Monday, May 08, 2006

Pet Peeve #3

I'm feeling bitchy today, so I'm going to vent...

Overgeneralization + lack of clarity = pointless waste of time. I work in a pet store and for the bazillionth time this year, someone who was looking for parts to their aquarium filter came in to ask me for assistance in selecting the parts.... This is fine, it's part of my job. However this person had no idea what model/size their filter was, he couldn't even describe it to me. Then he got upset when I politely told him that I could not help him find what he needed without that information. Imagine the same scenario if you were looking for parts for a car....

Guy walks into an auto parts store looking for an alternator for his vehicle....

Guy - "Hello, I need to buy an alternator for my car."

Salesperson - "OK sir, what is the make, model, and year of your vehicle?"

Guy - "I don't know, it has four wheels and I drive it to places. I just want to buy an alternator."

Salesperson - "I'm sorry sir, but alternators are not generic, they vary greatly between vehicles, I need to know specifically what make and model your car is as well as the year it was manufactured."

Guy - "God, you people are so incompetent!! I just want to buy an alternator!! I'm taking my business elsewhere!!"

It is seriously about as ridiculous as that, and the worst part is that I encounter it at least a few times a month. I often wonder why natural selection hasn't culled these fuckwits from the herd. I love my job but as many of you know, retail exposes you to some very abrasive and ignorant people.

OK, I'm done with my ranting >:-D.

1 comment:

Christine Bakke said...

Ha. As you know, I like me a good rant now and again. It's completely necessary at times!

Now...I need an alternator for my aquarium. Can you just send me the right part? Thanks.