One of the reasons I refer my small business customers to plus.net is so we can complete the sign up forms for them, ensuring they get the right account etc. It seems to be getting an increasingly difficult and confusing thing to do.
I just signed up a new Business Option 3.
First problem. My customer is moving from their existing premises to a nice smart a unit on a business park that was built two or three years ago. A BT line has recently been installed at the new premises. When asked to check availability in your area, the postcode is not recognised and the process goes no further.
We got around that by entering the number and address of the old premises.
Next problem. They want broad band, that's it. So we selected, to keep the phone service the same, but there is some text about phone calls nonetheless. Later, we are told "Thank you for moving your phone service to Plus Net," with a demand to enter the current Phone provider and a mobile number and not being allowed to proceed until we do.
THE CUSTOMER IS NOT INTERESTED IN YOUR PHONE SERVICES. Plus.net have no business asking and recording the current phone provider and a mobile number and insisting on it is most likely against the DPA and PECA. If it were not for our long history working with Plus I would be writing a complaint to the ICO rather than a complaint here.
However. Whatever the rights, wrongs and excuses for it, I can absolutely guarantee that my customer would have abandoned the order and gone elsewhere well before reaching the end of the process. They really don't have the patience for all this messing around. And neither do I if truth were known. I want my admin staff to be able to complete the sign up form without having to constantly badger me. Just about every time they get a new sign up, there is some new question and some new problem to be overcome.
I am now acutely worried that PN will try to grab hold of the voice billing and that will take even more of my time and my customers time to sort out.
Yes we probably could speak to a salesman on the phone, but we prefer to keep written records of what should be routine transactions. Ideally what I would like is a form we can print out, fill in and submit, without having to make multiple attempts at negotiating the unhelpful 'wizard'
