Old man rant on poor customer service

[Jeanw]

I agree with all these posts, it’s very sad to see how things have declined so rapidly along with the lack of giving a hoot if jobs are done correctly. I feel sorry for the youngins that do care and take pride in what they do, alas they are the exception.

 

[DukesDucks]

I feel sorry for the youngins that do care and take pride in what they do, alas they are the exception.

Those are the ones that we need to get recognized by speaking to their supervisors about what a good job they are doing.

 

[Vacman]

Your experience is one of the reasons Amazon.com has grown so rapidly. While they don't have personal service, the use of Amazon's website allows you to research items and find stuff you never knew existed and read ratings (although some of their ratings aren't exactly kosher and some aren't even about the product you are researching!). It's a shame but brick & mortar retail is helping to destroy itself, and many of these unhelpful employees don't even see that.

 

[gtaus]

I do believe that we do not compliment good service enough. Same store, 20ish clerk left to oversee flooring department. He couldn't answer some of my questions which I believe is on the supervisor for lack of training. He was very helpful in picking tiling and determining how much I needed. When the supervisor returned, I made a point of complimenting this young man on his service.

Well said. I do think we need to stop and take the time to compliment those who do provide excellent customer service. And that compliment should be in writing to the manager, IMHO, because then the manager can share that info with their employee(s) that customers do care. It's a teachable moment for both the manager and the employees.

I once read a short book on training dogs. The important concept was to reward the dog for doing the response you wanted, and not to punish the dog for the unwanted behavior. People are not dogs, of course, but the concept of rewarding good behavior is very powerful and I think it applies to people as well.

 

[gtaus]

Your experience is one of the reasons Amazon.com has grown so rapidly. While they don't have personal service, the use of Amazon's website allows you to research items and find stuff you never knew existed and read ratings (although some of their ratings aren't exactly kosher and some aren't even about the product you are researching!). It's a shame but brick & mortar retail is helping to destroy itself, and many of these unhelpful employees don't even see that.

I have been an Amazon Prime member for years, but I always first try to support my local businesses if they can come close to the price of Amazon. Some of the outdoor stuff I buy is cheaper at the local Fleet store due to the weight of the item and the cost of shipping one unit from Amazon as compared to receiving a pallet of that item on a truck at the store. So, brick & mortar stores still have some advantages.

If I suspect I might end up not being satisfied with my item, I will also tend to buy it locally where I can return it same day for a return and/or exchange.

I recently priced out my annual tune-up supplies for my riding mower from my local store. I was able to buy the same items on Amazon, but in a multi combo pack, and ending up ordering 3 years of supplies (oil filter, air filter, spark plugs) cheaper than 1 year of those same supplies would have cost me locally. Yeah, I did not need 3 years of those supplies, but the 3 year combo pack was cheaper than 1 year of those supplies locally. So Amazon won that deal.

I used to find the Amazon reviews helpful, but now there are so many fake reviews that I just take them with a grain of salt. It's too bad, as I used to rely on those reviews for honest feedback, but no more. In fact, I know a young man who gets paid to submit fake reviews on products sold online. They even tell him what key points he should include in the review. He does not see that damage he is doing to the system overall, but he gets a paycheck and that is all he seems to care about.

I still submit product reviews on items I have purchased, mostly good reviews, but if I get a bad product I do not hesitate to warn others. I don't get paid for my product reviews. Maybe I'm the dupe....

 

[kcan2]

It doesn't take much to treat others with courtesy & respect. Since so few people do it, or are trained how to do it, it's really starting to stand out when someone does!

 

[gtaus]

I do all my own renos, including electrical and plumbing,

That is great. I can do electrical, but I really don't touch plumbing. I have never really had the need to work with plumbing in my various life experiences, so it is just something I have never really learned. I have done lots of electrical work and that does not bother me. I used to have a cousin that would do the plumbing work and I would do the electrical work. But he passed away a few years ago so now I'm feeling half lost on basic skills of the trades.

If I could go back in time, I think I would have been well served to learn more basic skills in life, not only electrical and plumbing, but also in cooking and sewing. At 60 years old, I find myself doing more baking than Dear Wife. Go figure. Also, I have been forced to learn about sewing, in a sense, as I have been making/repairing bags for the wood chipper, leaf collection, etc.... Thank goodness for YouTube and people willing to share some of their knowledge.

 

[gtaus]

I have had that experience of, "Oh Sweetie. Why don't you go home and send your husband back".

I would like to think things have changed for young girls, but alas, I fear they have not. I have a young niece that is involved in Scouts. My brother-in-law showed me a waterproof "camping" storage box she got in scouts and asked me to guess what was inside.

Well, I said, maybe it was a compass so you can don't get lost. Nope.

Well, maybe some waterproof matches so you can light a fire if you get cold. Nope.

Maybe a sharp knife in case you need to cut a rope. Nope.

How about a fork and spoon kit so you can eat food around the camp fire. Nope.

Could it be a fishing kit with hook, line and sinker so you can catch fish to eat if you get hungry. Nope.

I was running out of ideas, so I finally gave up.

He opened up the waterproof "camping" storage box and showed me a bright pink hair brush his daughter got for her "camping" pack.

 

[DukesDucks]

Hey potential contractor. Saying you will drop by some time next week to look at the job doesn't work for me. Saying you will be here between 8:00 and 10:00, and show up at 3:00 also does not work. Try doing that with a doctor's or lawyer's appointment and see where it gets you. I understand that stuff happens but you have my email and phone contacts. Let me know you are running late or not coming at all. I am going to start adding a clause to your contract that includes a reduction by hourly rate of my wasted time.

So I am quoting myself from another thread but thought it works in this one too.

 

[gtaus]

Let me know you are running late or not coming at all. ...
So I am quoting myself from another thread but thought it works in this one too.

Works fine for me. Reminds me of a situation I had with a local plumbing company that was supposed to come out in the AM and pump out my septic tank. Waited all morning, nothing. Wait most of the afternoon, nothing. With about 2 business hours left in the day, I called the plumber's shop and asked them if they were going to make the appointment.

"Well, no," responded the young lady. "The driver for the pump truck called in sick today and we cancelled all his calls."

"Gee, it sure would have been nice of you to have called me this morning so I did not waste all day waiting for him to come out here to pump my tank." I responded.

About 15 minutes later, the owner called me and gave me that what-for about my complaint about their service. To which I told him that he had poor service by not calling me on the cancellation, which I would have understood the call early in the morning when they found out, but I told him I was now able to get another plumbing company to do the job just the same. That was 25+ years ago, I have never given them another job.

I don't believe I have a short temper, but I do have a long memory.