Bug in Vodafone India’s “HELP” Sms Services irritates Customers

Follow Us

Most of the times it’s not necessary for the users to remember SMS KEYWORDS for any operator to seek information or HELP.

For the interest of the users along with adding comfort, Operators should design their sms navigation system in such a way that whatever keyword user has sent they should be able to get suggestions for correct KEYWORDS or required help in the form of a return sms. This feature benefits both the users as well as the Operators as it’s not necessary to maintain or provide services on some particular KEYWORDS.




We have checked this type of functionality on all of our AVOID Operators along with Aircel.

AVoId HELP

If we observe Airtel(AP Circle Number) has set it very clear and simple,what ever wrong keyword user sends the sms system asks to send 'AIRTEL' to 121 to get required suggestions and the same way with Idea cellular(AP Circle Number) to 1234 as seen from the image.

But I was surprised to see the response from 111 of Vodafone IN(AP Circle Number).You can clearly see from the message that the SMS system of Vodafone failed in this case. They tried to provide a similar kind of service but it was utter flop and no way useful for users.

So,we decided to check if the fault exists in other circles as well.

For Vodafone IN Karnataka Circle:

vodafone Karnataka

I have come across a special keyword - NULL in the beginning for every reply sms.For every try i failed to get any useful response from the sms system of Vodafone.Pity on them for such a poor SMS response system.

For Vodafone IN Chennai Circle:

Vodafone Chennai

 Wow! That's an amazing response this time. For our HELP message we received a response "Hello,Your Request is Received.Will be processed shortly".

I was wondering what is that the system will be processing shortly for my sms HELP request on my number :( ?

 And oh that's not the end of the message,even we have a VAS Promotional message included too ;) Clever ah.

Two blunders at a stretch and are the customers expected to tolerate such stuff ?

Aircel: Initially I'm happy that Aircel too provided similar kind of Services.

Aircel Help

It can be clearly seen that User needs to reply to 121 but Aircel system responds from DA-Aircel which can't be used to directly reply. So,every time we need to go out of Message thread and reply to 121 which is very troublesome and spoiled the entire user experience. Dear Aircel please improve user experience.

Regarding Vodafone, I have complained long back on twitter handle of @VodafoneIN to which they responded but never cared to rectify their defective system till date.Vodafone Twitter

Dear users, have you faced any such issues with your operator in your circle? Do you like to tolerate this kind of services from premium operators? Do let us know any of your such experiences via comments.

Reported By

Telecom Analyst

Passionately following the Indian #Telecom Industry for over a decade from Business, Consumer and a Technical perspective. My primary focus area is Consumer & Digital Experience.

Recent Comments

TheAndroidFreak :

Off Topic: REDMI Turbo 4 Spotted on BIS Certification with model no 2412DPC0AI 6.67",1.5K Resolution 120HZ Refresh Rate MTK Dimensity…

OnePlus 13 and Xiaomi 15 to Feature Qualcomm Snapdragon 8…

TheAndroidFreak :

Off Topic: Poco F7 Ultra camera 50MP Light Hunter 800 1/1.55" OIS Primary 32MP 120° FOV Ultra-wide 50MP JN5 1/2.76"…

OnePlus 13 and Xiaomi 15 to Feature Qualcomm Snapdragon 8…

TheAndroidFreak :

Off Topic : Battery life will be crazy. ??

OnePlus 13 and Xiaomi 15 to Feature Qualcomm Snapdragon 8…

Aniruddh :

What about Hellotunes? How would one set up or manage their Hellotunes, as Wynk is going to be defunct after…

Airtel's Wynk is Saying Goodbye, But the Music Lives On…

pratulk09 :

BSNL having USOF obligation will continue to focus on hilly and inaccessible areas. Had BSNL been managed by corporate entity…

TRAI Directs Telecom Providers to Display Coverage Maps on Websites

Load More
Subscribe
Notify of
19 Comments
newest
oldest most voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments