Early Morning Phone Calls

[lupo pazzesco]

It's summer. For the record, Textbook Hell switches to summer hours since customer traffic is pretty low, except for certain points of the year. As such, we open at 8 am instead of 7:30. Ooooh, big change!! Now, 99% of the time, I open the store, meaning I need to be there roughly an hour or so before we open to set up tills, start up computers, etc. (we don't have the fastest equipment around...) When the phone rings I HAVE to answer it because it could be one of my managers wanting to check in/say they're running late, or it may be staff calling in for some reason, i.e. a lot of setup procedures occur in the back room, and I can't see the doors. staff will call to say they've arrived for their opener shift at 7:55, so I have to go let them in.

Because I have to answer the phone I have people calling me, and it's been especially bad the last few days. People calling as early as 6:50 a.m. I get here at 6:45! And it's always drastically important, life shattering urgency that requires them to call me. As in the following.

example 1
Had this gem last week.

Me: <Answering phone with opening spiel>
SC: ZOMG!!!! Why aren't you open!?!?!
Me: I'm sorry, ma'am, we open at 8.
SC: But I need a scantron! My exam starts at 8!! <Wails> Can't you open for meeeeee?!
Me: ...We open at 8...
SC: <Insert rabblerabblerantrant, hangs up in rage>

Example 2
Another gem from last week. Note, the time is 7:02.

SC: Yeah, hi, I'm in your parking lot. What time will you open?
Me: ...At 8. (Like it says on the bright freakin' neon green sign!!)
SC: Oh. Well...I need a notebook.
Me: ...
SC: Hello?
Me: Yes?
SC: I need a notebook!
Me: ...We open at 8, sir.
SC: <Huff. Hangs up>

Example 3
Ok, SERIOUSLY?!?

Me: <Picks up phone, can't even say hello>
SC: YOUR SIGN SAYS YOU OPEN AT 7:30!! IT'S 7:26 AND YOU'RE STILL CLOOOOOOSSSSSSSEEEDD!!!
Me: Er...actually our summer hours list us opening at 8...Did you need a scantron or blue book for an exam? Because there's a small shop set up on campus over by the---
SC: NONONO!! I NEED THE ATM!!!
(Note: There's an ATM in the parking lot, and one in our store.)
Me: Um....
SC: I NEED the ATM in the store so I don't get charged FEES!
Me: Ohh, well, there are other locations for that particular brand of ATM on campus, and they're located in--
SC: I WANT TO USE THE ATM!!!
Me: I apologize, ma'am, we open at 8.
SC: I'm reporting you!!! <Slams phone down>
Me: I haven't had nearly enough caffeine to deal with this...


example 4
From this morning. Which stemmed this post, actually. It's 6:58 when the phone rings.

Me: <I don't even give the opening spiel, I just say "Textbook Hell">
SC: Hi...uh...when do you open?
Me: Our summer hours have us opening at 8 am, ma'am.
SC: Oh. Well...I need a book.
Me: Unfortunately, none of my systems are up and running yet, so I can't help you.
SC: Oh. Well, can I just ask you a question?
Me: Erm. K...?
SC: Do you have <textbook>??
Me: >.< Unfortunately, none of my systems are up and running yet so I can't help you.
SC: I just need you to look up a book...
Me: ...
SC: ...
Me: ... (give it up, lady, I'm better at this than you are...)
SC: Oh. Well (See? Told ya!! I'm better!) Can't you just...look it up?
Me: No ma'am, I can't. I don't have any of my computers on, or systems active. They'll be operational when we open.
SC: Can't you just go look on the shelf?
Me: Do you know the course number, section number and professor?
SC: ...no...
Me: ...
SC: <flips the bitch switch> Oh my god, you people are SSSOOO fucking LAZY! All I'm asking is for one. Fucking. BOOK! You're a bookstore!
Me: ...we're a bookstore that's not open yet. Please feel free to call back during our scheduled hours. <I hang up on her>


>.< It's going to be a long day...I just know it!!

[tollbaby]

Lupo, I love you.











That is all.

[dalesys]

Some people would be so much easier to tolerate if they could be handled like a Victorian flower...


Pressed in a VERY large book.

[mikoyan29]

Repeat it with me:
"Lack of planning on your part does not constitute an emergency on mine".

"....but you're a bookstore"
"Yes, a bookstore with lots of books, so many in fact that it's kind of hard to narrow down where your particular book may be without the information I asked for...."

[An Haddock]

Example 2
Another gem from last week. Note, the time is 7:02.

SC: Yeah, hi, I'm in your parking lot. What time will you open?
Me: ...At 8. (Like it says on the bright freakin' neon green sign!!)
SC: Oh. Well...I need a notebook.
Me: ...
SC: Hello?
Me: Yes?
SC: I need a notebook!
Me: ...We open at 8, sir.
SC: <Huff. Hangs up>

Clearly this is your fault. Didn't you know you could simply jam a notebook through the phone?

[Severen13]

Me: ...we're a bookstore that's not open yet. Please feel free to call back during our scheduled hours. <I hang up on her>

Lupo, you are two scoops of awesome with a cherry on top.

[Teskeria]

SC: <flips the bitch switch> Oh my god, you people are SSSOOO fucking LAZY! All I'm asking is for one. Fucking. BOOK! You're a bookstore!

I'm sorry ma'am. None of the books in our store fuck. They are regular books. For fucking books you would need to go to a porn shop. I do apologize, but I am not familiar with the porn shops in town, so I can't tell you where the nearest is.

[Merriweather]

Some people would be so much easier to tolerate if they could be handled like a Victorian flower...


Pressed in a VERY large book.

I LOVE that one!

[Exaspera]

Typical student behavior. Plus the fact that everyone's printer breaks the night before a paper is due.

Good for standing up to them, lupo!

[Pagan]

SC: YOUR SIGN SAYS YOU OPEN AT 7:30!! IT'S 7:26 AND YOU'RE STILL CLOOOOOOSSSSSSSEEEDD!!!

Which means that even if you weren't on summer hours, you'd still be closed. Albeit for just another 4 minutes, but still....

[lupo pazzesco]

Which means that even if you weren't on summer hours, you'd still be closed. Albeit for just another 4 minutes, but still....

Yeah I had another instance similar to this one once, and the older guy who was waiting outside with me (Before I had my own keys, mind you) was grumbling because it was 7:22, and we weren't open. I pointed out we didn't open until 7:30 and he gave me an evil, evil look and proceeded to tell me that I didn't understand how the retail world worked. He told me there was a ten minute rule. For the sake of good customer service, a store MUST open 10 minutes prior to posted time and close 10 minutes after posted time, because it wasn't right to rush customers, or keep them waiting with pesky little things like following scheduled hours. Oh, and I shouldn't worry. Because he worked retail before, and he's done it a while, so naturally he'd know more than me.

[Pagan]

Yeah I had another instance similar to this one once, and the older guy who was waiting outside with me (Before I had my own keys, mind you) was grumbling because it was 7:22, and we weren't open. I pointed out we didn't open until 7:30 and he gave me an evil, evil look and proceeded to tell me that I didn't understand how the retail world worked. He told me there was a ten minute rule. For the sake of good customer service, a store MUST open 10 minutes prior to posted time and close 10 minutes after posted time, because it wasn't right to rush customers, or keep them waiting with pesky little things like following scheduled hours. Oh, and I shouldn't worry. Because he worked retail before, and he's done it a while, so naturally he'd know more than me.

To quote Amy Poehler and Seth Meyers from SNL....

"REALLY???!!"

[JustaCashier]

Lupo, would you be allowed to answer "Textbook Hell, Security"?

We did that at the hardware store, and I've seen others mention the same here on CS.

Most of us, even managers, would answer in a brusque tone of voice. Not rude, but not with the overly pleasant "How can I help you?" voice either. Didn't always work, but seemed to most of the time.

We even had a service manager that would answer; "[Store Name] Security.....they open at [time]!"


Mike

[Cloudy Sky]

Am I an evil person because I got all excited when I saw that Lupo had a post today?

I do not understand people who call in when they KNOW a place is closed, and then whine "well, why are you answering the phone if you aren't able to help me!!!" Umm.... because it could be management, my sitter, another employee calling in sick, a family emergency, etc ad nauseum.

*now to wander over to "Sightings" to see if Lupo went shopping*

[Animae]

Yeah I had another instance similar to this one once, and the older guy who was waiting outside with me (Before I had my own keys, mind you) was grumbling because it was 7:22, and we weren't open. I pointed out we didn't open until 7:30 and he gave me an evil, evil look and proceeded to tell me that I didn't understand how the retail world worked. He told me there was a ten minute rule. For the sake of good customer service, a store MUST open 10 minutes prior to posted time and close 10 minutes after posted time, because it wasn't right to rush customers, or keep them waiting with pesky little things like following scheduled hours. Oh, and I shouldn't worry. Because he worked retail before, and he's done it a while, so naturally he'd know more than me.

This is something started by MickyD's and perpetuated by the green coffee monster (i used to work for them) and VERY RARELY would it actually be followed. ( my manager used to lock the store ten minutes early)