Is it too much to expect good customer service when shelling out my hard earned cash for things like food, gas, cosmetics, groceries (pretty much anything you use every day)?
I feel it is not. I work hard for my $$. And damn it, I expect to be taken care of (if not pampered) in the stores I frequent.
Here's a day in my life (today):
9am: Went to Stop & Shop in Framingham to return rotten frozen peas. Why? Because they were black inside. Someone put them back in the freezer case thawed. Because peas don't rot, right? The store manager was so kind. He offered me a $10 gift card to pay me back for my peas and the last two quarts of creamer I got that had chunks in it like cottage cheese (sorry: graphic content). The manager said, "I wish more customers would tell us these things" as he threw away my black (not black-eyed) peas. He also said "well our sales are up 35% from last year" Me (in my head): "That's because you charge head and shoulders above the stores in the very same chain in other parts of Massachusetts" What, a neighborhood where the cheapest house is $400K and has higher taxes gets higher groceries, right? Don't ask me, I only used to work for S&S when it was run by Americans. When the Dutch pay for your groceries and then sell them back to you then they charge an arm & a leg. I'm still headed to Roache Brothers to buy my hot cross buns.
RB not only unloads your cart but they bring the groceries out to your car and don't expect a tip! Can you imagine not letting young people, elderly people, and people of all shapes and sizes carry their own groceries to the car?? Wow. And the hot cross buns are delicious, btw.
12pm: Call from AAA. My agent Judy leaves a voice mail that she's going on vacation so she's sending me my brochures in the mail (!). I'm not kidding. :)
4pm: Beauty & Main in Wellesley. I made an appointment to meet with a Laura Mercier employee for next weekend. (!) It's a free consultation with someone that works with Laura.
5pm: Thai food in Wellesley (My husband thought it was Chinese, but whatever gets him to eat it). Had the darn best iced coffee (coconut milk!) in the whole world while I waited for my take-out.
7pm: My pharmacy (okay, it's at Stop & Shop) gave me the generic nasal spray for my sinus infection to save me $. And my doctor did not call me in for a $15 co-pay appointment for her to tell me what I already knew quite well: I have a sinus infection.
Customer service score for April 12: 10 points
Tears shed: 0
Feet stomped: 0 (new record)
Sinus infection: 1
Fever: 1
And you too can be nice to the people who serve you your food and all of your other needs. Be nice to the guy who does your lawn. Be nice to the guy who pumps your gas. Be nice to the lady that sells you overpriced beauty products. They can make your life better (trust me, I've got a Laura Mercier appointment to look forward to).
recommend
Facebook
Twitter
bookmark 
print
Comments: 35
But you've given me hope.
Um, Roche and Whole Foods (Whole Paycheck) all hire teens. S&S does not care if they speak ENGLISH. But it does not take English to understand not to put the BREAD under the sauce jar. And at S&S they just don't care.
As a former employee of S&S I can tell you all customers had little cards with our cashier or bagger number--if something was done wrong the manager found out about it! And now that it's owned by a Dutch company all they want is good ol fashioned American $$$$. They don't care that not a single bagger at mine speaks english or not. Walmart is the same way, btw only it's greedy Americans. Good for Snapper mowers for standing up to Walmart this past month! *pat on back for Snapper CEO*
I, of course, have had experience with nice people, very nice people, and downright nasty as well. I often wonder why it is so hard for many people to be nice to those who serve them...
I like to make my customers smileAnd I do say thank you to them when they shop in my housewares department. I love it when the guys come in looking for some type of gadget they are sent in to look for by the wives.
I used to work at Staples and I dealt with the good, the bad, and the ugly. Often times it was just me in the copy center late at night. It was great because the customers that were respectful got their jobs done on time or early. And those that were rude...well I put them off until the next morning.
Shopping online can have good customer service too. I'm a big fan of Origins, because if you have a question about an online order you can call and talk to a human. :)
I agree--credit card companies are the worst!!!!!!!!!!!!
I have no idea how many ! I just typed but it deserved every one. Perhaps credit card companies are like the mafia because they know your credit is all you've got to survive (buying a house, car, etc.)
I've posted about my local walmart before, and going there is a pain worse than death (6 people asked to find mothballs, 4 to find canning jars? Come on.) I'm a huge Target fan and with the cereals all between $1.99-$2.50 I've started to buy essentials there (A box of Kellogs is not worth $6, I'm sorry!).
Thanks for your kind words!
I agree. The very best part of working in biz development & client service for me is helping those customers and feeling like I made a difference!
I LOVE the name of the company you work for!!
Yeah, I take pride in serving my customers well so I tend to be critical of others.
Since I've worked in customer service so long I guess I can be overly critical at times when I'm on the receiving end. Just the other day I was at the gas station paying for my gas. Since my left arm is in a cast up above me elbow I had to find a place to sit my purse to retrieve my money. Apparently it wasn't in front of the attendant's open register, a teenager, and she stood over at her register with her hands on her hips, huffing and puffing, and said in a rude voice, "What do you need?" It was not busy. There was no line behind me. And I had just put the gas in my car so she knew exactly what I was trying to do. I thought I was going to blow a fuse. It wouldn't even have hurt her to walk a few steps over to me to get the money but she refused to budge. I just laid the money down slowly in front of her, after I was able to get my purse back on my shoulder, and gave her a good long stare as I walked out. I won't say what I really felt like doing. But this kind of crap happens and I've learned to bite my tongue and be thankful for the nice ones when I run across them.
Great article. Good to her people talking about the positive even though I didn't comment back the same. Sorry to go off on such a rant but I do feel better. Thanks.
Occasionally we do have to journey to the big city for provisions (the nearest little town does not even have a Wal Mart, praise the Lord!) When we venture over the line into Oklahoma, there is a grocery chain called United Supermarkets that has EXCELLENT customer service. EVERY customer is greeted by the checkers and baggers when he/she walks in the door. Carrying your own groceries is only possible after nearly threatening the bagger with bodily harm.
Poor customer service is a direct result of not knowing and/or making your employees aware of the fact that the customer is your only reason for being there.
I'm with you on this one; be as nice as possible. I must admit that I am not above losing it during a bad customer service incident, but I never let it cast a shadow on everyone I meet. I always try to keep things on a positive level. It definitely pays back dividends.
I would have spit on my $20 and slapped in on the counter. Gas is expensive and that teen probably makes more than I do. *grin* No for real though, I would have written a letter to her manager and asked her for her manager's name.
I grew up in the hilltowns of Western MA where everyone knows everyone. Even though I have lived in a town of 75,000 for the past 11 years I make sure I know my bank tellers, post office people, dry cleaner, barista, all by name. In fact coming out of Starbucks (4-Bucks) today I ran into a former employee of that 4-Bucks and he had moved off to Colorado for a while and now he's back at the same college I'm going to (he's pre-law and I'll be MBA). Too funny, and if I had not been nice to him as he served me the coffee all those years ago...you just never know who you are going to run into and how they can help you (or become a good friend)
I'm not surprised if it's a place I go to all the time, chances are I'm back (even if it's just a little card shop in town) because of a good experience. I'm done with that Stop & Shop (exept for the Pharmacy) for a while. Last time I stopped going there for 2 years. If I can get the same prices (or better) and better service a few more miles away then I will. There's never anyone to help at the S&S butcher and their meat sucks, so I'm better off serving my family quality meat & produce.
I also think it has a lot to do with how employees are treated. If employees are treated fairly, enjoy coming to work and are satisfied, they are a lot more likely to provide good customer service and a friendly demeanor.
However, isolated incidents of bad customer service can happen anywhere. It's important to notify management when it happens. If it is a good company that cares about its customers, they will appreciate the feedback and will do their best to restore their reputation in your eyes.
I have a binder of letters I've written to various things that have gone on (even from changing the train schedule without telling the riders etc.) It pays to keep a binder from over the years. Those letters when respectfully written have all gotten a response except to the one to Mass State Parks (after a bad 4th of July experience). There's a book called "Letters from a Nut" which is great because they are fake customer service letters that the author sent for real. Too funny.
So right you are! Perhaps we can blame their parents for lack of manners?
:)
Thanks for sharing those!
I think I remember that post of yours, but I will revisit it. :)
Wow--that is a great story, thanks for sharing that. I'm glad kitty was treated with respect instead of the "maybe they'll come back for it" :)
I killed my freshman college roommate with kindness and all of her friends. I was told by the college that I had a single room. Come to find out they paired me with a Junior that in the previous years had my room as her living room. One week in she offered to help me move...I held my chin up and stayed the whole year just to spite her.
People have got to realize if the customer service is good it really makes a total package besides the good food and good atmosphere. There are places in town I will never return to. There are other places where I will go back to (even if a bit of a drive like a little place I found in Brookline MA that may be Zagat rated but is nothing more than a few tables--but with excellent service and a menu that changes every day!)
My husband eats at the same 2 lunch places several times per week with his friends. Around the holidays their server at the diner-type place gave them each a Christmas card with a lottery ticket inside. So nice! And it was a little touch, a nice way to say thank you for coming in here every week more than 1x.
So Gregory, it's not too much to ask to be treated with respect.
Now if only I could get the dog walkers at the State park near my house to pick up their dog turds so it does not get on my snow shoes!! *grin*
No--not poison peanuts!!!!!!!!!!!!
Glad I could send you here :)
Have a great day,
L