Support

In WoW there is a button with a red question mark on the main toolbar that, when clicked, displays a window with the various in- and out-of-game support options. I was experiencing some minor issues with my Druid, Lorent, and thought it would be a good idea to provide a bug report to Support so that the two items could be looked at and possibly fixed if it was determined they were indeed bugs.

 

I scanned through the list of associated errors and who to contact about them. The only one that seemed to apply was Technical. However, the window for Support said that Technical issues could not be resolved by the in-game GMs and provided a website to go to in order to see if others have discussed the issue, a phone number to call (ironically in the same area code as I am-- their main support building is the building next to mine at work), and an email address to send the bugs to otherwise.

 

I tried using the website first. However, in the two months I've been playing the game I have never once received a response other than "Text search temporarily disabled." So searching the site was pretty much out of the question (I did thumb through some pages of the tech support bug forum, but none of the headings looked like the issues I was having).

 

Next I tried calling the number. After 30 minutes of crappy music, I gave up. So I typed an email and sent it to the tech support email address provided.

 

Here is what I sent.

 

I have two technical issues for Druids while shape shifted:

1. I have a Druid character (Lorent, on The Scryers server) who has the cat form. The Cat form, as you know, has increased movement capabilities.
However, when I enter the Deeprun Tram area or just after getting off of a Gryphon, the extra speed is not evident until I reach the tunnel exiting the
tram or for about 10 second after riding a gryphon. I think that, if I  change forms (gryphon) or I am still in cat form, that my speed should not
be diminished while in the Deeprun tram area or shortly after getting off a gryphon.

2. When I am in a shape shifted form and reach a gryphon master and click once to bring up the gryphon master's dialog box, a second time to bring up
the flight path dialog box, and then a third time to select where I want to go, I should be automatically shape shifted back to a form that can ride the
gryphon as it is readily apparent that is the task I want to do. I should not receive yet another dialog box that informs me I cannot do that task while
shape shifted.

I thought I was clear and pretty polite about the two minor issues I was experiencing. The first was an issue that may be a bug in the programming that doesn't allow the feature to work properly for a set period of time or until you leave the area. The second was an annoying "feature" of the program that seemed needless-- I have told the program what I want to do, so just do it. There are other in-game things that cause the Druid to automatically shape shift back to his original form (for example, going from Sea Lion to main form when exiting the water), implement that same code for when you click on the travel location. Problem solved, and no need to click umpteen more times to get out of the form, close the error dialog box, and click back into the travel dialog box.

 

Here is the response I got from Support:

 

Hello John,

Thank you for contacting Blizzard Entertainment Technical Support.  My name is Tom and I will be assisting you today.

I apologize for any inconvenience you may have experienced.

For World of Warcraft the preferred method of reporting issues with the game is through our in game support Game Masters.  If you are unfamiliar with how to contact them you can find the information here: http://www.blizzard.com/support/wowGM/?id=agm01257p

If you are unable to contact a Game Master a bug forum has also been set up as an alternative.  That forum is located here: http://forums.worldofwarcraft.com/board.html?forumId=10023&sid=1

While I cannot guarantee a response, I can assure you the report will be read and investigated.  Thanks again for taking the time to help us identify and resolve issues like this.

 

The first paragraph attempting to answer my question says nearly the exact opposite of what the in-game messages said. Maybe he meant to add something that said "your issues are not actually Technical, therefore..." but it does not say that. It doesn't even imply it.

 

The paragraph after that one says to go to the bug forum (the same one the in-game menu already pointed me to). Now, granted, I didn't say in my original message that I went there already nor that their search engine for the forums seems to be permanently broken. And the rules for the forum state pretty clearly that you are supposed see if your issue has already been addressed before adding a new one. While I know many people could give a flying f*ck, but I actually try to follow that rule. Since I couldn't do a thorough search, I didn't want to add a bug report that may be a duplicate.

 

It is frustrating to try to point out an area where the game can be improved, trying to follow the company's own listed rules for doing so, and then receive a message that seems to imply that I did everything wrong and should have done the opposite of what the in-game message system seemed to indicate.

 

How I would resolve this issue if I was Blizzard (the company that produces WoW):

 

1. Simplify and Clarify what I wanted my users to do within the game. Have a simple message that reads:

Contact the game masters within the game and present your issue. They will tell you whether they can assist you with the issue. If they cannot, they will provide you with a ticket number and an email address and phone number where you can call to get further support on the problem. Make sure to include your support ticket number on all correspondence with the company so that your issue can be tracked properly.

That would be much clearer than the multiple pages telling you what they can help with, what they cannot help with, and making the user determine which category his issue seems to fit in best.

 

2. No "canned" support response messages. I don't know anyone who has received a canned response who feels it actually answers their question, provides correct information, or makes them feel like they have been listened to. Take the time to train your support people to actually read/listen to the issue, make notes or forward it to the appropriate queue for further review if needed, and then provide an email that says what action has actually been taken. If the volume you receive is high enough that you don't feel your support reps can do that, hire more support reps. If your volume is that high, you may also have more serious issues with your program that requires more investment in QA personnel or better programmers, too.

 

3. Implement a review process wherein someone reviews the emails/support calls for each month/week/quarter (whatever time frame works for the size of your business and number of calls received) and sees how well the support staff is queue the tickets and if issues in those areas are being addressed (so as to lower the number of support calls about a particular issue).

 

What is the most ironic of this to me is that, had I not received a response at all, I would be happier. They were minor but annoying issues that I just wanted to bring to the company's attention so they could determine if they wanted/needed to fix them. The shear fact that I got such an irritating response back from support makes my hackles rise and now I'm going to hammer this guy about it until I get a better response than this. So, now, this support guy's work queue will be affected by likely multiple conversations with me about a minor issue that could have been resolved early and easily if someone had just read the initial request and sent me back a message that said "We'll look into it. Thanks for pointing it out." I would not even care if they were lying to me and they simply deleted the email after sending the response. Or an email back that said, "This isn't really a technical issue. Please contact the in-game GMs to help you with this." OK, now I know where to go. Great.

 

It is more funny to me, too, because I know multiple people in IT and Support jobs. All of them are the types to actually read the message, weigh its value, and respond accordingly. Even when some of the people I know were at the lowest rungs of the support/IT ladder they did this. That sort of response is invaluable to the end user with a problem and I commend each of those who I know for his/her due diligence. It is obvious to me, after multiple disheartening convesation with various support people for various products and programs, that they are the rare breed.