How to Lose a Customer

Will I shop at that store again?

I went shopping at a local discount department store this past weekend. I haven’t shopped very much in the past few months because of the poor state of my finances during the economic turn-down. I decided, however, that I truly needed a few things and that this would be the best place to buy them at a reasonable price.

 I carefully chose a few plants that were on sale. They were in pretty bad shape, but the price was right. (I can usually bring plants back to life with a little TLC). I also found an article of clothing that seemed like a good deal, so into the cart it went.

 I proceeded to the checkout lane. The clerk (and all other clerks in other lanes) were wearing tight, very low-cut tops that left very little to the imagination. This was, quite frankly, offensive to me. Whatever happened to dress codes for work environments?

 The customer in front of me was attempting to buy a car battery that was on sale, but the clerk couldn’t find the code for it. She had to ask three other clerks for assistance, while I patiently waited. Finally, it was my turn to check out, but the clerk said that she had messed up her computer. I would have to go to another lane. The sale was finally completed, after I had stood in the new line behind five other customers for a good 15 minutes. The heavy plants were placed in a flimsy cardboard box which collapsed when I tried to pick it up, so I transported the pots to my car without packaging.

 When I arrived home, I checked my receipt, as I always do. Guess what? I had been charged more than double for the nearly-dead plants! So I returned to the store to get an adjustment.

 I waited in line again at the return counter, and the return clerk took my receipt after listening to my story. She didn’t greet me, smile, or even act as if I had any right to be there. During the correction transaction, she was constantly talking about her personal life to another clerk at her side.

 Will I shop at that store again? Would you? I think not. Customer service is very important to me, and I will often buy at a higher price to get good service.

 Helping you to provide good customer service through CounterPoint POS Software is only one of the services we can help you with at CCS. For more information, call us at 425-672-4806 or email us.

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