What Must The Cable TV Industry do to Improve its Image?

[Jack1000]

Throughout the cable industry,

There have been reports of very poor Customer Service, incompetent technicians, and cable TV personnel not being as qualified as they were 10 years ago. We have seen an increase in technology in the cable industry with the advent of digital cable, DVR's, high-speed Internet and VOD services. But there has been very poor training among customer service representatives concerning knowledge of often times the most basic information. The way information is conveyed from national levels, to state and local offices, is substandard at best. Many divisions often don't talk to each other, and the customer is often left not informed or misinformed about basic information such as updates, service changes, reasons for rate increases and so forth.

However, this quality does seem to fluctuate from division to division. People have experienced better satisfaction with their high speed Internet service and digital phone than with cable in recent years. The competition from satellite offering more HD offerings is a series concern. But because of costs, environmental conditions, or the loss of consolidated billing from the cable company, satellite may not be for everyone.

Therefore, what do cable operators need to do to improve their image with customers and make cable a value that is important to them? What type of training is needed that is lacking in the cable industry? What educational resources and communications are needed to help establish a better relationship between the cable operators and the customers they serve?

Jack