If you thought you had a tough day at work on Thursday, spare a thought for the poor souls responsible for running the O2 Twitter account.
The telecoms company was under fire from all angles after an outage saw millions of customers left without data access, but its social media managers were praised for their stoicism in the face of the bombardment.
Some top banter from @O2 😂👏🏼 #o2down pic.twitter.com/qKCtbTxNX9
— Tom Glenwright (@Tom_Glenwright) December 6, 2018
I like to think im a patient person but oh my goodness what is going on @O2 I haven’t been able to work properly all day! 😭😅
— Lydia (@LydiaEmillen) December 6, 2018
It will have been bad enough for them when celebrities started complaining.
Okay @O2… WiFi alone isn’t cutting it anymore. I would like to use my phone lol. #O2Down 🤦🏾♀️🤦🏾♀️
— Alexandra Burke (@alexandramusic) December 6, 2018
😒😒 @O2
— TALLY (@kreptplaydirty) December 6, 2018
Anyone know how long this #O2Down business is going on for @O2? I’m currently having to talk to people and look them in the face… it’s very disconcerting 🤣
— Dan Walker (@mrdanwalker) December 6, 2018
🤷🏻♂️ #o2down they’re sorry and working hard to fix the issue and they are encouraging everyone to use WiFi 😂 obvs!! #excuses 😝😜
— Olly Murs (@ollyofficial) December 6, 2018
But it must have been even more galling when several of their rivals started to chime in.
wow
— O2 in the UK (@O2) December 6, 2018
Would some #VodafoneTreats help? pic.twitter.com/n3j16f55wF
— Vodafone UK (@VodafoneUK) December 6, 2018
Regardless, the O2 staff maintained their good humour.
send help
— O2 in the UK (@O2) December 6, 2018
Had better days tbh
— O2 in the UK (@O2) December 6, 2018
And while many customers remained angry that their service was down for so long, Twitter users were keen to remind everyone that the customer service staff weren’t to blame.
If you're calling @O2 to discuss the current outage, just remember the person you're speaking to didn't turn it off themselves. Go easy on them #o2down
— James Smith – NordVPN Affiliate (@J_S84) December 6, 2018
Super important. If anyone is speaking to @O2 today, please remember that the people at the end of the phone aren't at fault. I've worked in call centres and the occasional abuse you receive on the phone is really hard to leave at the door when you go home. #o2down #o2outage https://t.co/hmXht12IXd
— Phil Adèle (@philadelephia) December 6, 2018
Absolute quality from the @O2 social teams today. In the face of sheer vitriol, they’ve been professional and good natured all day. Bravo. A lesson for all big companies #o2down pic.twitter.com/NaOfNJplSP
— L.A. Matthews (@TheLAMatthews) December 6, 2018
To all our @O2 comrades, you’re in our thoughts #callcentreprobs pic.twitter.com/wNc6sJL4Li
— CallCentreProbs (@CallProbs) December 6, 2018