shop assistants

Grandmasu

No-one seems to have mentioned that it is good practice for the shop assistant to count the change back into your hand. This is a check for both customer and SA and I think courteous. Mistakes can be made and I really hate having change dropped into my hand and will make a point of counting it before putting in my purse.

vyle

meritaten wrote: »

some assistants have always done it! I find it offensive too.

You find it offensive if an assistant doesn't physically TOUCH you when returning change? Really? When you serve people, do you make a point of touching them as you return the change, because if I was a customer, I'd find that pretty offensive too.

Azari

fluffnutter wrote: »

Couldn't agree more, particularly with regard their actually listening to your answer. I find my local Co-op the worst. Despite their corporate policy (apparently) of not having bags on the counter and always asking if you need one, every time I go in they start stuffing my shopping straight into the bag they have ready to their side. I then go through my spiel of 'I don't want a bag, thanks', 'I've got my own bag, thank you', 'I don't need a bag, thanks', 'I DON'T WANT A BAG'. They're deaf to it, really they are. On a number of occasions they've completely ignored me and just passed me the bag whilst looking at me with the dull gleam of idiocy in their eyes. I then take all my shopping out of the bag I didn't want and put it in my own bag. It must annoy the people waiting behind me in the queue no end!

My local greengrocers are funny.

I almost always take a bag with me in an attempt to be 'green'. I walk up to the counter, deposit the vegetables and open up my bag. They then ask me if I want a bag.

On the very rare occasion that I don't have a bag they invariably fail to ask if I want one and then proceed to weigh my purchases apparently completely oblivious to the fact that I'm standing there doing nothing rather than packing as they hand the items to me as I usually do. (There are only three people who serve and I go in at least twice a week so they should know me.) When they've finished I have to ask for a bag.

Other than that they are very pleasant and I find it more amusing than annoying so I don't say anything. But I do wonder.

affordmylife

training thats hilarous. i watched someone else for 15 mins and then got on with it.

if i get stuck i have to ask someone. invariably a team mate rather than a manager cos they never come.

lol id love some training xx

mumblub

I agree with you london i always put heavy items on conveyor belt first ie potatoes.drinks tins its common sense i think.on other hand ive watched men just empty cart whatever comes to hand lol you can just picture their partners face when they get home and bread has become pancakes and other foods taste of washing stuff

CherryRose

pearl123 wrote: »

What I get fed up with when buying clothes is "Are you alright?" On friday I had one assistant come up to me four times "Are you alright?" - I was only in their 5 minutes! Would have been in there even longer if she'd left me alone!

That is one of my biggest pet peeves, trust me, if I wasn't alright, I'd let you know, or ask. :hello:

vyle

CherryRose wrote: »

That is one of my biggest pet peeves, trust me, if I wasn't alright, I'd let you know, or ask. :hello:

And then there are some people who will not ask for help, but will get super arsey they're not being served. A guy was looking at computers where I work once, staring off into space, but seemed happy enough so i left him, and he started muttering to himself, "Service, I want service."

By this point, I was on the phone to a customer, and he started pacing mumbling about service, then made a beeline for my manager and started ranting about how he hadn't been served, and he'd been standing on the department for five minutes and nobody had approached him and how disgusted he was.

The problem is, you approach some people who are just happing talking amongst themselves about stuff like holidays, and they might be relieved and turn out that they're wanting help but didn't want to ask (it happens) while you'll hear two people talking about how confused they are and getting everything about the products wrong (once heard somebody explain that 3D is a waste of money because 4D is coming soon and "that's when the picture comes out towards you") and approach them, only to be snapped at because they'll only want help if they ask for it... and then they'll ask for it a few seconds after another customer's nabbed me and get cross. Well !!!! them.

I usually just say hello and leave it at that, except then some customers don't quite understand if I'm available to serve, then complain when they just say "hello back," and then the next customer asks for help, because I didn't serve the previous person.

There is no way to keep everyone happy, so I don't bother any more. Customers will !!!!! if I ask if they need help, !!!!! if I don't. Oh, and of course, they expect full skin contact, clearly, but screw that, I will just about shake my best friend's hand, and hug him on a special occasion, and I'm not about to start rubbing up grimy strangers. I think specialist charge £60 an hour for that.

mttylad

Some asda customers really are pathetic, expecting them to have to touch them to give them their change etc - FGS - get over yourselves.

I wonder how they would fare if they had to do the job for a week.
I certainly would not like to do it, I'd be telling a choice few where to go.

meritaten

Grandmasu wrote: »

No-one seems to have mentioned that it is good practice for the shop assistant to count the change back into your hand. This is a check for both customer and SA and I think courteous. Mistakes can be made and I really hate having change dropped into my hand and will make a point of counting it before putting in my purse.

Yes I did! you must have missed my post! I always do it because that was the way I was trained to do it back in 'good old days'!

meritaten

vyle wrote: »

You find it offensive if an assistant doesn't physically TOUCH you when returning change? Really? When you serve people, do you make a point of touching them as you return the change, because if I was a customer, I'd find that pretty offensive too.

Where did I say that? I can return change by counting it into the customers hand without actually touching thier hand. Its easy!!! customer holds hand out - assistant holds coins in one hand note(s) in the other........then starting with the amount owed you drop the coin from about an inch above the customers hand and count each coin and then the note(s) (you can even wait patiently while the customer puts the coins in their purse), until you reach the amount the customer gave you!
and 40 years of practice ensures you can do it while smiling!