Head Wize, a new concept in Industry Specific Customer service.

stinkmeaner

Well-Known Member
It would be cool to have customer service staff that actually used the products they represent. Unfortunately tech support and customer service for many products which have people answering calls about products they have not used or even seen in real life.

I imagine you would have all the models on hand for the brands you would represent, am I right?
 
stinkmeaner,

Vapenstien's Monster

Well-Known Member
stinkmeaner said:
It would be cool to have customer service staff that actually used the products they represent. Unfortunately tech support and customer service for many products which have people answering calls about products they have not used or even seen in real life.

I imagine you would have all the models on hand for the brands you would represent, am I right?

You are soo very right
 
Vapenstien's Monster,

herbgirl

cannabis aromatherapist
^^yes, i agree^^
models, manuals, troubleshooting tips/flowcharts, company philosophy/background, etc. even job aids (like for appliance techs) for over the phone guided repairs when feasible.
the more info the better imo, but how would info that vast be organized?
i feel that the csr has to know as much as possible (or at least have access to a bank of knowledge) about their products to ensure a smooth ("premium", if you will) experience for the client's customers.

a passion for the industry, a solid understanding of what vaporizing is - and isn't - and personal experience with the models won't hurt either.

hmmmmmmm wonder where you could find folks like that

:lol:
 
herbgirl,

tdavie

Unconscious Objector
As a question, let's say that I bought a specific vaporizer and I was not 'getting as high as I used to' with it. Am I going to be able to talk freely and openly with Headwize about marijuana, or will I have to code my words?

I think I understand what you are trying to do (even if I'm not necessarily sold on it's usefulness....sorry), but if I call with a tech problem I'm definitely not going to want to play word games like I'm a teenager.

And just for the hell of it, calls will *not* be recorded for quality assurance purposes I assume :)

thanks

Tom

(actually, I would want a guarantee that the calls are not being recorded)
 
tdavie,

Beezleb

Well-Known Member
I would say it would be of no different an expectation for grammar and meaning as it would be with the manufacturer directly. Often their are legal reasons for the no discussing of marijuana use and the shipping of tainted products/appliance. This aspect would likely not change without the legal/liability issues removed. Just my view on it though.

I would agree on the no recording of calls. No No hehe.
 
Beezleb,

stinkmeaner

Well-Known Member
tdavie said:
As a question, let's say that I bought a specific vaporizer and I was not 'getting as high as I used to' with it. Am I going to be able to talk freely and openly with Headwize about marijuana, or will I have to code my words?

Now that many states have medical marijuana, you wouldn't have to use code words anymore, but the word "high" might be a little extreme and it would be more professional if replaced with "medicated" or something along those lines. It would be like being prescribed a vicodin or xanax and you tell the doctor the pills are not getting you as high as you like :lol:

On a side note specific questions related to the actual feeling doesn't seem like a relevant question for a customer service representative for different vaporizer units, it seems like more of a personal question based on dosage and quality of the actual medicine itself.
 
stinkmeaner,

Vapenstien's Monster

Well-Known Member
As a question, let's say that I bought a specific vaporizer and I was not 'getting as high as I used to' with it. Am I going to be able to talk freely and openly with Headwize about marijuana, or will I have to code my words?

Sadly to say the state laws regarding Medical MJ are still superseded by the federal law. Within the industry it is refereed to as "intent", if a manufacturer, distributor or retail outlet sells something to someone that they know is to be used for illegal means,.. that is also illegal. This is why Tommy Chong went to jail,. for selling empty bongs. This is also why the "word dance" happens when talking to proprietors. Believe me, I am certain everyone would be happy to call things by their proper names.
As a company my hands would be tied by both my clients needs and federal regulations.

These calls will not be recorded for the safety and security of everyone involved ( besides, recording costs more)

Here is a copy of the law
Federal Law; Office of Diversion Control

Section 863. Drug Paraphernalia

(a) In general
It is unlawful for any person --
(1) to sell or offer for sale drug paraphernalia;
(2) to use the mails or any other facility of interstate commerce to transport drug paraphernalia; or
(3) to import or export drug paraphernalia.

(b) Penalties
Anyone convicted of an offense under subsection (a) of this section shall be imprisoned for not more than three years and fined under Title 18.

(c) Seizure and forfeiture
Any drug paraphernalia involved in any violation of subsection (a) of this section shall be subject to seizure and forfeiture upon the conviction of a person for such violation. Any such paraphernalia shall be delivered to the Administrator of General Services, General Services Administration, who may order such paraphernalia destroyed or may authorize its use for law enforcement or educational purposes by Federal, State, or local authorities.

(d) "Drug Paraphernalia" defined
The term "drug paraphernalia" means any equipment, product, or material of any kind which is primarily intended or designed for use in manufacturing, compounding, converting, concealing, producing, processing, preparing, injecting, ingesting, inhaling, or otherwise introducing into the human body a controlled substance, possession of which is unlawful under this subchapter. It includes items primarily intended or designed for use in ingesting, inhaling, or otherwise introducing marihuana, cocaine, hashish, hashish oil, PCP, methamphetamine, or amphetamines into the human body, such as --
(1) metal, wooden, acrylic, glass, stone, plastic, or ceramic pipes with or without screens, permanent screens, hashish heads, or punctured metal bowls;
(2) water pipes;
(3) carburetion tubes and devices;
(4) smoking and carburetion masks;
(5) roach clips: meaning objects used to hold burning material, such as a marihuana cigarette, that has become too small or too short to be held in the hand;
(6) miniature spoons with level capacities of one-tenth cubic centimeter or less;
(7) chamber pipes;
(8) carburetor pipes;
(9) electric pipes;
(10) air-driven pipes;
(11) chillums;
(12) bongs;
(13) ice pipes or chillers;
(14) wired cigarette papers; or
(15) cocaine freebase kits.

(e) Matters considered in determination of what constitutes drug paraphernalia;

In determining whether an item constitutes drug paraphernalia, in addition to all other logically relevant factors, the following may be considered:
(1) instructions, oral or written, provided with the item concerning its use;
(2) descriptive materials accompanying the item which explain or depict its use;
(3) national and local advertising concerning its use;
(4) the manner in which the item is displayed for sale;
(5) whether the owner, or anyone in control of the item, is a legitimate supplier of like or related items to the community, such as a licensed distributor or dealer of tobacco products;
(6) direct or circumstantial evidence of the ratio of sales of the item(s) to the total sales of the business enterprise;
(7) the existence and scope of legitimate uses of the item in the community; and
(8) expert testimony concerning its use.

(f) Exemptions
This section shall not apply to --
(1) any person authorized by local, State, or Federal law to manufacture, possess, or distribute such items; or
(2) any item that, in the normal lawful course of business, is imported, exported, transported, or sold through the mail or by any other means, and traditionally intended for use with tobacco products, including any pipe, paper, or accessory.


*edit*
herbgirl said:
a passion for the industry, a solid understanding of what vaporizing is - and isn't - and personal experience with the models won't hurt either.

hmmmmmmm wonder where you could find folks like that

:lol:

Hmmmmm I wonder where I could find folks that fit that bill? I am thinking 2 shifts from the static office and 3rd shift can telecommute. I just hope I can find some vape savy people that also know how to work a computer.......
 
Vapenstien's Monster,

AGBeer

Lost in Thought
Hey, if you need a friendly 'professional' voice for some of your prerecorded stuff let me know. :)

Ive worked in radio for many years (im out now thank goodness) but I still do voice work on the side from time to time. :D
 
AGBeer,

tdavie

Unconscious Objector
Vapenstien; I'm not sure if your answer means I could talk openly to a Headwize service rep or not?

Thanks

Tom
 
tdavie,

Hippie Dickie

The Herbal Cube
Manufacturer
VM - thanks for posting that ... section 863 says it is illegal to sell vaporizers. i guess the time isn't right yet.
 
Hippie Dickie,

Vapenstien's Monster

Well-Known Member
tdavie said:
Vapenstien; I'm not sure if your answer means I could talk openly to a Headwize service rep or not?

Thanks

Tom


It means not, Head Wize wouldn't be able to discuss anything illegal.

Hippie Dickie said:
VM - thanks for posting that ... section 863 says it is illegal to sell vaporizers. i guess the time isn't right yet.

section 863 says anything used to ingest an illegal substance is drug paraphernalia. The trick is all about intent, see section E. This list has been in existence since 1995. Every few years the DEA steps up enforcement of it (AKA Operation Pipe Dream). The list is intentionally vague and reinterpreted every so often. While the list does not specifically mention vaporizers the list could certainly be interpreted that way.
 
Vapenstien's Monster,

stinkmeaner

Well-Known Member
Vapenstien's Monster said:
tdavie said:
Vapenstien; I'm not sure if your answer means I could talk openly to a Headwize service rep or not?

Thanks

Tom


It means not, Head Wize wouldn't be able to discuss anything illegal.

[

I wouldn't think it necessary discuss anything illegal, I mean it seems like your true intentions seems to be the function of a device, not the feeling you get from the actual meds, so at the most you might need to mention is if they are seeing visible vapor production, which shouldn't be illegal since technically you can get vapor from any number of legal herbs. And if they are getting visible vapor yet no feeling from the meds then I think it would be obvious that they are asking the questions to the wrong people and they should talk with their meds supplier.
 
stinkmeaner,

herbgirl

cannabis aromatherapist
yes, legal herbs make vapor too, so i can see how it could be avoided.

"i'm sorry sir, all of our products are for tobacco use only" :brow:

is what they say in head shops in MD. been quite a while since i've been in one, but i seem to remember it being plastered everywhere. that phrase apparently allows them to keep doing what they are doing. and some of the head shops around here have been in business for YEARS so it obviously works.

"Hi thank you for calling ____ Before i help you I want to remind you that our products are designed to be used by those over the age of 18 with legal herbs only" (muffled giggles)

nip it in the bud, ya know?
 
herbgirl,

ccroller

Well-Known Member
Main problem I see would be indepth troubleshooting. No company is going to give a 3rd party their proprietary secrets to troubleshoot with while that 3rd party is in business with their competitors. To much possibility for corporate espionage. Pretty good idea though because most not all customer service in this country is crap! Wierd thing is the good ones like Bruce get fired. You need any employees Bruce? I did six years in the Navy as an IT and have spent about the last 6 years in the IT customer service field until being recently laid off by Northrop Gruman. And I love vaporizing!
 
ccroller,

Vapenstien's Monster

Well-Known Member
ccroller said:
Main problem I see would be indepth troubleshooting. No company is going to give a 3rd party their proprietary secrets to troubleshoot with while that 3rd party is in business with their competitors. To much possibility for corporate espionage. Pretty good idea though because most not all customer service in this country is crap! Wierd thing is the good ones like Bruce get fired. You need any employees Bruce? I did six years in the Navy as an IT and have spent about the last 6 years in the IT customer service field until being recently laid off by Northrop Gruman. And I love vaporizing!


I have found that troubleshooting is usually pretty basic. If something needs a more in depth analysis, likely the problem unit would have to be sent in anyway. As a company I wouldn't want the responsibility of another companies proprietary information, same with customer databases. Each client would be run as an island unto itself. No cross-sharing,.. it is possible that the same rep could field a call from the same customer calling into 3 different companies. Each call and company would be treated as tho they are the sole client. No crossover, A rep answering a call for widget inc would not be able to tell a customer that they could get a better cheaper version from another company, even if that other company was also a Head Wize client.

I will likely hire from folks that I know, know their business. I don't want to put out an open casting call on here tho. Not yet,... I have a lot of respect for this forum, the mods and the majority of the members. I am pretty much using this particular forum thread to try and flesh out any pitfalls I have not thought of and don't want to come off like I am shilling Head Wize or trolling for employees.

Once I officially start Head Wize, you will likely no longer hear me talk about it on here. Well maybe just a little.

P.s. I didn't get fired, my gubernment shut em down.
 
Vapenstien's Monster,

Beezleb

Well-Known Member
I do not believe that would be a large issue as many companies in other industries utilize similar call center services.
 
Beezleb,

VWFringe

Naruto Fan
you're not just looking for business, you want the Devil's Advocate Questions...so:

how will you answer the phone if it gets busy?
how will you hire people? from here, or India?
how will you get an answer real time if they ask about inventory?
are you imagining that you would be able to answer all the calls yourself? if not then how are you picturing it...outsourced over-flow call center, and if yes, then how will you monitor the calls for quality and do hand-offs of info and voice?

just some q's that came to mind...i got laid off in Nov (my job was bangalored), good luck!

(sorry, i didn't read the answer a coiuple up from this,
what if you hired an answering service just to handle over-flow, but with the idea they'd be trusted to handle simple stuff, and hand off calls to you for the Tier 1 stuff...? you could use instand messenger or SharePoint free version to hand off information)
 
VWFringe,

Vapenstien's Monster

Well-Known Member
VWFringe said:
you're not just looking for business, you want the Devil's Advocate Questions...so:

just some q's that came to mind...i got laid off in Nov (my job was bangalored), good luck!


Good questions, thank you. Sorry to hear that you got Bangalored,.... that is one good thing about Head Wize,...... Customer Service outsourcing out of the country,..... I am TAKING IT BACK!!

how will you answer the phone if it gets busy?
I have myself and 2 other staff members to start with. If I we experience high call volume there is an overflow function with my phone service providers called "Departments", if we had a overflow, I can set the phones to go to a separate call center to be dealt with. There is also a function where a caller will be sent a message saying we will call back as soon as we are off the current line. As soon as the rep hangs up, the auto dialer will call back any call missed during the previous call. These phone systems are crazy and super customizable. All and all, I want to answer every call in house. If we find certain times have more call volume than we can handle, I will hire more staff to take care of it.

how will you hire people? from here, or India?

I will hire from North America. I want employees that have an american accent, understand the industry, the customer base and the vernacular. I will likely look to hire current medical mj patients and utilize social networking media to find employees capable of telecommuting.

how will you get an answer real time if they ask about inventory?

Each client will be operated as though it is an independent company all working out of the same office. For each client we will have access to their website back-end. Head Wize reps will be able to enter orders, check on status of shipments and real time inventory.


are you imagining that you would be able to answer all the calls yourself?

No, I do not imagine I would be able to answer all the calls myself. I will train people in how to properly conduct customer service and office support to my standards, so,.... it will kinda be like me answering.

if not then how are you picturing it...outsourced over-flow call center, and if yes, then how will you monitor the calls for quality and do hand-offs of info and voice?

see my answer at the top of this post. Computer technology,... man that stuff is great!!
 
Vapenstien's Monster,

Vapenstien's Monster

Well-Known Member
Head Wize is now LIVE,... and away we go!!
If you are getting great customer service, it could be us. If you are not getting great customer service, tell them to contact us!
I will be in Vegas at CHAMPS next week pimping this thing.
bruce@head-wize.com / 855-433-9493 / head-wize.com (yup the site is going to need some work, it is just a place holder right now)
 
Vapenstien's Monster,

MG23

Relaxin'
If you need someone local to work for you I live in Indiana as well. :brow:
 
MG23,

Vapenstien's Monster

Well-Known Member
Office is located in Michigan but telecommuting is part of the plan. I will be looking for people that are both computer and telephone savvy. I will of course pick employees from my local base first but I intend on bringing on qualified folks that I can find all over North America as well. If you would like to be a prospective employee please send only your screen-name, email and qualifications to bruce@head-wize.com I will then get hold of folks individually.
 
Vapenstien's Monster,
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