Thank you or No Thank you?

[corndog]

This is a bit off topic, but along a similar thread. I don't know if this is happening in the areas where you all live, but in my area, Southwest Georgia, there is a trend which has been going on a few years.

Many, and probably at this point most businesses no longer thank you for patronizing their businesses. Now, they say "Have a nice day" or even worse, "Here you go", while handing your change to you.

Personally, I do not think "have a nice day is not an appropriate response when someone has chosen to spend their hard-earned money at an establishment. Fast food joints are the worst, but it's spreading. i dont know if their is some corporate training, which teaches this or what. It started here about 4 years ago.

On several occasions, when someone has said "here you go", I have thanked the cashier for allowing me to spend my money with them, with the biggest smile and sweetest voice i could muster. They just looked at me totally co fused and oblivious. On one occasion, a young man responded to my remark by saying, "no problem". For a long time, I refused to shop at businesses which did not thank me for my business, but at this point there are few that offer a simply elegant "thank you". It's sad how times have changed and it has become such a dog eat dog world.

 

[pops6927]

This is a bit off topic, but along a similar thread. I don't know if this is happening in the areas where you all live, but in my area, Southwest Georgia, there is a trend which has been going on a few years.

Many, and probably at this point most businesses no longer thank you for patronizing their businesses. Now, they say "Have a nice day" or even worse, "Here you go", while handing your change to you.

Personally, I do not think "have a nice day is not an appropriate response when someone has chosen to spend their hard-earned money at an establishment. Fast food joints are the worst, but it's spreading. i dont know if their is some corporate training, which teaches this or what. It started here about 4 years ago.

On several occasions, when someone has said "here you go", I have thanked the cashier for allowing me to spend my money with them, with the biggest smile and sweetest voice i could muster. They just looked at me totally co fused and oblivious. On one occasion, a young man responded to my remark by saying, "no problem". For a long time, I refused to shop at businesses which did not thank me for my business, but at this point there are few that offer a simply elegant "thank you". It's sad how times have changed and it has become such a dog eat dog world.

Been in business all my life, born and brought up in a family meat/grocery store.  Totally understand your frustration!  You don't appreciate the business until you depend on it to buy your kids' school shoes or how will you pay the dentist or the fuel oil bill.  If anybody stole from us, it was our next pair of dungarees they were stealing.  My twin brother and I would beat the crap out of the kids who stole from the store!  

Today, corporate greed puts profit at the highest level and customer service at the bottom; if they only knew if they reversed it, profits would spill over abundantly!

 

[seenred]

No doubt about it...Todd is one of the good guys. He not only sells great products, but also promotes his business by standing behind those products and providing great customer service. 

And I'm right there with ya guys, its a real shame that most service-oriented companies these days have forgotten that simple business model:  Above all else, take care of your customers and make them feel appreciated.  Its good to know that companies like Todd's still exist...but also sad that those companies have become the exception rather than the rule.

Red

 

[sqwib]

This is a bit off topic, but along a similar thread. I don't know if this is happening in the areas where you all live, but in my area, Southwest Georgia, there is a trend which has been going on a few years.

Many, and probably at this point most businesses no longer thank you for patronizing their businesses. Now, they say "Have a nice day" or even worse, "Here you go", while handing your change to you.

Personally, I do not think "have a nice day is not an appropriate response when someone has chosen to spend their hard-earned money at an establishment. Fast food joints are the worst, but it's spreading. i dont know if their is some corporate training, which teaches this or what. It started here about 4 years ago.

On several occasions, when someone has said "here you go", I have thanked the cashier for allowing me to spend my money with them, with the biggest smile and sweetest voice i could muster. They just looked at me totally co fused and oblivious. On one occasion, a young man responded to my remark by saying, "no problem". For a long time, I refused to shop at businesses which did not thank me for my business, but at this point there are few that offer a simply elegant "thank you". It's sad how times have changed and it has become such a dog eat dog world.

I can see where you are coming from BUT...did I just say But. yes I did.

I agree that customer service is lacking, but as far as someone thanking you for you spending your money at the store...well thats asking a bit much, in most cases anyhow.

Do you honestly think an individual should thank you, because you are purchasing from where they work, I don't,  but being polite is expected.

Example: You are a business owner and deal directly with the individual then the appropriate thing to say is "Thank you" or "we appreciate your business". Or if you are in sales working on commission...you better say "thank you".

Another example of an expected "Thank you" is when paying the waitress, I can not remember ever having a waitress that did not say "Thank You".

Now think of an employee at let's say Wal mart, would you expect that person to say Thank you in place of have a nice day, I think either is appropriate and neither inappropriate...Just playing devils advocate here.

Sometimes eye contact and a smile is greatly appreciated, for me anyhow, because it shows they are acknowledging you.

Polite is Polite and I accept, "have a good one", "have a nice day", and thank you!

I do however always thank our customers by saying, "Thank You" for your order, but that's me

 

[corndog]

Sqwib,

Yes, I absolutely expect an employee to say "thank you". Their salary comes from the money I spend at that establishment. I have worked with the public all my adult life. Those who work under my supervision, are trained and expected to say "Thank you". They are also expected to respond with "my pleasure" when a customer says "thank you".

For example, a customer asks for something and you give it to them, and they respond with "thank you", the appropriate response from the employee is "my pleasure. I want that customer to know that they are appreciated and important to us. When I was a teen, and being trained for my first job, that was something that my employer really emphasized...let that customer know they are appreciated.

Out of curiosity, why do you think it's appropriate for an owner, waitress, or commissioned employee to thank you, but not the average employee taking your money? Seems odd to me one would expect the owner to thank you, but not other employees who might wait on you or check you out. That employee is a representative of that owner and business just as much as the owner.

Not trying to pick a fight here, just interested in the thought process.

 

[davidhef88]

Sqwib,

Yes, I absolutely expect an employee to say "thank you". Their salary comes from the money I spend at that establishment. I have worked with the public all my adult life. Those who work under my supervision, are trained and expected to say "Thank you". They are also expected to respond with "my pleasure" when a customer says "thank you".

For example, a customer asks for something and you give it to them, and they respond with "thank you", the appropriate response from the employee is "my pleasure. I want that customer to know that they are appreciated and important to us. When I was a teen, and being trained for my first job, that was something that my employer really emphasized...let that customer know they are appreciated.

Out of curiosity, why do you think it's appropriate for an owner, waitress, or commissioned employee to thank you, but not the average employee taking your money? Seems odd to me one would expect the owner to thank you, but not other employees who might wait on you or check you out. That employee is a representative of that owner and business just as much as the owner.

Not trying to pick a fight here, just interested in the thought process.

I couldn't agree with you more. Where I work there is a big sign on our loading dock where we load our trucks in the morning. It says.
"Thank You" , our customers love to hear it, we have to remember to say it.

 

[sqwib]

Sqwib,

Yes, I absolutely expect an employee to say "thank you". Their salary comes from the money I spend at that establishment. I have worked with the public all my adult life. Those who work under my supervision, are trained and expected to say "Thank you". They are also expected to respond with "my pleasure" when a customer says "thank you".

For example, a customer asks for something and you give it to them, and they respond with "thank you", the appropriate response from the employee is "my pleasure. I want that customer to know that they are appreciated and important to us. When I was a teen, and being trained for my first job, that was something that my employer really emphasized...let that customer know they are appreciated.

Out of curiosity, why do you think it's appropriate for an owner, waitress, or commissioned employee to thank you, but not the average employee taking your money? Seems odd to me one would expect the owner to thank you, but not other employees who might wait on you or check you out. That employee is a representative of that owner and business just as much as the owner.

Not trying to pick a fight here, just interested in the thought process.

You are looking for a specific statement Thank you.
I do not expect to hear them exact words.
I expect the person to be courteous.
So have a good day puts a smile on my face.
When I see a young kid working a counter, and they say to me, Have a good Day, I think that is awesome. I don't want them thanking me . Sure you can really reach and say, "they should thank you because you are paying their salary"... that is a long reach. I said I agree that folks should be polite... but looking for those exact words...ain't gonna happen every time.
I wonder how many folks that said have a good day were taught to say that exact statement.
My point about certain individuals using the thank you statement are folks that are actually thankful taking your hard earned cash, those WhO benefit directly from it at the moment of receiving it such as waitresses.
I won't debate this either but wanted to voice my opinion. I just keep thinking of my 18 year old daughter working a register and saying SINCERELY to a customer Have a nice day and then someone makes a Cocky remark like you did and totaly upsets her or lowers her self esteem.some kids are sharp and pick up on sarcasm
Accept their kindness in any form such as a smile. Thank you Have a nice day... these all work for me.

 

[sqwib]

Hit submit too early sorry.

So basically you are saying that anything other than Thank You is unnaceptable.
And if someone says Have a nice day, they might get a sarcastic remark from you.
What about We appreciated your business come again?

I try to put myself in the other persons shoes and if I said have a nice day to the customer and an individual throws out a sarcastic statement like that I think I would get upset and say to myself what did I do wrong.

 

[sqwib]

Last posts were from my phone, man I hate typing long posts on my phone

Bottom line is they are rendering a service and you are paying for it so it’s basically an exchange.

The point I was trying to make earlier is there is a direct and indirect of rendering services, and sometimes a mix of the two.

Scenario one: You order supplies from a Home Depot you walk in to pay at the courtesy counter, They have your supplies ready, you swipe your card and sign the sales slip, the person at the desk hands you the receipt and says Here you go Mr. Smith, you’re all set, have a wonderful day”. Then an employee offers to load your car, now in a good mood from the bubbly person at the courtesy desk you  hand the person loading your car a nice tip, the person says thank you.

In this scenario no one was wrong in my opinion, but the person receiving the tip had better say Thank You, because you did not have to tip them.

Scenario 2 You are at the doctors office and they say Mr. Smith the copay is 30.00, you write a check hand it to the woman she hands you a receipt and says Ok Mr. Smith you’re all set.

On your way out you smile at the person and they say, “You have a wonderful day“.

Was this wrong, shouldn’t the doctor come out and say thank you?

I will thank the Doctor and he usually says something like, “Take care of yourself”

All acceptable to me.

Scenario 3: My daughter works at an Environmental Center in the city, she is technically a city worker, a school books an event, my daughter host’s the event at the end of the event she says., “I hope you all had a wonderful time and please come back and visit”, Was this wrong? Technically she is paid by the city, yes your taxes at work.

Scenario 4: You are at the bank and the teller cashes your payroll check and hands you the cash and says “have a wonderful day, enjoy the rest of your weekend.”

I usually am the one saying thank you when I’m handed my own cash… why is that?

Does the trash collector run up and thank you for taking your trash, NO, but if you ran out and gave him a Christmas tip… I will wager you will get a big THANKYOU! Is this wrong?

I can’t see anyone getting upset with any of these

Tipping or a “keep the change” statement should facilitate a Thank You!

Scenario 5: you have someone cut your Lawn and you pay them directly after services rendered, you hand them the cash should they say thank you, why? They just cut your Lawn, shouldn’t you say thank you?

Now if you tip the person, they had better say Thank you

But you getting sarcastic with these folks rendering a service does not make you right!

I just keep thinking that if someone said a smart @ss comment to one of my kids, how I would feel!

Corndog I respect your opinion but disagree totally with the sarcasm, put your kid at the other end of that comment and tell me you feel justified saying that.

My apologies to everyone for getting off topic, I don't know why this struck a nerve with me.

I'm usually docile!

And yes TODD Rocks and deserves all the thank you’s we can muster. I will shut up now!

 

[corndog]

Sqwib,

I would ask you to re-read the last paragraph of my earlier post. I have never said anything "sarcastic" or "cocky" to anyone who has said "have a nice day" to me. You are correct, it is a polite statement and I accept it as such when offered, however, I personally do not consider it a thank you.

Additionally, any form of "thank you" is acceptable to me: thank you, thanks, thank you for shopping with us, we appreciate your business, and etc. I used "thank you" as an example, since it is the most fundamental form. My mistake for not elaborating.

I might be wrong, but I would venture a guess that you are in the minority if you do not want to be thanked when you spend money. I think most people appreciate knowing they are valued as a customer.

As far as the salary issue, to me it's simple...no customer=no salary. Every employee benefits from a customer's money. Run off the majority of your customers by not offering proper service, and see how long you can continue to pay all of your employees! You lose enough customers, then you have to cut employees or close the business. The two are directly related, and I don't think it's a stretch at all. Today, many businesses must borrow to make payroll in slow times, so every customer counts especially in retail. There are retail businesses that do not see a profit until Christmas sales, so that business may be paying employees with borrowed money. There may not be enough cash flow to even meet payroll. Some businesses make as much as 40% of their revenue during the holidays. Offering great customer service all year and making your customers feel appreciated will bring them back during the holidays. I have owned businesses and lived this very scenario.

That being said, what I want from my employees is a polite and helpful individual who understands that without customers there would be no job, and the more customers one has the more likely the opportunity for advancement and salary increases. Do I want them thinking about this customer's money pays their salary every time they help someone...no...but I do want them to understand the correlation between the two.

Working with the public can be very challenging at times, and not everyone is cutout for it. In all the years I have managed employees, I have had only two who really struggled and were not good with the public. They just did not like dealing with customers. They were occasionally rude to customers, because they felt imposed upon if a customer asked for help, even though they took a job that required constant interaction with customers. They were young and didn't understand the big picture. They actually worked for me at the same time, and they seemed to feed off of each other with their bad attitudes. I sat down with them and we had a conversation, and I learned how they felt about servicing customers. During the conversation, I explained to them the relationship between customers and salary.

One of those employees still works for me today and has for years. She is the best employee I have and is excellent with customer service. The other continued to work for another year or so, but then resigned and went on to work in an industry that doesn't require contact with customers. So, for one of those individuals, having someone explain the customer/salary connection totally changed their perception of customers and the way they handled them. The other realized they needed a different kind of job. I don't have a big turnover with employees, but anytime I hire someone new, especially if it's a young person, I explain the customer/salary connection.

I think you hit the nail on the head in stating, "I wonder how many folks that said have a good day were taught to say that exact statement.", and I eluded to this very thing in my earlier post. This was really the root of my earlier post.

Sqwib, I respect your opinion. We all have mores and ideas about what is acceptable for each of us. It is interesting to view this topic from a different vantage point.

Take care

 

[sqwib]

Sqwib,

I would ask you to re-read the last paragraph of my earlier post. I have never said anything "sarcastic" or "cocky" to anyone who has said "have a nice day" to me. You are correct, it is a polite statement and I accept it as such when offered, however, I personally do not consider it a thank you.

Additionally, any form of "thank you" is acceptable to me: thank you, thanks, thank you for shopping with us, we appreciate your business, and etc. I used "thank you" as an example, since it is the most fundamental form. My mistake for not elaborating.

I might be wrong, but I would venture a guess that you are in the minority if you do not want to be thanked when you spend money. I think most people appreciate knowing they are valued as a customer.

As far as the salary issue, to me it's simple...no customer=no salary. Every employee benefits from a customer's money. Run off the majority of your customers by not offering proper service, and see how long you can continue to pay all of your employees! You lose enough customers, then you have to cut employees or close the business. The two are directly related, and I don't think it's a stretch at all. Today, many businesses must borrow to make payroll in slow times, so every customer counts especially in retail. There are retail businesses that do not see a profit until Christmas sales, so that business may be paying employees with borrowed money. There may not be enough cash flow to even meet payroll. Some businesses make as much as 40% of their revenue during the holidays. Offering great customer service all year and making your customers feel appreciated will bring them back during the holidays. I have owned businesses and lived this very scenario.

That being said, what I want from my employees is a polite and helpful individual who understands that without customers there would be no job, and the more customers one has the more likely the opportunity for advancement and salary increases. Do I want them thinking about this customer's money pays their salary every time they help someone...no...but I do want them to understand the correlation between the two.

Working with the public can be very challenging at times, and not everyone is cutout for it. In all the years I have managed employees, I have had only two who really struggled and were not good with the public. They just did not like dealing with customers. They were occasionally rude to customers, because they felt imposed upon if a customer asked for help, even though they took a job that required constant interaction with customers. They were young and didn't understand the big picture. They actually worked for me at the same time, and they seemed to feed off of each other with their bad attitudes. I sat down with them and we had a conversation, and I learned how they felt about servicing customers. During the conversation, I explained to them the relationship between customers and salary.

One of those employees still works for me today and has for years. She is the best employee I have and is excellent with customer service. The other continued to work for another year or so, but then resigned and went on to work in an industry that doesn't require contact with customers. So, for one of those individuals, having someone explain the customer/salary connection totally changed their perception of customers and the way they handled them. The other realized they needed a different kind of job. I don't have a big turnover with employees, but anytime I hire someone new, especially if it's a young person, I explain the customer/salary connection.

I think you hit the nail on the head in stating, "I wonder how many folks that said have a good day were taught to say that exact statement.", and I eluded to this very thing in my earlier post. This was really the root of my earlier post.

Sqwib, I respect your opinion. We all have mores and ideas about what is acceptable for each of us. It is interesting to view this topic from a different vantage point.

Take care

No problem, just playing devils advocate, smoke on!

 

[veryolddog]

I personally see nothing wrong in saying to the company: thank you for great service. There are too few companies that provide "great" service. I think that this gives them the feedback they need to hear in order to continue to provide "great" service. Otherwise, they can just sell a product and not care. I think that it is important to provide this feedback and if they don't then you have the choice to tell them that they provide less than satisfactory service.

This thread has been hi-jacked from it's original intent and that is to pay respect to Todd Johnson of A-MAZE-N Products for the above average service that he provides. He has done right by me on more than one occasion. So, I say: Good Job! And, Thank you, for that! Businesses need to have feedback in order to evolve and understand what their customers think.

I think that this thread should be closed because its original intent was a compliment and not a discussion on when to say "thank you".

With kind regards,

Ed

 

[bigtrain74]

I used to run security for a bar and every night. I had to make sure we kicked people out at 2am. I would thank them all for coming out as I am trying to push them along and pay their tabs. If you go to any other bar/club and it's 2 o'clock, they are rude and obnoxious to get you out of their club so they can go home. I guess my point is if they don't come back, the bar won't make money. Hence you and all the employees are out of a job. Not to mention the owner who probably dumped his entire life savings into his/her establishment. Being nice doesn't take a heck of a lot of work to do especially to those who just spent money with you.

 

[eman]

the company i work for did 126 k in sales last week . over the norm. But every time i deliver even a 2 dollar part i thank them for their buisiness.

 

[foamheart]

the company i work for did 126 k in sales last week . over the norm. But every time i deliver even a 2 dollar part i thank them for their buisiness.

And chances are your boss/owner knows it.

I have worked from pushing a wheel barrow all day to selling over 30 mill a year. Anyone that worked with me knew my stance, if you get paid by an employer you support an employer. If its an hourly job its eight hours, if its salary its all day and all night. Never think that when you are asked to fill out a customer report that it isn't passed on, if you complain about an employee its noted, if heaven forbid you get a compliment its the same. Employers know who is supporting and who is not. Its really easy, people are having fun and enjoying working. If they are not they shouldn't be there, they should be looking for somewhere that they enjoy and look forward to work each day.

A thought, if you dislike how they do their job, do you make sure that someone that does do a good job is reconized to their boss? To the point of tracking them down to insure its said?

You must also realize that the source of the remark is considered also.

For the most part, big companies have lost the ability to reconize this without a gazillion HR and federal employment regulations to follow. I would never have more than 10 employees again, then they would all be contract employees.

So how did this all come up on a Smoking Website? There is nothing we can do more than what we do already except complain.