Ed's support blog

It is almost hard to believe that we are approaching the close of yet another phenomenal business year. 2007 marks a year of tremendous achievement for iBurst and we would like to salute the collective effort and commitment of our staff who have contributed to our growth and success.

To our loyal subscribers, we are grateful for your support throughout the year and should iBurst accompany you on your vacation, rest assured that our call centre is open 24/7 over Christmas and New Year to assist with your individual queries. Our consultants are at your beck and call on 0877 20 20 20 or 0877 20 20 20.

For peace of mind, we also advise that subscribers plan for the unforeseen by covering their hardware and contracts using our iB Sure product offering. This will ensure that your holiday is not interrupted and is as stress-free as possible while you get on with the important things in life. Please visit http://www.iburst.co.za/default.aspx?link=account_ibsure for guidance on the best available option.

While most people visit the mall for great offers and gift ideas, why not escape the mayhem and consider something more original for your loved ones? After all, the true meaning of a gift lies in its use and what better way to suppress your teenage child’s hunger for entertainment or your partner’s curiosity for gadgets than with an iBurst modem.

With all the festivities planned for the next few weeks, let us think of those less fortunate than us. Remember to buckle up during your journey and to keep a safe following distance on the roads. iBurst wishes you and your family a Merry Christmas and a prosperous 2008. We look forward to a bumper year ahead and you can be assured of our 100% service and dedication at all times.

Your comments are key to our development and growth as an organization and we invite you to air your thoughts and queries using ed@iburstgroup.co.za.

Best wishes
Shireen, Henry & Carlos

   
Freedom is a concept that appeals to individuals in various ways. It could mean anything from owning your own home to being able to determine your own flexibility. iBurst’s interpretation of freedom lies in broadening the technology options of individuals. Because freedom is closely linked to human rights, we at iBurst believe that individuals should have the freedom to choose the wireless technology option best suited to their broadband needs.

July marked a month of tremendous achievement for our staff who have much to be proud about. The most outstanding achievement is noticeable with the launch of iBurst’s 150th base station in Irene, south of Pretoria. With over 40 000 subscribers nationwide iBurst is not finding it difficult to attract large numbers of users because of our commitment to quality service and excellent customer support.

Irene, Northcliff South, Robertsham, Randhart, Edenglen, Country View and Hillbrow in Gauteng as well as Durban North in KZN, Summerstrand in Port Elizabeth and Langenhoven Park in Bloemfontein are all latest additions to the iBurst coverage map, which is filling up fast. This translates into faster, more reliable Internet access for residents of these areas.

With all the benefits wireless technology has to offer, it is perhaps appropriate to sit back and appreciate the work that goes into installing a single base station. It means long working hours, sometimes having to put up with harsh weather conditions and hard labour. We have a dedicated and well-equipped technical team that go beyond what is required of them to ensure that users ultimately enjoy the freedom and mobility of the Internet.

To find out if you are within iBurst’s coverage area please log onto http://www.iburst.co.za/default.aspx?link=new_coverage. An evaluation of iBurst’s website revealed the coverage maps page as one that is frequently visited, currently ranked number 5 of the top 10 pages.

We’ve certainly come a long way since iBurst’s initial test network in 2004, which consisted of only two base stations in Sandton and Sunninghill and our plans to have 200 base stations by the end of 2007 are not far fetched either. To this point, we have succeeded in delivering on our promise to improve our existing footprint and the future ahead looks bright.

We welcome your thoughts and comments and we view constructive criticism as a vital component in improving customer service and fostering strong relationships with our clients. Please air your queries using ed@iburstgroup.co.za.



Yours in good service

Shireen, Henry & Carlos 



    

A few things in life are absolute certainties. You’ll always, reluctantly, hand over sizeable chunks of your hard-earned cash to the taxman. You’ll always grow older.

Another certainly in life is the more things change, the more they stay the same. As most of you are already aware, Ed Hall, our erstwhile Head of Customer Support, left iBurst to pursue one of those “offers you can’t refuse” we hear so much about.

Even though Ed is no longer with iBurst, we have decided to keep calling this column “Ed’s Blog”. Before we hear gasps of disbelief, consider that there are many great reasons for not messing with a winning formula (or name). “Ed” could mean “Editor”. “Ed” could refer to a fictional character (did Ed Hall really, truly exist?). Ultimately, “Ed” is a concise, friendly, likeable name already familiar to many iBurst subscribers. You’re welcome to email us your thoughts on this topic.

On the subject of feedback, please note that iBurst has three customer support managers who will be attending to queries emailed via this page. Shireen, Carlos and Henry will be handling both technical and general queries directed to the new Ed’s blog email address: ed@iburstgroup.co.za

Please remember that the purpose of the blog is to resolve your specific iBurst-related queries. iBurst is a solutions orientated company. This means we want to get down to the business of solving your problems as quickly as possible. The idea is not to engage in venting or mud slinging.

Unfortunately, the popularity of Ed’s blog has been such that we are receiving a tremendous amount of spam daily. To ensure that you read relevant messages from real people, we have decided to implement spam filtering rules which include approving all comments before they are posted. Rest assured that both negative and positive comments from iBurst subscribers will continue to be published. Our only concern is to keep this blog real.

Please continue to email us your questions, comments, complaints and compliments.

Kind regards,

The Customer Services Team

I would like to wish everyone in the iBurst family a happy and prosperous New Year!

2007 is going to be a great year!

I would like to thank everyone that has contributed to the Blog by adding comments, and also to all those that have contacted me with problems and suggestions on how to make our service better. A number of service improvement initiatives started last year, iCare on the Helpdesk Call Centre which is a tough quality assurance programme that is improving the response and service delivery of agents within the call centre, technical skills improvement programmes, enhanced training and customer service training, process and procedure improvements and the list goes on and on. The entire iBurst management and staff teams are focused on customer service and everything we do is aimed at delivering world class customer service.

We know that the relationship we have with our customers is the most important one.

We are still taking customer service seriously and this is still our number one priority. We are not where we want to be yet and will continue to focus on service, drive improvements, listen more closely to all our customers and take into account all suggestions and comments to improve the service we deliver on.

And so, customer service will again be the topic of this Blog. What can we do to improve? Where have we gone wrong? What have we done right? Please comment on our service and also don’t hesitate to raise a concern or a problem. I’ll get it fixed.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Thanks
Ed

PS: Some changes have been made to the Blog, a spam filter is in place, although some still gets through, we tackle these as they come in. My name is password scripted so only I can use ‘Ed’ on the blog. Some more changes are on there way to improve the look and feel of the Blog page. Henry and Carlos, my managers will remain active on the Blog too.