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Great Western Coffee Shop > All across the Great Western territory > Who's who on Western railways > Who's Sarah?
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Author Topic: Who's Sarah?  (Read 12283 times)
grahame
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« on: January 02, 2012, 09:32:57 »
I've noticed a link on the front page of the FGW▸ (First Great Western) site to "Ask Sarah" - takes you to the URL
http://www.raspberrysoftware.com/FGW/va/index.php
Good idea - fantastic one if typing in a quick question will get an immediate and accurate response whenever it's needed.   

I didn't spot an "about" link, and didn't want to test the service out / waste time with a spurious question ... has anyone tried it / know anything about it?   Did it work for you and provide a good answer?
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readytostart
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« Reply #1 on: January 02, 2012, 14:06:34 »
Looks a bit similar to National Rail Enquiries' Lisa and also something similar that used to be on the IKEA website, I don't think (save for the photograph) that Sarah is a real person! They should have included an 'Ask Ollie' app!
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grahame
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« Reply #2 on: January 02, 2012, 14:21:10 »
Oh - I don't expect there would be one Sarah Wink - it's Vicky Osbourne who used to answer for Southern Vectis again. If it's as good as "Ask Ollie" would be, with enough of a team to be able to handle the volume and make it available for the same hours as the web site that advertises it (  Grin ) then we'll have a real treat of a service.
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Ollie
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« Reply #3 on: January 02, 2012, 14:41:04 »
Ah "AskOllie" would be nice Smiley

Had a look - to me it seems it's just a slightly fancier FAQ▸ (Frequently Asked Questions) type software. As RTS bit like NRE‡(resolve)'s Lisa.
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grahame
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« Reply #4 on: January 02, 2012, 15:46:45 »
Quote from: Ollie on January 02, 2012, 14:41:04
Ah "AskOllie" would be nice Smiley

Had a look - to me it seems it's just a slightly fancier FAQ▸ (Frequently Asked Questions) type software. As RTS bit like NRE‡(resolve)'s Lisa.

Spurred on by your reply, I 'risked' a spurious question in the interest of research and more informed comment:

Quote
You asked:

When do Club 55 tickets become available this year?

Sarah says:

Club 55 was a seasonal promotion. To see if it is still available, check our Offers page.

and she suggested some other questions I might like to ask her.

The clincher was that she answered me in milliseconds.  Yes - a clever bit of software, but not (yet) clever enough to be anything like a real person staffed service for a certain percentage of the more tricky questions in the complex area of train operation.
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eightf48544
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« Reply #5 on: January 02, 2012, 17:16:04 »
Yep answered in milliseconds gving a phone number to call, but it does appear to be a useful number.
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bigdaz
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« Reply #6 on: January 02, 2012, 19:27:44 »
We should start a Campaign for Ask Ollie instead...!!!

Imagine logging onto the website and seeing Ollie instead of Sarah.....!!!  Now that would be promotion Ollie lol!!!
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Chris from Nailsea
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« Reply #7 on: January 02, 2012, 19:52:34 »
Well, I had occasion to 'Ask Ollie' something very recently, and he was (as always) extremely helpful.  Thanks, Ollie!  CfN.   Lips sealed
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Ollie
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« Reply #8 on: January 02, 2012, 20:29:36 »
No problem Chris.

Not sure I could manage staffing the FGW▸ (First Great Western) Website 24/7 Daz Tongue
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Btline
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« Reply #9 on: January 02, 2012, 21:41:11 »
"One Railway" had a virtual assistant called 'one'.

It was a woman. Wink
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bigdaz
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« Reply #10 on: January 03, 2012, 18:54:53 »
Well, as employers, we've all made some bad appointments  Grin


MOOKIE I promise I am joking!!  Kiss
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JayMac
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« Reply #11 on: January 03, 2012, 19:50:30 »
Quote from: Ollie on January 02, 2012, 20:29:36
Not sure I could manage staffing the FGW▸ (First Great Western) Website 24/7 Daz Tongue

You do a good job with follow ups on FGW's Facebook and Twitter accounts, Ollie. I hope your efforts are being recognised.....
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Brucey
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« Reply #12 on: January 04, 2012, 08:57:58 »
I grilled Sarah with some tricky questions, let's see how she got on...

Quote
You asked:

Can I break my journey?

Sarah says:

Some tickets allow you to stop and restart your journey en-route.

Anytime Tickets - you can break your journey on both parts of the ticket.

Off-Peak Tickets - generally you can break your journey, except if the restriction associated with the journey says that you can't - please check when you buy your ticket.

Advance - Break of journey is not permitted on Advance tickets, unless you're advised to change trains on your reservation confirmation
Very good Smiley
Quote
You asked:

Can I use a combination of tickets?

Sarah says:

I think you're talking about tickets but I'm not sure exactly what you're asking. I have made some suggestions below, so please click on one if it is helpful, otherwise re-phrase your question and I'll try again
Oh, not quite as good Sad
Quote
You asked:

Will Melksham ever receive a better service?

Sarah says:

I'm sorry I can't answer you at this time - please try rephrasing.
Tongue Cheesy
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bigdaz
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« Reply #13 on: January 04, 2012, 19:11:48 »
So Ollie should now sit the test Brucey and then we can make a true comparison lol!  Grin  Cheesy
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JayMac
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« Reply #14 on: January 04, 2012, 20:25:39 »
I asked the same question of both FGWs▸ (First Great Western) Sarah and NRE‡(resolve)'s Lisa. Lisa knew the answer....



 Cool Wink Grin

EDIT: Lisa is very philosophical. I just asked her, "Is it Tuesday?" She replied, "This time tomorrow, today will be yesterday ..."

So I then went for a more informal approach. "Care for a date?" Which got the reply, "I'm far too busy to do the dating thing ... I would much rather travel by trains with my girly friends..."
« Last Edit: January 04, 2012, 20:41:11 by bignosemac » Logged
"Build a man a fire and he'll be warm for the rest of the day. Set a man on fire and he'll be warm for the rest of his life."

- Sir Terry Pratchett.
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