COLUMN: The customer is right? Yeah, whatever
The customer is always right. The customer is king. The customer is why you have a job.
How soon they forget.
Customer service in the valley is at what seems like an all-time low. More than once this semester, friends and I have been brushed aside, ignored or offered little service when we asked for it at various stores in Cache Valley.
Last week, my roommate and I went looking for shoes. Runners, specifically. We hit all the spots in the mall for shoes. At one store, we picked up several shoe styles and looked them over, discussed their prices and even went so far as to wonder, within the sales clerk’s earshot, whether they had her size or not. The clerk stayed behind the cash register fiddling with something.
Lost sale No. 1, and we won’t return.
We next went across the hall into the discount shoe store where all the shoes are on racks in their boxes, and it’s more or less self-serve. While we didn’t find anything we were particularly interested in, we were greeted and offered help by the obviously busy employee. With two stacks of boxes up to his chin perched precariously in his hands, he made the effort to say hello and ask us if we needed anything.
Lost sale No. 2, but we’ll be sure to return.
One last store in the mall before we headed out was a women’s athletic shoe store. Again, the clerk sat behind a computer at the cashier station and ignored us. The rack of shoe styles we looked at was not 2 feet from this woman. We discussed, loudly, whether this was the style of shoe my roommate wanted and whether or not they might have it in an 8. We stared at the clerk hoping our minds could will her to get up and help us. Finally, I had to approach her and ask her to check on a size for us. She did and returned to say they had a 7 and a 9. Oh. No offer of another, comparable style we could look at or any suggestions of other stores to look in.
Lost sale No. 3, and we won’t return.
What’s going on? Every other time I’ve shopped for shoes in a store like Foot Locker, I’ve been descended upon like a fly upon honey. More often than not, in most stores I shop – the ones that aren’t catch-all-type stores like Wal-Mart – the clerks are friendly and more than happy to suggest other styles or sizes or colours and then fetch those for you without you having to ask. They also tell you a bit about the fabric or the style and the benefits therein. Trying to make a sale. That’s what it’s all about.
Remember Pretty Woman? Snotty or unfriendly clerks miss out on commissions. Not good.
Yes, I’ve worked in customer service. Most of my jobs between high school and college were in customer service. I worked as a clerk in a women’s clothing store (not on commission) and as a cashier in an upscale restaurant. In both instances, it was easier to smile and help the customer and ask if they needed anything from me than it was to be grumpy, surly and unfriendly. It just makes sense to smile at a stranger when that’s your job.
Sure, I got frustrated sometimes with ignorant people. The restaurant was perched about 6,500 feet up one side of Mt. Rainier in Washington. I tired of hearing the same questions over and over again: “When do you turn off the fog so we can see the peak?” “How high up are we?” “Where’s the bathroom?” “Where are the bears?” and I often gritted my teeth to keep from flying off the handle and appearing exasperated.
But I never forgot the only reason I had that job was to serve these people, ignorant or not. I was able to feed myself, clothe myself and pay tuition the next semester because I served people. Perspective is everything.
Please, if you work in retail, remember why you have a job and what your job is. Don’t ignore me, don’t try on clothes when I need your assistance and don’t sigh like your life is so difficult when I ask you for help.
If I don’t appreciate you and your attitude, I won’t be coming back, and you’ll be out of a job.
Heather Fredrickson is a senior majoring in journalism. Send comments to slr4h@cc.usu.edu.