Happy Story
Once upon a time, there was an Addict Mobile subscriber who always called the Smart customer service hotline (*888). One day, he asked for information on how to re-activate his Smart Money account. A girl named AJ gathered the information she needed from the subscriber supplied as much information as she can and then promised to get back with an update.
Lo and behold, AJ held her promise. Within a few hours of our first conversation, she was able to clarify what the subscriber needed to do to re-activate the Smart Money account. AJ even called up a few days later just to verify that all concerns have been addressed.
Prompt and accurate replies, timely follow-ups and pleasant person making sure that the mobile services work.
Sad Story
Once upon a … Many times, though, when I call the Smart hotline, I don’t get what I need.
For example. My missed call alerts worked perfectly back in September. I was out of the country, my phone was on roaming and I always (always!) received my missed call alerts via SMS. The alert would inform me of who was trying to call me, the time and date and the number of the caller.
When I got back to the Philippines, I was able to make return calls to all the numbers (landlines and mobile phones) that rang my cellphone while in travel.
Two weeks ago, I noticed that my missed call alerts weren’t working like they used to. They were erratic, sometimes I’d receive the alert, sometimes not. I think it depended on whether the caller is using a cellphone (I’m not sure if it further depended on the caller’s telco) or using a landline.
I made four different calls to the hotline over a span of two days. I stated my case. I offered some help in troubleshooting the problem. The CSR’s often say: The technical group this … the technical group that …. Right.
And here I am now, stuck in a foreign land, missing some calls and not knowing who was calling. (Bakit nga ba walang caller ID ang IDD calls?) The missed call alert would have been a solution to this dilemma.
But noooooo! The “technical group” of Smart couldn’t fix the missed call alert.
Haaayyyy… my love-hate relationship with the Smart Hotline.
Now, I wonder if Smart has began reading Pinoy.Tech.Blog.
ka edong
wondering, wandering
dawn ander … as in, ander!
5 comments
THIS is one of the reasons why I am sticking with Globe. I have heard enough horror stories from Smart Subscribers that I have not even thought of switching. I have been with Globe since 1997.
Bakit nga ba walang caller ID ang IDD calls?
I think it depends on the cellular network’s interconnections. I use Globe and I get the caller ID of some calls from the UK and Singapore.
Smart CSR’s often give different answers if you have inquiry they are not synchronize on their information and database… I always ask for their supervisor if the problem persists.
While in Australia, I didn’t get caller ID for manila landlines and a cold-call mobile phone. But I did get caller ID from my brother’s Globe phone (I use Smart’s Addict Mobile).
Tekkies, thanks for the tip. Will it, hope it does the trick.
ka edong
back in manic manila
Do you know if I can call/receive calls using my Smart prepaid sim if i’m roaming? I know there’s like a code to make it work but I dont know what it is exactly..