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Is it generally effective?

I mean sure, this technique can be handy in person in the hands of a skilled person who actually cares. But I have to suspect most people see through the insincerity, at least on a subconscious level.

I honestly am happier if somebody quickly and sincerely acknowledges my feelings and POV, as then I can be sure I got my point across. (Before moving on to solutions, of course, because eagerness to fix the problem is a major part of my feelings.) But what immediately doubles my irritation is when responses feel synthetic.

It's like when an on-hold recording says, "We're sorry for the delay." Who exactly is sorry? The little bit of looped tape? The voice actor hired 7 years ago to record the script? The telephone network? Nobody. Nobody is experiencing sorrow that I'm on hold. If they were, they might work to fix the problem. Support responses generally feel the same way to me. And I'm especially looking at you here, Amazon.




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