She Faked Getting Fired To Stop “Annoying” Customer Complaints
A Reddit user shares how she sometimes deals with difficult customers while working at a coffee shop.
How They Deal With Customers Angry Over The “Little Stuff”
The original poster (OP) and her friends work at a coffee shop. According to OP, sometimes, customers come in and are immediately angry over the “little stuff.” OP wonders if they are in a bad mood and looking for someone to take out their anger on.
One day, a customer was upset that their coffee wasn’t hot enough. Unfortunately, OP said there wasn’t anything she could do because it just came out of the machine.
A few moments later, the shift manager (and friend) came from the back and asked the customer if there was a problem. The customer complained to the manager that the coffee wasn’t enough. In front of the customer, the shift manager told OP that her customer service was “unacceptable” and that she was “fired.”
OP knew her manager-friend wasn’t being serious but, instead, trying to diffuse the situation between her and the customer. So, OP played along and begged her friend not to fire her. And the manager-friend continued along with the skit and told OP to hang up her apron and leave.
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The Customer Took Back Their Complaints
After watching OP get fired, the customer’s demeanor began to change, and they tried to prevent the manager from firing her. Finally, the customer said apologetically, “It isn’t that big of a problem,” and that they “didn’t mean it.” However, the manager responds by calling attention to the customer’s action, saying they pride themselves on quality customer service.
OP says that she still has a job at the coffee shop. And, whenever a customer “loses their temper,” the manager will fire them.
Is This The Best Way To Deal With Challenging Customers?
There is a mixed response in the Reddit community regarding how OP and her co-workers handled the situation. A few Reddit users say this strategy was great for dealing with challenging customers, and the fact they backtracked proved the customers were overacting.
On the other side, other users in the community were saying that acting like this was a bad idea. They said OP and her friends are “reinforcing that behavior” and “rewarding customers that explode.” Instead, these actions give easily upset customers a license to throw a tantrum at any store they visit.
Is it wrong OP is letting customers think she lost her job over their complaints? Are OP and her friends reinforcing customers’ bad behavior? What’s the best way to handle customers who become a handful?
