To Forum Moderators, Forum Improvement Suggestion

[skycarp]

I know I am a newbie here, and I know I shouldn't be making forum improvement suggestions at this time, but I am going to anyway.

I came to this site and introduced myself in the New Members Introductions forum the day I opened up the plastic package containing my TomTom XL. I came back later that same day when I had a serious problem with the device. I suspect this is how others have arrived here also. The only forum I was familiar with is the one I thought I might receive attention and help. That was the New Members Introduction forum.

If, when I had the serious problem, I could have went to a single forum that only dealt with serious device problems I would have known I would be in the right place.

Think about it, you could call the forum "Device 911" or something like that. You could have a sticky saying:

****DO NOT post here unless your device is disabled ****

This forum is available to current TomTom Forums subscribers only. It should be limited to posts dealing with immediate device problems - those where the device is currently out of commission and the owner is in or near crisis.

Please, if your device is not disabled do not post your question in this forum. If you have an issue with your device the proper place to post it is in the appropriate TomTom forum. The purpose for this forum is to get help as fast as possible for someone who's device is out of commission completely. By posting other problems in this forum it dilutes it's purpose and is like the boy who cried wolf - people will stop listening.

Thank you for your cooperation.

 

[cloudbuster]

Agree

I agree with placing some new parent forums out there. Although (imho) if my TT was totally disabled, I would be talking to tech support while I was searching...

It would be nice to see a forum which was structured more like an FAQ and discussed "Frequently Encountered Problems" by model. With this structure it would be easy to track down the fix to common problems by model or in general and then make a sticky thread once the problem is solved.

It is clear that TomTom either outsources their support to a pool of nerds who don't care - or are just a bunch of nerds who don't care, who work for TT... either way their support sucks, so we may as well show them how it is done.

Had I been able to find a forum which lists all of the problems - I probably wouldn't have bought mine... nothing gets their attention like plummeting sales..... or an angry mob.....

 

[cputrdoc]

We kind of have that already...

The TomTom knowledgebase covers fixes for the most common "TomTom ER" problems.

For the more unusual problems, you can post here under the model of device you own. Usually the response time here is not instantaneous but still faster than TT Support's emailed responses are, and is a little more refined than the regurgitated #!$& TT Support is likely to send you (more than once I've had to throw the ticket back at them with comments like, "did you read my explanation of the problem at all?").

Typically a subject line like "Red X, can't boot; Help!!" gets the attention of the veterans faster than usual. "Road trip tomorrow; new map won't load!" would definitely be one that gets my attention, though as cloudbuster said, an old fashioned phone call to TT Support might be best. In particular, "Michelle" is awesome and even uses this forum as a resource. I hope she never gets promoted out of her current position and gets lots of raises to keep her happy.

 

[Petrite]

In particular, "Michelle" is awesome and even uses this forum as a resource. I hope she never gets promoted out of her current position and gets lots of raises to keep her happy.

Well if it's anything like my company... when they figure out she's doing it right, they'll move her to another department.

-SIGH-

I also have to say that I still find these forums spread out in a way that my brain is not capturing. I just sort of poke around until I find something that looks familiar. For instance.. maybe taking a step back from the 911 thing..

How about being a little more direct than "General discussion" like something having to do with "problems". To me, general discussion is like.. "did you try this new voice".. "Hey.. edit POI's with Tyre".. "What kind of Car do you drive" "how do you mount your TomTom"... etc. There needs to be a section designated for troubles.

then there could be a controlled "how to" section where not just anyone could post. "How to back up", "How to change your startup/shutdown screens",

then cutting edge stuff: How to modify the TomTom button layout.

Hey.. Kill the contest section.. I dont care about a contest a year ago.

THEN.. we need a section for user suggestions so TomTom can go right into it to see what we are salivating for beyond "proper operation".