closing customer service during the day

Date: Jun 15, 2018

closing customer service during the day

EUID_Unknown · Guru

So is a Store Manager that really doesn't care about the shoppers experience or all the customers. I can understand if there was a weather event and it closed early or opened a little later then normal. Customer Service should never be "closed" during the day.

Going 4011 · Guru

We've had to do this very rarely (like, once every two years-ish), when we have enough call-outs where only one person is trained to run the desk, and they still need breaks/lunches.

Date: Jun 16, 2018

you do know most if not all cashiers don't know how to work the service desk? and most of its cigs and lotto. **** those customers

mega-kitteh · Guru

If the booth is closed...the booth is closed. Nothing can be done. Yea, they should have management work the booth or a backup booth person, but if there isn't, nothing can be done. Letting customers know the booth is closed is better than letting them just stand there. Was there a note saying the booth is closed? Were they making announcements over the voycall saying the booth is closed?

EUID_Unknown · Guru

Haha, the Service Desk is just like any other department. Would you close the deli or meat department to pull the associates to another department?

kroagrr · Guru

Haha, the Service Desk is just like any other department. Would you close the deli or meat department to pull the associates to another department?

Except . . . Meat is mostly self-service; customer service is not. A shopper can pick up a pack of Nolan Ryan beef on her own; reaching into the cash drawer to issue herself a refund, not so much.

Staff it--don't close it--though, same as the other departments.

Date: Jun 17, 2018

Maybe there was some reason other than not having enough help as to why the service desk was closed. The store could have just been robbed. There could have been a computer malfunction making it impossible to process certain transactions. If that's not the case though, someone from management should have stepped in.

EUID_Unknown · Guru

Closing the Service Desk during the day is basically telling customers "We don't care about you". The first think out of most associates mouths, "Sorry, I can't help you, go to the Service Desk" the Service Desk is at times seen a "Mgmt".

Date: Jun 17, 2018

the people bitching about it are the people that have never worked customer service or supervision lol

Date: Jun 17, 2018

Customer Service is perpetually short staffed in our store-sometimes we have had to close it if someone is on a break or in rare instances goes home early due to illness

4hourrush · Guru

When i worked in a small store, they had to close the service desk pretty often at night, this was because if there was only one csm/acsm on duty, they'd end up running register. Luckily they could see if someone was in line from the register, but the sign said that it was closed due to them being on register. This was at one of the smallest stores in my district though.

Date: Jun 17, 2018

At my store, we had a bunch of call outs one day and no one was trained to let the customer service guy out for his breaks and lunch, so management told him to make a sign saying closed and just go on his breaks. It was closed for about an hour, but you do what you have to at that point. It sucks but oh well. Not that many people are trained on customer service. Get over it.

Date: Jun 18, 2018

Our stores are ran by skeleton crews. One person calling out is a emergency and seriously strains a department. Two people calling out is an absolute crisis.

Almost no cashiers have desk training. There was probably two callouts, leaving no one to run the desk. Management can do it, but they were probably on registers because of the skeleton crew thing.

kroagrr · Guru

Re: Krogrr "Crisis"

Date: Jun 19, 2018

RE: closing customer service during the day

Date: Jun 19, 2018

EUID_Unknown wrote:
Closing the Service Desk during the day is basically telling customers "We don't care about you".

yep. OP here. There were 2 people on checklanes who worked in the office. Why they couldn't call management or "customer first!" is beyond me. I asked why they didn't call CF and they said "because no one ever comes." Well I was pissed and saw at least 2 customers be told "we'll be open again in an hour...maybe" That is not good customer service and is definitely a good way to lose business. Next time I see the desk closed (they have a reusable sign so obviously it happens more than we know about) I'm going to load a cart full of groceries and when I need help and there's no one there, I'll leave my goods and walk out. You may not care if you lose a customer, but when you let a $200 order walk, that's not a good thing.

Date: Jun 19, 2018

Anonymous wrote:
EUID_Unknown wrote:
Closing the Service Desk during the day is basically telling customers "We don't care about you".
yep. OP here. There were 2 people on checklanes who worked in the office. Why they couldn't call management or "customer first!" is beyond me. I asked why they didn't call CF and they said "because no one ever comes." Well I was pissed and saw at least 2 customers be told "we'll be open again in an hour...maybe" That is not good customer service and is definitely a good way to lose business. Next time I see the desk closed (they have a reusable sign so obviously it happens more than we know about) I'm going to load a cart full of groceries and when I need help and there's no one there, I'll leave my goods and walk out. You may not care if you lose a customer, but when you let a $200 order walk, that's not a good thing.

you do know we dont care right? i dont give a **** if someone leaves 200$ order, if they do that I don't want them as a customer anyways. It's not a life or death situation. Just go to another store for your lotto and cigs.

Date: Jun 20, 2018

They have a reusable sign since the service desk closes in the evening.

Management gets threatening emails unless we have enough lanes open. That's what Quevision is all about. Almost no cashiers have desk training. At my store, only four departmental employees have cashier training. It's more important for registers to be open than for the desk to be open.

Losing difficult customers is only a good thing for retail wage slaves. We love it.

Ditching a cart only inconveniences baggers, since they are the only ones who have to deal with it. A good store clears $1m+ a week, so $200 is nothing.

mega-kitteh · Guru

We have some baggers to take it upon themselves to "share the wealth" and leave part of the go-backs for others.to do. To counter this management has a different courtesy clerk scheduled on nothing but go-backs for 1-2 hours throughout the entire business day. We are open from 4am to 12am so they get done for the most part.

Date: Jul 2, 2018

LOL Go find another store.

Date: Jul 2, 2018

Anonymous wrote:
does your store ever do this? I went in to the store today and there was a sign up that said it was closed. I was pissed and the person who seemed to be in charge told me it'd be at least an hour before it reopened. It was a little busy, but close a lane and go take care of people at the counter. They actually sent customers who needed help at the service desk away, this is not a good business practice in my opinion. Why don't they just call customer first and have another employee come check like they do so often?

You assume they have someone to call. They know better. Reality is, more money is made at the check lanes than customer service even a desk that is crazy busy. Kroger runs with a skeleton crew, offers no "training hours" to let us develop associates and not everyone can handle the desk. For Lotto you have options like a lotto machine. Easy. Some cashiers might be able to do a quick refund.

We don't close our desk. It's too busy. It's so busy we get angry complaints when all its registers are open and someone just goes to the restroom. I have no tolerance for this kind of complaining. We're not machines. We are legally entitled to take breaks although I am compelled to give mine up at least six days a week because of customers being jackasses.

mega-kitteh · Guru

Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:
does your store ever do this? I went in to the store today and there was a sign up that said it was closed. I was pissed and the person who seemed to be in charge told me it'd be at least an hour before it reopened. It was a little busy, but close a lane and go take care of people at the counter. They actually sent customers who needed help at the service desk away, this is not a good business practice in my opinion. Why don't they just call customer first and have another employee come check like they do so often?
You assume they have someone to call. They know better. Reality is, more money is made at the check lanes than customer service even a desk that is crazy busy. Kroger runs with a skeleton crew, offers no "training hours" to let us develop associates and not everyone can handle the desk. For Lotto you have options like a lotto machine. Easy. Some cashiers might be able to do a quick refund.
We don't close our desk. It's too busy. It's so busy we get angry complaints when all its registers are open and someone just goes to the restroom. I have no tolerance for this kind of complaining. We're not machines. We are legally entitled to take breaks although I am compelled to give mine up at least six days a week because of customers being jackasses.

Let them be jackasses. They can deal with it. They have NO choice. NONE. Me? I go on my break EVEN IF a customer starts complaining. Idgaff what they say. Breaks are entitled after 2 hours of work. I WILL take those... EVEN IF I have to sneak away, I WILL get my breaks