Getting in touch... How would you do it?

  • JoeSoap's Avatar
    Level 91
    Until recently I would have said phone, as even though it could mean waiting on hold, a verbal two way conversation can cover a lot of ground fast. After that I would have chosen email, especially if the matter didn’t need immediate attention, as typed conversation leaves a good trail to refer back to and allows thinking time.

    Now, I’m no youngster but I’m getting a bit more comfortable on-line although not yet as far as Facebook and Twitter. As far as Eon Next is concerned, this forum has become my go-to. I find I can get things sorted here either from other members (especially the top contributors) or the staff on here. I do appreciate that not everything can be sorted here though so in that instance I may be tempted to try WhatsApp in future as I’m quite familiar with it.

    Anyway, thanks to the contributors and staff here for all the help so far and for sparing me from having to phone up and join the queue.
  • Andy65's Avatar
    Level 43
    I'm with you @JoeSoap regarding the benefits of calling and emailing. I did contact eon-next using Twitter yesterday and the time to reply was around 4 hours. It does have its benefits if it's a simple request and it does let you do other things whilst waiting for a reply.
  • normankr's Avatar
    Level 1
    @Anasa_EONNext Dont know if this is the right place fro this comment but got here following an email about E.ON Next Community. That email arrived some 5 months after signing up to EON Next followed by 4 months getting EON Next to read my Smart Meter and make my on line account work - all of that time being kept in the dark about how I was using my electricity and how much it would cost. Being a new house with new all all electric air source heating that info was important to me.
    That email was first I heard about E.ON Next Community and I am still not sure what its point is
    One very unhappy customer who would go elsewhere if I could
  • Anasa_EONNext's Avatar
    Community Manager
    @JoeSoap Thank you so much for your lovely feedback! It's great to hear that the forum is working and you're able to reach out and get the help that you need! We are very luck to have some fantastic Top Contributors and we have a great little team behind the forum making sure it all runs smoothly and we're getting the right information and updates our for you. We have so much planned in the next few months so don't be a stranger! have a fab weekend 🌞
    'The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members’

    Did you know that we're open 24/7 across our Social Media Channels? There are lots of ways to contact us over here!📣


  • Anasa_EONNext's Avatar
    Community Manager
    @normankr So sorry to hear that you're having trouble, it sounds like this is a more of an account specific question though so it would be best if you got in touch with us via one of our social media channels and one of our lovely Digi Specialist would be happy to help you out and get this resolved for you, how you contact us would be up to you, some people find it easier to contact us via Twitter or WhatsApp that way they can get on with their day and wait for a reply or if you prefer having a chat our phone lines are open Mon to Fri 9-5pm these are the quickest ways to get in touch with us 😊
  • sebrichter's Avatar
    Level 1
    I personally like communicating in a channel like WhatsApp (or DMs on social) where I can have a conversation across several hours. This gives me the freedom to step away, go about my day and continue my conversation when it's convenient for me. I think the problem about most web chats is that when you accidentally reload or your phone (or laptop) goes into sleep mode, your connection may drop and you have to wait all over again. I also don't see the point in waiting in a call queue for hours on end, not being able to go about my day when I could be resolving the issues when it's convenient for me in a channel like WhatsApp.

    I also think that companies being proactive with information is beneficial for avoiding to have to get in touch in the first place. In addition, ideally most issues can be resolved by myself by logging into my account.

    Of course, when things are an emergency, I too feel safer to be able to reach out via a phone call - though i recently got in touch via WhatsApp and was surprised to realise it was quicker to get a Whatsapp agent speaking to me vs waiting in the call queue - but I suppose that's anecdotal.
  • Anasa_EONNext's Avatar
    Community Manager
    @sebrichter Morning! It's great to have you here! thank you so much for your feedback! I'm so pleased you had a great experience with WhatsApp. I agree with you it's so much easier to be able to use WhatsApp and continue with your day it's my preferred method as well as It means you don't have to spend your break/day off waiting to get through to someone, although you're right I think some people do feel safer on the phone when it comes to emergencies, we do prioritise emergencies on all of our social media platforms for a speedy response.

    You're right It's also important that we provide as much information as we can to allow you to be able to fix somethings yourself via your online account and keep you up to date with any changes and of course we have this little Community which is another great way people can gain knowledge and help without having to wait for an agent to explain something that somebody else can - have a fab! see you around the Community.😊
  • CRBazzer's Avatar
    Level 1
    @Anasa_EONNext
    is the 0808 501 5200 a free phone number.
    I've phoned this number to speak to someone nd was left waiting for 20 minutes or more, not really knowing if I would ever get answered because there's no message to let you know what's happening, a simple message saying "your in a queue" or " someone will answer shortly" would be good, but i didnt know if i were just left hanging, listening to some music,
  • Andy65's Avatar
    Level 43
    @Anasa_EONNext
    is the 0808 501 5200 a free phone number.
    I've phoned this number to speak to someone nd was left waiting for 20 minutes or more, not really knowing if I would ever get answered because there's no message to let you know what's happening, a simple message saying "your in a queue" or " someone will answer shortly" would be good, but i didnt know if i were just left hanging, listening to some music,

    Hi @CRBazzer

    0808 numbers are free from both mobiles and landlines. If you're ever unsure you can check here.

    eon-next are really trying to push social media as their preferred method of contact, I have reluctantly used it for a simple enquiry and it worked, but I would much prefer a telephone conversation for anything important. Your telephone call experience may be their way of deterring callers, even if it isn't it they're not exactly endearing themselves to their customers.
  • GSimpson's Avatar
    Level 13
    @Anasa_EONNext It looks like phone and email would keep most customers happy. So you can stop trying to think of new ways of communicating (like twitter, facebook, whatsapp), close those departments down, and put more resources into answering the phone and replying to emails.

    Also, please can you stop "reaching out" to me. I prefer to be "contacted". To most, "reaching out" is a physical action which requires stretching out an arm towards somebody. Please could we just talk standard English so there is less misunderstanding?