Do this when you get a customer service rep you can't understand
Have you ever called a customer service or tech support line and ended up having to talk to a rep you couldn't understand?
Well, me too, and to say it's a very frustrating experience would be the understatement of the year.
Many large companies now outsource their call center operations to third-party companies located in foreign countries.
And as you well know, that can create quite a language barrier if you happen to get a rep who doesn't speak English all that well.
But as luck would have it, there's often a very simple solution to this problem...
The next time you end up getting stuck with a customer service or tech support rep you have trouble understanding, try asking them to "escalate" the call.
Although it certainly varies by company, some organizations' escalation reps (also sometimes referred to as "tier 2" or "level 2" reps) are located in a separate call center right here in the USA.
That means you're far more likely to get a native English speaker on the other end of the line.
Another plus of having your call escalated is higher level reps are typically more experienced and have more authority to do creative things in order to help solve your problem.
If you ask to have your call escalated and you're told that won't be possible, ask to speak to a supervisor.
Why? Because supervisors often speak better English than lower-level reps, even when they're located in a foreign country.
And like the tier 2 reps mentioned above, supervisors typically have more authority to "bend the rules" a bit in order to help you out and keep you as a satisfied customer.
Of course this "escalation" tactic doesn't work with every company, but I've found that it works often enough to make it worth your while to always give it try.
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