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BurningBeard

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#214558 13-May-2009 10:15

The problem with "the customer is always right" is the customer knows this and will often try to cash in on it.

My very metal Doctor Who theme

zocster

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#214568 13-May-2009 10:40

tonyhughes: @zoc

The customer is NOT always right. Work for a company providing technology solutions, or supplying alcohol, and you will soon figure that one out!

Customers often get it wrong, and it's how you deal with it that can make the difference.

Yeah that's what I meant, you 'have to treat' the customer as if they're always right :)

Andy Ghozali Geekzone Member	E: andy@ghozali.ru M: +64 21 395 458 A: Andy's Business Services, 231 High St, Christchurch 8011, NZ
www.andy.mobi

tonyhughes

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#214572 13-May-2009 11:03

Still not with ya.... often used to let customers know they are wrong (e.g. people demanding non-existent made up CGA rights, or interpreting the CGA wrong, people with wet cellphones....theres a story in itself!!!)

This woman comes into a retail store where I was acting manager, and says "My phone wont go".

The staff member gave the phone a quick assessment, and told the customer it appeared the phone sustained extensive water damage, and would likely require replacement at the customers cost, and that a repair may not be attempted by the repair agent.

The woman went off her nut, swearing, yelling, abusing the staff member, telling her there is no effing way the phone ever got wet.

It was raining very very hard that day by the way.

She demanded to see the manager.

Cue Big Tony.

I come out, look at the phone, and can actually see water inside the phone. Actual, still-wet, in the form of two hydrogen atoms and an oxygen atom.

I removed the battery, unscrewed the aerial, and shook the phone really hard, and managed to get water to come out of the phone and on to the counter.

"Look." I say.
"Water."

Customer: "Well I didn't put it there!!"

After a brief conversation, she admitted to talking on the phone whilst outside in the rain, walking to her car, but she still maintained that her expert opinion was that there is NO WAY rain can get into a phone if you are talking on it at the time.

I politely and firmly informed her that it was her own accidental fault, that she may wish to claim insurance, and that she could either buy a new phone, or ask for that one to be repaired at her cost, but that we were not going to fix it for free, and we would not be giving her a free phone.

She was not very happy about any of that, but it's just the way it was!

I told her she was lucky I did not ask her to leave the store when I heard her call my staff member a stupid b**ch (only because I was on the phone LOL).

I have informed two abusive people to leave the retail store before I call the police.

The customer is often wrong, and needs this concept beaten back into them.

@ the OP, regardless of right or wrong, you probably could have just killed his account asap, and emailed him once at the end to say "As requested, your account is terminated.". Sometimes you just have to cut people loose, and ignore their demanding little souls.

bazzer

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#214583 13-May-2009 11:26

I'd hardly compare your experience to the OP's! That's a classic story, one that wouldn't be out of place on http://notalwaysright.com/, this one just feels like a small business owner who thinks he's too cool for school.

meesham

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#214584 13-May-2009 11:33

bazzer: I'd hardly compare your experience to the OP's! That's a classic story, one that wouldn't be out of place on http://notalwaysright.com/, this one just feels like a small business owner who thinks he's too cool for school.

I wouldn't go that far - it reads to me like Steven was tired and stressed at the time (8:30pm on a Sunday night) - exactly when you don't want to be responding to customers giving you grief. He's definitely handled it badly, and this thread kind of suggests that he doesn't see that he's handled it badly (and given exposure to the customer's problem in the process).

tonyhughes

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#214588 13-May-2009 11:38

P.S. No - I wasnt comparing that story to OP at all... just ended up on a rant.... you know what the internet is like MWAHAHA

nzkc

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#214610 13-May-2009 13:37

One of the best pieces of advice I have had for writing emails (actually anything that you write) is to consider all the unintended recipients of that email. So you write things as if the whole world gets to see it. As has been the case here. When you do that (along with some other rules...that I'm keeping cause I dont want to give away all my tricks) you rarely end up in this situation.

State the facts, nothing more, and you'll normally be ok.

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