Martin Koss – thinking out loud…

Hi there – I’m Your Customer – Allow Me To Bend Over Backwards For You… Okay – that is how I feel after corresponding with a software company for the past couple of days.

I bought some software a while ago shortly after buying my new MacBook Pro as I needed something to transcribe many of my audio and video recordings into text – something very few applications can do effectively.

Coming from a PC background, I had previously used Dragon Dictate which works very well and the app that I bought for my MacBook Pro was from the same family of apps and was touted as being the perfect solution. As one person ‘claimed’ on a YouTube video – it was amazingly accurate after a ‘few minutes’ of training.

Yeah right! I’ll take that recommendation with a pinch of salt!

But, I needed it.

I have hours and hours of footage and recordings to transcribe and as my 15 year old daughter can do some typing – it was gonna take months to get the whole job done. So I bought the app. Oh yeah – at 20% more than it would have cost if I was able to buy in USD ($) – nobody gave me a decent explanation as to why it is 20% more expensive in the UK than the US but I guess we’re used to being ripped off on this side of the pond. (Side issue.)

The ‘few minutes’ of Training Turned into Hours – Then a Day

Still the transcription was a pathetic mess of mumbo jumbo and was a very poor reflection of what I had recorded. In fact – if I had published the results people would have been calling for some green coated helpers to come and take me away. So, naturally, I was becoming more and more frustrated and annoyed. I had decent quality recordings – I knew that much.

So – The Customer Is Always Right – Right? Ok – Maybe.

I Was Fed Up and Wanted A Refund

There was no way I could waste all this time. I spent more time correcting the software’s balls up of an attempt to understand what I was saying in the recordings, I knew that it wasn’t up to the job – or simply unable to understand this Yorkshireman with a slightly Southern English accent with a hint of Canadian thrown in…

So I emailed the company asking for a refund (references to the company removed as I rarely name and shame – plus I am still awaiting the outcome).

I am not a happy chappy. After spending many hours ‘training’ [software name removed] to transcribe my recordings I am still no closer to getting anything like a usable transcription.

I tried it when I bought [software name removed] and gave up due to constantly restarting the initial training session over and over trying to get a decent result and then, today, decided to have another go.

I have a very clear recording. Yet the transcription is absolutely nothing like what I was saying.

The time spent editing the ‘transcription’; I may just as well type the whole thing by hand or get someone to do it for me.

Can I get a refund please?

And the response (this is where I am to bend over backwards for them):

Martin, before we issue a refund, please go to http://www.yousendit.com, upload the recording that you are using to train and a file that you are trying to transcribe after the training and respond with the links to both.

Please refer to case number [removed] if you have any further questions. If you need further assistance, you can reach us online at [link removed].  Please include all previous replies when/if responding to this message.

Now – I have hunted around their website looking for some T&C that say refunds will only be issued after the customer has to jump through hoops…

Is this an acceptable way to sell software? But I have a bit of a dilemma now as I can’t find the file I used initially. It was 3 weeks ago. So, we’ll see if my reply gets me anywhere…

Oh – by the way PLEASE READ: Adult innuendo in this bit (that’s the extent of my disclaimer about anything you think may be in bad taste).

Sorry for my slight misunderstanding – I thought I was communicating with “customer services” and haven’t really put aside a few hours for a lengthy drawn out song and dance. But, please allow me to do my best to bend over backwards to help your company – after-all, I am only a disgruntled customer.

Right then – even though I suspect your demands on me are somewhat ott – I will try to be serious momentarily…

I cannot find the file I used to ‘train’ [software name removed] - I spent an hour (£30 of my time gone forever) trying to find it but I must have deleted it after all the attempts to get a decent (usable) transcription. I tried 2 more times today (another half hour or so of my time – you can have that one FOC) and the complete and utter babble that resulted was of no use whatsoever.

I feel it is an unfair requirement that I should have to subscribe to some upload service to send you some files to demonstrate that I didn’t have any success with the software. If it had worked I wouldn’t be asking for a refund.

But, let the song and dance commence as my time is clearly not valuable and your company is far more important than little old me. This would, by the way, be the same company that failed to return my calls before I bought the software and who’s UK division hasn’t got a clue about the software at all (well – 3 weeks ago they didn’t) – hence, when the immense feeling of being backed into a corner with my manhood in your company’s grasp – the only possible way for me to find out if the software worked was to shell out my hard earn cash.

Had there been a demo (trial) version and I had got the un-usable results, there’s not a chance I would have bought it. I did wonder why there was not a demo version available and now I see why and feel somewhat trapped into throwing away £120.

In case you are questioning my recordings. I have a brand new MacBook Pro with extremely clear recordings form various high quality voice recording gear and a couple of high quality video recorders. Oh yes and, if you’re at all interested, having been in and out of ‘audio and multimedia’ ventures most of my life, I know a thing or two about how to make a decent quality recording!

If it had worked I’d be over the moon as I have hours and hours of recorded material that I desperately wanted to transcribe. But all I’ve done is wasted many hours – hours I can not afford to waste (and, at £30 an hour I’ve lost track of how much your software is indebted to me).

Please can you disable my activation code / revoke my ‘license’ and issue me with a refund for the application as it is, in my case, not fit for purpose. I would appreciate this transaction being completed without any further action required on my part.

Watch this space…

Well – got a response. Automated of course – as I’ve seen on every occasion I’ve needed to email them. I do hate auto emails. That is such a lazy and impersonal way of communication.

Thank you for contacting [removed]. You are a valued customer and we appreciate you taking the time to contact us. We are currently experiencing higher than normal volume (ed. seems pretty normal from where I’m sitting).  Your questions are important to us, and we do apologize for any delays you may experience. Thank you for being a [removed] customer.

 

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