Is it really customer service?

I have recently come to the conclusion that most customer service programs in Australia are in fact, company service programs, in that they have been designed to improve business operations, not the customer experience.

An major example are the ubiquitous  automated customer service ‘improvements’ such as IVR and call routing.  These programs no doubt improve a company’s efficiency and probably saves them a lot of money, but they should never be mistaken for customer service programs.

As far as I can tell, automated customer service has not managed to win the hearts and minds of customers, nor have they secured their loyalty. In fact the opposite seems to be the case. After relaying a particularly frustrating IVR experience with a major telecommunications company, a friend told me, “I don’t even feel like a person! I feel like a source of income!”. And that’s one of his milder comments!

Is that really customer service? I would love to know what you think!