One of the most frustrating little experiences you can have nowadays is calling a company's helpline and being forced to interact with one of those automated phone agent simulators. Truly a vision of bureaucratic techno-hell the entire thing is a maze of trying to find the right prompts that let you talk to a real human.

Writer, podcaster, and commentator on foreign affairs and politics. Runs /dropglobalnews

Clanker Broadcasting Service /cbs

working on infra to displace adtech at /microsub • dance music lover + host of /campfire 🎧

definitely zero bombing and # bombing but they seem to have figured that out

ever tried zero-bombing? it’s my go-to, just hit zero like a crazed lunatic over and over and sometimes it takes you straight to a human

Here's the hack, say "Speak with a representative" over and over and it usually works

So I just yell representative into the phone repeatedly and 9 times out of 10, it seems to work. 

Or just spam press 0 600 times.

Stupid little game of hide the cheese by not offering you an option to reach and operator but still being able to reach one to not be taken to court over it

the art of the human touch has been lost in all this race to automate fr