The Printer Guy's Advice
As a Printer Service technician I deal with upset people daily. This is to be understood, as it can be very frustrating fighting with a machine. Over the years I have learned to deal with many different personalities, and while some may be more open to advice than others, they usually just want you to fix the disrupting printer so they can get back to work.
So the next time that temperamental printer acts up, here are a few friendly pointers when you have to make the dreaded service call.
Let the Tech fix the machine. - You may know exactly where the machine is jamming, or have even fixed the machine before, but there is a reason you called, let the technician do their job. The technician may ask you some questions, but usually they can log into the machine and get all the information needed.
Don't Stand over his/her shoulder - One of the most annoying things is when a customer does this. We understand you may have an urgent job or fax you're waiting for, but please don't do this. I've had many customers that will hover over you and point to where you should be working on the machine. Usually we will pleasantly tell the customer that it may be a few minutes/half hour/hour before the machine is ready. If told this feel free to return to your desk.
Don't send jobs to the Printer while it is being worked on- Most of the time I will unplug the usb or network cable from a machine if I'm going to be working on it for an extended time. However, if I don't it never fails that someone will constantly send jobs to the machine, causing it to jam or malfunction. I understand people may be unaware that I'm working on the machine but it's aggravating nonetheless.
Listen - If you ask a question about the Printer/Copier, listen to the answer. Many times a customer will ask about loading paper or the display on the machine and walk away or start talking to a coworker as soon as I answer. "This machine is a piece of junk!" Well when you put paper in the machine cockeyed or load stapled documents into the feeder, you may run into problems
Be Polite- This one sounds like common sense but unfortunately it has to be addressed. I'll let you in on a little secret. The nicer you are to me, the nicer I am to you. Sounds simple enough. A little courtesy will go a long way, if I have two calls that come in around the same time and I know both customers, which one do you think I would rather go to first? Probably that nice lady that asks how I'm doing and understands I'm just doing my job. Not the crankpot that rolls her eyes at me every time I tell her I have to order a part.
Once again, I realize it's frustrating when all you want to do is make a copy and the stupid printer never works. You have a right to be frustrated. I'm just asking that the next time the guy comes to work on your machine you don't take it out on him. Good Luck.
