What happened to the concept of “The Customer is Always Right?” Who decided to leave that thought at the curb?
Well, it seems to be an epidemic. I wrote in my Question Tuesday this week:
I was in a big box store this morning (Monday) at 8am. Walking through some aisles I heard a woman scream, “Is there anyone here? I need help! I’ve been here for over five minutes screaming and no one came to help me.” I couldn’t find her for a few seconds, but she continued screaming for help. I thought she was hurt, but when I and another customer found her, she had pulled several items off a shelf and couldn’t find a staff member to get to the item she wanted at the back of the shelf.
I am not the tallest person around and neither was the other customer, so I set out to find someone. I found a staff member who said, “I’m going on break. Find someone else.”
Question: What would you do next?
I know what I did; I’d like to hear your answer.
A couple folks have gotten back to me and have given me some interesting responses. While they are private responses, we’ll have to see what this article generates.
One individual went a little off the rails and thought the CSR (Customer Service Representative) should have been fired on the spot. Another thought this person was badly trained. While the third said that compassion was the better course of action; this person likely had worked all night and needed a break.
It might surprise you that my reaction was to accept all the above.
The person clearly had been working for several hours. The person was not properly trained. The person should still be fired for gross negligence of the customer.
Everyone knows; yes, everyone knows you never leave a customer with an issue standing in your retail establishment screaming that they need help. Even if you have worked overtime, you take the time to address the issues. Then go on break. If you’ve clocked out, deal with the customer’s issues and have your boss fix your punch out. It isn’t hard and you will be providing a great service to the customer by meeting their needs.
I’m a solid believer that a CSR needs to use their heads in many situations all day long. They are amazingly flexible people who experience the best customers you could ever ask for, while also meeting the needs of the crankiest customers on the planet.
So, what did I do in this ridiculous situation? I stopped the CSR in the aisle, asked for her name, asked “Annie” (not her real name) what her role at the store was, asked if she needed some assistance to help the customer. Her response was less than stellar. She repeated that she was going on break and to find someone else to assist the customer. This is when I got on my high horse and told her “NO.” She was not going on break and that she would help the lady get the product she needed. The face I got from Annie was not great. But behind her was her supervisor, listening to the exchange. When Annie retrieved the product from the shelf, helped the lady take it to the checkout area, then went on her break, I turned to the supervisor and asked, “did you hear the whole exchange?” She said she had heard enough. I relayed what I had seen, heard and experienced and that I was very unhappy with how that customer had been treated. I told the supervisor that I was going to connect with upper management on the issue which I have done.
I don’t know what will happen with Annie. She clearly needs more training to better support the goals of the retailer. She must begin to understand her role in making the customer’s experience the best possible. She must take ownership of her behaviors and find better ways to provide the support her job requires.
It is my goal for this blog series for you to see situations in the business world from different perspectives, looking at conditions from different angles. I hope that you understand my need to write this particular article. What do you think? If you did not yet respond to my Question Tuesday post, here is your chance to comment. Enter your thoughts into the Comment box below or send me a private email to yournextdimension@gmail.com. I look forward to your input.
Don’t forget to introduce a friend to this blog series. Thanks for reading and let me know if there is a topic you would like me to explore. Take care. Kiki