Today I drove to the nearest OfficeMax (20 miles away) to buy an ink cartridge for my printer. The sales person assured me that the cartridge he suggested would work in all printers in the 600 series, even after I specifically asked him if it made a difference that my model was 610cl. I took his word for it, assuming that since it was his job he’d be more knowledgable about it than I am. It doesn’t fit my printer, so after I get the gas leak in my car- that became apparent while I was out today- fixed, I’m going to have to drive back to return it.
My parents are both of the opinion that I ought to call the store and complain, but what could possibly be gained from doing it? I don’t know what I’d say (" I’m calling to complain"?) and I dislike making calls in the first place, so there’d have to be something to gain for me to do it, and I can’t think of anything that would be. Would you complain? Why or why not?
I’d probably be a little cranked, but I wouldn’t complain. I don’t think I’d expect the clerks at Office Max to be up on all the printer cartridge compatibility issues. And I usually take the empty box from the previous cartridge with me, if I’m not 100% sure which one I need. Or I check it out ahead of time on the Internet (and maybe even orderit that way, if it’s not an emergency) Either way, I’m fanatical about checking numbers myself.
Of course, I have to keep my home office fully stocked with spare everything, since MY nearest Office Max is 40 miles away.
When you return it just mention that you were given the wrong info. If I were the clerk, I’d wanna know the correct info for future, and then you’ve had your chance to vent yer spleen.
I don’t think I would make a point of calling, however.
I was in electronics retail as a manager many, many moons ago. I (and my employees) were quite good at knowing the products and were fairly well paid for the time.
Today, the level of clerk/salesperson help at your run of the mill office/electronics outlet/superstore is not that sophisticated, the SKU’s are innumerable and products are complex. There are some competent personnel but the majority are part time clerks. The stores cannot afford professional (ie well paid) help and give you the competitive prices you are fond of.
Any time I need an accessory I get the specific model # of what I need and I shop in person. It has saved me many headaches. I even help them make some sales while I am there by assisting customers looking for accessories who have been told “Ummm… we don’t have that” and are walking out. My favorite call was to Circuit City asking about a specific Linksys router being in stock and being told that Sears was where I would have to go for a “router”.
I would not complain as the level of help is just part of the landscape at this point. Just be more informed and careful about what you need next time.
It would accomplish getting this person dressed down for giving out incorrect information, that’s what it should get.
Even after you had narrowed the questions down to working with your specific printer, this person told you yes, but didn’t actually know (otherwise the answer would have been no).
I wouldn’t call. I would make the complaint (nice, calm, collected) in person when I went to get the item exchanged or refunded.
If the person happens to end up sacked after the event, then that is not your concern. You expect a service, you didn’t get a service and it is the choice of the company as to whether this is the last piece of wrong advice this person will give to a customer again.
Although many employees of office superstores don’t know everything about every product they sell, if they aren’t sure how to answer a question, they need to ask a supervisor - who really should know, or know whom to ask. The fact that you were given wrong information is far worse, IMO, than simply getting an “I don’t know,” since you now have to waste time returning the cartridge.
So I would call, but I wouldn’t make it sound like a complaint. You just explain that you were just there, looking for an ink cartridge for your 610cl, and the clerk (remember the name?) assured you that the cartridge you wound up buying was compatible with your printer. Explain that when you got home, you found this to not be the case. At this point, I wouldn’t demand anything, of course, but I would ask them what they think you should do (in reality, you want to get back there, of course, but it’s good to see what their view is); they may apologize for the mixup and tell you that when you return it, they’ll either issue a refund and give you the correct cartridge or offer you a discount. Or something else. Anyway, if you put it in their court without making it seem like you’re demanding they do something, they’ll be more receptive - they’ll realize they made a mistake and will try to assuage you.
Sorry, but didn’t the cartridge say “This cartridge works with these model printers” right on the package? Was your printer model on that list? If you failed to read the list properly, and had to ask the clerk to read the list for you, and the clerk couldn’t read it either, then it’s a poorly designed printer cartridge package, and you should write a letter to the printer company stating such, so you can hopefully get them to redesign the packaging and save other people the pain and suffering you’ve been throuh.
If you didn’t read the package, :smack: to you. If the clerk couldn’t be bothered to read the package, :smack: :smack: to the clerk. This isn’t rocket science.
No one can correct behavior that’s wrong if they don’t know it’s wrong. So what’s acomplished is that you increased the odds that the next person will get better information than you did.
Does it mean the employee will get fired, or even hear about it? No guarantees.
But if you don’t, you can be absolutely sure they will not.
So… how much effort is it for you to offer up this information?
I can relay this as a fomer customer service agent.
Having been endlessly browbeaten and worn out by the endless hoards of complaining, whining consumers, my interest in that job dissipated within two weeks.
If an unhappy customer leaves there will be a new one in the door before long.
Ultimately, it is your responsibility to purchase the correct product for your needs. So a lowly retail clerk gets chewed out or fired because you didn’t read the label. Would that make you feel better?
When my first born was old enough to get a job, I established a few rules for him: nothing involving serving the public in a retail capacity, and never work for minimum wage.
No offense against you and your former job, but this is a terrible attitude to take. Yes, it’s the customer’s responsibility to buy what he wants to buy, but it’s the employee’s responsibility to give him correct information. If the customer is not sure that what he has is what he wants, shouldn’t he ask the employee?
You’re assuming the label stated that it would not work with his printer. I’d say, given the OP, that it’s far more likely that this information was not on the label at all, and that’s why he asked the employee in the first place.
