Monday, April 03, 2006

I'm Loving It... At The Record Store

One week at the record store already, although i dun work everyday, its damn fun. found out that my poly coursemate also works there, but at a different dept.

i and another few colleagues came up with a reason and agreeded on how come singapore's customer service is considered "bad" n why singapore is not really a shopping paradise... just look at the locals... at our store, we serve 3 distinctive different types of pple.

the 1st type: friendly, acknowledges your thank yous, thank you back. says welcome when you say thank you. not demanding.

the 2nd type: very polite. know what they want. actually know their stuff n sometimes know more then you... they even make sure they have the correct album names n titles b4 approaching you. if not they will say, "i'm not so sure if it's spelt like that".

the 3rd type: ask stupid questions like "wht is a mv vcd". they think you r a walking encylopedia when they ask you "abc song sing by who", they even have an instrumental version on their hp n play it to you. thy also have a list of songs n ask you to give them the cds with the songs in it. as if as the cds have no track listings, they ask you blindly, wht is the difference between 2 cds. as if they are rushing for time, thy walk into the store, dun walk ard, ask you whr is that n this cd, then after when u get it for them, they start walking ard as if they are not in the rush anymore. in short blardi lazy to even research or ask their friends abt it b4 approaching the store.
whn they ask you where are the dvds n u ask them wht type, thy reply u "movies" n then we have to ask again, wht type, english or chinese, b4 we can finish asking they say "movies movies", so we have to ask again, enlish or chinese b4 we can finally direct them.
my floor has the asian pop, dance room n classical room. when someone looks for jazz or country music, they are directed to us at the 3rd floor. the moment thy see us, they ask whr to find jazz or country. when we tell them classical room, they EXCLAIM "jazz/ country leh". so we say yep, in the classical room, they EXCLAIM AGAIN "sure?!". kaoz, as if as we will tell lies direct them wrongly n let them file a complain. not only that, when we direct them correctly, instead or saying thanks, they sigh n shake their heads...
they come to the counter with the cd n dun bother to tell you if they paying or testing. whn u ask them, they give you a very pek chek n fustrated voice n sometimes shake their heads with their answers.
japanese pressed cds for japanese artistes, ditto for korean, are usually collectors' edition n items for fans overseas cos its harder to get n its more expensive due to the import pricing. n when these fans buy the cds, they actually already know the music n songs inside the cd n dun need to test the cd to hear wht tracks are inside cos they know their stuff. but they are still some posers who wana try these cds although there is a locally pressed, taiwan pressed or hong kong pressed edition on the shelves.
last but not least, when u collect payment from them, its like as if as we are begging money from them. you should look at the arrogant, want-to-throw-money-into-your-face look. they dun say thank you, nor do they nod or smile when you say thank you after payment. instead, they give you a face as if as they have been robbed of 20 dollars for that cd.

so who r they? the 1st type, the ang mohs, japs n expats. the 2nd, tourists. the 3rd, if u have not guessed it by now, are the locals...
not that i wana slam my fellow countrymates, but i'm actually glad most of the pple ard me dun behave like that. mostly the locals are trying to be difficult customers n are demanding for "customer service" bullshit. service staff are not your slaves or maids, they are humans n need to be treated with respect too! if your speak nicely to us, we will definately speak nicely if not, even in a nicer tone back to you. but however, sadly, most speak to us as if as we owe them money. sometimes u might meet a staff with a "bad customer service" but think, it might be a fellow countrymate who had already made her pek chek beforehand, n he/she is still trying to calm down his/her nerves.

customer service? pui...
gracious society? i give up...

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