Comments on: Customer Service Flunkie

By: Erika

Erika — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 22:47:28 +0000

-Perception, Thanks so much! I try so hard to be patient but it must really be a virtue because I really have to WORK at it!

By: Perception

Perception — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 22:39:41 +0000

Loved the post, hilarious!

By: Erika

Erika — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 21:13:47 +0000

-Annemarie, Oh boy, I bet you hear from some really fun people at the library! I’ve always wondered, does it really irritate librarians when patrons put the books back themselves, or do they prefer it? Anyway, I think you have a pretty even keel on this point. If the person is genuinely having a hard time, it’s great to help them and make their lives easier. If they just don’t want to learn, and they’re too lazy to try, they probably deserve every ounce of annoyance they get from the process!

By: Annemarie

Annemarie — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 21:09:49 +0000

I’m a public librarian. If a day passes that I don’t hear the words: I’m computer illiterate, I must be off. Some of these people, in my opinion, ARE malajusted. They hate it and refuse to even try. EVERYTHING is the computer’s fault and sometimes it’s our fault for being the owners of the infernal machine. On rare occasions, we’re making it hard intentionally. But, I find that there are legitimately some people who are trying to learn but just can’t. Those are the ones I want to help. Anyone who says that awful first phrase though, automatically gets less effort.

By: Erika

Erika — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 17:05:17 +0000

-Blanche, A very thoughtful comment. I can definitely see how in some cases it would be easier to talk to someone who knows their product inside and out. It’s just hard when they’re looking right at the info and they call anyway. Your comment made me laugh though because my grandparents are, for the most part, almost as comfortable with technology as I am!

Debra Snider, I chose the word maladjusted carefully, because it seems that to be at odds with technology is to have a lot more trouble with every day things than necessary. Maybe they don’t see it that way, and then maladjusted wouldn’t apply, but I listen to this guy struggle for five minutes because he doesn’t know he has to enter his password at the same time as his email address and I can’t help but think how much easier everything could be for him! As for nice and knowledgeable, I do try but I think I need to exert more effort to not get frustrated. I like your use of the word quaint, by the way!

-EdgellACE, I have to admit that I’m one of those people who tries things on but leaves them in the dressing room if they don’t fit. I’d probably put things back in the wrong spot if I tried to put them back! I endeavor to always be nice to customer service people though, because if you’ve ever worked retail you know it’s a crappy job. Retail veterans have to stick together!

By: EdgellACE

EdgellACE — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 16:22:23 +0000

I work retail and sadly customer service goes hand in hand. I can’t think of one day where I haven’t wanted to bitch slap or sucker punch a customer. My issues are range from people who think they are better then me, so lets treat Amanda like she is dog crap, to people who will try on 3 of 4 of their size in a jacket, just to bring me the one they didn’t try on that is still hung nicely, all while leaving me their mess on the floor, cause lets face it, putting things back like you find them are damn impossible! Seriously, WTF was the point of trying all the other ones on, if you buy the one you didn’t try on, there all the same size! Retail has made me jaded to the society. I don’t get it, I listened to my mother and don’t touch unless I put it back, etc. Am I one of the few?! I also, am curious to others, unless they treat me like crap from the get go, then the gloves come off and the bitch is set loose ;)

By: Debra Snider

Debra Snider — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 15:51:45 +0000

I can’t vote because I don’t think “maladjusted” is the right word. But I choose generation gap – these folks aren’t lazy; they just haven’t learned to substitute computers for human interaction, despite the (usually) increased efficiency. It’s really rather delightful, if also quaint.

Like you, I dislike the phone, but I applaud the impulse to talk to a human being as opposed to wading through Google or even Twitter search results. And I bet they’re tickled pink when they get someone nice and knowledgeable like you!

By: Blanche

Blanche — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 13:06:43 +0000

My grandmother, for example, has trouble figuring out how to replace the ink in her printer; I can’t imagine navigating web pages beyond those she has figured out enough to use her email is easy.

Of course, I didn’t really start to use computers for anything more than word processing until college (where I discovered the dial-up world of online networks) & had a mini-tantrum in middle school(?) when the local library switched from the paper card catalog system I had mastered to a computerized version.

In some respects I’m an old fogey who appreciates the option of talking to someone who knows their products hands on vs. the descriptions found on a computer screen. But I also don’t really like to talk to people on the phone when they are asking the same questions I hear over and over, so I can see both sides.