October 21 -- These days, Americans are more inclined to patch up household products like vacuum cleaners, blenders and mowers rather than junking them.
This wave of frugality is increasing call volume to customer help lines, prompting some companies to boost their call-center staffing and offer more online tutorials on fixing and maintaining household machinery.
Kathleen Jones, a retired accountant in Wenonah, N.J., was one of the thousands of people who recently called the Glenwillow, Ohio, office of Techtronic Industries Co., the Hong Kong-based maker of Hoover and Dirt Devil vacuum cleaners. Ms. Jones was tempted to replace her 20-year-old vacuum after the old floor-brush attachment broke. But she found it would cost at least $300 for a similar new model. Instead, she ordered a replacement brush for $15.47.
"If I get another couple years out of it, that's pretty good," Ms. Jones says.
In many cases, "if you call us, we can fix it with you over the phone," says Dan Gregory, president of Techtronic's floor-care business in the Americas. Techtronic has seen about a 20% increase in U.S. help-line call volume each of the past two years. To handle more than 2,000 calls a day, the staff at the Ohio call center has almost tripled over the past two years to 65. The company also puts how-to-repair videos on its websites.
For both financial and marketing reasons, Techtronic wants customers to call when vacuums break down. To encourage them, it has begun putting a sticker on each product with the call-center phone number. "At that moment of frustration, it's right then that you either lose a customer or keep a customer," says Mr. Gregory.
Handy Help
Before undertaking a repair, consult the owner's manual. Consumers who are uncomfortable or unfamiliar with electric appliances or gas-powered engines should consider a professional repair service. Here is a sampling of useful phone numbers and websites:
Another risk: A customer who can't find a quick fix may return the vacuum to the store that sold it. The store may then give the customer a new machine, even if the old one wasn't really defective. Techtronic picks up the tab.
Other companies also report more interest in repairs. Briggs and Stratton Corp., which makes lawn mowers, pressure washers and back-up electricity generators, says do-it-yourself-repair calls and emails are the fastest-growing category at its "answer center." Overall call volume is up more than 60% from the level before the 2008-09 recession and totals several thousand per day during the peak summer season, says Dan Benischek, director of the call center. The number of call-center employees has risen to more than 60 in peak periods from 40 before the recession.
At Ariens Co., a maker of lawn mowers and blowers, sales of replacement parts now run at 12% to 13% of overall sales, up from 9% to 10% a few years ago. "Definitely consumers are extending the life cycle of products," says Daniel Ariens, president of the family owned company in Brillion, Wis. He has expanded his telephone tech-support team to nine people from five and persuaded three Ariens retirees to take calls at home during snowstorms, when lots of customers call in with blower problems.
At Techtronic's Ohio call center, employees deal with all kinds of cleaning crises.
"Hello, this is Heidi," Heidi Barchalk, a senior Techtronic help-line staffer, said on a recent afternoon as she picked up a call. Vivek Malik, the owner of four cellphone stores in southeastern Massachusetts, was having trouble with the Hoover Whisper Cyclonic vacuum used to clean one of the stores. A new belt hadn't done the trick.
After Ms. Barchalk prescribed a new part for the brush roller, Mr. Malik argued that Hoover should provide that for free because the vacuum was less than a year old. Ms. Barchalk said the warranty covered only residential use. Sturdier commercial vacuums should be used in stores, she advised.
"I can't believe this!" Mr. Malik barked. Ms. Barchalk offered to give him a 30% discount on the part, bringing the cost to $14.55 plus tax, and to rush the shipment.
Mr. Malik finally agreed. "We've already not vacuumed for three days, and the place is a disaster," he said. A week later, Mr. Malik said the Hoover worked with the new part, "so it's a happy ending."
Hundreds of vacuums line the aisles of the call center so employees can grab the relevant model if needed to explain something to a customer.
Sometimes it's only a matter of pushing a reset button, replacing a broken belt or cleaning a filter clogged by pet hair.
Another caller reported that her Hoover lacked suction. Ms. Barchalk asked the caller to remove the hose, hold it perpendicular to the ground and try dropping a quarter into the top end. The caller complied.
"Did it come out the other end?"
"No."
"That indicates the hose is clogged up," Ms. Barchalk said. She told the customer to use a broom handle to nudge debris out of the hose. After she hung up, Ms. Barchalk said, "We get that a lot."
Some vacuum crises are more difficult to resolve. The tough ones are escalated to a supervisor. If that doesn't suffice, the caller is referred to a local authorized repair shop. They don't offer advice on engine repairs, because that work is considered too dangerous for amateurs.
One woman called Techtronic to say her vacuum was "possessed," says Lisa Thomas, who manages the call center. Another had accidentally vacuumed up a beehive. "They were asking how to get the bees out," Ms. Thomas says. "We basically said, 'very carefully.' "
