Posted by Chris on March 8, 2010
Here’s a tip for anyone that gets a phone call from Telkom to do a survey. Actually, I’ve found this works for most survey companies, i.e. motor dealership satisfaction surveys.
The first tip is to just say, “Not interested” and hang up, but that puts you in the position of being rude to another person when it’s not their fault for phoning you.
The alternative is just to say “Hello. Sure I’ll take the survey”. They start the questions by asking if you’ve taken the survey in the last 3 months. Just answer, “Yes”, and they’ll tell you that you cannot take part in the survey then. Then… it’s over 
You weren’t rude, and it still only take 5 seconds out of your life.
Posted by Chris on September 2, 2009
Sometimes I wonder what goes on in their minds when Telkom spend millions implementing something that doesn’t get used.
2 examples that I’ve experienced again today just baffles my mind.
Entering your phone number on the keypad and then being asked for it again
Part of the long process of actually getting through to a human being to talk about a problem you are experiencing with your telephone line is entering your ten digit phone number. Then it is read back to you and you need to confirm that it is indeed correct. After that 5-10 minute process you are put on hold for another 30-90 minutes (depending if they’re on lunch or not) only to get through to a human that asks you, “Please, what is your number?”. What did I waste my time for entering it in the first place?
Referring me to their competitor’s site to do a line speed test
They wanted me to test the line speed, and instead of directing me to a telkom.co.za address, they send me to http://speedtest.neotel.co.za/, which is the website of their competitor, Neotel. Huh?