I hate appointment windows. Cable company, internet company, appliance deliveries, etc. If you've ever had to sit around all morning/afternoon waiting, YOU KNOW.

Waiting for a garage door guy to show up. "Noon-4pm". Well, I work nights, and my doorbell ain't gonna wake me up. So I woke up at 11:30. Need to be pressure washing out back, but sitting here at 2pm still waiting for him to show up.

Last one of these I had (internet guy maybe?) they forgot to actually schedule the appointment they sent me. Then rescheduled it and the guy shows up 30 minutes after the window.

Infuriating waste of time.

Cable installer: "'Scuse me, do you know what time it is?"

Homeowner: "Between 8:00 am and noon."

It isn't just the cable guy anymore. I've had people giving me bids for hurricane shutters pull the same routine. I decided to go with the one guy and he even gave me a time window he'd be by to pick up the check and have me sign the contract. Of course he didn't show up, so screw him for wasting my time.

Well, they showed up around 2:30. The guy was actually very nice and did a good job and went over some stuff with me. I’m impressed with the company, but still hate stupid appointment windows.

Now back to pressure washing!

I forget who it was, but a stand up guy had a bit with a punchline to the effect of:

"Your appointment is scheduled for Tuesday between the hours of 8am and Thursday."

"Sometime between now and The Rapture"

One Miele dishwasher repair place gave me a window between 9am and 5pm.....WTF.......I tell them to call 45 minutes before they get there.

quote:

Originally posted by V-Tail:
Cable installer: "'Scuse me, do you know what time it is?"

Homeowner: "Between 8:00 am and noon."

In Chicago that would 25 or 6 to 4

I try to set appointments within a 2 hour window because we never know what exactly we will be dealing with on prior appointments. I tell customers that although we strive to be within that window, we may be running early or late. I will call you by phone at least 30 minutes prior to our arrival.

Here's how it goes:

Customer calls on Monday and we set an appointment on Thursday between 1:00 and 3:00 (PM). I explain the window, and that we will call.

Customer calls on Wednesday, because they can't recall what time we discussed for Thursday.

Customer calls Thursday at 8:30 AM, wanting to know if we are still on for later that day.

Customer calls again on Thursday at 12:40 because they haven't heard from us yet and want to make sure we haven't forgotten about them.

Or, let's say the customer didn't call on Wednesday, and didn't call Thursday morning, or 20 minutes prior to the beginning of their quoted window.

We call them at 1:15 to tell them that we will be there by 2:00. They then say they made other plans because they "never heard from us" and would be unavailable for their appointment.

The last cable guy told me how incompetent the scheduling folks get. He told me he lives 15 mins from my house and has a take home vehicle. They are required to come into the office first which is damn near on the other side of the county then come back to my house. He started his day almost 2 hrs late. Setting people up to fail.

My last appointment windows was for FedEx. They were sending some primers that required an adult signature.

The window was 8AM-12:00

He came at 3:05PM.

If I'd known that I would've gone shooting the whole morning.

I don't mind a "window" appointment time IF AND ONLY IF they will call me 30 minutes prior to arrival.

Generally I can continue about my normal activities if they call me while en route to my location.

quote:

I try to set appointments within a 2 hour window because we never know what exactly we will be dealing with on prior appointments. I tell customers that although we strive to be within that window, we may be running early or late. I will call you by phone at least 30 minutes prior to our arrival.

Here's how it goes:

Customer calls on Monday and we set an appointment on Thursday between 1:00 and 3:00 (PM). I explain the window, and that we will call.

Customer calls on Wednesday, because they can't recall what time we discussed for Thursday.

Customer calls Thursday at 8:30 AM, wanting to know if we are still on for later that day.

Customer calls again on Thursday at 12:40 because they haven't heard from us yet and want to make sure we haven't forgotten about them.

Or, let's say the customer didn't call on Wednesday, and didn't call Thursday morning, or 20 minutes prior to the beginning of their quoted window.

We call them at 1:15 to tell them that we will be there by 2:00. They then say they made other plans because they "never heard from us" and would be unavailable for their appointment.

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
Yep. I work by appointments and although I do not give windows some people have trouble with remembering the times and days. It is just not ocotgenerians or millenials. I offer text messages the day before and that seems to work. Voice mail is a waste.

I will post a response between 5 and 9 pm...

quote:

Originally posted by chongosuerte:
If you've ever had to sit around all morning/afternoon waiting, YOU KNOW.

[...]

Infuriating waste of time.

Many times. Right there with you, man. Can't put it any better than your closing sentence.

Everybody should have to work in retail, customer service and service.

This way they'll know the difference between reasonable and bat shit crazy.
Difference between a job well done and a complete nightmare.
And will have a understanding of how different jobs effect timing. Nothing is set in stone when you're servicing equipment.

This job might take 15 mins, while the same job elsewhere will take 60+ mins.
Equipment access and proper parts (OEM doesnt always mean exact) makes all the difference.

quote:

Originally posted by HRK:
I will post a response between 5 and 9 pm...

BWAHAHAHAHA

Post of the day!
.

The problem is their time is more valuable than yours. Like the Dr., they schedule their guy and you just have to give in and accept it. If he's the only guy in town, you will have to accept it with a smile. If not, give him adequate time then leave. Not your fault he missed the window.

I don’t mind windows of time. I understand things can happen on prior services. I do mind when it’s an abnormally large window of time and you still can’t manage to make it in that time.

I bought some furniture years ago and was given a 2p-10p time window for delivery. Ok no biggie I can plan around that. It was a little after midnight the guy was calling me telling me he was about an hour away. I told them they could deliver it some other time... After a call to the store I got my delivery fee waived, which was ok, but I would have preferred they made it there in an 8 hour window

I have no problem with a “window” for installation or repair services, nothing is textbook in those cases.

But when someone is quoting a job, nothing pisses me off more. Several years ago I booked an estimate for replacing a water heater, furnace and central air units. Estimator was booked for 5 P.M. by the company to meet me at home. At that time I was working at a company where the supervisor looked at anything that was not company related to be your own problem except if it happened to him, that was a different situation then.

Anyway, I accomplished the impossible, got off early to be home to meet the estimator, so I thought. Fifteen minutes before the appointed time he called asking if he could put off the visit until the next day citing that his adult children wanted to take he and his wife out for dinner that night! I told him “no”, it was impossible to reschedule this on such a short notice which it was for this reason. If it had been a true emergency that would be a different situation but this was an unacceptable reason as far as I was concerned.

The next morning I called the first and only company that actually showed up out of three others and went with their estimate. Later that afternoon the no show guy called me and “offered” me an additional hundred dollars off (!) to let him give me an estimate that evening despite my telling him that it was then or never and that by that next day I was calling the first company.

I told him “Your hundred dollars off isn’t s*** on a 10k job, you cancel the estimate for an unacceptable reason and now you expect me to fall for this.?” End of call.

Next weekend I find myself at Home Depot where the guy who solicited me for an estimate recognized me and asked me what I decided to do. Well I told him what happened, as I was walking away he was on the phone to the company owner.

Methinks someone got a call that day that he did not enjoy.