Coda
Throng of readers responds to Sears service challenge
GREG BEAN
Some days I come to work, click on my computer, and I can actually feel The Force flowing into me from my keyboard.

Gregory Bean is executive editor of Greater Media Newspapers. You can reach him at gbean@gmnews.com.

That's the way it's been for more than a week, as readers responded to my Sears challenge. It's made me chuckle as I imagined some actual humans at Sears finally answering the phone and wondering why so darnedmany people are interested in knowing when the repair center at the Route I store in New Brunswick is open.

Regular readers will remember when, two weeks ago, I wrote aboutmy frustration in attempting to find out when the service center was open so I could get my lawn mower repaired. I spent a whole morning lost in the Sears telephone tree Purgatory, and searching the company's Web site, and never could come up with an answer.

So I challengedmy readers to take up the gauntlet. "Here's a challenge," I wrote. "If any one of you can find out the hours the Sears repair center on Route I in New Brunswick is open by calling their toll-free repair center line at 1-800-366-7278, or looking on the company's Web site, I will put your name in the paper and proclaim you a genius, superior among allmen and women. Personally, I don't think it can be done."

I'll say this about my readers: they're certainly up for a challenge. The responses started pouring in almost immediately, and reading them was a lot of fun.

The first was from a lady who works here who informedme she got through to an actual human at Sears by mumbling every time the recorded voice lady on the phone systemasked her a question. Finally, unable to understand her mumbles, the machine patched her through to a person.

But since that person works here, I had to disqualify her.

The next response was an e-mail from Maureen Miller of Lincroft, who is not only a genius and superior among men and women, she got her answer in first, which qualifies her for an extra gold star.

"After reading your column this week, I figured, 'Hey, I'm up for a challenge!' Plus, I needed to kill time while taking my vitamins and checkingmymorningmail,"Maureen wrote.

She eventually got the answer by waiting only 10 minutes on hold to speak with a Sears representative, and then she did the whole thing again just to make sure. The hours, she said, are: Most weekdays 9-6, Thurs. 9-8, Sat. 9-5 and Sun. 11-4.

"So there you have it," Maureen wrote. "Next up: world peace."

Ray Kostanty bombed out trying to find the information on the Sears Web site but was incredibly persistent at calling the service center's direct number on the phone. "I called the number; no answer after 20 rings. Second and third attempts, busy signals. Fourth attempt: reached a person on the first ring."

He got the hours of the service center, but didn't mention how long it took.

Peter Young had a similar experience. "You are correct. It is not possible to find the Sears Repair Center hours via their toll free line or website," he wrote. "However, you can get it by calling their repair center directly at 732-947-4810." Peter got the answer after two attempts. Good work, Peter!

Gladys Sommers of East Brunswick is my kind of person. She took the challenge, worked her way through Call Center Hell, and when she finally spoke to a person was told they only had the hours for Lakewood, not New Brunswick.

"It is your decision whether to put my name in the paper," she wrote. "Since I didn't get an answer for you it is understandable if you don't. However, it seems that no one will be able to get an answer, based on what that representative told me."

The more Gladys thought about it, though, the more determined she became. I got another message from her later in the day. She had finally spoken to a Sears representative who said he was in the Philippines. He put her on hold for a while, then came back with the hours: Mon.-Fri., 8-5, Sat. 8-4 and Sun. 8-3. All that work, only to have someone in the Philippines give out the wrong information, but Gladys gets anA for effort. And an extra gold star.

I admire everyone who took on the challenge, but several readers deserve kudos for creativity and patience - and Bobby Hall, Jack Feinstein of Manalapan, Mort (no last name),Andy Kupersmit ofMetuchen, Kelly Kruz, Jeffrey H. Wasserman, Cheryl McBride, (my friend) CarolHolland Lifshitz, Lisa A. Franzese of Eatontown, Charles Levinski of South River, and Manisha Subramanian are among them.

But for sheer, dogged, stick-to-it-ness, I've got to give special recognition to Bob Flowers of Metuchen. I'll let him describe his experience in his own words.

"I suffered your same frustration," Flowers wrote. "The 1-800-366-7278 gets you automated stuff; however, (I) keep saying 'agent, agent, agent, agent, agent, agent,' until I get a live person.

"Then, she tells me she has no 'opening times listed,' but that they close at 4 p.m. She givesme a direct number 732-937-4810. Rings 100 plus times, then disconnects. Same thing again. I call the store's main number, 732-937-6664. She tells me the repair center's number is 732-937-7399. I get the same 'loop' from the initially dialed 1- 800-366-7278. Again, (I say) 'agent, agent, agent, agent, agent,' and I explain the situation to the 'agent.' She asks to put me on hold while she checks for the requested hours of operation.

"She comes back, tells me 10 a.m to 4 p.m. M-F, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Sat., 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Sun. I explain again the numbers I called, the issues I encountered, she tells me that the 732-937-4810 IS the number, but it was busy, and she called the MAIN store to inquire. I again tried 732-937-4810, still busy.

"Bottom line is: I feel your pain. I deal with this sort of crap every day of my life as a support person/network engineer, and it's getting worse than ever."

No kidding, Bob, but you're fighting the good fight. And so are the rest of you.

Did anyone notice that several of you got answers, but the answers were different? End of the day, I still don't know for sure when the repair center is open.

Best advice I got? A number people pointed me to a wonderful Web site, www.gethuman.com.At that site, you'll find out how to get out of Call Purgatory when contacting most major companies. I highly recommend this site, because the information and tips seem to work.

Of course, I'malso going to try thatmumbling suggestion, just for the heck of it.