I’LL ALWAYS CHOOSE the Internet over call centres.The booking of airline tickets is a good case in point. It’s much easier to open three tabs on your browser to compare the cost of a trip with 1time, kulula.com or Mango than it would be to phone those service providers to enquire about prices.
The latest South African industry giving consumers an online option is short-term insurance. As I’m always on the lookout for a cheaper insurance quote, I clicked on an electronic ad of Old Mutual’s iWYZE, which promised me a “quick quote” online. Unfortunately, iWYZE’s site has limited capability to consider the various variables available when determining the cost of insurance. I was eventually told its quote was only “illustrative” and it was quickly followed up by a call from the company’s representatives.
That’s exactly what I didn’t want to happen. What I wanted was a quick Internet quote, not a conversation with an overbearing, condescending salesman taking up 20 minutes of my time in the middle of a workday. And the quote sucked: more than 15% higher than what I pay my current service provider.
If iWYZE is willing to listen, then this is my 10 cents worth of advice: It’s great if you sell your product online but don’t let it seem like a cheap attempt at obtaining the personal details of consumers in order to pester them by phone later on.
SCOREBOARD
First impression: 2/5
Ability to answer query: 2/5
Courtesy of agent: 2/5
Overall score [not an average]: 1/5
The latest South African industry giving consumers an online option is short-term insurance. As I’m always on the lookout for a cheaper insurance quote, I clicked on an electronic ad of Old Mutual’s iWYZE, which promised me a “quick quote” online. Unfortunately, iWYZE’s site has limited capability to consider the various variables available when determining the cost of insurance. I was eventually told its quote was only “illustrative” and it was quickly followed up by a call from the company’s representatives.
That’s exactly what I didn’t want to happen. What I wanted was a quick Internet quote, not a conversation with an overbearing, condescending salesman taking up 20 minutes of my time in the middle of a workday. And the quote sucked: more than 15% higher than what I pay my current service provider.
If iWYZE is willing to listen, then this is my 10 cents worth of advice: It’s great if you sell your product online but don’t let it seem like a cheap attempt at obtaining the personal details of consumers in order to pester them by phone later on.
SCOREBOARD
First impression: 2/5
Ability to answer query: 2/5
Courtesy of agent: 2/5
Overall score [not an average]: 1/5