What's worse bad customer service or bad customers?

SpeedoGuy

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Very true. I love people who complain about customer service at Costco. It makes me want to yell "It's cheap folks, what more do you want for little money?"

lol

I've got a in-law like that. She comes unglued whenever she receives an incorrect order from a fast food place ("I wanted a small fries and no onions with that, dammit"). She'll upbraid the teller (who doesn't speak much english) and demand to speak to a manager (who's too busy to really give a rip). Afterwards she'll stew and brood and grumble over the error.

All the while I'm just chuckling, as if this had been a major faux pas by the staff at a spendy restaurant.
 

Osiris

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lol

I've got a in-law like that. She comes unglued whenever she receives an incorrect order from a fast food place ("I wanted a small fries and no onions with that, dammit"). She'll upbraid the teller (who doesn't speak much english) and demand to speak to a manager (who's too busy to really give a rip). Afterwards she'll stew and brood and grumble over the error.

All the while I'm just chuckling, as if this had been a major faux pas by the staff at a spendy restaurant.

lol

I have one of those in my family too. When she pulls that, she usually ends up with worse than she started with.

It makes you wanna say...

"Babe? You ordered off the Dollar Value Menu. What did you expect Filet Mignon?"
 

Quite Irate

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Now, now, quite irate... don't pour fuel on a non-existent fire. Mem already has enough of an inferiority complex around here, don't go claiming that LPSG hates him.

He has been much better behaved of late. Let him be.
He's just been doing it elsewhere, from what I can tell.
 

rexcasual

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How is this topic any worse than any other here?

If any one of the other members had started this topic/rant it would go cheerfully on its way, eating up server space. mem0101 is not guilty of any crime for this. Lay off the unfair attacks.


Bad service is the worst. Pecker's motto should be made into a training poster.

DC, I can commiserate. An empty restaurant is always a sign of something seriously amiss. Better luck next time.
 

fratpack

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I would have to say bad customers are worse because they often lead to the causes of bad customer service.

Having to manage people in a Customer Service environment, I have had some super people that either burn out or get disgruntled for all the bad customers they may get, hence they start giving bad customer service.

It's kind of a "which came first, the chicken or the egg" type of question really.

I definitely agree...living here in NYC, you see all sorts of people and their behaviour on display and OMG I wonder how some sales people keep their sanity. It seems some people have this sense of entitlement but with nothing to back it up.
 

hypoc8

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You want bad service and a "don't give a shit" attitude try the highway department. Where do they find all of the morons that work there? It's bad enough you can't understand all the forms you have to fill out but the people that work there don't have a clue either.
 

Mem

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You want bad service and a "don't give a shit" attitude try the highway department. Where do they find all of the morons that work there? It's bad enough you can't understand all the forms you have to fill out but the people that work there don't have a clue either.

They must have it written in their contract that for every 1 worker doing work 3 people have to be standing around.
 

Mem

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When I handled customer service for a web site, I always assumed that the customer was right, and gave them top service -- one for one they always turned into GREAT customers and gave glowing referrals for the web site.

Customers DEPEND on a company to help them out. When you treat a customer badly, you're not just being rude to someone on the street, you are denying a customer access to something that they NEED.

So bad customer service is way, WAY worse.

PS: Luv ya, mem![/quote]

I love you too babe.

Bad customer service is worse. It is the fault of management. If they did not tolerate it, the bad service would stop.
 

Mem

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lol

I've got a in-law like that. She comes unglued whenever she receives an incorrect order from a fast food place ("I wanted a small fries and no onions with that, dammit"). She'll upbraid the teller (who doesn't speak much english) and demand to speak to a manager (who's too busy to really give a rip). Afterwards she'll stew and brood and grumble over the error.

All the while I'm just chuckling, as if this had been a major faux pas by the staff at a spendy restaurant.

I had two wrong orders at fast food places in the past two weeks. The first gave me the wrong item. The second left out an item. This happened in the drive thru. I had driven away, the second time was worse because I had to drive farther on the highway to get back. Both times I was cordial, and as long as they gave me the right item and said they were sorry that was fine.

It was actually my fault for driving away without checking my order, and assuming that they would get my order right.
 

Principessa

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I got a message from my Mother's doctor's office on my answering machine. It said that her appointment had to be pushed back a week and that I should call to acknowledge the new appointment date. I called and was told to call back another day because the computer was down. At first I said okay, then called right back and told them to take a note if they had to, but I could not call back. I was upset that they asked me for a courtesy call, but would not extend the courtesy of dealing with the situation at the time. I notice that many times that people say they can't do something it is because they just don't want to do it.
That's bullshit! :mad: The medical profession is getting too big for its britches lately. I have heard the sob stories of skyrocketing malpractice insuranc and HMO's practically bankrupting them. That is no excuse for flat out, rude and hurtful behavior. These doctors need to go back to med school and re-learn bedside manner.

Honestly, some customers you want to treat poorly so they just go away. Heap them onto the competition. It's like flinging a catapult of diseased bodies onto your enemies.
You only kiss ass to big tippers or people that count. 'Scuse me who exactly are the people that count? :mad:That is how capitalism works. You don't actually want to work for your money do you? All the rest of the hoi polloi you can treat as you like. You get no points for being nice.

I went once to a restaurant with a known food reviewer from a small town newspaper and went back without her. Guess which meal was better. Some people are just more equal than others. Unfortunately people who shop at places with atrocious service like WalMart are at the bottom of the food chain. You get what you pay for.
Well duh! If I were dining out with a food reviewer I would expect no less than exemplary service and toothsome food. I would not expect the same quality of service when dining there alone later that week. :rolleyes:

Now, now, quite irate... don't pour fuel on a non-existent fire. Mem already has enough of an inferiority complex around here, don't go claiming that LPSG hates him.
He has been much better behaved of late. Let him be.
I agree. As a matter of fact we actually buried the hatchet about a week ago. :smile:

Bad customer service is worse. It's rampant, and it's their job to provide you good service.
For people who like to bitch about dealing with bad customers all the time, fuck them. That's their job. They're getting paid. The customers aren't getting paid by anyone to put up with their bullshit.
Thank you! I was about to write the same thing when I saw your post.
 

B_Think_Kink

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Yes, my real problem is that I am not a male cross-dresser. Your screen name screams your problem. My other problem is that I am not delusional.

I can understand that someone quite irate who is mad at the world and the real problems that they created is delusional.

I got 99 Problems but a Bitch aint one.

Mem I think that your comment was really uncalled for as was QI's. But attacking something that one cannot control is unfair.
 

Mem

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Mem I think that your comment was really uncalled for as was QI's. But attacking something that one cannot control is unfair.

Yes, I see what you mean. I was upset that QI attacked me without being provoked. Maybe people should learn not to attack others who are just here for a good time to read the message boards, and may want to contribute a new thread.
 

snoozan

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I got a message from my Mother's doctor's office on my answering machine. It said that her appointment had to be pushed back a week and that I should call to acknowledge the new appointment date. I called and was told to call back another day because the computer was down. At first I said okay, then called right back and told them to take a note if they had to, but I could not call back. I was upset that they asked me for a courtesy call, but would not extend the courtesy of dealing with the situation at the time. I notice that many times that people say they can't do something it is because they just don't want to do it.

I keep reading this and thinking that there's a good chance that they couldn't do anything at the time except write it down on paper, and with the volume of things they had to do sans computer, it very well would have gotten lost in the shuffle. Modern day offices are crippled without computers. I imagine you would have been more pissed off if when you went to the new appointment and the paper they wrote it down on had gotten lost in the shuffle and they gave the appointment to someone else. Having you call back was probably the best they could do, which is all you can ask of anyone. Unfortunately, most places don't have a paper backup system to work from because it's not practical or cost effective.

Regarding the bigger issue, I pretty much created the customer service system for a friend's business and spent a couple years doing the absolute best that I could for every customer we had. Unfortunately, I couldn't fix everything right that minute, which is what some people expected. Still, I found that the more polite I was and the more I did even though it may have been outside of what I was supposed to do, the better reviews we got. In business, that's what is important-- making people happy.

In my business now, I've taken it on the chin for various customer service issues, but that's just What You Do when you're in business if you're smart. Recently I had to take down my entire website because of a customer complaint. With that said, there are customers who demand too much that I can't possibly make happy. Sometimes I have to say no. Some people seem to live for finding every little problem and demanding things for free. It's a fine line to walk.

I do agree that bad customer service is reprehensible-- I've had to deal with some people and companies whose reps are rude, can't do anything, don't care, the works. It drives me insane. Sometimes it matters more to me if the rep tries hard to get something done and can't over whether they are able to actually do something.

In the end, it's just good business savvy if you provide customer service that goes above and beyond. Sometimes it's surprising that companies don't invest more money in that. In that vein, the best way to promote good customer service is to praise it when it's there and not give money to companies whose service is bad.

With all that said, mem, I think that you may be on the verge of being a "bad customer" to the doctor's office. I fail to see how calling them back when their system came back up was any skin off of your ass. The office was probably complete chaos to deal with for the people who worked there and you've got to be sensitive to that.
 

B_New End

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hmmm...

bad customers are horrible people

bad customer service is frustrating.

I'd say bad customers are worse.
 

SpoiledPrincess

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Bad customers often create bad customer service, when I worked on the phone I'd bend over backwards to help someone who was polite but the customers who were rude and insisted everything they'd cocked up was my fault ended up with their mortgage being held up.

We shouldn't put up with undeserved bad customer service but there's no excuse for being rude to someone who's doing their best to help you.
 

Mem

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I keep reading this and thinking that there's a good chance that they couldn't do anything at the time except write it down on paper, and with the volume of things they had to do sans computer, it very well would have gotten lost in the shuffle. Modern day offices are crippled without computers. I imagine you would have been more pissed off if when you went to the new appointment and the paper they wrote it down on had gotten lost in the shuffle and they gave the appointment to someone else. Having you call back was probably the best they could do, which is all you can ask of anyone. Unfortunately, most places don't have a paper backup system to work from because it's not practical or cost effective.

With all that said, mem, I think that you may be on the verge of being a "bad customer" to the doctor's office. I fail to see how calling them back when their system came back up was any skin off of your ass. The office was probably complete chaos to deal with for the people who worked there and you've got to be sensitive to that.

A paper backup system of appointments for 2 doctors who only see people on two days a week each is not impractical. If they lose papers in a shuffle they are inept. The volume of things they do there on Fridays is sit around. There are no doctors in the office that day. I know that the girl that answered the phone that day is lazy and unhelpful. As strange as this may sound to you it is difficult for me to make a phone call from work. I work the same hours that the office is open. They were not doing me favor by cancelling the appointment. They were not doing me a favor by letting me know it was rescheduled. This is something that they had to do.
 

Mem

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Yes Tell them in the future to just let you show up without telling you of cancellation or any thing else.

I don't consider that a favor, I consider that their job. A favor is going out of your way to do something nice that you did not have to do.
 

ManiacalMadMan

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I don't consider that a favor, I consider that their job. A favor is going out of your way to do something nice that you did not have to do.
I get the feeling that you have never been truely happy Were you neglected as a baby? Did a neighbor steal your ball? What happened to make you so miserable?