customer service your thoughts?

[shootthebandit]

So theres a thread that quite popular at the minute about tipping and it got me thinking in America customer service is second to none (possibly due to yhe tipping culture) and in the UK its terrible.

But to be honest i like the no nonsense approach to customer service. If i go to a supermarket and someone in front of me is having a chat with the cashier it may seem like good freindly customer service but in fact its just holding me up. The whole point of a supermarket is so you go in pick up your stuff and leave. The person on the checkout is their to scan your items and take your money. Dont get me wrong im not rude to staff and im always polite. its not because i feel above them. I just think that forced over freindliness is just a bit awkward

For example ive been to america and everywhere you go its always the forced friendliness and i find it quite irritating. I went to a department store over there and your just sorta killing time looking at stuff and someone is constantly over saying "how can i help you?" I can see that you are a member of staff if i needed help i would approach you not the other way around.

Dont get me wrong its not something that really gets on my nerves its just something that i think is a bit awkward. I still understand bad service theres no need for them to be rude either. As long as they do what they are paid to do and do it in a calm polite manner then im happy

Whats your opinion? Do you prefer an overly friendly customer service or someone who does just thier job

Edit: ill extend this to sales people too, i tend to think a pushy or overly polite salesman can actually put me off. Theres something untrust worthy about fake friendliness. As far as sales are concerned as long as they explain the product to me (usually ive researched it before hand anyway, so 9 times out of 10 i know more than them anyway) and offer me a good deal then im a happy chappy

 

[Heronblade]

I stopped manning the customer service booth years ago, but my jaw still aches from all the fake smiling, and frankly, I find it creepy in others. They need to keep a good attitude, but forced friendliness is not necessary, just do the job.

I will partly disagree with you on one point. Offering to help prior to the customer becoming desperate enough to seek it out is generally a good thing, not least because the employee may be off doing work elsewhere at that point. You can almost always tell the difference between someone who is just browsing, and someone looking for something specific, just leave those with the former attitude be.

 

[shootthebandit]

I stopped manning the customer service booth years ago, but my jaw still aches from all the fake smiling, and frankly, I find it creepy in others. They need to keep a good attitude, but forced friendliness is not necessary, just do the job.

I will partly disagree with you on one point. Offering to help prior to the customer becoming desperate enough to seek it out is generally a good thing, not least because the employee may be off doing work elsewhere at that point. You can almost always tell the difference between someone who is just browsing, and someone looking for something specific, just leave those with the former attitude be.

As a customer i tend to take the responsibility to ask someone if i need something in particular. Perhaps thats just my view

 

[shootthebandit]

I stopped manning the customer service booth years ago, but my jaw still aches from all the fake smiling, and frankly, I find it creepy in others. They need to keep a good attitude, but forced friendliness is not necessary, just do the job.

I will partly disagree with you on one point. Offering to help prior to the customer becoming desperate enough to seek it out is generally a good thing, not least because the employee may be off doing work elsewhere at that point. You can almost always tell the difference between someone who is just browsing, and someone looking for something specific, just leave those with the former attitude be.

As a customer i tend to take the responsibility to ask someone if i need something in particular. Perhaps thats just my view

 

[Hazzard]

I went to New York a few months ago and I eventually got sick of how friendly everyone was, it was like they were going to pull a gun and shoot me as soon as I turn my back. At least in the UK the staff are helpful and are polite. I do not need you to have a half hour chat with every customer, but doing it with one person and no-one else is even worse.

I was in game to buy a game once and there was someone in front of me who was talking to the cashier for a good ten minutes, me and the rest of the customers started getting annoyed and grumbling to ourselves and eventually we were served.

 

[Colour Scientist]

I worked in retail for quite a while and customer service is cited as the main part of your job.
A lot of the time, it's not fake. I worked with clothes, shoes, lingerie, sex toys, music and DVDs (obviously not in the same place) and I enjoyed chatting to people, it passes the day.
I found that most people appreciated the extra help and the conversation.

In most retail positions, you would be fired for not approaching and asking people, even if they're just browsing. Even if you don't like it, most people will actually want some sort of help and it usually increases sales. So, don't get pissy at staff who approach you, they're just doing their job. You can quite easily say "no, thank you" and literally two seconds of your time has been taken up.

There's nothing worse than someone who's rude to people who are only doing their job. I think you can judge a lot about someone's character by the way they treat people in the service industry.

 

[Colour Scientist]

I was in game to buy a game once and there was someone in front of me who was talking to the cashier for a good ten minutes, me and the rest of the customers started getting annoyed and grumbling to ourselves and eventually we were served.

That's a difficult situation for the cashier to be in because while they will want to serve all of the other customers as quickly as possible, as a sales assistant you're not really in a position to end the conversation. You can't really tell a customer to go away and stop talking because you have other things to do.

 

[Johnny Impact]

Who says friendliness has to be fake? I like most of my customers. Naturally I fake it for the inconsiderate nincompoop who comes in one minute before closing and gets the biggest thing we sell. That's called being a professional. It's been said that a thin veneer of courtesy is all that keeps society from destroying itself. I think it's a little more complex than that, but it's important to show people your best face.

In America it is simply understood that most staff will approach customers. I guess it's a cultural thing. As a customer I don't mind this as long as they go away when I tell them I'm all set. Following me like a puppy, exuding waves of obsequious desperation, does not make me want to buy. Staff have done this and I found it creepy and off-putting.

It should also be said that you, the customer, are not there to give staff the sale/commission they want to make. Staff are there to help make sure you get what you want. I told a car saleswoman once, "I'm looking for an economical used car in the $5000 range." There were several on the lot, that's why I had pulled in to begin with. The lady steered me inside and all but pushed me into the driver's seat of a new $20,000 vehicle to which the term economical did not apply (and which, incidentally, was near the bottom of the list in terms of value for the money, customer satisfaction, and safety -- I do my homework). I walked off because she hadn't listened to a word I'd said. The dealership lost a good sale because the representative was determined to make a bigger one.

....I worked with clothes, shoes, lingerie, sex toys, music and DVDs (obviously not in the same place).....

Aw, damn. For a moment there I thought I had found the perfect store.

 

[lee1287]

Customer Service people generally can't win. If you ask someone if they need help, some will be thankful, and some will gouge your eyes out for being 'intrusive' vice versa as well.

If you work in Services you have to judge your customer, always smile and say how are you, if they seem okay for you to chat keep chatting (while doing your job, obviously) if they seem less interested, just be as quick as possible. Hardly rocket science.

 

[shootthebandit]

Customer Service people generally can't win. If you ask someone if they need help, some will be thankful, and some will gouge your eyes out for being 'intrusive' vice versa as well.

If you work in Services you have to judge your customer, always smile and say how are you, if they seem okay for you to chat keep chatting (while doing your job, obviously) if they seem less interested, just be as quick as possible. Hardly rocket science.

That seems like a good rule of thumb, its not that id "gouge someones eys out" i just say "no thank you" or "ill come find you if i need help". I just think its slightly awkward thats all

I still think its important to be polite and courteous to members of staff. Being rude to people even if you feel you havent had adequete service is bang out of order. I dont work anywhere near public (ive always worked in secure hangers) but we all get terrible days at work where we know at the start of the day it isnt going to go well. This would be worse if you came across a rude customer. If i have a complaint i usually make it politely and im more likely to get my point across than an aggresive counter part.

Another thing that i came across to day. I was at mcdonalds about an hour ago and it was obviously busy and getting towards the end of the day. It took a while to get my burger, not too long but about 10 mins or so longer than usual and the girl was very apologetic saying "sorry for your wait" she mustve thought i was getting pissed off but im a very patient person and i dont consider that a long wait. It must be nice for them to have people like me who dont complain about everything

 

[shootthebandit]

Who says friendliness has to be fake? I like most of my customers. Naturally I fake it for the inconsiderate nincompoop who comes in one minute before closing and gets the biggest thing we sell. That's called being a professional. It's been said that a thin veneer of courtesy is all that keeps society from destroying itself. I think it's a little more complex than that, but it's important to show people your best face.

In America it is simply understood that most staff will approach customers. I guess it's a cultural thing. As a customer I don't mind this as long as they go away when I tell them I'm all set. Following me like a puppy, exuding waves of obsequious desperation, does not make me want to buy. Staff have done this and I found it creepy and off-putting.

It should also be said that you, the customer, are not there to give staff the sale/commission they want to make. Staff are there to help make sure you get what you want. I told a car saleswoman once, "I'm looking for an economical used car in the $5000 range." There were several on the lot, that's why I had pulled in to begin with. The lady steered me inside and all but pushed me into the driver's seat of a new $20,000 vehicle to which the term economical did not apply (and which, incidentally, was near the bottom of the list in terms of value for the money, customer satisfaction, and safety -- I do my homework). I walked off because she hadn't listened to a word I'd said. The dealership lost a good sale because the representative was determined to make a bigger one.

....I worked with clothes, shoes, lingerie, sex toys, music and DVDs (obviously not in the same place).....

Aw, damn. For a moment there I thought I had found the perfect store.

Car salesmen can be their own worse enemies. They are like jedis, their mind tricks only work on the weak minded.

If you know exactly what you want from a car before you buy and do your research then you should be ok. Talk over with them about deals and work out exactly what your monthly payments will be. last thing you want is for them to give you an expensive finance package with massive interest.

I tend to go to local reputable dealers, the guy i bought my last car off was a very trusting guy who traded out of his own house. Its was a sports car i was buying and im a young looking 20 year old. He just gave me the keys and told me to test drive it. I came back and we talked over the finance (which was only 5 percent). He gave me trade price for my old car too. At the end of the day if you are helpful and provide a service rather than trying to make more money then you will get good testimonials and recommendations and people will keep coming back for more

 

[MysticSlayer]

For example ive been to america and everywhere you go its always the forced friendliness and i find it quite irritating. I went to a department store over there and your just sorta killing time looking at stuff and someone is constantly over saying "how can i help you?" I can see that you are a member of staff if i needed help i would approach you not the other way around.

As someone who worked for a major retailer, I can tell you that they train you to approach customers and ask if they need anything. As a Sales Associate, that is a major part of their job description, along with a few other tasks. The general mindset is that many customers want help but a too shy to ask for it, and if someone from the store goes outside their comfort zone and starts the conversation, then it makes the customer more comfortable in that store and willing to come back later.

Also, based on my experience, the associates that try to help you without you asking them are generally not the "forced friendliness" people. They're the few friendly people in the store, or just the new guy (you'll be able to tell very quickly). Stores don't fire a person or even discipline them for not approaching customers (regardless of training), and since there are other tasks to be done, it's much easier to just ignore customers and do other things. The associates that continue helping people after a few months on the job are often the genuinely friendly ones who enjoy helping others.

Whats your opinion? Do you prefer an overly friendly customer service or someone who does just thier job

I prefer a combination of both. I'm often in a rush, so I enjoy fast customer service. However, there's still always room to treat the customer nicely and not act as if everything is always business. They're interacting with people for 8 hours a day at minimum, so they might as well enjoy it and be friendly while they're at it. Though if their conversations start holding up the line at the cash register, then they need to start thinking about their actual job.

 

[Scarim Coral]

Hard to say seeing how my job IS customer service therefore I got a taste of both worlds.

I admit that working as a sale assistant (the job description) I have a better understanding of the job itself and have more empathy to other customer service people in other stores like for one thing I now hand out the exact changes (or closest) and abit more so that I get less changes back (like if it cost £11 I hand out £16 so I may get a £5 note change back).

Granted the job has also made me comparing my job position to other stores aswell like I was at the till waiting for a staff to come in the model shop. It annoyed me that it took a few minutes for someone to come to the till while in the store I worked in, our pirioty is to have no queue in the till at all.

Anyway as for me, I pretty much prefer someone who does their job right but I am not expecting a emotionless service. You be suprise how a simple greeting/ chic chat can affect your mood.

 

[TehCookie]

I like friendly service, and it doesn't hold anyone up other customers do that. As for everyone always asking if you need help, most Americans are too shy/lazy to ask for help. I think customer service needs to be a bit more aware the customers though, I find it rude of them when they interrupt my conversation with a friend to ask if I need help. Even with conversations at checkout, they don't have to last longer than it takes to ring up your groceries and I find it better than standing there in silence. Most of the time if talking is creating a backlog it's the customers fault, not the cashiers so don't blame them for it.

 

[Lethos]

It took a while to get my burger, not too long but about 10 mins or so longer than usual and the girl was very apologetic saying "sorry for your wait" she mustve thought i was getting pissed off but im a very patient person and i dont consider that a long wait. It must be nice for them to have people like me who dont complain about everything

Maybe she wasn't as sincere as you think...

Spoiler

 

[Flames66]

In most retail positions, you would be fired for not approaching and asking people, even if they're just browsing. Even if you don't like it, most people will actually want some sort of help and it usually increases sales. So, don't get pissy at staff who approach you, they're just doing their job. You can quite easily say "no, thank you" and literally two seconds of your time has been taken up.

There's nothing worse than someone who's rude to people who are only doing their job. I think you can judge a lot about someone's character by the way they treat people in the service industry.

The problem there is for me, a lot more than two seconds has been taken up. It's my silver bullet (captcha). Here's an example:

I am browsing in a small supermarket with my shopping list carefully memorised. As I walk down an isle, a look of mild confusion adorning my face as is usually the case when I am concentrating, a young woman in a blue polo shirt approaches me with an overly wide, fixed smile and says "can I help you find anything?" ...... I stand perplexed for a few seconds wondering why she has chosen the moment of my deepest concentration to attempt discourse, eventually realise she is trying to be helpful and mumble out something about how I'm fine thank you and the confabulation is over. I begin to wonder the store, my concentration gone taking my carefully memorised shopping list with it.

A member of staff approaches the dairy produce section to restock the full fat milk. He sees a young man in a brown leather hat leaning against the sliding door of the pizza container, face blank and eyes glazed. The man is lost in thought, but it is the job of shop staff to sell. He fixes his best smile and utters his well rehearsed introduction. The man looks up, confusion, sadness and anger flash across his face in quick succession. "NO" he says tersely. As he heads for the door, his shoulders slumped in dejection, he pauses, turns to the shocked shop floor assistant and adds "but thank you."

 

[Redlin5_v1legacy]

Cashiers shouldn't stop to chat if there is a line up queued behind the person they're talking to. On a really slow day, why not? Friendly chatting with a customer is good for business but that is negated when people in line behind him/her are delayed. The people on the floor (merchandisers, salesmen, department staff, etc) have a lot more liberty to talk to people as they shop. I personally choose not to because I'm not specialized in any of the departments I work in but occasionally I do talk to people.

I don't know. There is a fine line. You do want people to feel as if the staff there want them to be there and are friendly/willing to help. On the other hand, you don't want your staff sloughing away their hours by yapping constantly with customers. There's too much and too little. At the end of the day what matters to both parties is that the right merchandise passes through the till and the transaction goes off without a hitch.

*shrug*

I try to make customers I run into happy but generally I defer them to department staff when they ask specifics about the products. I am really good at finding a lot of things, I just can't tell you how many hours that 15 bags of that brand of cement has to set.

 

[Lady Lucky]

I've spent years in customer service in the United States, kudos to people whose livelihood depends on on a retail job where ever they are. I first started working at the young age of 14 (I lied about my age... I wanted a car) my career in retail didn't stop until I got my BA (my college job was at a toy store). I have to say I've worked for many retail companies and all of them had the same sort of motto: "The customer is always right." It was really annoying having to go up to people just browsing and asking if I could help them or not. I knew I was annoying them too...
Now I have a decent paying job as a network engineer working for a US Embassy in Africa... I go to stores and I can't get any help to save my life! Plus because I'm financially well off compared to many people in this country I get charged extra just because I'm an American. (This happens to all the people not native to this country.) I don't mind too much, but sterotypes are alive and well.
In short, I will gladly put up with someone asking me if I need help.

Off topic, my least favorite thing to do while working at the toy store; asking every customer if they needed batteries, even if the item they were purchasing didn't need it. That's right folks if you were to come into my store and buy a pack of bubble gum or a stuffed animal I would ask you if you needed batteries. If I didn't you got free batteries... yay management.