After working in a bookshop for nearly 5 years, it still amazes me that people come into the shop to buy a book but they don't actually read. Before you get all confused, let me clarify. The people that come into the bookshop buy a book to read and most likely go home and read it. What I am referring to is everything else printed around them. It infuriates me that people are just not aware and are to damn lazy to take note. Let me illustrate with an example or two.
1. I cannot tell you how many times I have dealt with a customer who does not know what shop he/she is in because they didn’t read the sign at the door! Now there are not a lot of bookshop chains in South Africa. In fact, there are only 3, one of which sells more stationary than books. The chain that I work for is the biggest and all the freaking shops look the same! You really don’t have to be paying much attention to know where you are.
2. Head Office is currently revamping our store so we have moved to a temporary shop down the hall. The old shop is boarded up and there are AT LEAST ten big signs (I am not exaggerating) spread out at the old shop, new shop and in between explaining why we are closed,
the location of the temporary shop (with a big damn arrow pointing you in the right direction) and the date of the reopening. It is obviously not enough. People come in all the time complaining that we should put up signs so that they know where to find us. Even when I am standing right next to one of these posters explaining EVERYTHING, I am always asked: “So, what are you guys doing?” and “When are you opening the new shop?” and “Is this a temporary shop?” and “Why haven’t you put up a few signs?” We are also not selling newspapers in the temporary shop because it is a real pain in the ass. So we put up a sign right at the counter that says “Sorry, no newspapers.” Enquiring minds are so entertaining, especially when the 37th customer of the day comes up to me and asks if we have newspapers. And I have to be nice to these people?@%#$^?!3. People are far too lazy. Many come to buy a book but are not willing to read the short and informative 4-line blurb to see what the book is about. It is a lot easier for them to hound the poor bookseller at the counter who has obviously read all 40 000 titles in stock and can recall what each one was about at the drop of a hat. I am amazed that people actually get upset with me when I tell them that I have not read the latest Jodi Picoult or Jackie Collins.
Book clubs are the worst! They come in to buy or apro up to 10 books and are far too lazy to choose books for themselves. The bookseller then has to guess what kind of books the club will enjoy because all the book clubs say the same thing: “We read everything.” When you then recommend a Coupland or Palahniuk they wrinkle their noses and say “That’s not for us.” So, I have realized that when they say they read everything, it usually means that they only read main stream light and fluffy chick books.Please don’t get me wrong. I am all for great service and I am good at my job. I am more than willing to help you within reason and if I do, you will leave the store feeling satisfied that you bought the right book and maybe feel a bit more informed about the books that are out there. I also know that not all customers are bad and many have had aweful service and experiences. I just wish that they would realize that people who work at night and on the weekend are most likely students working part-time. We are therefore busy people. We don’t have time to read everything and surprisingly don’t like every book and every genre. We also don't appreciate it when we are faced with rudeness and antagonism when the recommendations are not easily forthcoming. So maybe you (the customer) could use that amazing brain of yours, put a lid on that temper, leave us alone and choose your own damn book.
10 comments:
Amen to this Wendy!
You would think that people who purchase books on a regular basis have some level of basic intelligence, but working at the bookstore has taught me that that is not the case for most of them.
Customers are lazy. The whole point of going to a bookstore is to browse and make up your own mind, not have someone hold your hand and give you a brief summary of the entire store.
Alas, we put up with it, but we are pretty damn good at what we do! If only there was a screening device that prevented dumb customers from entering bookstores...
Jeez! I feel like I'm the only person in the blogosphere who DOESNT work at a bookstore. But I totally agree with what you said...
Its still amazing how they want you to "recommend" something, since no two people could possibly like the same books...
And most of those chick-lit books are just paint by numbers : moan about male habits, and their fear to commit. *sigh*
I was standing behind the counter and this woman came up and asked "Do you work here?".
When asking, "Are you a Fanatics member?" do not reply "I'm a fanatic but I'm not a member".
Also, isn't it strange that customers think we keep the best stock in the back and only bring it out if requested?
Bwa-ha!
The most annoying thing that happened to me recently was a man who first brought me some business book, and then asked me to tell him the other books in the series or by that author. It was a series of short notes about a bunch of South African business people, and thus had no specific author, and was not part of a series. I told the man this. He then requested that I give him a list of all the books by the book's publisher. And who do you think this publisher might be? Why, Penguin! Yes, sir, of course I'll print you a list of all seven billion Penguin titles!
He then asked for a notebook, and I showed him a selection. He picked up one of those pretty Real Books journals with bling cats on the cover he said 'Do you think I could use this? Or is it a women's book?' Gosh, sir, it's covered in purple kitty cats and glitter! I don't know? Why don't you bring your goddamned motherfucking wife with next time to help you make decisions while you shop, because I sure as hell don't feel like it!
Karen,So much hostility cannot be healthy! :)
And the Fanatics jokes were never funny, so why people keep making them is still a huge mystery.
I have resigned myself to the fact that 99% of customers are really dumb!
What kills me is that people thing they're being original when they say these things.
And if a customer has an adversion to any music in the store, say The Doors or Talking Heads, they make it personal. I really don't understand it.
Yeah, the Talking Heads thing was an, erm... amusing incident. What slays me is the amount of people at our branch who hand me their books and then shout at me: "Hold on, hold on, let me just get out my Fantastics card!" It's a Fanatics card, folks, not a character out of Asterix!
Oh, and I just love when they try to imply that it's my fault that we don't have a new, just-released title in stock. "Yes sir, I've got a copy right here, let me just whip it out of my arse for you!" Hot off the presses, indeed.
Knowledge is power. They should never have taught the morons how to read.
.oh..it's like being a farmer when someone asks you how hens have sex.....
supersleuth! you work at Cavendish!
no stalking involved, sadly.
i've just seen the closed shop, and suffered the same confusion as all the other sheep you guys help everyday...
but as much as I like a big bookstore, and I do, a well-stocked small one is just as nice. like the one in my precinct, in Kloof Street.
but be nice! you can't expect people who read to actually read the signs, can you? Can you?
i had the same thing when i worked in a newsagent. We had loads of signs that said ''WE DO NOT ACCEPT CREDIT CARDS'' and the amount of time someone put a load of things on the counter, waited for me to scan them through and then handed me a card was phenomonal. And when i said ''we dont accept cards'' they acted all huffy as if it was my fault (hello, if you'd READ the signs, you'd know!) and then walked off, leaving everything on my counter to deal with. Idiots. Hate customers.
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