to me.

VINCENT FERRARI: Wonderful, Okay, yeah great…..

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: To process your cancellation request, I have to tell you about a free benefit for valued members like yourself….

VINCENT FERRARI: Don’t want it…..I know the drill…I don’t even want it. Don’t even bother.

AOL REPRESENTATIVE: Kay. If you want me to cancel this account, you’re going to let me speak and, and give this paragraph. Kay? Cause if not, we can just argue all day, I… I really don’t care to be honest with you. But you’re going to listen to me if you want this turned off. So, can I speak now?

________________________

Apparently the AOL employee was fired shortly after the news broke out. I know most companies offer incentives for its employees who are able to successfully convince a customer to stay with them, but this is beyond disbelief. For myself, I’ve experienced some shady practices with certain companies such as how when you send in a request to cancel an account, they then request that you go through say another 4 steps to cancel the service and by the time you do that you are in a new billing cycle already. Hopefully the amount of public exposure from this will make certain companies think twice about its customer retention strategies.

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I just had a conversation with some of my friends on how it seems that everyone knows at least one person who is in a management or executive position with certain companies who don’t seem to be qualified at all to do the job which lead to profits and productivity being driven down for a company. Of course, stories of foul play came up on how some reached the top through questionable means or vice versa how some people had accomplished some very big goals to warrant it. The top three stories that I see and hear on how people reach the top is by one of the following:

1) Working hard and proving that you are the best –

While it is the longest and hardest route to go with, in my opinion it is the most admirable way to make it to the top. This often requires a person with a very strong personality who constantly envisions what the end results will be and works diligently to achieve it. Another trait that I have noticed with people like this is that when it is time to step up and to get results, their personality and demeanor can often seem intimidating which many people are uncomfortable with. In many cases, that can also be a downfall as it can rub people the wrong way. Out of all of the people that I have met in my lifetime that would fall under this category though, most of them have turned out to be very genuine and trustworthy individuals who I wouldn’t mind associating with.

2) Rubbing shoulders with the right people and knowing how to work the system –

Being a smooth talker and taking advantage of every loophole that one can find is another route that I see people practice all the time. The most typical scenario that I would expect from this is a lot of backstabbing and manipulation from the person as he or she is willing to do almost anything regardless on how bad it could affect others. To the people in charge, they always seem to say the right things to the right people and produce the best results while in the background they constantly lie and spread rumors to get ahead. I guess a snake in a suit is another way of describing it. I suppose you can say that a person who chooses this route is just as deserving as anyone else as you have to be smart to be able to succeed with this path. Not only that, but the person must also have a strong character to not get emotionally flustered over integrity issues. One thing is for sure, I know I wouldn’t trust them.

3) Riding on the coattails of a successful group or individual -

When you are a part of a successful group, naturally you will get a share in the spotlight. Often times, people simply look at data and numbers from a piece of paper to determine who would be the best candidate for a role. Once they find an ideal group and depending on the type of business, let’s say a customer service oriented company, they would then try to narrow the search down by traits such as who seems to have the friendliest personality to them. I guess politics are kind of the same when you think about it. Many times this method can actually produce good leaders who would have otherwise been overlooked. Unfortunately for myself, I’ve seen more people who have moved up in a company this way only to be extremely clueless and ineffective in managing or leading a company. When a challenge arises, they would constantly scramble to find a quick fix solution or during tough times such as a conflict they would hide in the corner and hope that things fix itself. Basically, they are the first ones to come out cheering when things are well and the last ones to step up when it comes down to it. They’re usually nice people too which is the unfortunate part.

Everything that I just wrote is obviously in a general sense of course as there are always exceptions to it or how some people have done a mix of everything to get to where they are. I guess it is obvious that I favor people who work hard and accomplish big goals to get to the top. Everyone has probably had different experiences, but for me people who have chosen this route have consistently been the best people to work with and have been the most successful as they have a wealth of knowledge and life experience. Even I never forget though that when it comes to making it to the top, many times it’s not how much you know but rather who you know.

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An interesting event occurred recently which makes me think back on how everyone has different expectations in regards to how far a person would have to go in defending or supporting another person to show that they genuinely care about the other person’s well being. The event was actually very business related as well and it will definitely cause some split opinions on the issue. For privacy sakes, I will call the two people Bob and Joe.

Bob was a supervisor for a very fast paced company and has a very low key personality. He would often go with the flow without trying to be too ambitious and would rather hide in the corner whenever conflict or challenge came up. To help him was Joe who was one of Bob’s employees. Joe was quite the opposite as he was a go getter and was always willing to try new things and if a challenge was presented he would jump right in front of it. Incase anyone thinks it is weird that based on the personalities the roles should be switched, the scenario actually was like this.

One day, Bob was pressured by the people higher up in the company to perform better as the company was struggling to meet its target. Not really sure what to do, Bob went to Joe for help. Feeling sympathetic about the situation and wanting to help, Joe decided to go out of his way and to try his best to make the situation better. During that time, Joe had to defend Bob many times as he would often get criticized for the poor results and was ridiculed by others. After a lot of hard work, the company exceeded its target and everyone was happy. Bob also expressed his gratefulness to Joe for his help and support.

A few weeks later, an unfortunate event occurred as Joe was being targeted by some of the higher ups in the company as apparently a rumor was started about something that he apparently did. This created a lot of commotion and when Joe told Bob about the event in question, Bob definitely knew that it was not true. At this point Joe needed support from Bob, but unfortunately he decided to not get involved. When asked why not, Bob mentioned that he wanted to remain neutral to avoid any confrontation that could jeopardize his own position and current relationship with the higher ups and expressed that he would help in any other way that he can. As one would expect, the conversation didn’t turn out too well.

One side of the opinion that I hear from others is that Bob was justified in not getting involved as although he knew that the rumor was untrue, he had no direct involvement in the situation and considering the type of personality that he has, it would be unfair to expect him to take charge of the situation. The other side of the opinion is that many feel it is ludicrous that based on what Joe has done for him, there should be no question that he should provide full support regardless of the possible repercussions in doing so.

So which side of the fence would you be on? Personally for the above event, I would favor the opinion that Bob should have done something about it. In my opinion, people that say they are just afraid or want to remain neutral in situations like that where their presence would have a direct impact in rectifying the situation are being selfish. For myself, when I personally go out of my way to help people, that doesn’t mean that they are now in my debt and are then obligated to pay me back in some way. However, in a situation like the above, it’s the principles on the fact that someone went beyond their boundary to help a person and if the other person doesn’t even try to step beyond their boundaries to do the same during a crucial time, they can’t help but to feel a little betrayed. If you expect someone to go out of their way for you, then in my opinion it is only fair to provide the same in return.

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Today Microsoft announced that on July 2008 Bill Gates will step down from his daily duties at Microsoft and will work part-time as chairman and technical adviser for the company. The main reason for this is that he will be working full-time for the Bill and Melissa Gates foundation, which he founded with his wife.

This is probably going to generate a lot of buzz that’s for sure. For me, I personally don’t think this news comes out as that much of a shocker. Everyone has their own reasons for doing something and if you feel that you have left your mark and have accomplished all that you wanted to, it is only natural to go on to bigger and better things as a successful business person is always moving. By moving I don’t necessarily mean always dropping one thing and doing another, but rather having that mentality of wanting to accomplish something and constantly doing things in order to reach that goal as oppose to just sitting still and receiving the same result everyday.

There are probably going to be a lot of doom and gloom stories about the company over this, but I’m pretty sure if you are a company as big as Microsoft that there are plenty of qualified candidates that will be suitable for the job. From what I have read, the foundation is actually doing pretty well thus far. We’ll just have to wait and see what type of things will happen when Bill Gates fully dedicates his time to it.

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Recently when I was visiting a popular Vancouver acting site, Vancouver Actor’s Guide, I decided to visit the forum to read some messages if there was anything big happening around here as many people like to call it Hollywood north here. While browsing the forum, all of a sudden every page was redirected to a page stating that the forum had been hacked.

The hacker left his name marked all over the forum and so out of curiosity I typed it in a search engine and was I ever surprised. It looked like there were hundreds of sites that used an older version of phpBB, which is popular free forum software, and was targeted by the hacker. While seeing other sites that were hacked, in some of them there was a message left for the owners that if they wanted to recover their forum data, they could negotiate with the hacker.

At times like this it is sure a big reminder to always have a backup of your data and important information. If these sites were large businesses it would of sure been an expensive ordeal to recover from.

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