A recent article in the Wall Street Journal was titled “I Love Using Technology—but I Hate Buying It“. The subheadline: “Tech companies make it hard to try out, purchase, fix and stop using their products. It shouldn’t be that way.”
At Custom Channels, we agree with those observations! Technology interaction can be frustrating.
Custom Channels is more than a tech company. We are a music-centric company, yet we certainly do use technology to create and deliver our music services to businesses.
Streaming music services are in the tech sector. A music service for a business, no matter whether it is for a single location or a hundred locations, should be easy to try, easy to use, and easy to get support.
So let’s look at what this WSJ writer thinks tech companies should behave like.
Dr. Alexandra Samuel is a technology researcher and co-author of “Remote, Inc.: How to Thrive at Work…Wherever You Are.”
Make my free trial really free and not such a trial
Dr. Samuel writes: “I want a no-strings-attached free trial, with a full set of features. Too many software companies use the free trial to get a credit-card number that they keep charging—and then they make it hard to unsubscribe. Others offer a free trial with such limited features that you have to pay for the full version before you can get a feel for whether the app will actually work for you. Just give me the full app for 7 or 14 or 30 days, and then let me buy it once I know I want to use it.”
We agree! Our Custom Channels free trial of ReMix or All Access services is the actual full product. And no credit card is required to get the free 7-day trial.
Support like you sell
WSJ: “So many tech companies are great at reeling customers in, only to subject us to complicated and time-consuming processes when we need tech support. Treat your speedy sales process as the standard and hire enough customer-support people to make it just as quick to get a little help.”
Again, we agree! Custom Channels places a high emphasis on providing excellent customer service. We respond quickly to email. Should you want to talk with us, we answer the phone in our company office, rather than being directed to a call center or outsourced service. Additionally, the plug-and-play feature of our music player is a valuable aspect of our service. It’s easy to listen to music without having to go through complicated player setup processes requiring support. Being able to quickly respond to inquiries and questions is crucial in creating a positive music experience.
Just give me a human
WSJ: “I count myself lucky when there is a support line to call; too often, the only tech-support option is self-serve, online documentation or some kind of chatbot. Even with customer support lines, you sometimes have to spend 10 or 20 minutes proving yourself to a robot before you get to a human. If you’re going to sell me an app or service I depend on, you owe it to me to pick up the phone when I call.”
Exactly! No chatbots at Custom Channels. The service and support interaction, whether through email or on the phone, is by a human. We actually have a phone number posted on the support page of our website. And a phone number appears on every music player.
Let me get tech support at my level
WSJ: “As a skilled user, I’ve already done the basic troubleshooting steps before I reach out to tech support—so let me skip past the entry-level tech-support folks who only know how to run me through the how-tos I’ve already read online.”
“My less techie friends are just as frustrated by support lines that assume they can speak geek: They need support people who skip the jargon and assume no baseline level of tech knowledge.”
We communicate with a wide range of users, ranging from corporate IT directors to restaurant assistant managers, and we understand the importance of adapting our approach and language to match their technical expertise. We can quickly identify the level of technical knowledge of the person contacting us based on how they describe their issue. Our team is equally comfortable interacting with people who have a sophisticated tech background or less technical knowledge.
Go the distance
WSJ: “I don’t want to replace every gadget in my home every two or three years. But hardware and software makers love to box us into a corner where it’s upgrade or die.”
Our Custom Channels music players, the units that reside in stores and restaurants that connect to the internet to stream the music over the business’s sound system, are guaranteed for the life of the subscription. Should the unit fail, we replace it at no charge.
Our internet streaming service doesn’t need to be upgraded, either. We are always making improvements to our technology on our side, the back end, but it does not require the user to make changes or buy anything new.
Summary
Technology can be frustrating. Custom Channels is prioritizing the customer experience when it comes to technology interaction. We’ve created a positive, user-friendly experience that helps business operators feel more comfortable with the music technology they are using.
Through our no-charge free trials, quick and efficient support, and adapting to customers’ technical expertise, the tech side of listening to music in a business is made easier.