Who will pay?

As the lines for bargains on Black Friday proved, Americans will do a lot to get a bargain.

I'm wondering, however, whether many of those same Americans are willing to pay a little more to get something better when it comes to customer service.

Who isn't frustrated by the inflexibility of interactive voice response systems? Like most consumers, I wile away the minutes on hold rewriting the scripts. (Press 1 if you'd like to throw your laptop out the window; Press 2 if you've already thrown your laptop out the window and your office is above the third floor; Press 3 if you now sitting on the window ledge.)

The only thing worse than automated systems, however, are customer service reps who are uninformed, unable to provide anything more than rudimentary help (yes, I've rebooted my computer already, thank you), impossible to understand or trained to try to sell you something, even if they can't solve your problem. ("I'm sorry we can't fix your DSL service today, but would you like to hear our wireless offer?")

The need for cost-effectiveness in a competitive global economy has forever doomed the days when cheerful service reps answered a phone in person. But service providers that expect to serve the digital home, or provide the digital lifestyle or--insert other clichés here--had better be prepared to offer something other than outsourced wisdom at the end of a long IVR string.

The challenge is to find an economically viable way of providing better customer service--and some outright hand-holding--without creating the kind of backlash a Chicago bank faced a few years back when it started charging customers $3 to use a teller for anything an ATM could have handled.

That is going to require careful planning, increased network intelligence and execution that is almost flawless. But the service provider that can pull it off stands to develop the kind of loyal customer base that ensures success in the competitive market.

E-mail me at CWilson3@primediabusiness.com.