Grant HostGator Customers Full Support Forum Access On Registration!

-S- · #1 07-19-2007, 05:10 PM

When Comcast Blocked our HostGator Email for at least 2 Days this past weekend, and no answers were forthcoming from HostGator Support, after an initial speedy response, I tried to research the Forums, only to find that Registration as a HostGator client was not sufficient for full access.

Four days, numerous re-checks to see if the magic gates were open, and at least four additional contact attempts latter ("Live Chat: "... sorry ... only 'Jay'", phone call "... sorry ... only 'Jay'...", and 2 Emails to "Jay", and _still_no_access.

I would IM "Jay", but ....

I really didn't expect, nor want, my first post here to be negative, but I have numerous questions that I wish to research.

YO JAY! The Lab Results should be back by now, no?

Maybe Groucho was right....

slapshotw · #2 07-19-2007, 11:23 PM

I hope you didn't keep updating your ticket asking for responses. That pushes you to the back of the queue.

Also, not much we could have done for you here if you were on a blacklist (which it sounds like you were from what you said).

jimbob · #3 07-20-2007, 03:35 AM

Have to say I agree that full access on registration would be useful, and probably save your support people some time answering already answered questions. I had my welcome mail on 17 July but haven't yet managed to gain access, which would perhaps really help me understand how to set things up as I transfer domains in.

Cheers

-S- · #4 07-20-2007, 09:29 AM

Hi Slapshotw. Thanks for your response.

Quote:

Originally Posted by slapshotw

I hope you didn't keep updating your ticket asking for responses. That pushes you to the back of the queue.

Apparently Comcast's RBL folks are lucky and have weekends off (great for them, not good for anyone unfortunately enough to be on the receiving end of a BL, due to no fault of their own, other than a shared box), so that was the delay. I was told by HG that the block would probably be lifted with-in a few hours. It wasn't until Monday that HG finally told me about Comcastic's 'Banker's Hours'.

Perhaps with timely access to our Forum, I could have, and maybe even would have discovered this, when I first needed to know it, when the problem was first discovered.

HG was alerted by me via Phone, then I followed instructions to email HG's RBL folks, which I did. There was no ticket visible to me to update, until I finally created one, which I did, since the block remained, no response was forthcoming from HG, and since I did not have the proper information, including that their would be no ticket visible to me for Phone Support initiated matters.

Timely Forum access might have helped here, too.

Would you please explain what you mean by Updates to a Ticket move it to the back of the queue (i.e. What constitutes an Update)? Thanks for helping me understand this.

Quote:

Also, not much we could have done for you here if you were on a blacklist (which it sounds like you were from what you said).

True. I understand, and appreciate what you are saying.

But, the purpose of this thread is to emphasize to HG Management that if the Forums exist to help subscribers with questions, issues, problems.... etc., with the added potential for some level of reduction in Support Staff load (and accompanying reduction in costs to HG, and so increased profits; or else the increased cost of the Support needed due to the Forum not being timely accessible is passed along in higher user fees - which can decrease profits due to subscriber loss in such a competitive market), then it is clear that subscriber access should occur upon registration, or at the latest, very shortly (a couple of hours) thereafter.

HG's current system, with it's _days_long_delay, is quite simply _ridiculous_.

Workload, vacation, illness, birth, epiphany, alien-abduction/probing, or even spontaneous combustion are not legitimate excuses, since:
1) It should be granted automatically.
or
2) If human approval is somehow really needed, no 24/7/365 time-is-of-the-essence organization should limit such a task to one single person.

Because of this poor policy, HG Support, myself, and now, due to your kind desire to help, even you, are wasting time on what should be a "non-issue".

Thanks for your response, though, and I really do hope to see you around the inside of the Club, sometime... I'll buy a round, or three! Well, that is, if they let me.

-S- · #5 07-20-2007, 09:41 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jimbob

... I agree that full access on registration would be useful, and probably save your support people some time answering already answered questions. I had my welcome mail on 17 July but haven't yet managed to gain access, which would perhaps really help me understand how to set things up as I transfer domains in. ...

Hi jimbob! A hearty out-side-the-moat "Welcome to HG" to you!

Did you see the Knowledge Base
http://support.hostgator.com/index.p...gebase&_a=view
and and Tutorials?
http://www.hostgator.com/tutorials.shtml

They might be of some help. Your point that it is new subscribers that just may need more assistance, when they first subscribe, is a good one. It should be, and is, obvious.

Hopefully, we will all be granted access, soon!

slapshotw · #6 07-20-2007, 03:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by -S-

Would you please explain what you mean by Updates to a Ticket move it to the back of the queue (i.e. What constitutes an Update)? Thanks for helping me understand this.

This is a pretty common thing you see...people who don't get a response to their ticket as fast as they want put another update in the ticket saying "Please respond faster" or "where are you" or something to that effect. When you post a response to your ticket before hostgator does, it puts it to the end of the line again--meaning your ticket has to wait for them to get to it all over again. The support people process the tickets in the order they come in, but each time you update your ticket before they do, the system treats the ticket as if it's new.

Hope that makes sense,
-Matt

gwyneth · #7 07-20-2007, 04:22 PM

Don't assume that because you can't post, you can't read.

This may have changed, but all fora used to be viewable by the 'public', ie non-members. It was posting in the 'non-public' fora that was not allowed.

As I said, this may have changed. But last year, I spent several months searching and reading before it seemed necessary to post anything, and thus join.

If it has changed, well, it would be a good idea to change it back--more helpful.

-S- · #8 07-20-2007, 04:57 PM

Hi Matt. Understood. Thanks for your response, and your heads-up on an important point! That is what I thought you meant. Do you know if Phone or email inquires "reset" a Ticket's queue position as well?

Thanks again Matt!

Sam · #9 07-20-2007, 05:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by -S-

Do you know if Phone or email inquires "reset" a Ticket's queue position as well?

IF you email them then it will create another ticket so yes it will slow you down and if you phone them or go on live chat then it wont affect your ticket

-S- · #10 07-20-2007, 05:17 PM

Hi Gwyneth, and thanks for your response.

Quote:

Originally Posted by gwyneth

Don't assume that because you can't post, you can't read.

Good point! I didn't, though. As I said in my 1st post, I tried to research the Forums, but could not gain access. I even confirmed, with HG's Support, the existence of these mysteriously secreted areas, and the need for further hoop-jumping (couldn't IM anyone to ask......

).

Quote:

This may have changed,

Apparently, as confirmed by Support, even reading has now become sacrosanct.

Quote:

But last year, I spent several months searching and reading before it seemed necessary to post anything, and thus join.

Yes, I would have loved, and would still love, to use that old "Search" thang, and research, as mentioned.

Quote:

If it has changed, well, it would be a good idea to change it back--more helpful.

Perhaps you could conduct a small experiment for the good of HG: sign out fully (delete any cookies, clear cache), and see what you can see.....

Thanks again for your response.

gtgeorge · #11 07-20-2007, 05:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gwyneth

Don't assume that because you can't post, you can't read.

This may have changed, but all fora used to be viewable by the 'public', ie non-members. It was posting in the 'non-public' fora that was not allowed.

As I said, this may have changed. But last year, I spent several months searching and reading before it seemed necessary to post anything, and thus join.

Actually the extra forums weren't viewable for us back in April/May of 2005 until we were validated weeks later.

Are you sure you had access before you were validated?

Sam · #12 07-20-2007, 05:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gtgeorge

Are you sure you had access before you were validated?

He was maybe lucky like me and never had to get activated.. when i signed up i got full access after confirming my email addy

gtgeorge · #13 07-20-2007, 05:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by _Sam_

He was maybe lucky like me and never had to get activated.. when i signed up i got full access after confirming my email addy

Which in my opinion is the way it should be. I have never understood the delay and it is really something that needs a good hard look at by HG! When we signed up it was at least a couple weeks.

gwyneth · #14 07-20-2007, 06:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by _Sam_

He

Sam, Sam, Sam.

Sam · #15 07-20-2007, 07:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gwyneth

Sam, Sam, Sam.

.

-S- · #16 07-20-2007, 07:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by _Sam_

IF you email them then it will create another ticket so yes it will slow you down and if you phone them or go on live chat then it wont affect your ticket

Hi _Sam_. Thanks for your response. Does an email "Reply" to a Support Email (with Trouble Ticket #) dump the Ticket's queue position, too?

Thanks again for your response!

jaenosjelantru · #17 07-20-2007, 09:07 PM

Apparently Chad is in charge of the forums now, as "Jay" left the company...

Sam · #18 07-20-2007, 09:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaenosjelantru

Apparently Chad is in charge of the forums now, as "Jay" left the company...

Honestly? Who Said that?

Sam · #19 07-20-2007, 09:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by -S-

Hi _Sam_. Thanks for your response. Does an email "Reply" to a Support Email (with Trouble Ticket #) dump the Ticket's queue position, too?

Im not sure.. ive never tryed it

jaenosjelantru · #20 07-20-2007, 09:46 PM

James Mc, in online chat.

slapshotw · #21 07-21-2007, 01:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by -S-

Hi _Sam_. Thanks for your response. Does an email "Reply" to a Support Email (with Trouble Ticket #) dump the Ticket's queue position, too?

Thanks again for your response!

Yes, it does. Updating the ticket over email is the same as updating the ticket by the web.

Either way, you shouldn't be scared to update the ticket with legit information that will help them; you'll save yourself time that way in the long run. But responses like "will you answer me now!" will only hurt.

ldearing · #22 07-21-2007, 07:22 AM

if access is granted immediately upon sign up...doesn't that open us up more for spammers?

kmaw · #23 07-21-2007, 07:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jaenosjelantru

Apparently Chad is in charge of the forums now, as "Jay" left the company...

Really...... I'd replace him..... forum guy and blogger, that'd work for me.....

Sam · #24 07-21-2007, 08:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kmaw

Really...... I'd replace him..... forum guy and blogger, that'd work for me.....

He didnt even say good bye

On a side note: i thought it was Jay that was in charge of SEOhosting.com?

-S- · #25 07-21-2007, 09:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by slapshotw

Yes, it does. Updating the ticket over email is the same as updating the ticket by the web.

Either way, you shouldn't be scared to update the ticket with legit information that will help them; you'll save yourself time that way in the long run. But responses like "will you answer me now!" will only hurt.

Hi Matt. Understood. I hoped that adding pertinent info wouldn't hurt.

This is all important information (perhaps even FAQ, or Sticky Material). Thanks again for your help.