In an age where artificial intelligence is touted as the future and chatbots now hold the keys to customer support, one can’t help but wonder: whatever happened to actual service?

This isn’t a just a complaint or lament for the “good old days.” It’s a real concern, rooted in both personal experience and professional frustration. At Adwebvertising, we work closely with clients who rely on us not only for strategy and execution but also for being the connective tissue between them and the platforms they depend on. When those platforms fall short—when their “support” is just a maze of articles, dead-end chatbots, and deflection—our clients suffer. And so do we.

In this article, I want to explore what I see as a disturbing trend in customer service—specifically the growing abandonment of real, live support in favor of cold automation. We’ll examine specific examples, dissect why this is happening, and most importantly, explore what it means for those of us still holding the line on what service should look like.

The Rise of the Ghost Company: When Help is Just an Illusion

Take a look at companies like @Facebook, @Docusign, and @Yext. These platforms have millions—if not billions—of users, many of whom are businesses depending on their services for day-to-day operations. Yet, in many cases, getting in touch with an actual human being at these companies feels like trying to get a face-to-face meeting with the President.

Let’s take Facebook (or Meta) as an example. As a marketer, I’ve used the platform for years to manage client campaigns, build brand awareness, and help businesses grow. But if a client gets locked out of their account, suddenly it’s as if we’re dealing with a phantom. Sure, you’ll find an extensive list of self-help articles. And yes, some of those might help with basic troubleshooting. But for edge cases—unique errors, security anomalies, bugs that can’t be replicated—support is nowhere to be found.

In a recent incident, a client’s business manager account was locked out, and the only way to get back in was through Two-Factor Authentication. Unfortunately, the authenticator app was installed on a device from over a decade ago. There were no alternate options like SMS or email recovery. Just one dead-end loop requiring an old Google Authenticator account that was long since inaccessible.

You’d think a billion-dollar company like Meta could offer more options. A support ticket. A callback. An email. Anything. But after days of searching forums, watching YouTube tutorials, and scouring Reddit, I realized what many have come to learn: if you’re not spending tens of thousands a month in ad spend, you’re not worthy of real support.

And that’s just one story.

The Disconnect Between Product and People

This phenomenon isn’t limited to Facebook. @Docusign, once the gold standard in digital signatures and legal e-docs, has also gone eerily quiet. I recently tried resolving an issue with a client’s account migration. The help desk? A chatbot that only knew how to regurgitate articles I had already read. No escalation path. No phone number. No rep. Just a sea of keywords and a blinking cursor.

@Yext, another company in the digital space that Adwebvertising has partnered with, also offers powerful capabilities. But even as a certified partner, I’ve experienced long delays and frustrating roadblocks just trying to solve relatively straightforward issues—things like incorrect data syndication or local listing errors that affect how a business appears across platforms. And when that business is relying on you to correct the issue, being told to “consult the documentation” isn’t just unhelpful—it’s infuriating.

These companies, whether through arrogance, inefficiency, or an overzealous faith in AI, have decided that customer service is optional. And that’s a problem.

Why Are Companies Abandoning Support?

Let’s be fair. The rationale behind self-service isn’t completely misguided. It’s more efficient, scalable, and—on the surface—cheaper. For the companies, at least.

Here’s why big tech loves self-service support:

1. Cost Reduction:
Maintaining support centers with human reps is expensive. Salaries, benefits, training—these all cut into profit margins. Automated help articles and bots scale infinitely with zero marginal cost.

2. Scalability:
A chatbot can respond to a million people at once. A human cannot. So for companies with billions of users, it feels like the only viable option.

3. Data Control:
Chatbots keep you within the ecosystem. When they don’t solve your issue, you’re more likely to go down a rabbit hole of their documentation or ads than to a competitor’s site.

4. Perceived Sophistication:
There’s an illusion that self-service is more “modern,” “tech-forward,” or “innovative.” But often, it’s just less helpful.

The problem arises when automation replaces human intervention entirely instead of complementing it. Because here’s the truth: automation should handle the routine. But real service happens when a human cares enough to go beyond the script.

The Human Toll: Customers Caught in the Middle

The implications of poor support go beyond mere inconvenience. When you’re a business relying on these tools to serve your own clients, every delay, every glitch, and every unanswered ticket translates to lost time, broken trust, and potentially lost revenue.

For agencies like Adwebvertising, we act as intermediaries. Our clients depend on us to manage these platforms on their behalf. So when we’re stonewalled by the very systems we advocate for, it undermines everything we’re trying to build.

Even worse, it makes us look bad—when in reality, we’re the only ones still picking up the phone, writing the emails, and advocating for solutions.

Adwebvertising’s Customer Service Ethos: A Different Approach

We’re not perfect. But we are present.

At Adwebvertising, we believe in customer service that actually serves. We believe in real conversations. In troubleshooting together. In asking questions until the root cause is found. And most importantly, in staying engaged until the issue is resolved.

Whether we’re onboarding a new SEO client, building a WordPress website, or troubleshooting why a Yext listing isn’t populating correctly, we walk the journey with our clients. Not because we have to—but because we believe that’s the only kind of service worth providing.

We’re not a billion-dollar company. But maybe that’s why we care more.

Call to the Crowd: Who’s Getting It Wrong (or Right)?

I’m not the only one with stories like these.

Have you experienced similar frustrations with large tech platforms? Are there other companies out there that have quietly killed their customer support in favor of ghostly automation? I want to hear about it.

And I encourage you to share your story and tag the offending company. Maybe—just maybe—they’ll listen when enough voices are raised. Maybe a bot will read your comment and alert the humans that something is broken.

And if there are companies out there that are still doing it right, give them a shout-out too. We need to lift up the good examples just as much as we expose the bad ones.

Reimagining Support: What Companies Should Be Doing

Let me be clear: I’m not anti-technology. Automation has its place. Self-help tools can be powerful when used correctly. But there must be a bridge between information and interaction.

Here’s what I believe real customer service looks like in 2025 and beyond:

1. Hybrid Support Models:
Let bots handle the basics—but always provide a clear escalation path to a real person. Every account should have an “SOS” button.

2. Contextual Support Logs:
Instead of restarting from scratch every time, companies should integrate AI to track your history and hand off to a human who can pick up where the automation left off.

3. Loyalty-Based Service Access:
The more a customer has invested in your platform—be it time, money, or data—the more access they should have to support.

4. Transparent SLAs (Service-Level Agreements):
Don’t just promise help—define what “help” means. Tell customers when they’ll hear from someone, how long resolution will take, and who is responsible.

5. Restoration of Human Empathy:
Train your team not just to fix problems, but to understand them. Empathy, not efficiency, should be the core metric.

The Bottom Line: Customers Remember How You Made Them Feel

No one remembers the article they read on a Help Center. But they do remember the time a support rep called them back. They remember the moment someone took ownership of their problem and followed through.

That’s the kind of support that builds loyalty. That’s the kind of service that builds businesses.

At Adwebvertising, we don’t see service as an afterthought. It is the very soul of what we do. And I’d argue that in a world increasingly filled with faceless interactions, being human might just be the most disruptive thing of all.

Your Turn

Got a story to share? A platform that left you high and dry? Or one that surprised you with stellar support? I’d love to hear it. Tag the company. Raise your voice. Let’s create a collective standard of accountability—one that puts people before platforms.

And if you’re tired of navigating these waters alone, know this: our team at Adwebvertising is always ready to help.

Even if the others won’t.