Let's go with people who are nice to solicitors. Okay, I'm in sales. I know solicitors can be really annoying, but we're just doing our jobs, people, and when you're mean to us, you actually are being mean to a real, live person. So, here's a quick guide of do's and don't's:
1. Don't tell us how bad or how hard our job is. That's not really something you can determine in a 2-minute interaction with us, now is it? I mean, yes, I do have to deal with rude people all day, but not nearly for the length of time that the woman behind the customer service desk who has to explain that they can't return your used blender, and especially not without a receipt. The point is, I make a pretty good living doing this job, I'm going to continue to do it for some time, and your (well-intended, I'm sure, usually) input about how bad you think it is really doesn't help me in any way.
2. Don't talk about how terrible my product is. You are welcome to your opinion that the newspaper I represent is too conservative, or that print media is obsolete, or that newspapers haven't been worth subscribing to since "they got rid of the kids delivering them," but do you really need to share your opinion with me? I can't call up the owner and say, "Hey, some guy at Shop and Save said [insert universal truth customers graciously give out, conservative/obsolete/a crime against small children with bicycles]. Can we do something about that?" In fact, I can't even really argue with you in a store. I have to just smile and hope you walk away quickly.
3. Don't accuse us of being scammers. If you are suspicious of a solicitor in a grocery store, don't talk to him or her. Ask the people who work at the store, if you're really worried. If it is a scam, telling the scammer so is probably not going to do any good. And if, like 90% of the time is probably true, it's a legitimate person trying to make a living, you're just going to be super offensive and make her or him feel really crummy.
4. This is another one that is usually well-intended. Don't waste our time. We get paid on commission, and believe it or not, if we work in a commission-only job, we probably go to work to get paid, not to chit-chat. So please don't listen to our sales pitch out of pity. Don't tell us, "That was a good job," or "You almost convinced me," or, "You're a good salesman." All of these things will only frustrate me, because they mean that despite my best efforts, I'm not getting paid for talking to you. Which is fine, if you actually had some interest to begin with, and my best efforts failed to sway you. But when you know from the beginning you have absolutely no intention of signing up or paying, and you still let me go through my whole pitch, only to tell me how well I've done, it is the world's most frustrating thing ever. You think you're helping and being nice, but actually, you're making things much worse. If you see me in a store, and you have no interest, just don't take the free paper. A simple "no, thanks" will do just fine.
5. Also, please don't ignore me. It is actually difficult to tell when people are ignoring me and when they just can't hear me. So, if you ignore me, I will continue to call out to you to take a free paper. If you don't want it, just give me a simple acknowledgement, like, "no thanks." Then, I will stop bothering you. I will know that you heard me and I will move on. At worst, I might crack a stupid joke like, "How 'bout from this hand," which is only meant to keep my spirits up and the day going.
Further, "No, thank you" is all the information I really need about why you're not taking the newspaper. I don't really need or want to know about how you had the same carrier for 70 years, and then some kid took over and it's been down hill since then. Or that you think my paper is a relic of the Nazi party. This all goes back to insulting my product. Unnecessary. Actually, telling me that you get it and how much you love it is also unnecessary. I will smile and be polite, but I will be looking at the people behind you who I haven't had the chance to offer a paper to, hoping I can get them to sign up. If the store is very slow, then, yeah, I don't mind a quick chat, but if I have prospective customers, I ought to be focusing on them. That being said, #5 is probably the least irritating of these items.
So, just be polite, don't take up a disproportionately large amount of our time, and be on your merry way.
That being said, there are people out there who are really nice. And, "you have a tough job," "you're a good salesman," and "that was a good pitch," all sound a lot better when you're actually signing up. So feel free to take up my time, chat, ask questions about the paper, etc. if you're signing up, or considering signing up. When someone tells me, "Boy, you're good at this," while they're signing up for the year of the paper, it makes me smile.
Some people, too, go above and beyond the call of nice-ness, bringing us hot chocolate when we're outside of a Wal-Mart on a cold day, for example. These people make my day. It's amazing how much a person's tiny act of kindness can change the course of my day. Really. So, just be nice to us. Telemarketers, too; I imagine the same rules apply to them. It makes us happy when you're nice, and when you're rude, it is like slow torture throughout the day. And, if you've ever signed up for something with someone who gets paid on commission, pat yourself on the back. You should feel as good as someone who leaves good tips at restaurants. We appreciate it, and I genuinely hope you got exactly what you ordered and the transaction was a pleasant one.
Thanks, nice people of the world! Everyone else, get it together! ^_^
No comments:
Post a Comment