Alright, we are now headlong into the holiday season, and I wonder…
Would it be ok with you if I follow a rabbit trail today? I just want to get something off my chest.
It may just end up being instructive, but right now I just need to…
um…
well…
er…
rant?
Yes, that\’s it. I need to rant.
So, if you aren\’t interested in my little hissy fit, go ahead and delete this email now.
I\’ll wait here while you decide…
…
…
…
Alright, for those of you who are still with me, I want to share an experience I had this weekend at Best Buy.
First of all, let me say that I\’ve always been a pretty big fan of the blue and yellow store. They\’ve got a decent selection of electronic goodies and their prices are fair. I\’ve heard some nightmare stories about customer service, but have never had those problems myself.
My rant has more to do with the incredibly annoying salespeople they put all over the floor.
It\’s fine that you are greeted with a \”Welcome to Best Buy\” when you walk in the door, and are presented with an opportunity to take the week\’s sales flyer.
But that\’s where it ends for me.
No matter where you walk in the store, you are greeted by a smiling blue-shirted-kahki-pants employee who says one of the following:
\”Are you finding everything alright?\”
\”What brings you to Best Buy today?\”
or
\”Can I help you find something?\”
AAARGH!
I am really just looking, folks.
And seriously, I know what a blue shirt looks like.
And I know how to ask for help. If I NEED help, I will come find a blue shirt and ASK for help.
Of course, when I actually NEED help, I won\’t be able to FIND a blue shirt! But that\’s a different story.
After being in the store for less than ten minutes, I had been approached by FOUR blue shirts asking me one of their inane questions.
I am thinking to myself, \”If one more person asks me one of these questions, I may just go psycho on him and pummel him with a PSP!\”
It was less than 30 seconds later that a blue shirt approached me while standing in front of the mp3 aisle and asked \”Are you finding everything alright?\”
He must have seen the fire in my eyes… or perhaps my blood pressure suddenly became visible for all to see.
Either way, my laughter almost became maniacle as he slowly backed away and realized that he would be unable to provide the type of help that I needed. ;-)
The wonderful moment of irony came as my wife and I headed for the cashier to purchase a couple items (that I had found all by myself without the assistance of a blue shirt).
We got to the front and found a line of five people waiting to checkout…
… with only ONE cashier at his station.
A store packed with blue shirts, but they were unequipped to take the money of those who just wanted to get out of the store.
Life is funny that way, huh?
How about you? Have you encountered insanity at the store this holiday season? I\’d love for you to share your comments!