Advocate code of conduct
We want to be known for our politeness and promptness. People expect a real-time answer to their question, and a well-trained team of advocates can provide a fast answer.
Our advocates are here to help.
Our focus is on the positive: how to get a "yes" from a company, how to fix the issue, how to make things better for everyone. We do this by connecting consumers to information that can help them achieve their goal, and ours. We do it by encouraging them.
We try to avoid the following:
✓ Telling a consumer they have "no case" because the terms and conditions say so. We'd rather let the terms and conditions, or the company, speak for itself.
✓ Scolding them for not reading the fine print. By the time they get to us, they usually know they've done wrong. They're not coming to us for punishment, but help.
✓ Chastising them for failing to buy a different product or forgetting to purchase insurance. Any recommendations along those lines should be done in a constructive and helpful -- and above all, polite -- manner.
Consumers may want to know if we'll advocate for them, even when they've made every mistake.
We can't take every case, unfortunately. But our forums allow them to air their grievances in a public place and to possibly have a company review it.
We try to avoid telling a consumer that we will not advocate for them. Rather, we say we consider every case and will get back to you if we can help.
I wanted to also add a note about the process of finding and selecting advocates. We have a vetting process, but we approach the screening process a lot like the Navy SEALS or a French medical school. We admit a large class of advocates but graduate only a few.
If you see someone who is not behaving like they should, let us know. We'll take appropriate actions to discipline or de-stripe them, if necessary. And that's especially true for anyone with a "lead" or "senior" advocate title. We are held to the highest standard, and that includes me!
We want to be known for our politeness and promptness. People expect a real-time answer to their question, and a well-trained team of advocates can provide a fast answer.
Our advocates are here to help.
Our focus is on the positive: how to get a "yes" from a company, how to fix the issue, how to make things better for everyone. We do this by connecting consumers to information that can help them achieve their goal, and ours. We do it by encouraging them.
We try to avoid the following:
✓ Telling a consumer they have "no case" because the terms and conditions say so. We'd rather let the terms and conditions, or the company, speak for itself.
✓ Scolding them for not reading the fine print. By the time they get to us, they usually know they've done wrong. They're not coming to us for punishment, but help.
✓ Chastising them for failing to buy a different product or forgetting to purchase insurance. Any recommendations along those lines should be done in a constructive and helpful -- and above all, polite -- manner.
Consumers may want to know if we'll advocate for them, even when they've made every mistake.
We can't take every case, unfortunately. But our forums allow them to air their grievances in a public place and to possibly have a company review it.
We try to avoid telling a consumer that we will not advocate for them. Rather, we say we consider every case and will get back to you if we can help.
I wanted to also add a note about the process of finding and selecting advocates. We have a vetting process, but we approach the screening process a lot like the Navy SEALS or a French medical school. We admit a large class of advocates but graduate only a few.
If you see someone who is not behaving like they should, let us know. We'll take appropriate actions to discipline or de-stripe them, if necessary. And that's especially true for anyone with a "lead" or "senior" advocate title. We are held to the highest standard, and that includes me!
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