DCAAA

Annalisa12

same.

I say to my staff the customer is not always right.i stick up for staff when required

DCAAA

mikesyr18

NY State bans smoking inside public buildings, but many casino's are built on sovereign land here; thus, are immune to many state laws.

jeffandnicole

That's the great thing about the Internet. No matter what the issue is, you can use Google to find some obscure website to have a contradicting viewpoint.

beachmouse

dulciusexasperis

That's amusing DCAAA. So the scientists have proven that someone with more intelligence will have a larger vocabulary not only of non-swear words but also of swear words. Simple logic could have told them that without having to do any tests at all. But we often hear about studies that confirm what we already knew or could have figured out using simple logic.

But let's move on to the part you are trying to hang your hat on, that those who swear are more intelligent than those who don't. Well the writer of the article might want to try and make that connection but in fact, that connection isn't there. The study showed that intelligent people know more swear words than less intelligent people. "found links between how fluent a person is in the English language and how fluent they are in swearing." It says nothing about whether someone who uses swear words is more intelligent than someone who does not use swear words. You might wish that link was there but it is not.

Let's move on again. People who swear habitually can be perceived by some people to be of lower intelligence, education, etc. as I said. The operative word is 'perceived' obviously. Now if you are of even reasonable intelligence, then you should know that other people will interact with an individual based on their 'perception' of that person. It does not matter whether the person is highly intelligent or an outright moron, people will interact based on their perception, not the reality.

So again, if some people interact with someone who swears habitually, in a negative way, how intelligent etc. someone really is, doesn't matter. The end result remains the same. Someone who habitually swears will find themselves having more negative interactions than someone who does not. Nor do you need a study to figure that out. As I wrote before, swearing offends some people, not swearing offends no one. It doesn't take a genius to figure out which one then will get you the most productive interactions.

As a young salesperson, I learned very quickly what was meant by the phrase, 'perception is everything'. The reality doesn't matter, only the perception. That is why a wise salesperson never wears a green or brown suit, some people just don't like those colours and that dislike is transferred to the person wearing those colours. The wise salesperson wears navy blue or grey suits because they are perceived as neutral colours and non-offensive to almost everyone. A wise salesperson does not have a mustache or beard for the same reason. They offend some people. To increase the chances of the most productive interactions with other people, what you want is to either find a way to gain a positive perception in their view or at least a neutral perception. Anything you can do to eliminate or reduce the chances of a negative perception are what you want to do.

The same is true for everyone, not just salespeople. In this case, you got on the phone with a purpose, to get another flight booked. What happened was you did not achieve that goal. Why you did not achieve that goal was totally down to your swearing. Those are the facts and cannot be disputed. So again, my advice to you is to see this as a learning experience. Swearing will get you more negative responses than not swearing. Change your behaviour accordingly.

dulciusexasperis

Whenever I have to communicate with any Customer Service person, I always start with the same sentence. If they have given their name when answering the call, I use their name, otherwise I say the same sentence without a name at the beginning. Using a person's name simply makes anything you say even stronger.

The sentence is, 'DCAAA(or whatever name), I have a problem, I need your help'.

That simple (or so it looks) sentence is very powerful in how it affects the perception of the person you are speaking to. It personalized what is to come, it asks them personally for help, something most people respond to positively. Most people if asked for help, will want to help you. I cannot emphasis too much how powerful those 8 simple words are. 'I have a problem, I need your help.' They can turn the most jaded and tired Customer Service person from 'yet another call to get through' into 'I like this person, I want to help' in an instant.

It also sets up your frame of mind. It takes away your anger and what you will say following that sentence will be different than if for example you had started by saying, 'Hi, my flight has been cancelled and I need to get to X today.' That second sentence will fuel your annoyance/anger and lead you down a path that unless the other person is very good at turning it around, will likely not be a very productive path. Can you see the difference? That second sentence is demanding, it doesn't acknowledge the person you are speaking to at all or appeal to them personally. It does nothing to start you both of on a positive path.

Words can be very powerful, the secret is in knowing what words to use.

joshua362

IF the facts of the call were retold properly, then its a sad double side losing proposition.

The long wait, the incorrect price information and the vulgar word in response.

While I've always found WN's telephone support to be top notch, they are clearly the exception today. I dread calling any bank, credit card, home depot or any other call center who always seem barely capable of parroting back the (often incomplete) information found online (hence the reason for the call...)

tmiw

Still, as ftnoob better said above, one's rights end when someone else gets hurt by the practice of said rights.

jeffandnicole

Very true. And when doing it in person, a smile or some light-heartiness helps too.

At the end of a short stay at a hotel we were staying at on points, my wife noticed a few issues in the room. While I said don't worry about it, she said she'll just let them know at the front desk. She goes down, smiles, says Hi, lets them know we had a great stay, and just wanted to mention 2 small things she noticed. The result...we got more points refunded to us than we used for the reservation! I see people write all the time how they got a few thousand points and they think they deserve more, that the hotel employees were rude, etc, etc, etc. And of course there's always one or two people saying "Oh, they should've give you the room for free!" But in reality - being pleasant with a staff that doesn't get appreciated enough got us way more than we ever anticipated!

justhere

Just to add my 2 cents. Haven't read every post but clearly there are very different opinions of what is acceptable, etc. Having worked with call centers I've always asked employees to understand whether the customer is upset at them or the situation. If the situation, then give the customer a chance to correct or tone down their language before hanging up. They, the customer, are upset and not everyone handles that well. As an agent you are going to speak with many, many people and there's always the possibility that you'll hear something that could offend you but consider the circumstances before passing judgment. If you do it right, more often than not you'll hear a "thank you" and "sorry I got upset" from the customer before the call is over.

In the OP's case, they said "how the F can there be a price increase if you canceled my flight???" Yes, upset at the situation but to be fair, the agent he was speaking with didn't cancel any flight and was that the appropriate first response to what might have been a simple mistake by the agent? I think it was pointed out that "are you sure, my flight was just cancelled?" would probably have not only gone over better, but also would have saved the OP time and aggravation by not having to call back and wait.

The OP also said in their first post "I’m sorry if some religious nut or whatever doesn’t like the F word but I’m upset and this makes I made my situation worse" which I fixed for him.

DenverBrian

I'd assign 80% of the blame on the OP in this case, and 20% on the CSR, only because the CSR could have responded with "sir, if you use that kind of language, I will end this call."

Most reasonable people, IMO, know better than to throw F bombs out for ANY reason while on the phone with a business of ANY type.

MrMan

:Happy employee, make happy customers, which make happy shareholders", Herb

lmaccaro

We've really jumped the shark on domestic airlines, haven't we?

Your airfare is not a fee for the service of getting you from point A to point B anymore.

Your airfare is purchasing the privilege of the chance to possibly get from point A to point B. And if you don't make it, it is obviously your fault.