I have come across lots of services both online and offline. the moment you go online, there are different set of tools for customer services. In offline, there are different set of tools.

Let’s see what is customer service?

From wikipedia

Customer service is the provision of service to customers before, during and after a purchase.

Customer service is a series of activities designed to enhance the level of customer satisfaction – that is, the feeling that a product or service has met the customer expectation

A Customer, always expects Value for Money or more for the money. For e.g. A Digit magazine associated with a Free CD / DVD.

Best Customer Service is one of the main reason in every successful companies we see. Providing customer care service is not that difficult. It is how we see it, matters a lot. When companies listen to their customers, they can build great products / services. Thats how many companies have become big and mints money.

Here are some of the questions i too ask myselves….

• How do successful big companies handle customer services?
• How are they able to engage with people?
• Are people sticking to these companies because they don’t find the better alternative?

I think there are lots of things like this if we want to discuss about customer service. Companies have to do lots of work if it wants to provide better and good customer service. Here is what i feel what a good customer services a company should provide to its customers.

• Respect and communicate to customer politely.
• Understand and listen to customer’s problems.
• Solve customer’s problems first than concentrating on the company revenue.
• Followup with customers with new services and value add services.
• Transparent in billing, update about new products / services.

our country is transforming into a consumer market, slowly i.e consumerism. we as consumers, need better consumer protections from companies who are cheating us. Going forward, i will write about companies in india and their customer service from my own experiences.

If you have any comments / suggestions, please write to me. Add your comments below too…

What are those Security reason?
i don’t know.

Today i was travelling from Parrys to Adyar in the evening. there was heavy traffic after foreshore estate upto Andhra Hospital. I was driving between the gaps where ever i could, to overcome the traffic so that i can reach home early.

suddenly i saw the siren sound. some 6 to 7 cars + 2 jeeps went. Its none other than chief justice of high court (chennai). Although police could clear up traffic upto ayyappa temple, they were not able to after that….

Immediately, police vehicle found a way out to the other side i.e opposite side and all vehicles got diverted on that side. I too saw, Judge is inside the car.

few questions i got at that instant

• Chief Justice of High court has violated the traffic rules by travelling in the opposite direction with the help of the traffic police. is it violation?
• I also know that due to security reasons (i am not sure what it is clearly), Police are clearing traffic for the judge. what about the people? why cant police clear traffic for people? so, Police will work only for VIP’s ?
  why does these kind of VIPs commute at peek hours of traffic when common people commute?
• why cant they travel late? this can help people i guess.. because here the entire path from office to home is blocked for them. this happens when our hon’ble Chief minister’s do such actions.
• is there any law or constitution bill that states “People should pave the way for the VIPs who are ruling in the government / Law etc ?”… if so, please let me know

I have heard people like Kamarajar who hate to use such kind of things for personal use. my guess is this will continue for ever and i / we have to live with it…

what’s your take on it?

Let me come to the title. There were two men in this world. Both were earning in their own way. But there was huge difference in their earnings. Each lived their own way.

One men works as a software ‘S’ and the other works as a cashier ‘C’ in a petrol bunk. the S guy went to the petrol bunk and got his bike fuel tank filled with petrol. He made a conversation with C guy as below.

S: Add xtra Premium petrol for 200 INR.
C: ok.
S: how much per litre?
C: 70.33 INR.
S: how much will come for 200 INR
C: (goes to take calculator and calculates.)2.84 Litre will be filled for 200 INR
S: Then fill 3 Litre.
C: Ok sir. (His assistant filled the petrol) Total is 211.
S: (gave one biggest Indian currency)
C: sir, you have any change?
S: (gave change of 10 rupee note + 2 rupee coin and got the change for biggest currency) i don’t have 1 rupee.
C: sir, I will give.
S: is there Air?
C: Yes. but that boy went to a nearby shop.
S: ok (then he left to attend some important meeting).

Meeting was so good and S learnt a lot along with his another S friend. While starting back to home, he realized that he gave a 1000 INR note but he got only 300 INR back. he is supposed to get 800 INR back. S told his friend.

This made him upset very much. That’s when he thought about this youtube video that i had posted above. S’ friend said that its high chance that S would get that money back. Given that its a 2 hours gap. S suddenly started towards that petrol bunk. On the way, he ways thinking all sorts of things both +ve / -ve of loosing 500 INR, whether he would get it back or not or how to convince that cashier (by arguing the total collection for the day) or about complaining to the owner about it.

when S went their, again there was a conversation.

S: 2 hours back, i came here to fill the petrol. but i didn’t get change of 500 INR.
C (some other): which side? this side or the other side?
S: that side..
C (some other): Ask that cashier then. He is the in-charge.
S: ok.
S: Sir, i came at 4 pm and filled the 3 Litre Xtra premium petrol. but i didn’t get the full change. i got only 300 INR. i need to get 500 more.
C: are you sure?
S: Yes. (there was a seriousness in his face. guilty feelings as well)
S: Remember, I asked you to put petrol for 200 but then asked how much it would come? then i asked you to put 3Litre…
C: Yes. i can remember. (he instantly gave me a 500 rupee note)
S: Thank you sir.(got it and very much feel relaxed and happy.)

S guy went to fill the Air and had a conversation with Air filler.

S: what was the cashier’s name?
A: ‘Raju’. why? to complain with the owner?
S: no. why will i? he returned my 500 INR rupee. i won’t.
S: (thought within that he should do some thing for this honest person. not sure how and what to do.)
S: i don’t have 2 rupee. I have only one rupee. can you fill the air?
A: will you give 1 rupee extra next time?
S: yes. sure. (then left from there and reached home)

S was thinking about the honest cashier and his customer service. He could have taken this 500 INR note without any issue. but somehow it belong to S and that’s why S got it.
S immediately called the S’ friend and told that he got that 500 back. S’ said that you were lucky… but S said this
Money, if you earned it truly and honestly, It will always stay with you.

somehow, the above statement is true. I too agree and i think about it many times. S guy is none other than me Last few days, my mind and soul is thinking some thing else and hence i need to be careful when dealing with money especially when i am not in job.

I still remember and will never forget the stuff said by a director of a company where i left my job recently…
Be careful with the money… otherwise, you are going to loose it.

Let’s see whether i will do some thing for that Raju or not. I thought of sending a letter to that owner or Indian oil company. Will update it soon.

What I learnt:
Its not the fault of the cashier… because 500 and 1000 rupee note do not have much difference. Its my fault. I need to be careful when dealing with the money. Keep my mind sharp and concentrated where ever i go. Also this 500 is a big amount for that cashier compared to me. so learn to spend the hard earned money in a good manner. Also watch the above video again.

>>>> And now let me clarify that how I qualify to answer this question. I am founder of http://closest.in it’s now a 11 month old web startup. We started working on it right after college, so I am a young startup founder, with very radical ideas, inspired by silicon valley culture and what not. So I have 11 months of experience in this arena to back my answer.

Congratulations on running your start-up all these months.

>>> Now, why there are no web startups from India, because there are no early adopters. That’s not in our blood. Web startups come out of USA because Americans love to try new things and we Indians don’t.

I think the author did not understand India and its people’s mindset. His product is addressing USA and not India. As far as i have known, many great products like Google Finance came out of India. There are many web startups like InterviewStreet.com, Muziboo.com, Tenmiles.com that came from India. They have been developed targeting Indians in mind. Not the USA.

>>> What are early adopters? Early adopters are those people who actually use new services and accept them or reject them. I am not saying that early adopters always accept new products, they actually give their opinion. So if a product is doomed to fail, it fails early. That’s how it works.

when orkut came, people accepted it. when facebook came, people accepted it because facebook was better than orkut in many ways. now its happening for Google+ i guess. If your closet is good enough, it will get adopted. Try to look for the reason why its adoption is not upto the mark. Glad, you have found out how a Product works….

>>>>And I know the root of problem, it’s the faulty education system which is brainwashing innocent children and putting a belief in them that “your ideas are useless”, it’s such a small line and has such a vast impact on the whole nation. Students are literally discouraged to take forward their ideas, especially in the average engineering colleges, I can only talk about them because I was a part of them.

I too agree on this. but if one wants to do and have courage to do, he/she could have done it. if you have felt that education ruined your ideas, why did you take part in it?

>>>>Only solution to fix this problem is to destroy all the engineering colleges right now and convert them into “idea factories” let young people work on what they want. I cry seeing so huge human potential wasting. If anyone wants to fix something in startups ecosystem, fix the education system, that’s the root.

Glad you found the problem and asking anyone wants to fix it. Remember what Gandhi said “If you need a change, be the change!”. Please understand the audience on which your product is targeted. Do what ever it takes to satisfy that particular audience.

One small example. In a auditorium, its the responsible of the speaker to gain the attention of the audience… not the other way round.
That’s all i want to say.

I have relocated to Chennai after 5 years

For the past five years, I have been living in Bengaluru. It has been great and have gone through many of the life experiences which i will never forget. I have worked for two companies in Bengaluru. Amazon.com is one of them.

I am back in Chennai to start the new beginning in this new decade. you can look what i had accomplished over last decade here.

Now, I am living with parents, eating home food, experiencing humid climate etc. Hope for the next few Chennai will bring me the awesome experience. Also you can expect lot of things in this blog about those experiences.

Why?
i couldn’t find a original battery for Nokia 6610i model. i couldn’t find a original cover so that i could make it look like new phone. i am loosing calls because i couldn’t listen to the ringtones (i have kept that 5 years ago…)

I have used my Nokia 6610i as a Phone, FM Radio, Camera( take pictures but never share it because i don’t have data cable. it doesn’t have bluetooth either. but it had InfraRed.. ), SMS broadcaster etc

Now that i am out looking for a new Phone which will be friendly, smarter, long lasting etc etc. My friends have Samsung, Nokia, HTC, IPhone etc.. but always in confusion to choose which one….?

so How will i buy a phone? there are so many in the markets… based on which should i need to choose?

• I liked, loved and used Nokia. I looked at the N8 Nokia smart phone my friend had. It was good but not that great. They don’t have good UI. although i know they are built with Symbian OS which is open source. They lack usability, smoother transitions between apps etc.
• Next phone i have seen are Samsung Ace, Galaxy S in shops. They are good. Looks-like IPhone. They carry Android OS which is partially open by Google. they cost 15k & 19k respectively. The new Samsung Galaxy SII have been released in India last week which costs 32k.
• THE one phone i have been admiring or eager to get is the Apple IPhone It has great number of Quality Apps, seemless experience but expensive as Galaxy S2. They have been released in India last week by two biggies – Airtel and Aircel. The cost of the phone is almost twice that of US.

Airtel and Aircel came with special Apple plans for Apple IPhone thereby suggesting customers that they can get services + Phone for the cost of the phone. IPhone is priced at 34K. Both these companies say that if I pay upfront, i will get 2 years of contract service based on various tariff plans they have created. I have started to lookout for those plans and how good they are…. and i am presenting my analysis.

The Comparison – IPhone 4 vs Other phones with 1Ghz processor (most phones with these speed cost > 25K i guess)
For the next 24 months, I can use 3G, GPRS with Airtel or Aircel. If i am spending 500 per month which includes Talk time + Data plan, then i would be spending 12,000.

HTC
Lets say I buy HTC Incredible or Desire HD which costs around 25K.
so, it comes to 12K + 25K = 37K

Samsung
Lets say I buy Samsung Galaxy S2 which costs around 32K.
so, it comes to 12K + 32K = 44K

IPhone 4 from Airtel / Aircel
Lets say I buy IPhone 4 with Airtel or Aircel which costs around 32K.
so, it comes to 32K only. isn’t this good in terms of Price?

OS comparison

• I did consider HTC and Samsung because they are Android OS based which is becoming good.
• IPhone 4 is iOS based which is matured and good.
• I did not consider Nokia because i don’t know what Elop has in his mind. – Symbian or Mango?

Apps Ecosystem

• Android OS comes with Google appstore. they are fragmented and they don’t have quality apps as far as i’ve known (from media and articles on the web). Good thing is i can develop apps using eclipse and sell it.
• iOS has great apps, great games with quality. Bad thing is i need Mac OS to develop apps.
• Nokia OVI – no idea after Win 7 use

am i biased towards Apple? am i making the right comparisons? should i consider any other factors?
Please leave your comments!

The name is Calcutta Chat.
You will not find any name board there. Owner of the chaat shop served pani poori and other snacks in our cafeteria in past. I could remember because i used to eat lots of quantity. I liked their servings…

so whats different… or you can ask how its inspiring…?
Yes. It scaled

when my cafeteria started charging higher price for the bad meal, i and other colleagues started going out. Usually we go to Hotel Nisarga in infantry road, opposite to Police commissioner office. Food is good there too. I will write about Nisarga later. Last year, i was on a mission to reduce my weight. Hence i was trying to locate a good place to have my lunch where they wouldn’t add much fatty contents. One day, colleague of mine told me about this Calcutta chat shop which provides chapatti (roti) + dhal. As there were no tables in the shop, you need to eat food sitting in the chair.

I tried it. It was Good. It was priced at 20 INR. They served 3 roti’s + dhal + liquid curd (with masala topping) + mini version of salad (cucumber + onion). I liked it and i end up having it everyday. Apart from roti dhal, they also serve variety of parathas (aloo, gobi, onion etc). usual chats like samosa, pani poori, masala poori, pav bhajji and sweets like gulab jamoon etc. I have tasted almost everything except jamoon. Prices are decent for the quality they provide. Highest priced was some type of paratha at 40 i guess. Lowest is samosa… 7 INR. Few days back, rates have been revised but still, i consider it worth.

I commute in BMTC. i have to get down in sigma mall stop and walk to office premises. One day, i didn’t and thought i could get down near the chandrika hotel signal which is also the same distance as from the bus stop. I couldn’t get down due to green signal and bus was moving fast . I end up getting down in next stop which is near cantonment station. I had to walk back to office and suddenly i found a small shop in a basement with a name that seems to be similar. Its none other than “Calcutta chat” I thought this could be some other guys but wanted to check out.

I went inside the shop and was surprised. Same menu. few known faces. similar-taste food. They have tables and chairs here. Understood that this is a branch of the same calcutta chat which was next to my office building. In the new shop, they added meals(rice + dhal + aloo subji + pappad + 1 roti) to the menu which is decent enough. Its good to see that they found a new shop and they are on-track in their growth. I had usual roti + dhal and started to office. while coming back, i saw calcutta chaat shop owner nearby my office. I told him that i had lunch in that new shop. He smiled! I could see the happiness in that person’s face. All the troubles they have faced will vanish one day.

Who are their customers (two shops combined)?
Employees of Atkins, Amazon, Torry Harris, Vikram hospital, FirstSource, General Public and School students. Their peak lunch time is around 12-2pm and you need to wait at least 20-30 minutes to get, what you ordered.

may be after few years, i hope to see them managing a restaurant called “Calcutta chaat” with colorful atmosphere.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3
http://www.veoh.com/browse/videos/category/entertainment/watch/v18310876nfKMeeC3
Part 4

Part 5

Part 6

Part 7

Part 8

A Recap:
I moved from school to college and then graduated and then got the job.
I met with 2 accidents 1 thumb fracture and 1 leg muscle loss.
I have 1+ old nephew
I have got so many new friends at college and workplace.
I moved into garden city and started my bachelor life
I traveled to places in India like Delhi, Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Goa, Pune, Mumbai for the first time.
I bought a mobile phone on my first salary
I have worked for Indian service based company, a start-up and for Earth’s most customer centric company.
I gained weight in the first half of the decade and reduced the weight in last year of the decade
I learned to speak in english

and i am expecting there are more to come in the next decade. Back in 2000, i never expected that i will lead a life like this… stepping into a new decade, a new year will be a fresh start for me i guess.

Wait and watch…

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2011 for all

Not anymore…

Airtel sucks for the following reasons:
1. They cheated by taking 500 INR for name change but didn’t do for 2 yrs
2. They said that proof submitted by me for lifetime prepaid 5 yrs back is invalid now and blocked my calls. Even asking for local reference number, when i try to submit other state DL. Asking too much personal information like PAN No, reference number of someone i know locally, Local state ID card, date of birth
3. Charging 50p per call for calling their 121 customer care service when i have problems. calls disconnected by CC people
4. Not even notified me about their new customer care service 198 which is IVR. no human being behind it.
5. debiting money from my prepaid without my knowledge. once i noticed, i called and got my 15 INR by spending 1 INR on call their customer care service twice. they disconnected 1st call.
6. Reduced my bandwidth from 1mbps to 512kbps even though i have not violated FUP.
7. FUP is a F**king policy which they introduced in name of fair usage for all users. please upgrade your infrastructure.
8. charged me 1500 INR for WI-FI ADSL2+ Router without telling me. when asked customer care for upgrade, they said its zero cost. after upgrade, the charge was included in the next month bill
9. Converted the Hardcopy Bill to e-bill without my knowledge in the name of Save Treesinitiatives. It happened twice. I had to login to airtel.in to change everytime.
10. Forgot to send me hardcopy bill to my address. I raised two request to get my original bill. Ist request was closed without even confirming whether issue was resolved with me.
11. Charged me 500 INR to transfer the phone connection from one place to the next place on the same street.
12. Charging 75 INR as late payment fees which is too much. This is how you are making money and keeping your investors happy?

You may have 100 million customers. but not definitely 100 million *happy* customers

Hoping for the mobile number portability….