Target and customer service

I don’t get, honestly, why people expect great, or even good, service at discount-type corporate chain stores like Wal-Mart or Target or whatever. They’re cheap for a reason; they hire morons to ring stuff up and the rest is up to you, the savvy money-saving shopper.

If you wanted good service and knowledgeable sales staff you’d have gone to either a photography specialty store, or a watch-specialty store. The same people who bitch about crappy service are the ones who won’t pay for the expertise of people who know what they’re doing and therefore cost extra to employ.

And I don’t get why you couldn’t just tell the sales person, “I need XXXXX type battery. Do you have it?” If you know better than they do, speak up. I do! I’ve had to explain to salespeople that I know what I’m talking about; I went to a photo/camera store and had to insist to the salesperson that yes, I know C41 process b/w film is NOT real b/w film, but I needed it developed quickly so I was willing to compromise.

I get the “young blonde” treatment frequently from salespeople, particularly men, and I just have to set them straight. I’m not gonna cry about it; I’d rather deal with that than be as ignorant and moronic as they are. :smiley:

That’s the problem, the OP couldn’t FIND the display of the batteries.

To the OP:

I agree with Bad News Baboon that your first mistake was telling the salesperson everything. If you know what you want, then you don’t have to listen to their moronic spiel and misdirection.

Second mistake, was after he directed you somewhere else, you complied. I would have stayed put until he found me the batteries, even if he did have to pull them out of his ass :wink:

This just in: Radio Shack no longer demands personal information when purchasing batteries.

Act accordingly.

Well, I am one of the Morans who rings up your stuff. I really resent comments like that. I have 2 1/2 years of college, which is more of an education than most of my customers have. I do not know about your stores but we do work on customer service. The only trouble is, we can not be there 24/7 and at some point must turn things over to the high school kids. :slight_smile: Yes, I could probably get a better job but I did not want to move out of my small hometown.

Are you related to the Brian Moran I knew in Grade School?

Can I tell you how much these people drive me crazy? My family owns a jewlery store. We also have a watchmaker, which is getting less and less common these days, and we get referals from all over. We also, of course, replace watch batteries. Some watches (especially swanky ones) are complicated to open, incolving many screws externally & internally. So someone will bring in there watch, we replace the battery, and then charge them, say $8 (the price may have changed, I haven’t worked for my dad in years). Inevitably, they’d bitch because they saw watch batteries at target for $5.

Now, I’m not saying you shouldn’t get batteries at target or whatever, but if you come into our shop because you are unable to open your own damn watch, why shouldn’t you pay for labor? (If you just wanted a battery, we’d just sell you that for a regular price). Not only that, this is a two thousand dollar watch, and you’re bitching about 3 bucks?

But yeah, I hate discount stores in general. I once walked up to a woman (in target, wearing a uniform) and asked where something was. She gave me a look, then said, “Sorry, No English.” This being California, I repeat my question in spanish. She stares me, then kind of shrugs and indicates that sorry, she still doesn’t understand me. WTF? You hire someone that doesn’t speak english or spanish? What language does she speak, and why did it seem like a good idea to put her in a customer service position?

Pardon me for offending you, Nobody’s Fool; the thing is, whether the smart employees like you aren’t available, or there just aren’t enough sales staff…either way, I think anybody who expects consistently excellent customer service from a discount store is crazy. It isn’t set up that way, it isn’t staffed that way, and it isn’t priced that way. You get what you pay for.

But I do apologize if what I said offended you. :slight_smile:

Apology accepted. You must understand then how we feel when we work with people that do not care about the customers. Our bonus every year is based on sales and if we do not take care of our customers then how can we expect to have good sales?? We train our new employees to take care of the customer first, to walk them to the item they are looking for, do not leave them until they are happy. But then there is the other side of the coin. The obnoxious customer that no matter what you do is not happy. They were in a bad mood when they came in the store and are looking for someone to take it out on. Please do not take it out on the cashier, they are only doing thier job.

Originally posted by Nobody’s Fool

That many college credits and there’s still no better place than Wal-Mart to find work? Must be a really small town. Maybe a move would be a good idea after all!
Sorry, I have to agree with Audrey Levins

and sometimes that means you get a moran helping you…
Originally posted by Cerri

Hey, I think I went to Grade School with that Moran also. What a coincidence.

Hmmm…I thought Nobody’s Fool was talking 'bout Erin Moran, aka the Joanie of Joanie Loves Chachi fame

Like I said it is a small town, moving is out of the question because my 73 year old mother lives here. I like being close in case she needs me. Plus the cost of living is reasonable. :smiley: