Liveinadive wrote:Customer service is like a first date. Smile, act natural, be interested and be yourself.
google wrote:Then why is Britain so bad at it?
Brooks wrote:Honestly I'm not sure how far peppiness need creep into definitions of competence for that still to be the appropriate adjective.
Liveinadive wrote:First, I'm not argueing, just discussing, sorry if my tone came across like that. As I said before, the british are more synical than other parts of the world and tend to see through it more as customers which means staff get a harder time over it, which means the care less etc etc. We are actually very good at customer service done right, look at John Lewis or Harrods. Other countries percievably are better in lower paid areas because the staff are more heavily reliant on tips due to lower minimum wages (relatively obviously).google wrote:Then why is Britain so bad at it?
In a way this is kind of my point.So why can this not be transferred to small transactions - whether it's a 40p newspaper purchase or a $5 coffee purchase?
Kow wrote:Is barista the technical name for someone who puts a paper cup under a tap and presses a button?
LarryDavid wrote:I take perverse pleasure in rude and surly shop staff. I quite like it personally, as others have said stacking shelves or serving coffee isn't exactly a true calling for most people. I'd be more likely to question the mindset of someone's who ridiculously over-enthusiastic just to receive my crappy coffee order. I'm not advocating people calling me a cunt and chasing me out of their shops as soon as I walk in (although I'd appreciate their sense of humour for taking one look at prospective customers and just going "nah"), but I've worked in shops and it's quite often mind-numbingly tedious and boring work so I tend to sympathise when they're not jumping for joy just to see me shopping there.
Brooks wrote:Most crucial way of expressing that sympathy is not to mumble. I'd resent being mumbled at by a punter.
igorgetmeabrain wrote:I worked in retail for five years and did some bar work too and never felt the need to ask for a customer's name unless I was taking an order which couldn't be fulfilled immediately. Good customer service is really not difficult and doesn't require you to personally acquaint yourself with every customer you meet or stick to some impersonal, scripted 'have a nice day' bullshit either. Simply be a nice person, converse with each customer in a respectful, honest and friendly manner and get the job done quickly and satisfactorily, exceeding expectations wherever possible.
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