How Not to Hold: Using Apps That Let Customer Service Reps Call You Back

Make Customer Service Reps Hold for You

First Published Date : September 8, 2015

We all have those frustrating moments of calling customer service; they put us on hold for hours and to make matters worse we don’t know how long we will have to hold. In the past, I always thought there was no solution to this infinite hold, but I guess I was wrong.

What technology makes possible today was unthinkable just years ago and yes, I am talking about the end of the vicious cycle of being forwarded from one number to another at customer service and the endless hold times. There are apps now for your smartphone that can do all that, as they will make customer service call you back. You don’t have to be transferred from one number to another because these apps will tell you what numbers to press at each prompt to get you to the right department.

FastCustomer: When you call your desired company using the FastCustomer app on your phone, FastCustomer calls the number, navigates through the menus, listens to the music, and once it gets a live rep, it will call you back. So you don’t have to hold and wait for someone; the app will call you back and you can spend time doing something else.

GetHuman: GetHuman gives you more options, as it shows how long the wait time is for the number you are trying to reach and what options to press at prompt to get through. Or if you prefer to have a call back, GetHuman will call you back once a live rep is available, just like FastCustomer.

Keep in mind that not all companies are on these apps’ database yet and there might be problems with calls occasionally, as these apps are still developing. I tried both apps from Canada to call WestJet, American Express, and VISA and they worked. I had a call back from these companies and everything went smooth. What I noticed is that if one company is not on one app’s database, probably it will be on the other one’s. So it’s a good idea to use more than one app to get your customer service. And there are other similar apps available like these two, but I find these two work the best and the most user friendly.