I hate fake "have a nice day!"

[Liesje]

The fake "Have a nice day" is rude when it's said out of spite, I admit that and I don't believe it's good customer service. But if your entire day is RUINED because you got the wrong change back, or the cashier wouldn't take your expired coupon, and there's no way you could POSSIBLY have a nice day after that, I wish I had your life because I have other things to worry about!

Haha, yeah that's exactly what I was thinking. Some people get so worked up over the most insignificant things. I always get calls from furious Profs who just can believe I'm not going to drop everything, run up the stairs, and fix their computer NOW. I want to scream "You've got a home, a job, you live in a free country and you're not dying of AIDS so get off it and deal!"

 

[U2Kitten]

When I used to work behind a counter, I'd say 'enjoy your day', and I meant it. I was known to smile too, because often it would prompt a person to smile back. Am I a freak of nature? Where do you live that there are only surly, rude employees?

I never said there were 'only' bad ones. Most are good or just average, but of course nobody starts threads about ho hum non incidents. Most are very hardworking, low paid, nice people. But I will admit I have noticed an increase in bad ones with bad attitudes the last few years since it seems to take more and more to get a person fired these days in jobs nobody else really wants. I also think some people are packing an attitude from a previous customer and sometimes take it out being snappy with someone who doesn't deserve it- same goes the other way for the customer who has had a bad day and takes it out unfairly on the cashier.

 

[Muggsy]

Think about it. People who are store clerks, customer service reps -- really all sorts of jobs dealing with the public -- have very little control over their jobs and they deal with a whole lot of nasty people all day long. The "have a nice day" comment (or variations thereof) are often mandated by their employer; the tone -- well, it's often their only way of venting. So they get snappy sometimes. Big deal. Just be glad they didn't say the comment they really wanted to say.
.

those are very hard jobs... i mean, people who works in stores have to deal with a lot of people, some of them annoying or rude.

I don't think there's hate in their comments, most of them are just tired and stressed .

 

[RocknRollKitty]

Personally, as I said, I'd rather hear the one they did want to say than something fake or phoney. Of course I know they can't really say that or they'd get in trouble, but he snotty 'have a nice day' is exactly the same to me. Yes, they are tired and stressed. That's not my fault. I am too. It's never nice to take it out on anyone who doesn't deserve it, and that goes for everybody, everywhere.

 

[Liesje]

I think a lot of the time what the customer hears and what the worker says/means aren't the same. I say something nice even after I've not been able to help someone the way they wanted or basically told them their computer's screwed (in nicer terms) and then they snap back at me b/c they think I'm being a bitch and I feel like crawling into a hole and dying. It happens a lot, especially with me since I'm a girl and people often think I'm just the ditzy receptionist or stupid and can't fix their problem even though I am the senior technician. I'm still not used to it and have to try hard not to let it get me down. I can see where my comments might come off as rude, but I've never intended it that way.

Last week I had to send someone an e-mail asking two questions regarding a problem he was having on his computer. The person who was working on the issue asked me to get the answers so he could solve the problem. So I ask the two questions and only one gets answered. So I write back and ask the second one again. Then the guy responds saying that I should've known the answer to the second question and I had insulted him by asking such a stupid question (I had to ask him which computer he tried to install the software on which IS a legit question b/c many people get new computers or use more than one). I was totally floored and had no idea what had instigated this guy's response. All I did was politely ask him a question I was assigned to ask and he totally went off. He thought I was trying to insult him by asking the same simple question twice while I thought he forgot to answer it the first time.

If you know for a fact people are intentionally being snotty or trying to piss you off, just avoid that store. No business from you is their loss

 

[Schmeg]

jobs nobody else really wants.

I've been a little fixated on that sentence. I hope my interpretation is different than what you meant. It probably is.

90% of the time I ENJOY my job that "nobody else really wants." When people come in with the attitude that they're better than me because they have a job I wouldn't really want (sitting at a desk...the same thing all day, every day...no different people to meet every day) that I get frustrated and sometimes a little snippy. People usually get the customer service that they deserve when they come in with their own attitude. Often they get a lot better than what they deserve.

I am coming across defensive, but I am very proud of what I do. It hurts my feelings when people think I just fold jeans or just tell people what to do.

I could go on and be very wordy and even more off-topic, so I'll leave it at that.

 

[Laura M]

I've been a little fixated on that sentence. I hope my interpretation is different than what you meant. It probably is.

90% of the time I ENJOY my job that "nobody else really wants." When people come in with the attitude that they're better than me because they have a job I wouldn't really want (sitting at a desk...the same thing all day, every day...no different people to meet every day) that I get frustrated and sometimes a little snippy. People usually get the customer service that they deserve when they come in with their own attitude. Often they get a lot better than what they deserve.

I am coming across defensive, but I am very proud of what I do. It hurts my feelings when people think I just fold jeans or just tell people what to do.

I could go on and be very wordy and even more off-topic, so I'll leave it at that.

Although I am not planning my career in retail and it's only a job I do part time while I'm at university and full time during the summers I hate peoples attitudes towards sales assistants sometimes. I have been working since I was 16 and most people in work assume I am still only 16 or 17 and think I have left school and made this my career. One man at the fitting rooms waiting on his wife a few weeks ago said that I should consider going back to a tech and doing A-levels or maybe doing a degree so I could get out of my "hell hole job". I informed him I had 3 A-levels (he asked had I failed them or something. I told him I got 3 A's and you can't do better than that) and I was half way through my degree. I hate when people jump to conclusions like that and think people with brains can't work in a clothes shop. If there is a problem with a till they also try and blame it on you, one man told me once that I couldnt add 3 25's together and was an idiot because I was using the till even though we had to scan things through the till so the shop knows what stock is being sold and what money they are making.I also see nothing wrong with people making their career from retail. If people are happy in their job whose place is it to say it isn't a worthwhile/ job or a "hell hole" job that nobody wants.

 

[zoney!]

I am too. It's never nice to take it out on anyone who doesn't deserve it, and that goes for everybody, everywhere.

This has probably been said...but this too could be the problem. The "have a nice day" could be somewhat genuine, and YOU the consumer could be having a bad day or life or something and take it the wrong way.

Like LiVLuv said.....this is such a petty little issue compared to what is really going on. WWe are SO DAMN privledged in the Western World that we find the silliest things to complain about. Absoulutely trivial things...like a basic greeting. This, when some people in this world do not even have the freedom of speech.

 

[DaveC]

I take calls for Hallmark.

We always always ALWAYS have to say "Thank you for calling Hallmark <Flowers, .com, Gold Crown, Consumer Care>, and have a nice day."

If we don't say it EXACTLY like that we fail the call outright.

 

[Liesje]

This has probably been said...but this too could be the problem. The "have a nice day" could be somewhat genuine, and YOU the consumer could be having a bad day or life or something and take it the wrong way.

Like LiVLuv said.....this is such a petty little issue compared to what is really going on. WWe are SO DAMN privledged in the Western World that we find the silliest things to complain about. Absoulutely trivial things...like a basic greeting. This, when some people in this world do not even have the freedom of speech.

My points exactly. ANYONE who is posting here can obviously afford a computer and internet service and has enough time to post here so no one is destitute enough to be in anywhere near a comparable situation to the lives of most of the people in this world.

 

[RocknRollKitty]

Schmeg I didn't mean your job, or that you should be fired. Nothing I said had anything to do with you. I am only talking about people I have run into personally. When I say a job nobody else wants, yes, in this area it is hard to keep people in fast food and convenience store jobs because they are low paying, thankless and in the case of gas stations on the night shift, dangerous. As I have said I have been on both sides of this, and is wrong for anyone, worker or customer, to take something out on a person who didn't deserve it because they were in a bad mood for some other reason. But from the customer standpoint I don't think it's too much to ask for to have your combo at Burger King rung up at the right price instead of 80 cents higher because the person didn't know how to work the register, or that no one should have to pay for a bun that is hard as a rock and tomato and mayo completey oozing down the side because somebody miked the burger to death, or that the fries should not be so rock hard they'd break a bird's beak, and as long as a person is nice about asking for these things being corrected they shouldn't be considered as some complaining bitch.

 

[vivaSA]

you guys, HAVE A NICE DAY!

 

[Kariann]

90% of the time I ENJOY my job that "nobody else really wants." When people come in with the attitude that they're better than me because they have a job I wouldn't really want (sitting at a desk...the same thing all day, every day...no different people to meet every day) that I get frustrated and sometimes a little snippy. People usually get the customer service that they deserve when they come in with their own attitude. Often they get a lot better than what they deserve.

I am coming across defensive, but I am very proud of what I do. It hurts my feelings when people think I just fold jeans or just tell people what to do.

It does bother me when it appears that people think that what I do is mundane or look down upon on it. Alot of people don't really realize the magnitude and responsibility of the job I do when I tell them. My best friend is guilty of this...she among others fail to recognize the fact that I mangage a team of 40-70 people which by no means is an easy task.

The other thing that upsets me is when I am talking to a customer and working to negotiate and come to a resolution regarding an issue and they will have to point out that they are a lawyer or a doctor expecting that they be treated differently than the stay at home mom. Most of the time this is revealed in an insuating tone as though they were implying that I'm a measly little customer service person so I should do what they want.

While there are some bad customer service people there are that many more who take what the do seriously, enjoy it and are genuine in wanting to help people.

 

[Another U2 nut!]

Well I've been in those grotty customer service type jobs for years now- I know it from the other side! Luckily people don't get upset with me or mess with me. I scare people.

But I NEVER say have a nice day. It is so meaningless. If I've got a good rapport going with a customer I often say, "Have a great day." and I mean it. More often I just say, "see ya" or "see ya next time." Works pretty well.

 

[zoney!]

here is another good way to handle this, people: treat people how YOU want to be treated!

Anyone I come in contact as a customer, I tell THEM to have a nice day/evening etc. etc. etc. - and I hope it imporves their day and their outlook on the next customer. I try and make this a rule, because I know that is how I want to be treated when I deal with customers (passengers in my world of work).

I mangage a team of 40-70 people which by no means is an easy task.

Holy crap...40-70 AND you work the floor too, right?

The other thing that upsets me is when I am talking to a customer and working to negotiate and come to a resolution regarding an issue and they will have to point out that they are a lawyer or a doctor expecting that they be treated differently than the stay at home mom.

I am going to lump college profs in this group too! (not all of them though...for those on interf.com here who teach at the college level).

 

[Schmeg]

here is another good way to handle this, people: treat people how YOU want to be treated!

Anyone I come in contact as a customer, I tell THEM to have a nice day/evening etc. etc. etc. - and I hope it imporves their day and their outlook on the next customer. I try and make this a rule, because I know that is how I want to be treated when I deal with customers (passengers in my world of work).

Same here, and not just because of my years in customer service. Being kind makes someone's day that much nicer, whether you're at work or anywhere!

U2Kitten, I know you weren't referring to me or my job specifically, but that "jobs that no one else really wants" statement sounded very mean to me before you explained it as you did. I have worked with so many people who LOVE being *just* a sales associate, and I enjoy being *just* a retail store manager...I get a little defensive.

It's NOT too much to ask that your combo meal is rung up right, and it's also not too much to ask that the customer doesn't start making a scene about 80 cents. All the customer has to say is, "I'm sorry, I think this incorrect." A polite approach won't make the cashier defensive, and the customer won't have to be angry for the rest of the day not only because they were overcharged 80 cents, but also because they got a fake "Have a nice day!" Same thing about the crappily-made burger...the cashier didn't do that; don't shoot the messenger. Politely ask to speak with the manager and point out the poor quality of the food. A decent manager will be glad to be informed, and will be more likely to give the customer a free meal and some coupons for another time if they act like a sane human being.

Anyway, I always want to tell those people who rant and rave about a few quarters that I'll just GIVE it to them, no matter which side of the counter I'm on. How much would 80 cents buy one of those people mentioned in other posts who don't even have free speech? We really do live in an amazing country.

 

[Bono's shades]

When you are working in customer service or in any job where you deal with the public or answer the phone a lot, sometimes you aren't aware of the tone of your voice until someone points it out to you. You have to be on the alert all the time if you are frustrated or having a bad day to make sure that isn't affecting it. It's a very, very difficult thing to do.

 

[Liesje]

I am going to lump college profs in this group too! (not all of them though...for those on interf.com here who teach at the college level).

I second that! I do a customer service/tech support job at a college so we mainly support Profs. One time this lady comes in with a laptop she's borrowing from the A/V dept to take on a trip. She wants us to show her how the dial-up connection works. We hook it up and have her enter the name and password, but it can't authenticate, so I finally I ask the question, "ma'am, when did you sign-up for non-local access?" (which in itself is a double standard b/c then they get pissed for being asked such a dumb question) and the lady's like "Sign-up? I'm the chair of the nursing department!" and I'm thinking "Yeah, and? You can't fill out a simple online form like everyone else at the college?" But instead I have to politely explain to her that when we say you have to sign up, that means EVERYONE, not just the janitors that clean or the cashiers in the bookstore, yes the Dr's and Rev's and chairs of the departments....

 

[najeena]

The Golden Rule seems to have lost it's gilding. If you look, sure you'll find someone who isn't as pleasant with their pleasantries as they might be. Is it their fault that they're required to say it? Not everyone can stand up to the abuse that sometimes comes with a behind-the-counter job. People who are treated with respect will reciprocate, for the most part. Millions of workers are nice to everyone, everyday, no matter how they feel or how miserably they're treated. I wonder how many of the people who get a not-so-nice have-a-nice-day were nice to the people who gave it to them?

 

[zoney!]

Exactly!

 

[BVS]

The Golden Rule seems to have lost it's gilding.

Yes thank you! THANK YOU!!!!

 

[Angela Harlem]

I admire people who work in customer service roles and am in awe of those who actually enjoy it. If anyone looks down on them, it is because of the faceless general public who make their days bad by being rude and so on. Those who look down upon them are probably the very ones who make such an occupation so straining.

Watch your karma isn't running over any dogma.

Etc.

Smiling costs nothing. Smile sincerely at those with the fake smiles. They're giving you a fake smile because they're most likely having a shitty day.

 

[Danospano]

Yeah, it reminds me of that quote from the movie "Office Space" where the woman always says "Sounds like someone has a case of the Monday's".

I hate all of those conversation fillers/intros/conclusions. Someone should get slapped everytime I say something they don't genuinely support.

 

[BluberryPoptart]

I admire people who work in customer service roles and am in awe of those who actually enjoy it. If anyone looks down on them, it is because of the faceless general public who make their days bad by being rude and so on. Those who look down upon them are probably the very ones who make such an occupation so straining.

Watch your karma isn't running over any dogma.

You seem to assume the customer is always wrong. Sometimes they may be, but there are honestly some completely inept customer service people out there who make things very difficult. Some of them are so lame all they can do is say "that's just our policy" or keep repeating the same statement over and over and over again. If they were trained to do this to every question, they are uneccessary, as any recording box could do the same thing. I want to talk to someone who is actually paying attention to what I say, care what my concerns are, and try to answer back like a real person. Sometimes you don't get that.

Perhaps worst of all, I cannot count the times I've been cut off accidently by someone pushing the wrong button after I've been on hold for 15-20 minutes. When I call back, she only goes, sorry, but 'alll calls are answered in the order they are recieved' and my ass is back to start because of their mistake. If this were a rare occurance I could sympathize, but it happens at least 50% or more of all calls. Either that, or I am misakingly cut off while switching to another dept.

Then there are the ones who don't have a clue what I'm talking about, so I ask them to please transfer me to someone who does. I have honestly been transferred as many as 8, no kidding, 8 times, all to people who keep telling me I need to talk to x person, whom has already transferred me somwhere else! I get 'you need to talk to Rhonda' well, guess what, Rhonda was person #4 and she didn't know either. Then you get "well ma'am I just don't know what to tell you!"

Then you have one person who tells you one thing and you are counting on that (such as arrangements for a credit card payment) Then, you get listed as late anyway, and call back, and they deny anyone ever told me that! So, did they lie, were they stupid, or did they just neglect to record it in the records? With no backup, I'm fucked.

I am very tired of ineptitude and being taken in circles that go nowhere. If some people cannot competetantly perform their job, please hire someone else who can.

So while most workers are very nice and helpful, you cannot blame the customer for getting fed up over things like this. While it's true there may be some customers who are very rude and jump on people unfairly, I am not one of them.

 

[Liesje]

I have honestly been transferred as many as 8, no kidding, 8 times, all to people who keep telling me I need to talk to x person, whom has already transferred me somwhere else! I get 'you need to talk to Rhonda' well, guess what, Rhonda was person #4 and she didn't know either. Then you get "well ma'am I just don't know what to tell you!"

When I moved into my new house, I stopped by beforehand to switch the utility bills. When we tried to find the right menu on their phone system, we kept hitting dead ends. Finally, we called the emergency number on the gas bill and were like "no, ma'am, we don't have a gas leak, we just need to speak with a human being."

 

[Liesje]

I can sympathize with the "sorry, that's our policy". We don't support any personally owned computers or software b/c being the Calvin College HelpDesk, we only support Calvin owned software and hardware b/c of obvious liability and licensing issues. You know the people who are pissed that you can help them with their computers are going to be the same people that would sue you if you screwed up trying to fix their problem. Sometimes people are so persistant we have no other option than to tell them "it's policy". This one Prof used to call every two hours (we trade phone shifts every two hours) to ask the same question about Outlook, but we don't and have never supported Outlook and finally our boss had to basically tell the guy to bugger off.

 

[anitram]

I have worked in the service industry (guest services at a major sports/concert arena), and the one thing I quickly learned is that the customer is always right even when they are wrong. It's much easier to paste on that fake smile than aggravate myself over their stupidity. And boy, do I have stories of customer stupidity.

 

[zoney!]

Then there are the ones who don't have a clue what I'm talking about.....

Take a step back and make sure YOU are not the problem in a situation like this. Ask yourself "Am I explaining my problem correctly?"

I always ask the name of the person I am speaking with, and if they are documenting something, I would like for them to send me a record of the documentation (in the case, like you said, of noting a credit account so you do not get recorded as a late payment.

I always say, in order to get the service you feel you deserve, treat the person on the other line the way YOU want to be treated.

 

[BluberryPoptart]

Take a step back and make sure YOU are not the problem in a situation like this. Ask yourself "Am I explaining my problem correctly?"

I always ask the name of the person I am speaking with, and if they are documenting something, I would like for them to send me a record of the documentation (in the case, like you said, of noting a credit account so you do not get recorded as a late payment.

I always say, in order to get the service you feel you deserve, treat the person on the other line the way YOU want to be treated.

You are beginning to annoy me with your assumptions that the person who complains is ALWAYS wrong and the worker is the victim. It goes BOTH ways, but why do you refuse to believe that there really are rude, stupid people out there who don't know how to do their fucking job??! It happens. Not all the time, of course not, but it happens. I am a very wordy person. I explain every detail, even things I don't need to get into. If someone is too fucking slow to understand, or does not know everything they are supposed to know to do their job properly, it is not my fault.

You are assuming I am a bitch. I am ALWAYS nice and give them every benefit of the doubt until it becomes obvious I'm talking to a brick wall. I try, I never want to make anyone mad.

Documentation? Oh, they say I have it, but the next person denies it existed. Another thing that happens is someone giving you their absolute word a 'post dated' pay by phone will not be put in until a certain day, yet it goes in the next day, causing severe financial hardship. Then, they deny the promise. Don't tell me I'm doing it wrong. There are a lot of fuck ups out there (not wanting to be rude, but a large number of them seem to say they are calling from India and do not speak or understand English as well as they should) But I've had plenty of inept Americans too.

BTW, I am not alone in this. Everyone I know seems to have a story on this, and I don't usually bring the subject up first.

 

[verte76]

Yeah, after about three transfers I start to feel like I've somehow ended up in Kafka's "The Castle", a story about dealing with the Bureaucracy From Hell.