Posted by Damien [24.159.232.32 - 24-159-232-32.jvl.wi.charter.com] on 25 April 2004 at 19.47.04 ZuluTime:

"Aziz knows the terms Comparable Technology and Widescreen. And that's about it. He doesn't know the term The Customer Is Always Right..."

Well, having worked in the service industry, and still working there (though for the sake of my continued sanity, I'm bailing the fuck out of there), I felt I should point out something wrong with this.

As popular a catchphrase as this is, they don't teach it anymore. Big corporations, as stupid as they are, have finally caught onto the fact that their customers are, for the most part, much stupider. In other words, the vast majority of people coming in to buy your products are going to be fucking dipshits, which is why they generally accept whatever unethical/fraudulant tactics you use to sell them without question. Idiots are not known for being right for any large percentage of the time.

The point is, the 'Customer is always right' line is no longer taught as an axiom in any of the places I have worked, as it is patently untrue in many cases. The customer insisting the the Dairy Queen store I work at sells yoghurt when, despite working there for well over two years, I have never so much as caught a glimpse of this yoghurt, is wrong. The fuckwit demanding that the Pizza Hut I work at should deliver some greasy, artery-clogging food to his fat ass, despite the fact that the Pizza Hut I work at A) does not deliver, and B) does not have the paperwork, permission, or manpower to deliver, is wrong. The person demanding that the store is still open despite the fact that A) Several clearly visible signs say 'closed' on them in big, black letters, B) The big bright sign beside the street is no longer big and bright because we switched it off an hour ago when we closed, C) It's midnight, exactly one hour later than the closing time indicated right under the big sign that says 'closed', D) The staff is out of uniform, and E) The doors are locked, ...is wrong.

So, the customer is, contrary to popular opinion, not always right. Thus a new phrase has to be invented to keep giving us dupes the incentive to smile placidly while foaming idiots continuously bitch us out for problems that are A) Not problems except in the 'minds' (I use the term loosely) of the complainants, and B) Aren't in any conceivable way our fault or responsibility. This new phrase, differing from store to store, is something like 'The customer gives us the money we need to keep in business, so at least try to keep the dipshits happy, and that includes pretending they're right even when they obviously aren't.' A little bit more cumbersome than the previous catchphrase, but infinitely more truthful.

Unfortunately, this phrase would involve me turning against one of my most deeply rooted principles, which is treating idiots like idiots, thus causing considerable stress while on the job.

Just my two cents.