Can I vent?

[bognrin]

OK - I've had a day here! I went to WalMart today with my kids and my mom just after lunch. Of all awful things, my 13 month old threw up all over the floor in the crockpot section. Ewwwww! This was about one of the most yucky things I had ever seen (until he threw up on me twice in the car after that).
I had to run all over WalMart to try to get help. I asked a few different people if they could call someone and they said they would - yeah right!
I finally got some paper towels from the bathroom and was cleaning it up myself. I was trying to find someone to give me a bag to throw the paper towles away when I found the cleaning gal and no one had called her at all! She came and helped me and we took care of it.
I was then going to take the baby out to the car and thought I'd get a Sprite on the way to help his tummy feel better. The checkout idiot lady gave me crap about wanting a plastic bag for my Sprite. I told her I was taking a sick baby out to the car and wanted a bag in case he started to get sick again. She was really rude about it and gave me this little small bag for the pop. I was buying the pop, what was wrong with wanting a bag?!!!!!? She also was so rude whe I forgot to put my pin # in for my debit card! Anyway, I totally complained about it to a manager on the way out which made me feel a bit better.
Anyway, my gripe is - what is up with customer service anymore? It seems so nonexistent! I am so astonished at the way people act and what they say. I can't believe the trouble I have had getting service lately. It just drives me crazy!
Anyway, just had to vent. Thought this would make me feel a bit less angry with everything.

[vtflyer]

I'm right there with you! I am becoming more and more intolerant of not just the rude clerks, etc. but also I am amazed at the indifference of so many in customer service positions in stores, restaurants, etc. Even basic acknowledgement when you walk in is lacking. I can forgive mistakes but I can not stand indifference, apathy and absence of at least a smile!

[momtolevi]

I worked in retail for a couple years and we were always told to acknowledge the customers, no matter what. Now when I go into a store, I'm surprised when no one that works at a store, no matter what it may be, says hello to the customers and acts as if we are interrupting their day and their life if we ask for help! Most often I'm getting things off the top shelves, or something like that and no one comes along to help.

I hope your son is feeling better, I would've been mad too!

[Sue]

Sounds like another very good reason to shop online right here. We'll always greet you with a cyber

[Darciann]

Really I think we were at the same one! The other day I go into Wal-Mart..Huge lines of course. I am waiting and they do open another line. No one behind me and the cashier decides that BEFORE she can ring me up she MUST make change..Ok whatever. She not so much as speaks to me. I clear my throat. Still ignores me. The door alarm goes off she's staring over there..Starts ringing my stuff still ignores me and is watching the door. Of course someone is AT the door and it's just one of the cashier "forgot" to deactivate a tag. I look over and by then she is finished ringing up my stuff. She says "excuse me" in this snotty voice and tells me the price..I was soooo mad I couldn't even speak! What is up with people lately? I used to be a cashier and no that being friendly is part of the job description..or maybe that isn't anymore...

[wingnut]

I've noticed a lot of convienece stores have pretty sorry customer service. I've gone in to pay for gas and the goober behind the counter won't say a word, no hello, no thank you, nothing!!
I don't usually go back to those places but anymore I'm getting to the point of complaining. They say only 4% of people complain about bad service. Most just don't return. I used to be a cashier also, and it was only natural for me to greet and chat with the customers. The business really want to know if there is a problem. Plus they will try to make it right for you (i.e. freebies!). They can't fix it if they don't know about it.
I also agree, Wal-mart has pretty bad customer service.

[SWright363]

Wal-Mart is terrible. I do all my grocery shopping there. I had a cashier that was doing the same thing, not looking or speaking, rolling her eyes. And I went off the deep end when I realized she was dropping my cans in the bag without looking and WAS NOT hitting the bag. I don't want to act like a toad, but I walked out and left everything there. Thank goodness my neighbor was a manager at the time. I called him and explained. I am ashamed to say I have done this twice. Once at Kroger. And I am not a hateful person by nature, these people had chips on their shoulders when they came to work.

[JackiesMom]

Ok, add me to the list. I was so thrilled when they finally opened a Super Walmart near me. Until today. I wanted to start my Christmas shopping, I (stupidly) thought it would be better to go now than to go after Thanksgiving because I would beat the Christmas rush and all of the things that you all mentioned. Well I was WRONG! People are just plain rude, the customers and most of the employees. You know those carts they use to bring merchandise out of the stock room? Can't think of the actual name of them, well one guy nearly ran my husband down with one, he was totally not paying attention to where he was going, and was in a huge rush and my hubby had to actually JUMP out of the way or he would of been minus a few toes. The employee, never batted an eye or said excuse me. This happened more times than I can count, some did say excuse me can I get through, but we still had to keep moving out of there way, back in my retail days, we waited for the customer to finish what they were doing or we went another direction, what ever happened to the customer always comes first? There was one nice lady who helped us find something and even went through the rack with me to help me find the size I needed and when I said the one looked kind of small, she actually discussed it with me. That was the ONLY "nice" employee we encountered. Then there's the other shoppers. WHY do people put their cart against one side of the aisle and the other person put theirs on the other side then they both with their kids stand in the middle of the aisle yakking so there is no way in the world to get through?!?!? I can't tell you how many times I had to keep turning around and going all the way around the other side to get to the other end of the aisle I was already in. Not to mention getting your toes run over or getting rear-ended by a shopping cart by someone who isn't looking where they are going. And no one says "excuse me" or "I'm sorry" anymore. What ever happened to a little thing called "manners"? Then the parking lot, we nearly had our car hit several times by people not paying attention to where they're going, who then give you a dirty look like it was your fault. At one point we had to slam on the brakes or the front of our car would be nicely mounted on a SUV right now. (and we don't own an SUV) I just can't get over how rude people are. I used to work retail and was always told first, the customer is always right, even when they're wrong, and second, the customer always comes first, stop whatever it is you're doing and help them when they need it. Heck I remember working for one store in high school that if the boss walked through your department and saw a customer shopping and you weren't helping them (whether they wanted it or not) you got reamed about it. (might explain why they went out of business, you couldn't shop in peace. LOL) I don't really care for pushy sales people, and I don't really care if they don't offer to help, but if I want help, I expect someone to be around to help me and I expect them to be courteous, and at least semi-happy to help me. I know retail work can be rough, but come-on, without customers were would they be? Well when we finally made it safely home, my husband looked at me and said "PLEASE do the rest of our Christmas shopping ONLINE" So here I am, I'm shopping through Dealhunting. No crowds, no wrecked cars, no ignorant employees. Actually I've on occasion needed help with a code or deal and had to email the staff here at Dealhunting and they responded very quickly and as nice as could be. Why can't the people at Walmart learn from them? I won't be going back there anytime soon I can promise you that. Thank you Dealhunting, my husband thanks you, my feet thank you.