yeah, thats why they offer AOL for broadband as a bundle deal with Time Warner….do some research and go to KW AOL High Speed.

I find this comment cultish. So John or Jon didn’t tow the company line, and that’s “wrong.” In my view what was wrong was that the conversation didn’t go approximately like this:

VF: I’d like to cancel my account.
AOL: [efficiently takes name and screen name and asks security question, then...][click-click-click] OK, it’s canceled. Is there anything else I can help you with?
VF: No thank you.
AOL: Have a good day.
VF: Likewise.

To AOL: Your customers are trying to tell you that treatment a cancellation call as a “retention” call (or an opportunity to pitch a price plan) is wrong.

Oh, puhleeeeeeze. According to the many, many testimonials here and on countless other blogs, there’s a tidal wave of anecdotal evidence to the contrary.

Then again, it’s pretty evident from Vinny’s taped conversation that you’re extremely dense, so it comes as no surprise that you’re delusional about AOL, too, Jon.

I think I’ll form an opinion based on the thousands of people who come from all over the world, yet seem to have an eerily similar story when dealing with AOL and their shoddy scam.

And the class action lawsuits, and the numerous complaints to banking institutions and credit card companies….etc., etc…..

http://blogs.herald.com/dave_barrys_blog/2006/06/be_advised.html

a few days later, someone posted Vincents AOL tape on his blog. Daves’s response: “Yep. This is pretty much what it was like.”

http://blogs.herald.com/dave_barrys_blog/2006/06/yep.html#comments

Good job, Vincent!

what to say… it’s scary.

Andrew

http://www.askdavetaylor.com/how_do_i_cancel_my_america_online_aol_account.html

When I was defrauded by AOHell with a bogus confirmation number after I called to cancel, they then proceeded to steal funds from my bank account.

After getting an appalling, “You never cancelled your account!” from the rep when I called to question it, they also stated that the confirmation code was invalid.

Based on my research into the issue, here is what AOHell did – then I’ll tell you how Washington Mutual helped. Instead of cancelling the account, they simply told me it was cancelled, gave me a phony confirmation code, then put me into a free month or more in their computers. Once that time period lapsed, they then charged me as though I had never left.

Washington Mutual was fantastic! They reversed the charges and recovered my stolen money. They also blocked AOHell from ever charging me again. A week later I got a letter from Washington Mutual letting me know that AOHell had tried to again charge me and the charge was not authorized.

AOHell then sent me to collections, and I ignored the letters. They stopped pretty quickly.

Finally to Jon: Give it up, man. You kept up with your creepy sales pitch even after it was clear Vince wanted to cancel. He is not required to listen to your nonsense. You and others of your ilk have pressured and threatened and harassed and ripped off people like Vince and myself and many others.

The only sad thing, Jon, about you being fired is that it just covers up what is POLICY at AOHell.

JUST FOR THE RECORD, THE COMMENTER ABOVE CLAIMS TO BE JON FROM AOL (NOTE THE USE OF THE WORD I).

THEN HE SAID, “HAD YOU LET HIM SPEAK”

CHANGE IN TENSES, CHANGE IN PERSPECTIVE (FIRST PERSON TO THIRD PERSON). ODDLY ENOUGH, THIS ONE DOES COME FROM PROXY.AOL.COM.

In France too, we had some stories as you.
It’s very know’n to leave AOL is very difficult.
An aunt called them many times and at the end cut her bank agreement.
I precise they ask his credit card number and promise no use. AOL used it….

Never AOL

David

Maybe some of you started before the company got so…creepy (yes, as someone else put it, calling the cancellation department the retention department is creepy, and yes, there being quotas for retention is super-creepy…and I ask, as I’ve asked before: Why does a “retention department” exist unless a company is not serving its customers well?)

But, very sadly, the people who have run your company in recent years have taken the very low road. The road of “retention departments” and charging $24/month for an electronic advertising circular. (Maybe that’s harsh, too, but the imbedded marketing in AOL, in the last few years I used it, was atrocious, gravely diluting the quality of the product.)

The apology letter to Vincent continues on that low road. It’s insane to blame “John.” I, and obviously many other people, had very similar experiences; in fact, I think Vincent was actually treated better than many of us. It would be naïve of Mr. Graham to think that the policies of the company didn’t create the cadre of monsters in the monster-cave whose job is labeled “retention.” (As the Milgram experiments proved, even good people have the potential to be monsters — if “bosses” push them that way.) Upper management is responsible for the incentive programs and quotas they instituted and/or approved of, and is responsible for the very concept or policy of “customer retention” — AS OPPOSED TO, um, “CUSTOMER SERVICE.” (And part of customer service would be to immediately heed a customer’s request to cancel.)

Missing from the apology letter was soul-searching. And that is what is needed.

One doesn’t know what one doesn’t know. Perhaps Mr. Graham, etc. haven’t recognized that they have been taking the very low road. Maybe they are not aware that there are better ways to run a business, and better ways to treat human beings — both employees and customers.

To paraphrase T. H. White: The best thing for being sad is…to learn something. I think there is a lot for everyone to learn from the AOL tragedy.

After this story, how many potential employers do you think will view your time with AOL as a positive entry on your resume.

Sure I know you want to prove a point, getting people to break their NDA’s is another. I’ll share this bit – its common knowledge EVERY retention business has quotas. Duh.

Lighten up a bit, stop being such a prick because you chose to repeatedly say “cancel the account” repeatedly, and you saw the rep was being an asshole too. You earned your 15 min of fame, on who’s watch – your employers?

I however do commend you for shining light on an issue – and changes have been made… but seriously – dont risk other workers their jobs just so you can end out on top. Cancelling my aol account wasn’t that hard as you had it, or others mentioned herein.

- anonymous -