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Author Topic: The LAF Games Workshop Discussion Thread  (Read 1683109 times)

Offline Mason

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Re: The LAF Games Workshop Discussion Thread
« Reply #840 on: April 01, 2014, 05:51:38 PM »
I can't stand it when someone pushes me when I walk into a shop. If I need help I'll bloody well ask for it  :-[

Me too, mate, but my missus says I remind her of Victor Meldrew when I get tetchy about it.....be warned!*
 :D





*You too could become a grumpy, tetchy, miserable git like me, one day..... ::)

Offline Damas

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Re: The LAF Games Workshop Discussion Thread
« Reply #841 on: April 01, 2014, 09:05:20 PM »
You too could become a grumpy, tetchy, miserable git like me, one day....
:D
"Old gamers don't die, they just smell like that."

Offline beefcake

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Re: The LAF Games Workshop Discussion Thread
« Reply #842 on: April 01, 2014, 10:20:04 PM »
I for one am quite an introverted person when it comes to new people/striking up conversations with staff etc. I'm probably not the only one out there (I amuse myself by painting and playing with little metal men  lol ) The last thing I want in a hobby store is someone trying to sell me something I don't want. Yes be polite and ask me how my day is going, no don't tell me what I need, I know how much money I have, I know how what I want.


Offline Connectamabob

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Re: The LAF Games Workshop Discussion Thread
« Reply #843 on: April 02, 2014, 12:23:08 AM »
The thing I hate most is when you get one who thinks he's being friendly by calling you by your first name, when you've never told him your name. Like, he spots it on an order form or gets a peek when you take out your card to pay or something, and then just randomly chucks it into a sentence somewhere.

Protip: that's not "friendly"; it's jarring and creepy, and makes you seem like some kind of alien robot half-assedly trying to blend in with the humans.
« Last Edit: April 02, 2014, 12:27:45 AM by Connectamabob »
History viewed from the inside is always a dark, digestive mess, far different from the easily recognizable cow viewed from afar by historians.

Offline Grimmnar

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Re: The LAF Games Workshop Discussion Thread
« Reply #844 on: April 02, 2014, 04:13:06 AM »
I can't stand it when someone pushes me when I walk into a shop. If I need help I'll bloody well ask for it  :-[

James
Hear hear!

Well see you cant just say that. I mean i get it and agree, but i have been in retail for 15 years now and seen all the tricks and training. I do agree for me though if i need something i will ask. I do however do like a greeting when i walk in. But as i work retail i take too many complaints weekly from customers that say no one bothers to greet or ask if they needed help or whatnot. In this manner you cant win.
In GW's ways that have been expressed before the above quoted comments i have seen first hand. Where it was when i worked for the company at the HQ in the mid-late 90's which included interviews to work in the retail stores to when i walked in said retail stores after i stopped working for them.
But bad customer service training and interactions as we all know are not alone in GW's mantra. Hell my company has its issues and i wish they would get off their asses so they can remove their heads and get back to basics and that is selling to the customer what the customer wants or may want.
Might be why i am trying to leave retail.

Grimm

Offline Mr. Peabody

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Re: The LAF Games Workshop Discussion Thread
« Reply #845 on: April 02, 2014, 04:27:30 AM »
I do however do like a greeting when I walk in.
A greeting and knowledgeable, available staff. It's so simple really.

Cubs, you are spot on about the point of purchase being a bit late for the actual sales pitch. If I make it to a brick and mortar store, I know why I'm there. I may need or want some advice about options.
Television is rather a frightening business. But I get all the relaxation I want from my collection of model soldiers. P. Cushing
Peabody Here!

Offline Connectamabob

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Re: The LAF Games Workshop Discussion Thread
« Reply #846 on: April 02, 2014, 05:54:45 AM »
Well see you cant just say that. I mean i get it and agree, but i have been in retail for 15 years now and seen all the tricks and training. I do agree for me though if i need something i will ask. I do however do like a greeting when i walk in. But as i work retail i take too many complaints weekly from customers that say no one bothers to greet or ask if they needed help or whatnot. In this manner you cant win.

I don't think anyone objects to the "welcome to the shop, can I help you find anything?" type of interaction. It's aggressive and persistent used car salesman-like "upselling" behavior that annoys people.

Most of the time I try not to hold it against the worker. In the majority of cases they're being forced at pink-slip point to do that by the higher-ups, and it's every bit as awkward and humiliating for them as it is aggravating for you. Here in the US at least, many retail companies that do this have specific scripts and/or checklists of stuff a worker is required to say to each and every customer.

I've worked for two such companies, and although they were on the mild end of such behavior, it was still kind of mind bending what the... "people" who wrote those requirement thought passed for human interaction. It was like they were written by space aliens who's only knowledge of human speech came from watching TV commercials. Not a human who's only knowledge came from commercials: an alien. I cannot fathom the utter grey void of social skills and creativity that must have been the mind of the person who wrote that stuff. And then multiple other someones had to look at it and go "yup: seems legit" before it got passed down to the actual stores.

My time in retail taught me a lot of... interesting things about the sort of minds our retail and corporate culture self-selects for it's middle and upper management. I hope I never have to go back, because the whole thing is like a tapestry of "one more cigarette butt on the beach isn't hurting anyone" inethics and Wile E. Coyote clueless ambition.
« Last Edit: April 02, 2014, 05:57:54 AM by Connectamabob »

Offline Constable Bertrand

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Re: The LAF Games Workshop Discussion Thread
« Reply #847 on: April 02, 2014, 08:14:29 AM »
I for one am quite an introverted person when it comes to new people/striking up conversations with staff etc. I'm probably not the only one out there (I amuse myself by painting and playing with little metal men  lol )

lol
I refer to my hobby as "Little Men" to my missus, this website is called "The little men website"  lol

For a hobby so "nerdy", which caters to introverted individuals I am surprised at the over the top response of some black/red shirts. Don't they scare people away??? I know I feel a little like a Sand Person when ever I walk into a shop.* I know getting one pot of paint will turn into 3 paints and possibly primer, but a box of X miniatures is not on the cards, especially not the brand new super cool huge diorama mini that WD has featured, and I will not be getting the mag either. Im a little apprehensive as I walk in (and only partly because some one I know may see me walk in there ;) ). The other hobby shop 3 doors down has normal friendly people who don't want to upsell, but give the customer exactly what they want, and bend over to get in anything that is needed. That is what I want and need - oh and their prices are placed on this planet not Saturn. They even discount older products! :D :D

*"They are easily startled.." Ben Kenobi

Cheers
Matt

Offline carlos13th

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Re: The LAF Games Workshop Discussion Thread
« Reply #848 on: April 02, 2014, 08:22:40 AM »
The GW store in Romford is pretty good. Every time I have been(Only 2 or three times) in there the guy has greeted me and asked if I needed any help. If I say no he says if you need anything just ask and leaves me to it. If I say yes he will give me whatever advice or help I need and help me find whatever I need to. He also just seems like a decent guy to shoot the shit with too. Doesn't feel like he is pressuring me constantly to buy stuff. When people pressure me to buy stuff it makes me instantly reluctant to buy anything and I am far more likley to either get exactly what I came for and leave without buying anything or grab what I need elsewhere.

Offline Cubs

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Re: The LAF Games Workshop Discussion Thread
« Reply #849 on: April 02, 2014, 08:25:05 AM »
A greeting and knowledgeable, available staff. It's so simple really.

Cubs, you are spot on about the point of purchase being a bit late for the actual sales pitch. If I make it to a brick and mortar store, I know why I'm there. I may need or want some advice about options.

Yeah. I mean, the staff need to know helping the customer supersedes anything else they were doing and they need to be approachable. As said, a quick greeting and a smile doesn't hurt anyone. I always told my staff to keep a cleaning cloth in their pocket and to keep busy when there was nothing else to do. For some reason, customers are always more comfortable interrupting someone doing a menial task to ask questions than walking up to a statue at the till.

But if you've hired the right people and let them know what's expected, scripts and 'selling techniques' are out-dated and patronising. I always tried to underline the importance of honesty as well. Obviously you don't rubbish your own stock, but if a customer genuinely wants help, you lose in the long run by pushing an unsuitable product on them. Try to get a picture of what they're after and give a couple of likely options.
'Sir John ejaculated explosively, sitting up in his chair.' ... 'The Black Gang'.

Paul Cubbin Miniature Painter

Offline carlos13th

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Re: The LAF Games Workshop Discussion Thread
« Reply #850 on: April 02, 2014, 08:31:22 AM »
I agree with not wanting to hold it against the worker. I know people who used to and still do work at game and they are pushed very hard to upsell. I don't blame the staff for it they need their jobs but any time I get one of those "Let us know how your shopping experience was" type of messages from Game I will complain about this kind of company policy. I will visit a store less if they act this way which is a shame as I enjoy going into game stores and looking around to see if something catches my eye and often don't mind paying a few quid extra to get the game there and then instead of in a few days (less so with miniatures as even if I got in then and there it wouldn't get painted then and there) but if you create a shop environment where I can wander in and look around without being pressured I will continue to visit and buy from there, even if I don't buy anything this time. Create an environment where I am made uncomfortable if I do not purchase anything there and I will visit less and buy less, also in a place with that environment I will have no problem seeing something I like there and going home to order it online instead.

Offline Connectamabob

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Re: The LAF Games Workshop Discussion Thread
« Reply #851 on: April 02, 2014, 09:07:30 AM »
For some reason, customers are always more comfortable interrupting someone doing a menial task to ask questions than walking up to a statue at the till.

As one such customer myself, I can explain (for my part, at least). My logic is usually that unless I'm the only cat in the store, there's a fair chance that while he/she's helping me, another customer will come up to the counter ready to check out. At which point the customer is stuck waiting and wondering if the cashier will be with them in 30 seconds, or 15 minutes (or if the cashier's gone with me back out onto the floor, they're left wondering where the cashier's gone or if there even is a cashier at the moment). I've been that customer before, and while it's not a big deal, it can in it's more extreme cases be aggravating, so I don't want to do that to him/her.

On the worker's end, I figure if another customer comes up and the cashier's not there, he/she might get in trouble (depending on management's attitude and whether the other customer seeks them out), and if a customer comes up and the cashier's busy doing non-cashiering (and thus unpredictable in duration) things with me, the cashier is placed under tension between two different customers who he can't ignore. Again, I've been that cashier too, and it's only a big deal in extreme cases, but I'd still rather avoid causing any snarls.

I've had it happen where multiple people have come up at the same time, and immediately my help need becomes the proverbial old lady with 50 tins of cat food in the express isle. Thus I tend to treat the till as a dedicated job, and people working the floor (who are not already engaged with a customer) as flexible, since inanimate tasks like sweeping or stocking can be paused and resumed without causing a single-tier priority conflict.

Offline carlos13th

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Re: The LAF Games Workshop Discussion Thread
« Reply #852 on: April 02, 2014, 10:59:37 AM »
When I worked in retail if I was on the til and someone asked me for help I either had to answer them or point them in a direction of the item they needed or call someone over in order to take them to where they needed to go as I couldn't really leave the till for the most part, so its understandable that people would prefer to ask people on shop floor.

Offline Modhail

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Re: The LAF Games Workshop Discussion Thread
« Reply #853 on: April 02, 2014, 11:42:46 AM »
You guys do realise we are currently putting more thought and consideration into proper customer approach/interaction than GW does?  ;D

Now I've never worked in retail myself but I did do a stint at telephone customer service, and can tell you they seek out a similar breed of miscreant to write their mandatory scripts.
Those asinine stock phrases that were either so convoluted you can never speak them sounding anything near natural or seem to have been tailor-made to make you sound and feel like the biggest tool possible. I can only imagine how bad it must be to have to say such things right in front of someone, with (an attempt at) a straight face.
Ever since that job I've been a lot more understanding of such impositions on a shop workers natural behaviour or actual retail skills. Mostly I try to see it as the regrettable ritual of modern commerce and kindly follow along the automated call and response routine before initiating meaningful/productive conversation. (Surprisingly most shop staff give rather clear cues that the ritual is over and you can now start interacting with a human being, once you know to look for them.)
 
There are a few things I still simply cannot abide when I go into a store though. Don't ignore me, or worse, hound me for a sale. Don't circle around me giving me hawkeyes, I'm not a shoplifter and dislike the surveillance. Don't give me the chummy "best friend" routine, especially if I've barely set my first five steps into the shop. And for the love of God, actually listen to my response when I answer your questions!!!  >:(
I've only once have had all these peeves triggered within a single visit to a shop. Guess which company that was...?

Offline Dr. Zombie

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Re: The LAF Games Workshop Discussion Thread
« Reply #854 on: April 02, 2014, 01:23:58 PM »
The GW store in Romford is pretty good. Every time I have been(Only 2 or three times) in there the guy has greeted me and asked if I needed any help. If I say no he says if you need anything just ask and leaves me to it. If I say yes he will give me whatever advice or help I need and help me find whatever I need to. He also just seems like a decent guy to shoot the shit with too. Doesn't feel like he is pressuring me constantly to buy stuff. When people pressure me to buy stuff it makes me instantly reluctant to buy anything and I am far more likley to either get exactly what I came for and leave without buying anything or grab what I need elsewhere.

This is perhaps a good example of the fact that there are good salespeople and bad ones. The problem GW stores (and manny others) is that they hire bad salepeople who have no clue as to how to interact with other people. And could just as easily be working at Mcdonalds. They are basically just managing the cash register and regurgitating a script.

The good salespeople out there are those that you don't even realise are selling you stuff. I have a local clothes shop where I often end up buying waay more than I intended. Even if I go in with the distinct intention of only buying socks I end up walking out with a shirt a belt and some pants. Because the guy who works there is really really good at his job. He knows his stock, and most importantly he knows how to read people. He is friendly and casual and he does not apply any preasure in his sales. Or he does it so gently that you do not notice.
And I keep comming back to that shop. Because the guy is really friendly and nice and even though i know I end up buying more than intendend it makes the whole proces of clothes shopping almost enjoyable. Normally I loathe clotes shopping.

 

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