Banned in Florida

[Kco]

Originally Posted by raulus

I'm definitely eager to see where this goes as well.

At the same time, it does seem like Yoda has more than his fair share of trouble with various sellers. Of course, my first post here was about a major AH and some excitement I was having. They didn't officially ban me, but I suspect the CEO won't be sending me a Christmas card anytime soon. So I suppose we all are due for some unnecessary nonsense from sellers from time to time.

Maybe Yoda just buys a lot more, so if 1% of his deals go bad, it happens more often than with the rest of us?

Typically if someone has a ton of disagreements with many people and businesses and its a pattern, it's NOT usually those being complained about that are the problem, there is always one common denominator...

[babraham]

Originally Posted by Kco

Typically if someone has a ton of disagreements with many people and businesses and its a pattern, it's NOT usually those being complained about that are the problem, there is always one common denominator...

Bingo.

[Aaron Seefeldt]

So I take it the last couple of guys to post don’t believe “the customer is always right”?

The 2 companies mentioned by John (Yoda) would rather turn their backs on a well established collector who has been buying rare vintage baseball items for at least the 30 years I’ve known him instead of finding a mutually satisfactory solution. Hmmmmm, not a great way to grow their companies. I’m glad I don’t have stock in them.

I’ve been a business man since I was a business kid. Even as a youngster I knew that “the customer is always right” - even when they’re wrong - they’re still right!

[Snowman]

Originally Posted by Aaron Seefeldt

So I take it the last couple of guys to post don’t believe “the customer is always right”?

The 2 companies mentioned by John (Yoda) would rather turn their backs on a well established collector who has been buying rare vintage baseball items for at least the 30 years I’ve known him instead of finding a mutually satisfactory solution. Hmmmmm, not a great way to grow their companies. I’m glad I don’t have stock in them.

I’ve been a business man since I was a business kid. Even as a youngster I knew that “the customer is always right” - even when they’re wrong - they’re still right!

Anyone who believes that the customer is always right is an idiot. Full stop.

[Aaron Seefeldt]

Originally Posted by Snowman

Anyone who believes that the customer is always right is an idiot. Full stop.

Than I for one am an idiot. Of course this is based on the opinion of a Snowman.

[Snowman]

Originally Posted by Aaron Seefeldt

Than I for one am an idiot. Of course this is based on the opinion of a Snowman.

Charlie sits down in your restaurant and orders a ribeye steak, cooked medium rare. Four minutes later, he starts barking at the waitress, asking what's taking so long. She apologizes and says she will check on it for him. On her way back to the kitchen, she stops at another table to grab their credit card and just as she's beginning to ask how everything was, she gets interrupted by Charlie. Charlie doesn't like his fork. He says it looks dull. He was expecting a shinier fork. The waitress apologizes to the other table and brings Charlie a new set of silverware. As she walks away, you overhear Charlie complaining to the other guests about how slow the service is and how the steakhouse across the street is so much better. Four minutes later, his steak is ready. You grab it from the kitchen and deliver it yourself. You note the steam rising from the plate and say, "careful, the plate is hot" as you set it down in front of him. One minute later, Charlie complains that his knife is dull. As the waitress hands him a new knife, he drops the old one on the floor. He then proceeds to make a sexually inappropriate comment to her as she bends over to pick it up. A few minutes later, Charlie again interrupts the waitress as she's taking an order at another table. He wants to speak to the manager. You walk over and he complains that his steak is cold (after eating 3/4 of it). You offer to reheat it for him, but he declines and starts berating you in front of the other customers. He says he's not paying for his food. You decide that Charlie is just having a bad day, so you comp his meal and apologize. You invite him to come back and to give you another try. "The customer is always right."

Two days later, Charlie returns. But Charlie is still Charlie, and he pulls the same routine with another waitress. This time, she's in tears. You have to take over her section for her while she goes outside for some fresh air and to calm her nerves. Fast forward to the check... Charlie again asks for a comp. His steak is again 3/4 eaten. Today, he just didn't like it. It wasn't cooked right. He asked for medium rare and he "didn't get it" (the steak is clearly pink).

You have 3 choices.

1) You apologize and again comp Charlie's meal. The customer is always right.

2) You tell Charlie that you're sorry, but you cannot comp his meal today and that he should have complained before the steak was nearly finished if he had a problem with it.

3) You tell Charlie the scumbag to go f* himself and that he is no longer welcome at your restaurant.

If you chose option #1, you're an idiot, and it's going to end up costing you your business. If you chose option #2, then you have come to the realization that in fact no, the customer is not always right. But you made a mistake by not 86ing Charlie from the premises. And, if like me, you would have chosen option #3, then it's a moot point because Charlie's ass would have been kicked out on the first visit, not the second one. And you will have earned the respect of your staff.

[GeoPoto]

All valid generalizations have exceptions, and, as in Aaron's case, no good deed goes unpunished.

[Eric72]

Originally Posted by Snowman

Charlie sits down in your restaurant and orders a ribeye steak, cooked medium rare. Four minutes later, he starts barking at the waitress, asking what's taking so long. She apologizes and says she will check on it for him. On her way back to the kitchen, she stops at another table to grab their credit card and just as she's beginning to ask how everything was, she gets interrupted by Charlie. Charlie doesn't like his fork. He says it looks dull. He was expecting a shinier fork. The waitress apologizes to the other table and brings Charlie a new set of silverware. As she walks away, you overhear Charlie complaining to the other guests about how slow the service is and how the steakhouse across the street is so much better. Four minutes later, his steak is ready. You grab it from the kitchen and deliver it yourself. You note the steam rising from the plate and say, "careful, the plate is hot" as you set it down in front of him. One minute later, Charlie complains that his knife is dull. As the waitress hands him a new knife, he drops the old one on the floor. He then proceeds to make a sexually inappropriate comment to her as she bends over to pick it up. A few minutes later, Charlie again interrupts the waitress as she's taking an order at another table. He wants to speak to the manager. You walk over and he complains that his steak is cold (after eating 3/4 of it). You offer to reheat it for him, but he declines and starts berating you in front of the other customers. He says he's not paying for his food. You decide that Charlie is just having a bad day, so you comp his meal and apologize. You invite him to come back and to give you another try. "The customer is always right."

Two days later, Charlie returns. But Charlie is still Charlie, and he pulls the same routine with another waitress. This time, she's in tears. You have to take over her section for her while she goes outside for some fresh air and to calm her nerves. Fast forward to the check... Charlie again asks for a comp. His steak is again 3/4 eaten. Today, he just didn't like it. It wasn't cooked right. He asked for medium rare and he "didn't get it" (the steak is clearly pink).

You have 3 choices.

1) You apologize and again comp Charlie's meal. The customer is always right.

2) You tell Charlie that you're sorry, but you cannot comp his meal today and that he should have complained before the steak was nearly finished if he had a problem with it.

3) You tell Charlie the scumbag to go f* himself and that he is no longer welcome at your restaurant.

If you chose option #1, you're an idiot, and it's going to end up costing you your business. If you chose option #2, then you have come to the realization that in fact no, the customer is not always right. But you made a mistake by not 86ing Charlie from the premises. And, if like me, you would have chosen option #3, then it's a moot point because Charlie's ass would have been kicked out on the first visit, not the second one. And you will have earned the respect of your staff.

Charlie,

You have an interesting way with people. I hope you find a steak house that suits your particular needs.

Have a wonderful day, Charlie. Happy collecting.

Very truly yours,

Eric

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by Aaron Seefeldt

So I take it the last couple of guys to post don’t believe “the customer is always right”?

The 2 companies mentioned by John (Yoda) would rather turn their backs on a well established collector who has been buying rare vintage baseball items for at least the 30 years I’ve known him instead of finding a mutually satisfactory solution. Hmmmmm, not a great way to grow their companies. I’m glad I don’t have stock in them.

I’ve been a business man since I was a business kid. Even as a youngster I knew that “the customer is always right” - even when they’re wrong - they’re still right!

Unfortunately much of the world -- be it businesses or professionals -- doesn't seem to work this way any more. Customer service is frequently poor to non-existent, and even doctors frequently don't respond to calls or messages.

[Gorditadogg]

Originally Posted by Aaron Seefeldt

So I take it the last couple of guys to post don’t believe “the customer is always right”?



The 2 companies mentioned by John (Yoda) would rather turn their backs on a well established collector who has been buying rare vintage baseball items for at least the 30 years I’ve known him instead of finding a mutually satisfactory solution. Hmmmmm, not a great way to grow their companies. I’m glad I don’t have stock in them.



I’ve been a business man since I was a business kid. Even as a youngster I knew that “the customer is always right” - even when they’re wrong - they’re still right!

Aaron good for you. It's a true friend who will stick up for somebody, right or wrong. I commend you for it.

Sent from my SM-S906U using Tapatalk

[babraham]

Originally Posted by Aaron Seefeldt

So I take it the last couple of guys to post don’t believe “the customer is always right”?

The full quote is actually "the customer is always right, in matters of taste."

And...heck no. It's gotten so much worse since Covid too. Customers are more rude, eager to yell, and even threaten violence. The vast majority are still good...but the "bad customers" are much much worse than even just five years ago. I invite anyone that believes "the customer is always right" to work a week at my retail store and see how quickly their mind changes.

[Aaron Seefeldt]

From Wikipedia:

“The customer is always right" is a motto or slogan which exhorts service staff to give a high priority to customer satisfaction. It was popularised by pioneering and successful retailers such as Harry Gordon Selfridge, John Wanamaker and Marshall Field. They advocated that customer complaints should be treated seriously so that customers do not feel cheated or deceived. This attitude was novel and influential when misrepresentation was rife and caveat emptor ('let the buyer beware') was a common legal maxim.[1] Variations include le client n'a jamais tort ('the customer is never wrong'), which was the slogan of hotelier César Ritz,[2] who said, "If a diner complains about a dish or the wine, immediately remove it and replace it, no questions asked."[3] A variation frequently used in Germany is der Kunde ist König ('the customer is king'), while in Japan the motto okyakusama wa kamisama desu (お客様は神様です), meaning 'the customer is a god', is common.

[BillyCoxDodgers3B]

Neither the businessman or the customer are always right. It's a ridiculous slogan that holds no place if you wish to be logical.

The businessman should strive to work with the customer towards the most satisfactory outcome for both parties. Sometimes this is just impossible, and one has to weigh if it makes any sense to spend more time on a situation/customer/business. Strange/difficult personalities will occasionaly rear their heads. I don't blame any businessperson for throwing in the towel and moving on to the next task when faced with that. Personally, I've never needed a sale so badly that I'll tolerate dealing with an obstinate customer. No, thanks.

[Kco]

Originally Posted by babraham

The full quote is actually "the customer is always right, in matters of taste."

And...heck no. It's gotten so much worse since Covid too. Customers are more rude, eager to yell, and even threaten violence. The vast majority are still good...but the "bad customers" are much much worse than even just five years ago. I invite anyone that believes "the customer is always right" to work a week at my retail store and see how quickly their mind changes.

This, customers are in fact quite often rude, abusive, threatening and generally think they can just get whatever they want with zero courtesy in a LOT of interactions.

[bnorth]

Originally Posted by Kco

This, customers are in fact quite often rude, abusive, threatening and generally think they can just get whatever they want with zero courtesy in a LOT of interactions.

Always curious how other businesses handle horrible customers. Would love to hear from other business owners.

I owned a construction company. In construction if you are a horrible customer your name will be added to a list that we share with other construction companies. Once on that list you will pay a LOT more than anyone else for the exact same work. It is a tax we add for being "hard" to deal with.

[Kco]

Originally Posted by bnorth

Always curious how other businesses handle horrible customers. Would love to hear from other business owners.

I owned a construction company. In construction if you are a horrible customer your name will be added to a list that we share with other construction companies. Once on that list you will pay a LOT more than anyone else for the exact same work. It is a tax we add for being "hard" to deal with.

It truly depends on each individual situation, when our business is the one that made the mistake, its immediate replacement (if available) or full refund at customers choice along with a credit toward a future transaction. If the situation is not solvable by standard means, we work with the customer to get to a satisfactory resolution to the best of our ability.

If we cannot get to a satisfactory resolution where the customer is unreasonable, threatening or abusive, we "break up" with that customer, deactivate their account and ban future accounts linked to them. While not often and not our goal, the reality is you will never make everyone happy and that's just a part of business.

[Kco]

Originally Posted by Aaron Seefeldt

So I take it the last couple of guys to post don’t believe “the customer is always right”?

The 2 companies mentioned by John (Yoda) would rather turn their backs on a well established collector who has been buying rare vintage baseball items for at least the 30 years I’ve known him instead of finding a mutually satisfactory solution. Hmmmmm, not a great way to grow their companies. I’m glad I don’t have stock in them.

I’ve been a business man since I was a business kid. Even as a youngster I knew that “the customer is always right” - even when they’re wrong - they’re still right!

As a business owner and someone who also works in e-commerce and has direct lines into customer service, the customer is more often wrong than right. Spending money somewhere doesn't entitle the customer to carte blanche toward a business or individual. OP even admitted he made several mistakes with who/what/where and was flipping out about a refund but didn't even check his account. Sorry but no, customers aren't alway's right and quite frankly are often wrong or misinformed. It's a lose lose for a business to fight back.