You wouldn’t think that precision guesswork was something you wished to strive for or even get better at. Really, you probably wouldn’t think precision guesswork was even a thing. Precision and guesswork put together sound awfully oxymoronic.
You’d be wrong, but not because precision guesswork should be OK; this isn’t a story about being good enough. Precision Guesswork is a skill and you need to get good at it.
The explanation for this is simple. The more our world becomes global the more important it becomes for you be able to see the unforeseen.
Note that I didn’t say “unforeseeable.” Cutting off every possible glitch in every possible system is both a huge time-suck/attention-drainer—and impossible, anyway. The issue that drives the need for precision guesswork is a need for common sense. Knowing when a dose of precision guesswork will save your bacon is about applying that common sense in uncommon situations.
I’m writing this piece from vacation in Chianti, Italy. We prepaid many things to avoid how-can-these-problems-still-exist, anyway!?! issues that can crop up when you leave home. Having experienced problems in the past I decided to use a bank with accounts designed for international travel to process daily expenses. There’s a side benefit, too: I get charged absolutely no exchange fees or commissions. I don’t even get dinged at ATMs.
But I knew there’d be a possibility of needing more money than I was able to put in place before I left. No problem! My bank allows check deposits using the camera on my smartphone.
There’s likely a “you can only do certain things while in the United States” clause in my card’s terms of service. Like you, though, I don’t read those documents. I DID, however, call the bank to make sure I was allowed to use the app to make a deposit while outside the country. And I was told in no uncertain terms that it was OK.
It was not. When I logged in and pressed the Deposit button I was immediately told deposits weren’t allowed outside The United States.
I’m not going to rant about the bank for what happened when I tried the feature. In fact, despite the customer service glitch I’m not even going to name the bank. The subject here is Precision Guesswork, not a new induction to The Customer Service Wall of Shame.
Precision Guesswork
I sometimes use Virtual Private Networks to protect my privacy. You should do the same; here’s an article explaining the issue. I have VPN software in my phone. And it worked; after a reboot and firing up the VPN software using a point in New York, the deposit went through and cleared in one business day.
Here’s where Precision Guesswork comes in. I guessed there could be a problem and asked. I also guessed that what I’d been told was wrong. And then I guessed that my VPN software would bail me out. Fortunately, I guessed right.
Should you have to face conditions that require precision guesswork? Of course not; everything you need to know should be clear, or obvious, or something like that. Should you be able to count on the answers you get from companies you do business with if you happen to be like me and ask? Of course.
Should you care enough about customer service that you take steps to make sure your customers needn’t engage in precision guesswork to deal with you? NOW we’re at the crux of the matter.
Not quite sure how to pull it all together? Drop us a line; we’ll free your customer service business process from precision guesswork before you can guess … well, you get it.