Several years ago a Milwaukee woman was waiting on line to pay for her groceries. There was no one at the 15 items or less express lane, so the cashier called this customer over so she could check her out.. Another woman, irritated that the shopper in the express lane had more than 15 items in her cart, followed the first woman out into the parking lot and attacked her, actually slicing off a part of her nose.Yes, you read that right: a shopper attacked another shopper over the number of items in her grocery cart. Today’s time-starved and stressed-out customers can turn from shoppers into angry panthers in 60 seconds or less over the tiniest inconveniences. It’s called Shopper Rage and it’s as common in our society as road rage and it’s just as scary.
One of the things we’re known for is our unique brand of consumer research. Each year we host focus groups, one-on-one interviews and in-store studies. Sometimes our focus groups run smoothly and sometimes they don’t. And sometimes the participants take us places we never intended it to go. That’s happened many times when a simple “how’s the customer service in stores been lately?” focus group turned into a laugh-a-minute screaming match about what customers hate about other customers.
The thing is when Mr. or Mrs. Shopper is cheesed off at another customer they often take it out on you. We wondered how far this went so we took our research beyond the focus group and began to ask people at random to tell us the things other customers do that drives them nuts. Here are the highlights (at least the ones we can print):
* “I made a special trip to a store one day in search of several items I needed to finish a project. As soon as I entered the front door my antennae were up, looking for an available salesperson. I found one almost immediately and she began helping me figure out what I needed. We were involved in a detailed conversation when another customer, with an armful of product, approached us and asked loudly, ‘What else do I need to make this look like the picture?’ For the next five minutes I stood there fuming. What am I? Invisible?”
* “I’m an avid scrapbooker. I like to visit my favorite scrapbook store just to have some alone time. The thing that drives me insane are the people who interrupt my thoughts with their cell phone conversations. People on cell phones don’t talk, they SCREAM. I really don’t care what cute thing little Suzie did yesterday and I don’t care how much you hate your boss. Please just shut up and let me shop in peace!.”
* “I do much of my personal shopping on my lunch hour or on my way home from work. My time is limited and I always seem to get stuck behind people who have a cart full of merchandise. They take their sweet time unloading it then calm stand there and watching the cashier ring and bag it. When the cashier finally says the total, that’s when they begin an archaeological dig looking for their money. What? You didn’t know you were going to be eventually asked for payment?”
* “I love the folks who have been to McDonalds every week of their life since birth, who after waiting on line for 10 minutes, still have to stare at the menu for another 10 minutes before ordering. Every other line is moving, but I’m always behind ‘Miss gee-what-should-I-have-for-lunch-today? Like the menu ever changes!”
* “Customers should have to follow the Rules of the Road when pushing a shopping cart – traffic rules should apply in stores! Guess what? You drive on the right side of the road, you walk up the staircase in the right, and when you’re pushing a shopping cart – STAY TO THE RIGHT!”
Just some food for thought as you greet your holiday shoppers. You can be doing a stellar job in your store but when the customer on line is cheesed off at another customer, guess who pays? That’s right. You do.
* “I made a special trip to a store one day in search of several items I needed to finish a project. As soon as I entered the front door my antennae were up, looking for an available salesperson. I found one almost immediately and she began helping me figure out what I needed. We were involved in a detailed conversation when another customer, with an armful of product, approached us and asked loudly, ‘What else do I need to make this look like the picture?’ For the next five minutes I stood there fuming. What am I? Invisible?”
* “I’m an avid scrapbooker. I like to visit my favorite scrapbook store just to have some alone time. The thing that drives me insane are the people who interrupt my thoughts with their cell phone conversations. People on cell phones don’t talk, they SCREAM. I really don’t care what cute thing little Suzie did yesterday and I don’t care how much you hate your boss. Please just shut up and let me shop in peace!.”
* “I do much of my personal shopping on my lunch hour or on my way home from work. My time is limited and I always seem to get stuck behind people who have a cart full of merchandise. They take their sweet time unloading it then calm stand there and watching the cashier ring and bag it. When the cashier finally says the total, that’s when they begin an archaeological dig looking for their money. What? You didn’t know you were going to be eventually asked for payment?”
* “I love the folks who have been to McDonalds every week of their life since birth, who after waiting on line for 10 minutes, still have to stare at the menu for another 10 minutes before ordering. Every other line is moving, but I’m always behind ‘Miss gee-what-should-I-have-for-lunch-today? Like the menu ever changes!”
* “Customers should have to follow the Rules of the Road when pushing a shopping cart – traffic rules should apply in stores! Guess what? You drive on the right side of the road, you walk up the staircase in the right, and when you’re pushing a shopping cart – STAY TO THE RIGHT!”
Just some food for thought as you greet your holiday shoppers. You can be doing a stellar job in your store but when the customer on line is cheesed off at another customer, guess who pays? That’s right. You do.
And one infamous retailer said, “Know what cheeses me off? People who write articles about things that cheese me off, thereby making my blood pressure go up thinking about all the things that cheese me off.”
Happy Cyber Monday!
