Our James Morrison Concert Experience

On the dot at five thirty P.M.

Rushed to MRT at six.

Reached Araneta Coliseum by six thirty.

Waited to redeem my ticket until eight P.M.

A very hectic and tight time frame I had to endure only to experience James Morrison's artistry.

It is the first time of the English pop singer in the Philippines and as soon as I found out he would be performing for his fans- and I am one of them, bigtime- I did not hesitate to watch him. That is the least that I can do to welcome one of the singers who continually inspires and relaxes me with his songs.

Mind you- this is not a blog about the concert of James Morrison. This is an entry about the prelude of the concert.

Before screaming with joy, we were first panicking because of a commotion regarding our online purchased tickets from one seemingly reputable online dealer. To cut it short, we were expecting to redeem our Upper Box A tickets at the venue. However, to our surprise, both the rules and customer support agent said we should have purchased the tickets in their office at Makati. Mind you, it was not directly stated in the voucher and nobody informed us except when we called them on the night itself. So there we were, gradually losing hope because of misleading information and yet there was no one who came to our rescue.

So, as my patience emptied, I asked the woman who answered our phone calls.

- Sino ka? At anong trabaho mo?

- Si ____ po, customer support.

- Ah, so what kind of support are you giving your customers, then?

*Dead Air

***

- Anong mairerecommend mong solusyon dito ngayon? Naghihintay kami sa wala.. Wala di ba?

- (After few seconds) Wala po

The company does not deserve to be named in this blog for it did not render us quality customer service nor would I want them to pay me for making us feel like ticket-less fans. I am actually sorry that we were rude to rant on the agent as she is not the one handling such transactions; she's only tasked to answer calls and sometimes receive moral damages.

However, the company has to know that these situations really arise. And I think- just to be fair- apologies like...

Hindi po kasi namin alam na may darating diyan (Araneta) na walang ticket (voucher lang), and

First time po itong nangyari sa 'min...are plainly stupid.

As a practicing online dealer of (in this sense) discounted concert tickets, how could you not expect professional customers coming to the venue hoping to redeem the tickets on the night itself- after battling with work loads? Assuming- for the sake of argument- that we can get the tickets at your office in Makati during certain working hours, what would happen to us then if we cannot get them because- as a matter of fact- we are also working during those times. Should you not have the courtesy of informing your customers through phone calls or mail about what they should do? Or is it really hard to conduct business personally that you would insist on not sending a representative to deal with the rising temperaments of these irate professionals? Better think again.

Online businesses can not be entirely propelled by online and electronically-mediated transactions. Your purchasers are real people with real issues once you upset them. Therefore, give them face value and not the music of One Direction and Foster the People as caller ring backs.

Long before we bitched the agent, we realized that we cannot claim the tickets anymore. And so, we have to look for the next best thing: buy tickets from an insider. Instantly, I asked a guy wearing all black, looking much of a production personnel, and anxiously holding his tickets while walking back and forth near the red gate. We asked- begged him to sell us his tickets for Php 1,500.00 and we were lucky because (1) he is obviously not a fan, (2) he has a spare Patron ticket, and (3) the tix are both in the Lowerbox; much nearer than our originally preferred seats.

Needless to say, my friend Lhong has miraculously procured two Lowerbox tickets; so we already have four. After a while, Hsam, Lhong, Mhy, and I are assured of seats nearer to James.

So that was how we ended up enjoying the concert. We may have gone through a highly annoying encounter with the dealer but I think we are really destined to watch James perform live. In the end, it was an additional to-be-cherished and to-be-treasured moments with Barkadang Walang Pangalan. Indeed, all is well that ends well.

Again, I am deeply apologetic to the customer support agent, but I am not sorry- along with five others who relied on the online purchase- for standing up to our oppressor that night. And I don't think I'll trust them again because as Morrison said:

You can't play on broken strings...

How can I give anymore,

When I love you a little less than before?