The Lost Art of Customer Service

As much as dismissive/rude/never available store clerks get under my skin, I must admit that the smothering "can I help you??" employees are just as bad. This weekend, I had the great pleasure of embarking on a little Sears adventure. Having been there numerous times, primarily out of laziness (hey - it's close), I should know what I'm getting into. And yet, I am never quite prepared. This time around, my task was simple: I was going to look at an Electolux sweeper I had seen on the Sears website. I knew it was risky, heading down to the Sears appliance section. Almost every time I've been there, the number of salespeople on the floor has at least met, if not exceeded, the number of customers. This day was no exception. As soon as I laid eyes on said sweeper, the saleswoman was in my face. She wasn't asking me if I needed help exactly (her English wasn't pristine); she was just kind of hanging there, making me as uncomfortable as humanly possible. When I picked up a box, she said she could show me the floor model. I reluctantly allowed this, and she did manage to convince me that that particular sweeper did not meet my needs. After I managed to shake her, I hastily grabbed a Dirt Devil and got the heck out of that department. How can these people not read body language? I CLEARLY wanted to be left alone. While still clutching my Dirt Devil, I was drawn to some cheap furniture in the home section. I decided to take a closer look, but it would be tricky. A gentleman in a pin striped suit was wandering around the area, looking for his next victim. I felt like it was my own personal Pac-Man adventure. I would try to find a path to the end table I had noticed, but I would have to keep weaving through the shelves and aisles to avoid Pin Stripe and his friends. Not my idea of relaxing shopping. I, of course, left with only the Dirt Devil in tow.

What is possibly worse is when I find myself the only customer in a boutique store. Unlike Sears, I don't necessarily attribute my discomfort to the pushiness of the store clerk. But there is something about being the only one in a store that stresses me out, particularly when the nice store clerk has greeted me at the door. I feel the pressure of being watched. The whole time I'm in there, I'm planning my exit strategy. I just have to wait for clerk to turn her back for one second, and I make a break for it. Awkward. I think these small stores should have an "undercover" employee, someone not at the counter, not dressed in uniform (if there is one), who just browses while the customers shop. Just that one other "customer" could remove so much pressure. I could shop in relative peace, leaving me time to consider the inventory, and what do you know? I might actually buy something. Just an idea.