I’ve got this big issue with proof reading everything, whether it’s in print or on the web. Why? Because it could have big implications for your clients if you don’t.
A case in point is the Blue Bin collection calendars that we received one Tuesday morning from our local council. The accompanying letter of which stated to enter the code at the top left of the calendar or in the green box to a specific number. Unfortunately there were 2 different numbers. ‘Blue 07’ was printed at the top left and ‘Blue13’ in the green box.
I promptly sent an email to my local council:
From: John Redhead
To: East Riding Council Customer Services
Subject: Blue Bin Reminder Service
Just received the info for the blue bin reminder service. The letter tells me to text a code found at the top left of the calendar or within the green box.
The top left has a code of ‘Blue 07’ and the green box states ‘Blue13’.
Having not first read the green box I’d already text ‘Blue 07’ to the number given and received a reply from them 20 minutes or so later.
From: East Riding Council
To: John Redhead (East Riding resident)
Subject: Blue Bin Reminder Service
This text service has ended. To sign up to the new service please text the 6 digit code (no space) on the top left of your new calendar.
What do they mean ‘a six digit code without spaces’? The code on the calendar clearly shows that there is a space in between the ‘Blue’ and ’07’. I feel another email coming on!
From: John Redhead
To: East Riding Customer Services
Subject: Blue Bin Reminder Service
Further to my email regarding the blue bin reminder service.
I tried to subscribe to this service using the code at the top left of the calendar (before I sent my first email and before I realized that there were 2 codes on the calendar). I text ‘Blue 07’ which is the code at the top left.
About half an hour or so after subscribing I get a text reply stating.
Text From: EastRiding
This text service has ended. To sign up to the new service please text the 6 digit code (no space) on the top left of your new calendar to xxxxxxxxxx
The code at the top left of the calendar clearly has a space in it! You told us to enter the code at the top left of the calendar (which includes a space), then text us back that it shouldn’t have a space (can’t this be resolved through programming on the back end?).
This is highly frustrating!
My mum rings and I tell her what’s happened and ask her if she’s received her blue bin calendar yet. She sure has, with ‘Blue 06’ at the top left and ‘Blue09’. I feel another email coming on:
From: John Redhead
To: East Riding Council
Subject: Blue Bin Reminders
Further to my emails earlier, it seems that this problem is just not isolated to those with ‘blue 07’ in the top corner. My mum has received hers today with ‘Blue 06’ in the top corner and ‘blue09’ in the green box.
During this process I receive an email from my first email:
From: East Riding Council
To: John Redhead
Subject: Blue Bin Reminder
Thank you for your email, you use the code inside the green box, sorry for the confusion.
Kind Regards
Customer Services
What? They want to say sorry for the confusion just to me? This affects far more people than just me! EMAIL!!
From: John Redhead (A frustrated East Riding resident)
To: East Riding Customer Services and a few other addresses in the council (I can’t let this go unnoticed!)
Subject: Blue Bin Reminder Service
I don’t want to be fobbed off with just a “…sorry for the confusion”. This will affect every single resident in the East Riding that subscribes to the blue bin reminder service!
So how many hundreds/thousands of residents are you going to confuse with this error? Definitely not just me!
If I had subscribed to ‘Blue07’ on the phone, I surely would be subscribing to a different days collection, so you’re going to have many residents throughout the East Riding putting out their blue bin on the wrong day.
This is just not acceptable. You’ve definitely got multiple codes on 2 of your recycling calendars. I can only assume that you’ve got multiple codes on them all!
I subscribe to ‘Blue13’, and promptly receive a reply:
Text From: EastRiding
To: My Mobile
Thank you for subscribing to ERYC blue bin reminder service. You are signed up to receive CALENDAR 13 reminders. If this is incorrect text STOP to xxxxxxxxx.
Why did they have to go and put ‘CALENDAR 13’ in capitals? Are they rubbing it into the battle scars?
I receive a reply to my last email from WasteWatchers which wishes to clear up the confusion with the changes to the blue bin text service.
They tell me that I have been misinformed and I should be using the number at the top left of the calendar.
They then continue to tell me that this has affected a number of calendars, but not them all and that they now have measures in place to ensure that residents get the correct information. Reply messages will be sent when a customer signs up to ask them to check that the code is correct. If not they will need to re-register with the correct one at the top left of the calendar.
They hope that the actions that they took will minimise the disruption that could have occurred, although they do acknowledge that residents may still put their bins out on the wrong day.
What? Customer services have misinformed me! But I’ve already text ‘Blue13’ to the number already. Is that why there were capitals in that email? They were definately rubbing my nose in it!
It’s good that they’ve also put measures in place to send reply messages to let us residents know that we’ve read the code at the top left incorrectly and have to spend our money again to re-register without a space! Not to mention those that have now registered for the wrong code like me, who could be putting their bin out on the wrong day (And possibly getting a fine from the council for putting it out on the wrong day!)
I receive another email:
So, I’ve now lost the will to live and have got to send ‘STOP’ to the number given and re-register with the code at the top left.
From: East Ridings’ Fine Customer Services
To: John Redhead (Shall I stick my head in the oven and light it resident of East Riding)
Subject: Blue Bin Reminder services (Oh! This is going to be good!)
Has this been a money-making exercise for the East Riding Council? It’s taken me 4 text messages to get it sorted. How many residents have sent a similar amount of text messages?
This issue is not and has not been a problem with customer service, as they are only told to relay information to us if problems arise. The issue is to do with proof reading, making sure you get it right before you get it printed and send it to hundreds/thousands of houses, or even your own clients, especially if it is going to cost your residents or clients money!
This is also a lesson to both client and designer to get a proof of your work signed off prior to it being printed and to both check it once it has come back from the printers, before it goes out to your clients.
Have you had similar problems? Let me know.
