My company CEO just gave us a pep talk on his strategy for the year – where we need to focus our efforts to ensure we get bonuses next year. We are supposed to focus on the customer. THIS is a topic very close to my heart as I personally feel that people forget all about the customer when they become “successful” in their eyes. They seem to regard the client as an irritation than an investment.
For the past 3 years I have been in the role of ensuring that my “customers” are happy, or at least, content. It is very hard to please a customer but when you put your mind to it you can. About five years ago I was part of a team responsible for technically supporting the people that take the heat from my company clients – the call center! Damn! That is a hard job – I would love to experience life as anything including a waitress for a day but will not dare be a call center agent.
You need to have the patience of that bug that collects poop to do that job! I realized that customers call in when they have “had it” and you have to be courteous as you answer the phone and they scream at you for something you are only hearing about the first time. If they would only be patient to explain their problem without screaming you would sort them out, IF possible. When I moved into the role I am in; I went for a course that opened my eyes to everything that a company “unintentionally” says to its customers when it have incompetent people to offer assistance to their customers – We don’t give a *bleep!* about you, we want your money!
And I got a Sam Walton quote that I think should be on every business CEO desk “There is only one boss. The customer. And he can fire everybody in the company from the chairman down, simply by spending their money elsewhere”. I, personally, believe if all CEO’s thought like this they would invest in the right people to handle their customers. Taxi drivers need to be told this and we should actually do something that gives them this message!
I was treated like crap on Saturday at two different shops that I hold in very high regard – the first store has just changed their whole signage and look. As I stepped to the till to pay for my purchases – I greeted nicely, I always greet- the cash register lady ignores me and talks to the packing lady that “customers think they are idiots” and “just because I am behind this till doesn’t mean I can’t think or did not go to school. I studied” and the other lady agrees and eggs her on “Yes, they really think we can’t think and are idiots” I just paid and walked away but I was angry! I didn’t do anything to them and if the previous customer had been rude they could have just called their supervisor and explained to her/him of their anger and asked for time-out… I did not deserve that whole rampant tirade.
I drove to the next shop – the shop we all buy very conveniently from and will even opt to buy food there for a do than cook ourselves – you know exactly what shop I am talking about – Generations poor people and Sqalo courts sell their products in Khetiwe’s shop. I wanted frozen yoghurt and I was broke so had R28, 55 in my wallet. I checked the prices and the one I really wanted was R29, 95 – as heartbroken as I was I took the one that cost R26, 95 and walked to the till. I smiled at the three ladies at the till and put my purchase on the counter. The cash register lady scanned it and the price did not show. She asked the other lady to get the price so I smiled and said “It said R26, 95” – the lady being sent says “No, its R28, 95 and has always been like that” and the third friend says “Yes, it has always been like that”. I was livid because friend number 3 was not even wearing the store uniform! Does she have aright to say anything?
I didn’t argue and I said “Ok, let me get the 40c from my car” – as I stomped to the car feeling humiliated because I was actually praying that I had the damn 40cin the car. By the grace of my guide I had exactly 40c in the car. I went back and paid it – then stomped to the fridge and by dear laad it was R26, 95. I was not walking out the store without my R2 back! I called the cash register lady to come see the price with me and she sent the other lady AGAIN! She looked at it and said “BUT some client paid R28, 95 for it last week” Dammit woman! Do you remember each and every client purchase? I wanted my R2 back. She took the price to the cash till and they all looked at each other and asked how much I should get back. If she had only checked it the first time I would not have had to tell her that I want my R2 back! She still wanted to argue that "Sammy" made a mistake and put the wrong price – WTF is Sammy? I don’t give an ish I am the client that was treated badly and should be given the R29, 95 frozen yogurht she wanted in the first place for free!
Where have you gotten bad service? What did you do? What do you do if faced with my incidents? How do you approach call center calls when you have no choice but to call?
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