- Jun 5, 2000
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Article Published: Friday, February 18, 2005
al lewis
Companies on the rude to ruin
By Al Lewis
Denver Post Business Columnist
Businesses lose customers every year for one simple reason - their employees are rude.
"A lot of customers never complain," says Nancy Friedman, a consultant to Fortune 500 companies. "They just never go back."
Friedman is president of The Telephone Doctor, a customer-service training company near St. Louis. Her clients include Qwest and United Airlines. She is collecting tales of workplace rudeness, offering $1,000 for the rudest experience and $100 to nine runners-up. Here are some tales she has received:
A customer at a dry cleaner noticed that her husband's shirts were not pressed and asked that they be redone. "OK, lady," the owner replied. "Whatever you think you have to do. I cannot be responsible if my outside person gets mad and takes it out on your clothes."
A Colorado man approached a cashier in a department store and asked for change. "The junior associate graciously opened up her cash drawer. ... Then suddenly the senior associate (a.k.a. Old Hag) came over, shut the drawer and said, 'We don't give change in this department. Go to customer service on the second floor.' My response to the senior associate was, 'Don't you (provide) customer service on the first floor?' She said, 'No, it's upstairs."'
A Bermuda woman returned a piece of jewelry after realizing it was a tad large. The saleswoman snidely answered back: "Well, you are a large woman, you can wear large jewelry."
A Missouri woman called to schedule a breast exam. "A young lady answered the phone with 'Whaddya want?' I said, 'I need an appointment for a breast exam.' She said, 'A what?' I repeated myself three times, and then she asked me to spell 'breast."'
A 155-pound California woman was waiting to get her daughter examined. "A doctor walked by and yelled at me, 'Oh, my God, you gained weight. You look disgusting. You should be ashamed of yourself.' People came out of their exam rooms to look at me! The worst thing was, I had never seen the doctor before."
Sometimes it's the customers who are rude. An airline passenger once told a Denver-based flight attendant he'd have her fired because she had an ugly face. "I was so stunned, I grabbed my face and simply said, 'I do?' He said, 'You should work in a room with no windows, so no one would ever have to look at you.' The man was an executive of a renowned company. The attendant later learned he was fired for abusing women.
Sometimes it's the boss. A Pennsylvania woman made a carrot cake for her boss. "He took a piece, which I later found in the trash can. Bad enough. A little later in the day, he said to me, 'Ask me what my least favorite cake is?' You guessed it, carrot cake."
The most common story Friedman has collected has to do with people using two devices at the same time: the telephone and the toilet. A Pennsylvania office assistant described a call she placed to order office supplies. "I heard him unzip his pants," she said of the sales rep. "I could hear the stream of water so clearly. I just about lost it."
Sales reps are often a target themselves. An Ohio office supply rep made a cold call and reached a receptionist who said to call back in a week and ask to speak to "Marie." The following week, the sales rep reached the same receptionist only to be told there is no Marie. When he asked for an explanation, "She says: 'Oh, you must be a salesperson. Marie is a bogus name we give out when people like you call."'
A New Hampshire human-resources manager calling a job candidate was greeted by someone screaming, "What do you want?"
"I quietly asked for the person who had submitted the résumé. The tone of my greeter instantly changed and she said, 'Oh, that's me. I apologize. I thought you were a bill collector, and I've had it with their phone calls.' I told her that she didn't appear to have the qualifications we were looking for."
Friedman's "That's Just Rude!" contest runs through Feb. 28. Details are available at www.telephonetraining.com
"Rudeness is rampant in America," said Friedman. "Rude remarks hurt; they go deep and are remembered for years."
al lewis
Companies on the rude to ruin
By Al Lewis
Denver Post Business Columnist
Businesses lose customers every year for one simple reason - their employees are rude.
"A lot of customers never complain," says Nancy Friedman, a consultant to Fortune 500 companies. "They just never go back."
Friedman is president of The Telephone Doctor, a customer-service training company near St. Louis. Her clients include Qwest and United Airlines. She is collecting tales of workplace rudeness, offering $1,000 for the rudest experience and $100 to nine runners-up. Here are some tales she has received:
A customer at a dry cleaner noticed that her husband's shirts were not pressed and asked that they be redone. "OK, lady," the owner replied. "Whatever you think you have to do. I cannot be responsible if my outside person gets mad and takes it out on your clothes."
A Colorado man approached a cashier in a department store and asked for change. "The junior associate graciously opened up her cash drawer. ... Then suddenly the senior associate (a.k.a. Old Hag) came over, shut the drawer and said, 'We don't give change in this department. Go to customer service on the second floor.' My response to the senior associate was, 'Don't you (provide) customer service on the first floor?' She said, 'No, it's upstairs."'
A Bermuda woman returned a piece of jewelry after realizing it was a tad large. The saleswoman snidely answered back: "Well, you are a large woman, you can wear large jewelry."
A Missouri woman called to schedule a breast exam. "A young lady answered the phone with 'Whaddya want?' I said, 'I need an appointment for a breast exam.' She said, 'A what?' I repeated myself three times, and then she asked me to spell 'breast."'
A 155-pound California woman was waiting to get her daughter examined. "A doctor walked by and yelled at me, 'Oh, my God, you gained weight. You look disgusting. You should be ashamed of yourself.' People came out of their exam rooms to look at me! The worst thing was, I had never seen the doctor before."
Sometimes it's the customers who are rude. An airline passenger once told a Denver-based flight attendant he'd have her fired because she had an ugly face. "I was so stunned, I grabbed my face and simply said, 'I do?' He said, 'You should work in a room with no windows, so no one would ever have to look at you.' The man was an executive of a renowned company. The attendant later learned he was fired for abusing women.
Sometimes it's the boss. A Pennsylvania woman made a carrot cake for her boss. "He took a piece, which I later found in the trash can. Bad enough. A little later in the day, he said to me, 'Ask me what my least favorite cake is?' You guessed it, carrot cake."
The most common story Friedman has collected has to do with people using two devices at the same time: the telephone and the toilet. A Pennsylvania office assistant described a call she placed to order office supplies. "I heard him unzip his pants," she said of the sales rep. "I could hear the stream of water so clearly. I just about lost it."
Sales reps are often a target themselves. An Ohio office supply rep made a cold call and reached a receptionist who said to call back in a week and ask to speak to "Marie." The following week, the sales rep reached the same receptionist only to be told there is no Marie. When he asked for an explanation, "She says: 'Oh, you must be a salesperson. Marie is a bogus name we give out when people like you call."'
A New Hampshire human-resources manager calling a job candidate was greeted by someone screaming, "What do you want?"
"I quietly asked for the person who had submitted the résumé. The tone of my greeter instantly changed and she said, 'Oh, that's me. I apologize. I thought you were a bill collector, and I've had it with their phone calls.' I told her that she didn't appear to have the qualifications we were looking for."
Friedman's "That's Just Rude!" contest runs through Feb. 28. Details are available at www.telephonetraining.com
"Rudeness is rampant in America," said Friedman. "Rude remarks hurt; they go deep and are remembered for years."
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