Actually, I've done business with software companies in many countries over the past 20 years - especially England and Germany (primarily for audio programs). Anyone who knows anything about Steinberg and Creamware (among others) will tell you they are impossible to deal with - especially via email. Phone contact is the only way to get issues resolved in a timely manner and maybe not even then. Don't get me started on Creamware btw. That company is literally unavailable 2 or 3 months out of the year while they are either out on vacation or at some trade show. Steinberg might as well not even offer customer support it's so bad. I know a few things about software customer support and how to go about getting it.

Your arguments have some merit but haven't changed my opinion at all. I can sympathize with anyone that has tried to get issues resolved (both email and phone) and is frustrated to no end. But I maintain Cake's support is as good as it gets. At least that's been my experience and I'll bet the experience of 99.9% of their customer base.

Again I wish you the best of luck getting your problems resolved. Keep trying. It's worth the effort. What's the other option? Steinberg?

really what i hear being said is that everyone agrees that email is a good technology but that the major software venders do a terrible job of email support and that the only hope of getting help is by talking to them on the phone.

there's no reason that email support shouldn't be effective... it's just because the companies don't care enough to make it effective.

nobody's saying cakewalk email support is good, just that some companies do make an effort to do it right, and that cakewalk really should do the same.

Hi Jason-

Yes, IMO, e-mail support can work very well, but I hate this trend towards using only online forms for it. It's a huge PITN for Users, obviously, and slows down the communication to a snail's pace. It also contributes to the perception that you're not dealing with a real person, thus that the company doesn't give a damn. It's worked okay for me with CW, but I often have to send a follow-up before I get an answer, and it's never been anything time-critical. I would definitely call if that were the case.

When I did TS for a software company, the e-mail was a direct back-and-forth, none of this online form stuff, and it worked very well, and was very efficient. The only stipulation we had was that the User include his/her registration number in the message, and most "returning customers" just made it a part of their signatures.

I wish we could go back to direct e-mail support, but I guess it's not going to happen. Between online forms and the lack of easy-to-find TS phone numbers, I think many companies are simply trying to discourage people from contacting them for support. It's a financial drain on them if it's free (which is obviously why some charge for it), but it's also a *huge* word-of-mouth (or "word-of-post") plus for them when they handle it efficiently. Overall, though, I have to say I've been very happy with CW's support over the years.

-Susan

ORIGINAL: Jason Archibald

really what i hear being said is that everyone agrees that email is a good technology but that the major software venders do a terrible job of email support and that the only hope of getting help is by talking to them on the phone.

there's no reason that email support shouldn't be effective... it's just because the companies don't care enough to make it effective.

nobody's saying cakewalk email support is good, just that some companies do make an effort to do it right, and that cakewalk really should do the same.

My own personal observations have been that the smaller the company, the better the email support. The bigger the company, the worse it gets. Susan hit the nail on the head. Companies don't make money on free tech support. It's a huge expense. I can appreciate the difficulties especially in an international market. Maybe us "gringos" have an advantage here because we speak the same lingo as the mothership and we live within a few hours of their time zone. But I've had to call to call Germany and England and Scotland and India and Canada and Mexico (just a few countries that come to mind) quite a few times to get things resolved. Look, if my software, the same software that I rely on to run a business, was about to self-destruct - I would not sit there and whine that the company wasn't responding to a couple of emails I sent a few weeks ago. I'd be on that phone until the issue was resolved no matter what it took.

Let me repeat this - I'm not suggesting Cake is without sin. Maybe they could do a better job at email support. But my own personal experiences have been very satisfying. I don't think I'm anyone special. I'm just an ordinary schmuck like that rest of you (sorry - maybe some of you are extraordinary schmucks ). The point is, if I can do it, so can you!

Again! Keep trying and don't give up. You'll get it resolved soon I'm sure.

ORIGINAL: krizrox
Maybe they could do a better job at email support. But my own personal experiences have been very satisfying.

"I was operated on by Doctor X. What a jerk! He amputated the wrong leg."

"Are you sure? He operated on me last year, and I came out of it OK."

The point I'm trying to make here is that I am quite sure that Cakewalk sales do not stiff up every single transaction. I am perfectly certain that they have many satisfied customers.

Unfortunately there is a number - and it is too large a number - of customers who have had very bad experiences with dealing with Cakewalk commercially. That's what matters here.

The point is, if I can do it, so can you!

Maybe ... but is it good commercial practice for any business to expect its customers (or would be customers) to keep jumping through hoops? Maybe it'd be better the other way round?

Best,
Geoff

Or maybe the reality is that Cakewalk has a 99.9% customer satisfaction rate and the 1% vocal minority (like George suggested) are the only ones who come here to complain?

...who will never be satisfied no matter what Cakewalk does (or anyone else for that matter)?

I might be ignorant but I'm not seeing like 10,000 people logging onto this forum to complain about this. I'm certain Cake must have more than a few dozen customers around the world.

I feel your pain, having been there too (I could write a book). Do you think it would be better for Cake to charge for tech support like Microsoft and Norton do?

What do the rest of you think? Is it really as bad as these guys are making it out to be?

Sorry - couldn't help but bump this up one last time - Cakewalk is looking for tech support reps (see their contact section for job opportunities).

Here's your chance to make a difference!

ORIGINAL: dj xl garcia

I've tried to contact Cakewalk three times during last month (when i was still able to use Sonar without registration) because the online registration just won't send me the code. Guess what: NO ANSWER. Now sonar stopped working.

If i had not used Sonar for many years now i would not even hesitate to switch to something else. No commercial studio or someone depending on getting work done is able to put up with software and customer support like this.

I recieved mine, with minutes of a successful order from the cakewalk webshop...my serial came in am e-mail in my inbox. For some folk, it appeared in their spam or junk folder. Check in yours, it is probably there.

ORIGINAL: bermuda
I recieved mine, with minutes of a successful order from the cakewalk webshop...my serial came in am e-mail in my inbox. For some folk, it appeared in their spam or junk folder. Check in yours, it is probably there.

Bermuda -

I'm glad that you not only were able to make a successful order but also got good service.

Your advice to check spam filters etc is well intended, I don't doubt it, but we've been through all this before. Check this thread:
http://forum.cakewalk.com/tm.asp?m=774318&mpage=1&key=international%2Cstore

Please let me say it again.

Larry, I don't doubt that Cakewalk deal with the majority of their customers in a timely and efficient manner. The problem is not only that there are people with different experiences but also that these mistakes keep getting repeated over and over again.

Best,
Geoff

Sometimes phoning isn't a viable option
When the Cakers online shop went pear shaped for us, back when we bought Sonar5 PE and Project5 v2 bundle, we were given the same advice. (Just phone us)
Now my secretary tried phoning first thing every morning to get it sorted (shipped without any serials etc)…but over in the USA y’all were heading home for the night.
So our time zones didn’t connect.
We did get it sorted after a while because the good folks at Cakewalk are aware of the importance of international trade, and are decent people to deal with.
We are a manufacturer in a heavily regulated industry (games)…this is a business so I do not phone people in the middle of the night…. I go home to my other interests… incidentally we have branches all around the world and manage to touch base with all of our operatives via email/ftp server on a regular basis.

I expect any business with an international client base to behave as responsible global citizens. This means having effective support available 24/7.
Cakewalk have been consistently good (in the end) to us for more than 10 years now… but we have had some serious hiccups during time of “feeding frenzy”.

As a successful American once said;
“A business absolutely devoted to service will have only one worry about profits. They will be embarrassingly large”.
Henry Ford