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  • AADD Moderators: swilow | Vagabond696

The Fucking Annoying Art of Customer Service

Ok, my $0.02 :
I've worked in Maccas, Pizza Haven, Coles and now ANZ (as a bank teller), so i know about what it's like to work in the aforementioned areas of Customer Service. The sad fact is that it IS a real bitch of a job, but someone has to do it. The amount of times i would say to someone "Hi, How are you today?" just to be completely ignored really bothered me. One day i decided to do some thig different, when customers replied to the aforementioned question with "good, how are you?" i would reply with "oh, i'm terrible actually..."
And do you know what, no one gave a damn. Someone before mentioned the fact that people in customer service are like vending machines - i think that's partly true.
What really gets me is when customers get upset because they disagree with a particular part of bank policy and react as though it is me personally who has institutionalised a certain fee, charge, or other inconvenience.
From the other side of the coin however, i do hate it when i'm at the bank (for example) and the person behind the counter is mucking around. This frustrates me because i know how to do their job, and therefore realise what they are doing. I don't mind waiting if the person is genuinely in the middle of something, but quite often it's just that they don't want to serve you (from my experience of most bank tellers anyway.)
I think there are two sides to every story... the amount of customers i had at Coles who actually congratulated me for even trying o start a conversation with them was astounding - a lot of them remarked that is seems to be the cashiers who do not want to talk.
Sorry, a bit off topic there... :\
 
Ok first of all I don't handle any money whatsoever (though I've had customers try to tip me), so I can't say I have to deal with the pissed off customers at registers.
I can understand why they're pissed off a lot of the time. Sure it sucks when you have to wait 10 mins at the registers because there's only 3 out of 16 open and there's 5 people just standing at the service desk doing absolutely nothing but chat. I know if they do that at my work I get rather annoyed to say the least and fair enough too, but I don't personally yell at the poor girl/guy at the registers cause that's just bad kosher!!
Someone was saying how annoying it is for someone to complain about policies that are not in your control, well I totally agree with you there. If you have a problem with something (ie the prices or something else), at some shops they have a little pamplet where you can jot down your suggestions of how perhaps the service at that particular shop could be better or you can write down there that maybe you think something is too expensive, or whatever you feel like.
p.s.- Just once I'd like to see a manager tell some asshole "sorry there's plenty of other customers out there, you're not worth the hassle for me and my staff please leave"
Hahahaha that's actually happened at my work a couple of times, however I won't go into details as it could take all day.
Why do I put up with the crap? Well I guess that maybe it's because my job is actually pretty cushy a lot of the time. Sure I do have to work, but there's rewards there for me in the quiet times, such as being able to take extra breaks and little things like that. The money isn't that great, but then again I get more money than some of my friends who have just finished Uni and who have careers. Also I'm hopefully changing departments soon, and I won't have to deal with many customers at all.
Oh btw I don't yell at people behind the registers, the only time I get annoyed at the staff is if they ignore me or act like I'm a pest, and even then I don't get annoyed at the staff very often because I know how shitty some people can be.
Click to expand...
 
I dont dig the whole your a waiter and therefore u must be studying so therefore u are subserviant... Ok so I am at uni right but most of the people i work with dont and they are professional waiters prolly pulling in about 300 a day... To me thats a lot of money, prolly more than the ass wipes we serve.
Haha we get some fucking dickheads where i work... one of those 40 degree days, i was standing behind a dishwasher all day in a small bar, and when this woman came to pay her bill, she told the waitress, who was carrying plates that it was sooo hard to eat her meal in the heat.... fucking rich pricks ;)
im so used to saying thankyou to people, being in service industry for over 3 years that even when someone brings me a tray of dirty glasses i say thanks.
I tell you, if u dont get tipped, u shouldnt feel the need to take people attitudes.
end rant.
ps "i never once washed my hands, that your policy not mine."- Grandpa Simpson.
 
The customer is always wrong -- thats my motto ;) . I find it interesting how working in hospitality or customer service can force you into a situation where you have to
a) lie to the customer
b) betray your emotions
c) smile while you're doing it
You've just served some rude prick, then you have to thank them for their business when you're really wishing that they fsck off and die.
This reminds me of a restaurant I went to where the waitresses wouldn't take shit from ANYBODY. I watched while one of them responded to a rude customer with some sharp, witty putdown and it was a joy to behold.
 
ive actually come up with a strategy to combat the no response when u say hi, how r u to a customer . . . when i worked on checkouts a kmart, id say hi how r u to every customer, (u think scanning is fun? id have gone spare if it wasn't for the occasional conversation) anyway, often they dont even answer you, so what i'd do is pause what im doing, lean over repeat myself much louder, as if i assume they haven't heard me! 9 times out of 10 they are so embarrassed (maybe that i think they have a hearing problem) that they'll respond!!
 
I have to say that it irritates me when strangers ask me how I am, esp. people at checkouts.
The thing is, I know you don't really care how I am because you don't know me at all. And if I were to answer back, "I'm actually in a pretty bad way", would you really want to hang around and listen to a rambling dissertation on why that is? I don't think so.
I never ask how people are going unless I *actually* care how they are going. So I figure when I do actually ask it, it really does mean something and isn't one of these empty gratuities.
 
^^^ I love it when shop assistants ask u how u are and take an interest. Shows that they somewhat seem to enjoy their job... I love shopping in Oxford st and Chapel St because the shop assistants are so friendly.
I have noticed that while at resturants, if the waiters wear a smile, it rubs off on the customers and so they enjoy their meal just that little bit more... Smiling is contagious.
Being in hospitality I always am nice to everyone who is doing their job ie check out chicks. And i find it rude when u dont even get eye contact...
My bank teller and myself get on like a house on fire, even though its a very superficial business relationship at least its better than not saying anything and continuing with a drab existance...
When i used to work at DJs i found that when u stuck up on convo with some dumb rich house wife, u could at least be a little bit cheeky.
Anyway im all for it.
 
Macksta: i do mean it when i ask it!! i know most shop ppl are being fake, as greeting is part of the job, but yeah i dont ask unless i geninely want to know . . .
 
i'm not really sure how i fit into this thread, because well...*sometimes* i'm friendly, but i just don't give two shits about my job, so i mainly just look bored.
it's not that i'm noticeably unfriendly to customers or anything, but i just don't really give a shit about the majority of them. if they're polite, i'll be polite, if they're rude i'll be rude.
having said that though, there'll occasionally be someone who is really friendly, and i really notice a change in my own personality when this happens - i become the same.
not really sure what that all means, but i guess you'd probably all leave my store angry if i served you :)
ps: i'm *definitely* polite when i'm *being* served, as i understand what it's like behind the counter (though i always have been i guess...my mum brought me up properly :) )
 
Ahh customer farking service :)
Straight onto the "how are you" thing:
It can be as simple as this, if the "how are you" is used as a greeting, i.e.
"Hi, how are you?" then the simple answer is 'not bad, urself?' which is very common. Its just another greeting exchange.
However, if you've already said hellos then the person asks how you're doing, its generally a more genuine question.
I work at video ezy and am all too familiar with the standard greetings and the like. If i actually care about what someone has to say more than being polite i'll ask them "So how's your night been?" or something of the like, which provokes more of a response than just "yeah not bad"
Relations are relative, if i'm nice to someone and theyre rude in response then my niceties will stop, well be toned down anyway. But people that are bright and happy, well it just rubs off on you. There are some rude cunts that come in that i really wanna just tell to shut the fuck up, but don't... i'm sure everyone relates to that, heh
Adikkal
 
I'd prefer shop assistants to leave me alone. If I want help I'll come ask.
I used to be a waitress and I didn't mind if a customer was rude...there are ways to get them back which are much more subtle then just being rude back.
"I'm sorry sir, we seem to have lost your order and we're closing our doors early tonight so we won't be able to serve you."
"I'm sorry madam, the dish you ordered isn't available tonight, I suggest you try <insert most horrendous meal on the menu>"
"I'm sorry (you dirty, filthy piece of lard) when you said you had an allergy to coconut milk I thought you said you wanted extra helpings. Would you like me to call an ambulance?"
etc
And no I wasn't fired. ;)
 
i used to work at BI LO and was shocked at how rude the customers can be. one of my tricks was that after serving them i would say thank you and if the customer didn't say it back i would say "your welcome" and smile and if they ever confronted me i would pretend that i thaught they had said it- it always worked! i once had a customer throw a plastic serving dish at me , i told the manager, she was promptly thrown out of the store.
i now work in the disability field with people with pretty bad intellectual disability and i find that i get more pleases and thankyous and more general politeness from them than from the general public!!!
 
I have worked in a few customer service fields, including reception and waitressing. I found people were rudest to me when I was doing counter service at a cafe with a conservative clientelle. Some people would just treat me like I was the lowest piece of dirt under their shoe, but funnily enough the worst offenders were customer service 'ladies' from the makeup counters and jewellers - they'd pull this whole 'class' routine - your in food, therefore you're the lowest of the low.
If anyone should know how to treat service staff it's others in the field. I never accepted rudeness from these types. I wasn't rude back, I just didn't stop to listen to their dressing-downs. As a result, I got fired from that particular job by a boss who was the same kind of person as those customers.
But hey, I've got a science degree and now I'm doing postgrad, so I get to leave that world behind. I am always friendly and usually chatty to service staff and will always compliment/tip good service.
 
Well... I've been doing Customer Service over the phone randomly throughout the last year.. and I wish everyone was made to work for a week or two in a call centre so they know what its like!
Yes its a shit job, but in general it was the amount of stupidly idiotic people that I had to talk to every single day that made it hell!
OK, I understand being called by someone trying to sell you products kinda sucks, but the amount of people I had to deal with who didnt seem to understand that all we are is lowly sales people.. we dont all personally have the number of the general manager of the company, we dont have the ability to make any decisions regarding company policy/pricing and we really dont give a shit. I get so many people who somehow expect me to listen to their beefs with the company I've worked for, and they *insist* that I do something about it... like I somehow have the ability to. I just let them have their vent, and leave them thinking that somehow yelling at me will change the company. :)
The countless times I've had comments from people who are like "hah, if you called me I'd do.. <insert apparently amusing response and hangup to telemarketer person>", to which I always reply, "I'm sure you'd get a laugh out of it.. but we dont really care.". Seriously, on an average day doing outbound sales I would talk to approximately 200ppl, and the people I remember are those who are polite and curteous.
Now I dont care how much everyone hates being bothered by sales people, be they on the phone or in a shop.. treating these people like dirt is disgraceful in my opinion. I mean seriously, whats makes anyone else better than the salesperson? NOTHING. Thats what shits me up the wall, people who think that coz they have a profession that makes more money, or they are too busy to say "hello". Really, being a snobby prick at a register doesnt make the checkout operator work faster.
However, I am always polite, no matter how much the customer tries to piss you off.. I've had quite a few experiences where the person who has been angry has actually been suprised and calmed down because I havent gotten frustrated or angry with them..
I always keep a positive attitude when I work, I like to think that every now and then someone will walk away and say "man, she just made my day a little more enjoyable", coz I know thats what I do when I encounter someone who is genuinely interested in talking to me while they are dealing with me. I find it a lot easier to deal with the idiots by laughing at their stupidity... seriously, people are so damn stupid :) (Even me atm coz I've just been rambling randomly here hehe)
Well, I start working for Coles as of this next week.... so onto more customer service and retarded customers. ;)
stace.
 
good topic i must say!
i have to agree with raydar- if u cant handle different peoples attitudes or lack of manners then u shouldnt be working in retail/customer service.
i do also belive that there is no need to be rude or impolite.
ive worked in retail for 3 years and much prefer it to an office job for the simple fact i get customer contact,different faces every day and different peoples attitudes hehe they make my day interesting sometimes, i think id get bored if everyone was so polite.
i must admit though there have been times when ive wanted to jump the counter and wring the bastards necks but i manage to keep my cool and keep smiling then bitch about them when theyre gone hehe if i dont smile at work i get in big trouble& i never ask some one how they are unless i am being genuine.
but from another point theres one thing i cant stand worse than being served by some else that is rude! and being asked "am i right?" and not even smiling eeesh! they annoy me.
queen beat: haha remind me not to your work and be rude!! ;)
just my 2.2c
happy retailing folks! :p
[ 21 February 2003: Message edited by: JoYeNeRgiZeR ]
 
Having worked the same customer service job for nearly 2 and a half years now, I find that I cant always be outgoing and cheerful to every customer that comes along.
I usually just struggle to maintain a "reflective" mood, which basically means that I'm emotionally flat (kinda like on autopilot)and the kind of service that each customer gets depends on the way they approach me.
eg. if they talk to me like I'm a vending machine, they get Mr Robot.
If they talk to me in a friendly manner, they get the "G'day mate" treatment.
I know i should have a better attitude and try and lift the mood of evey customer, but after 2.5 years, it IS hard
 
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