Letter to SISTIC

Since I couldn't sleep, I thought I'd write this letter and blog it as well. I'd really like to hear their reply to this.

I have been a customer of SISTIC for years, and while the service has not been great, it has certainly not been atrocious. But perhaps that was because I never really ran into any problems before this. Because once I had a pressing problem that needed to be solved, not only did the service staff not offer any solutions, their only response was to defensively lay the blame solely on me. This is simply unacceptable customer service.

On May 7, I bought two tickets for <show> on <date> online, mistakenly thinking that I would qualify for the Early Bird discount. Unfortunately, through my own carelessness, I did not realize that the dates were not valid for the discount, and even though the website showed this, I assumed that there was a mistake with the system.

On May 12, at around 8pm, I collected my tickets from the SISTIC counter at Bugis Junction, and only realized my mistake when the counter staff called the main office and clarified the details. I requested for a refund, but the counter staff said it was impossible. I then asked to speak to the person on the phone, who turned out to be an assistant manager, and she also repeated that it was impossible and against company policy to do so.

Now, I'm not asking for a change of tickets - I've brought the matter up to <name of company>, who are the organizers of the show, and they are taking care of the matter for me. My complaint is with the attitudes displayed by the counter staff and the assistant manager that evening - mainly with the assistant manager.

When I requested to speak to her on the phone, the counter staff was slow in responding to this. Instead I had to wait for almost a minute while he appeared to be chit-chatting to her. Granted, I do not understand <non-Chinese, non-English language>, so I cannot be sure what the contents of their conversation was, but from his demeanor and his chuckling, it appeared to be chit-chatting. At the very least, I thought, he could've told me "One moment, sir" or something like that, instead of making me stand there and just look at him.

When I finally got to speak to the assistant manager on the phone, she was completely unhelpful regarding the matter. While she wasn't rude, she did nothing except point out that it was my fault, and that I could've called before noon the next day if I suspected something was wrong.

Now, that was just unnecessary, because I knew that it was my fault already and didn't need her to tell me that. The more she repeated it, the more unhappy and frustrated I got, because it didn't help my situation at all. Furthermore, if I had suspected something in the first place I would've called, but the fact of the matter is that I didn't suspect anything was wrong. It was a completely useless observation.

Furthermore, when I asked if a change of dates was possible, all she could say was it was against company policy to do so, without providing any reason or detailed explanation. This was certainly no help in dealing with a customer who was getting angrier by the second, and only served to inflame me - and I must admit, I did raise my voice, and I apologize for that. However, it was purely out of consternation and frustration with the non-replies I was getting.

A friend of mine told me the next day that SISTIC is merely an agent, and all figures, etc are sent daily to the organizers, who are ultimately in charge of the ticketing and discounts, etc. As such, I would need to contact the organizers in order to exchange my tickets. She works in the events line, so she would know such information, and I doubt the general public does. I certainly didn't.

So what's unforgivable to me, is that there was no explanation of this policy or any suggestions on what steps I could take from the assistant manager. If she had explained the rationale behind the policy, instead of merely parroting the "company policy" phrase, I would've at least understood why she couldn't help in my request. Additionally, she failed to tell me that I could contact the event organizer to help with my request, when that would've at least helped me on my way to solving my problem.

Instead, all her stock replies did was incense me further, causing me to lose my temper and take it out on her. What purpose does that serve? SISTIC really needs to train its staff to understand customers' needs better and to provide helpful suggestions. Falling back on the old excuse of "company policy" is simply a lazy alternative to actually providing any real service.

I realize that SISTIC is pretty much a monopoly in the market, because all your competitors are too small to really compete effectively. This does not mean that you should rest on your laurels and become complacent, for this is what it looks like to me. Laziness and stock replies do not make good customer service. In this respect, SISTIC still has a long way to go towards decent standards, and it makes a mockery of the very values it purports to uphold on its website. I may continue to be your customer, because I'm hardly given a choice if I want to attend events and performances, but I'm disappointed to say that my goodwill towards your company has been extinguished by this pathetic exercise in customer relations.

Yeah, I admit, I'm an asshole who loses his temper at someone and then writes a complaint letter about them. Sorry it's not entirely eloquent at times - I'm prone to ranting.

God, I love writing vicious letters.

Addendum: Thanks to cherubin, I also sent the email to their General Manager and Customer Service Manager. Now they definitely can't ignore me.