Interruptions
I am always polite and acknowledge the customer who speaks to me. I direct them to Customer Service, or the restrooms, or wherever. I know an interesting story about a bread vendor ( a personal friend) who was rude to a customer. The customer tried to take a loaf of bread from her bread pallets , and she told the customer to take a loaf off of the shelf. Anyhow, the customer complained to the manager, and the upshop of that was the vendor losing her job with the bread company. And the vendor was covering quite a few stores. This was quite a hardship for her. I hope this helps a merchandiser like me. Love, Night Owl at 4:01 pm.
I do demos and merchandising. I always try to direct them to a store associate if I don't know where something is. I especially take care with older people as I know that sometimes they are very sensitive. I think it's really mean to "play" with people, iwahstore. Ignoring them is rude as well. There are times when it can be hard to keep my patience when some people seem to get angry (such as when we are doing a store remodel or reset and moving things around--people don't like change).
That is a horrible story! I can't believe she lost her job because she told a customer to take a loaf off the shelf! There has to be more to it.Working as a merchandiser you see all different types of vendors and if she got fired for that then more than half of the vendors out there should be fired as well! Just saying!
It's true, more than half of the vendors out there should be fired!!!!! Certainly where I live they should be. But then, the client KNOWS that they are paid $10 -$12 an hour, very part time and must apply for food stamps, so who else would they hire? If I owned a company and my employee told a customer not to take a fresh loaf of bread I would fire them in a second! You know how exciting it is to get a fresh product, just brought into the store? The customer could become a customer for life if they could have that experience once in a while and she stole that away. iwastore has the same technique that I'm talking about that is very common among vendors here. That's why they get $8.50 - $10 an hour and I get the high paying assignments!
Rude and obnoxious behavior gets you the soup base with no meat or vegetables. That's how those chicks were behaving, and tell stories to each other about how their five year old woke them up in the middle of the night with a knife in their hand saying they were going to kill their parent, at Match Converge. When I told Melissa about it she became upset at ME! Now I know why, because she is the same low class person as these chicks.
Rude and obnoxious behavior gets you the soup base with no meat or vegetables. That's how those chicks were behaving, and tell stories to each other about how their five year old woke them up in the middle of the night with a knife in their hand saying they were going to kill their parent, at Match Converge. When I told Melissa about it she became upset at ME! Now I know why, because she is the same low class person as these chicks.
I don't understand your last paragraph. I don't know who Melissa or the chicks or Match Converge are, but anyway. I know that not all vendors make $10 or less especially if you're working for a bread company or a soda company. They make good money! It shouldn't matter how much money anyone makes though. If I'm working a job I deserve the same respect as someone making a dollar or ten dollars more than me or vice versa. If I do my job correctly I should get rewarded, if I don't I should get fired within reason not cuz you told a customer to take one off the shelf! Unless she screamed in her face and used obscenities then it makes sense!
This is part and parcel of the industry.
I've lost count how many customers I've told I don't work in said store. My arms deep in a display doing a wiring job. Tap-tap-tap and, "I need your help."
I've had customers swear they'll see me and a manager fired because I refused to help them, and the manager refused to fire me because I won't help them.
It seems if you carry a clip board, or seem remotely professional in a store customers assume you work there no matter what you dress like. My advice is to grin and bear it.
I've lost count how many customers I've told I don't work in said store. My arms deep in a display doing a wiring job. Tap-tap-tap and, "I need your help."
I've had customers swear they'll see me and a manager fired because I refused to help them, and the manager refused to fire me because I won't help them.
It seems if you carry a clip board, or seem remotely professional in a store customers assume you work there no matter what you dress like. My advice is to grin and bear it.
Now especially with Christmas OMG!!!!! The looks you get when you tell them you don’t work here. If dirty looks can kill.... Just because I'm putting up merchandise or cleaning up right away they assume I work there! Some of them get so very rude too. Hey I'm doing my job around all you crazy people and I just want to get out. So please stop asking me if I work here!!! 
Merry Christmas!
Merry Christmas!
Just playing devil's advocate here, but the vast majority of shoppers have no idea what a merchandiser is or how a store works. To the average shopper, they go to a store and anyone doing any work in that store MUST work for said store. For this reason, customers will continue to ask their questions of anyone who looks remotely like an employee It's just part of the gig....
"We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl -- year after year..."
Overall, the customers who ask me for assistance are actually nice and polite. It may be because I live and work in a smaller town, about 100,000 in pop. Or they resonate with my aura - don't laugh - they would never understand why they feel so calm. I often work in nicer clothes stores and I would never be anything but friendly and helpful. Signed, Night Owl at 4:14 am
No, you find someone that does to help them.
I think the biggest part of the problem people are experiencing with this issue is, what my Mother used to ask "What are you putting in the soup?" You can't make soup with gravel and add chocolate sauce and expect them to love it because it has chocolate sauce despite the gravel. Thank goodness there's a lot of gravel chef's out there, that's how I get my bonus'. Yes, I drank too much last night.
@spicy1 wrote:
I think the biggest part of the problem people are experiencing with this issue is, what my Mother used to ask "What are you putting in the soup?" You can't make soup with gravel and add chocolate sauce and expect them to love it because it has chocolate sauce despite the gravel. Thank goodness there's a lot of gravel chef's out there, that's how I get my bonus'. Yes, I drank too much last night.
I don't understand this at all. Signed, Night Owl at 2:25 pm
Spicy, are you still drunk, LOL?
OK, I mean, you get back what you give out. So, if you have a stern look on your face, look like you're all bothered by the interruption etc, then people will give you the same attitude back. I smile, giggle a tiny bit, turn my head a little to one side and say, very gently and slowly with an apologetic voice "noooo, I don't work here, I'm just taking care of Revlon's products here." and then I go back to work. Usually they apologize, say something like "Oh, I thought you did because you have a tag on," or something in that vein. I say, "I know what you mean, they make me wear this tag." Get all humble and $|-|1T, don't maintain eye contact (cause that's a challenging stance lol) and you get 10x back to you.
That makes more sense than gravel soup, hon. Have a great holiday!
Yeah really. What was that last paragraph all about. I DO know who Match Converge is but that sentence made absolutely no sense at all.
I agree. I am pleasant with customers who interrupt me in my duties (I do try and avoid eye contact and do not automatically respond to the "excuse me, excuse me" comments when my head is buried in a display). I usually just smile when they ask "do you work here" and I say ... "Oh no, I am not an employee" . Some get it, others do the " but you are working on something" comment and I then have to say "Yes, I know. I am doing a job here but I am a "just" a vendor, not an employee." Some get it instantly and are apologetic, but others still have a bewildered look then give me that "you lying b&*(ch" look and walk away... sigh.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/26/2016 03:46AM by Boutique.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 12/26/2016 03:46AM by Boutique.
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