Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I have just about stopped going out to eat because I hate being called a guy. I consider the word "guys" an offensive four letter word and hate to even hear the word, let alone be called that. So what is the first thing you hear coming out of the mouth of most wait staff. "What do you guys want." My answer is "I want to be called a lady or you won't get a tip from me." I wish I had the nerve to do that. A friend of my said she tells them not to call her a guy and if they do, she does not leave a tip at all.
It's that kind of petty thinking that makes customer service such a PITA.
YOU get offended by something that isn't meant to be offensive and take it on the poor schmoe doing his/her best to serve you?
"Guys" is just a regional thing and not any more offensive than you using your regional terms. You do realize some women get upset and offended at being called ma'am, right? And some get offended at being called girls? And some don't like to be called gals. We won't even go into the variations of honey or sweetie that a lot of waitresses and cashiers use in the south...
"Hello, my name is John, I'll be your server today. How would you like me to address you?"
It's that kind of petty thinking that makes customer service such a PITA.
YOU get offended by something that isn't meant to be offensive and take it on the poor schmoe doing his/her best to serve you?
"Guys" is just a regional thing and not any more offensive than you using your regional terms. You do realize some women get upset and offended at being called ma'am, right? And some get offended at being called girls? And some don't like to be called gals. We won't even go into the variations of honey or sweetie that a lot of waitresses and cashiers use in the south...
"Hello, my name is John, I'll be your server today. How would you like me to address you?"
LOL at the bold! When I eat out, I could care less what the server calls me but, maybe its just me as it doesn't take a lot of effort to impress me. As long as the server apologizes for slow service or whatever and smiles on occasion, I'm giving them a tip.
I once had a lady spill coke on me while she was putting my drink out (her manager had the nerve to yell at her from across the hall, hence why she got distracted).
I still tipped her because she apologized and began cleaning the mess right away and didn't make any excuses.
Before starting my cashiering job at Target, I was a person that loved when I had a nice, friendly cashier and would get annoyed at the grumpy ones. I still feel the same way, but after working at Target for six months, I can understand how it's hard to remain cheery and friendly for every customer.
I do my best to be a friendly cashier and I make small talk with my guests when it feels right. I even have guests who always come to me because they've told me I'm their favorite cashier. I think that's really awesome.
What wears away at the niceness is the constant stream of horrible customers who are just down right rude and nasty. Today I had two people who just took their bags out their carts and left them right in front of the belt/register, with other guests waiting to unload their things. And one customer did it while she was on her phone the entire time. That's not an example of a customer being mean, but whether they are rude, mean or just unfriendly, it can definitely wear on you and affect your attitude.
I really got into it one day with a Taco Bell window guy here in Durham, NC. I couldn't understand his lazy slurred speech while ordering through the drive-thru and i had to ask him twice to repeat what he said. the third time he barked it loud through the mic as if shouting down a boot camp recruit. I got angry and used profanity (wrong, I know) but I just had become fed up with all this after going through the same thing before. Pulled back around and went inside. The guy knew it was me and he complained to the manager who took his side. It got a little heated in waiting line and the guy actually came out to confont me in the parking lot, but the manager defused it. I avoided that Taco Bell for about 3 months.
You should have written a very stern letter to Taco Bell's corporate office (and you should have never returned to that location), it would have nipped that in the bud.
It's that kind of petty thinking that makes customer service such a PITA.
YOU get offended by something that isn't meant to be offensive and take it on the poor schmoe doing his/her best to serve you?
"Guys" is just a regional thing and not any more offensive than you using your regional terms. You do realize some women get upset and offended at being called ma'am, right? And some get offended at being called girls? And some don't like to be called gals. We won't even go into the variations of honey or sweetie that a lot of waitresses and cashiers use in the south...
"Hello, my name is John, I'll be your server today. How would you like me to address you?"
It could be an honest mistake. Do you look and act like a table of 'guys'? If so you may want to consider 'butching it down' a bit so you are recognized as the Ladies that you truly are. Just a thought.
Koale
Not sure I am putting this in the right section, if not I apologize.
Has anyone else noticed that over the past 10 years the cashiers have got really rude? I mean overall, not just one specific area, but in general. Used to be you would get a smile and a thank you, now it seems they are looking around and talking to their co-workers about what they are going to do after work.
Now I want to clear up that I do NOT expect to small talk, I like to get in and get out. But I do expect a simple Thank You and maybe a glimpse of eye contact.
I think these people need to be in back stocking shelves, not being up front representing the store. The biggest department store in the US is very guilty of this.
Are they really that miserable that they can't crack a quick smile and say thank you????
Who cares? It's only a problem if you let it affect you. To me, it sounds like someone needs to grow thicker skin.
Also, have you ever wondered if you might be the problem? Specifically, have you ever wondered if you are mistreated because of the way you carry yourself? Do you look presentable? Do you smile at the cashier and greet her? Or do you just expect to have the red carpet rolled out for you everywhere you go? Judging by the negative nature of your post, I sense that your attitude could be the problem. I wouldn't be surprised if other people in line were treated better than you. In that case, you might want to look in the mirror.
Lastly, if you don't like the way you're being treated at one particular store, you're more than welcome to take your business elsewhere. Nobody's forcing you to shop at "the biggest department store in the U.S." That's one of the great things about America. That's one of the great things about capitalism. As a consumer, you have plenty of choices.
I totally agree w/ the OP. I think good customer service has flown out the window in the last decade or so as well. I've had my own share of working customer service & retail jobs, even a fast food job for almost 2 yrs, so I know what a customer would like & expect. Even if I never worked those kinds of jobs, I know what GOOD customer service is.
Just TODAY, I was at a teacher supply store. There was 1 customer in line in front of me & we were waiting for several minutes for someone to notice us & come to the counter to ring us up. A guy finally came & helped the one in front of me, so now I'm the only one in line. I see another employee & a man she had been helping both walk up to the counter, SHE SAW ME WAITING, BUT WENT AHEAD & HELPED HIM. She should have told him there's a line over there & proceed to ring me up. I didn't raise a fuss. After she rung him up & was done ringing me up, I calmly said, "It would have been nice to be next in line." She apologized as I quickly walked out saying nothing.
In shoe depts of dept stores, if it's a little busy, I swear I think the employees hide out in the back to take a breather to avoid people asking them to get their shoe sizes for them to try on.
I think Sephora has the largest bunch of smug, haughty gals working for them that I've ever seen & I've been to a lot of different locations (about 15, including in other states). Ulta isn't too much better.
Jamba Juice & Starbucks has by far been the most chipper & friendliest in my experiences.
Just TODAY, I was at a teacher supply store. There was 1 customer in line in front of me & we were waiting for several minutes for someone to notice us & come to the counter to ring us up. A guy finally came & helped the one in front of me, so now I'm the only one in line. I see another employee & a man she had been helping both walk up to the counter, SHE SAW ME WAITING, BUT WENT AHEAD & HELPED HIM. She should have told him there's a line over there & proceed to ring me up.
This is a bizarre thing to note to me. This wouldn't even register in my mind in passing, let alone enough to recount for a message board post. Do you think she purposely slighted you? Why? She didn't like your face? She just prefers to help dudes check out and all the females could get to the back of the line? For all you know, he was at the register before you showed up, but had some sort of question or issue and needed to revise his purchase. That's happened to me before, so the cashier had me jump on a closed line (after telling everyone else on line they had to try the other 2 registers)...and a few people glared at me, but they didn't know why I was jumping onto a closed line.
I think a lot of incidents like this in life occur, and your attitude determines whether you see them as a personal slight or give the other person the benefit of the doubt. Because I don't assume cashier people have it out for me, I give them the benefit of the doubt.
i do believe customer service has decreased and people in general have become ruder and meaner so i feel for those that have to deal with the public daily----rudeness in forum posting has increased too lately(OT)
This is a bizarre thing to note to me. This wouldn't even register in my mind in passing, let alone enough to recount for a message board post. Do you think she purposely slighted you? Why? She didn't like your face? She just prefers to help dudes check out and all the females could get to the back of the line? For all you know, he was at the register before you showed up, but had some sort of question or issue and needed to revise his purchase. That's happened to me before, so the cashier had me jump on a closed line (after telling everyone else on line they had to try the other 2 registers)...and a few people glared at me, but they didn't know why I was jumping onto a closed line.
I think a lot of incidents like this in life occur, and your attitude determines whether you see them as a personal slight or give the other person the benefit of the doubt. Because I don't assume cashier people have it out for me, I give them the benefit of the doubt.
I don't know why this wouldn't occur to you. Do you think we all want to wait in a line for more minutes than we want to for the enjoyment of it? I think not. Yes, she did it on purpose. I saw her look over at me w/ that "I see you, but I'll go ahead & ring him up real quick" expression on her face & then continued to do so. My friend was standing w/ me too by the way. Now, I was wearing sunglasses, so maybe she figured that I didn't notice what she did, but I was facing right in her direction...not that that should be any excuse.
If she felt what she did was justified, she wouldn't have apologized like she did. She would have said something else. At least her apology sounded genuine. If I was browsing a store & needed help & was ready to be rung up, I wouldn't expect to beat out the whole line of people just because I was just helped & was ready to be rung up. There's lines in stores for a reason. People have to go to a designated place to wait to be rung up, otherwise, everyone in the stores just walking around will think they deserve to be rung up 1st.
Yes, I give people the benefit of the doubt normally, but when I pretty much know someone's trying to be a smart ass & take advantage of the situation, I don't appreciate that. What am I chopped liver? I'm a customer w/ the same money in my wallet as everyone else.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Well...
