do you think the customers always right?

Question

I work in a restaurant as a waitress and some customers get too ridiculous with their complaints... i had a man who ordered fries , ate them , then when his dinner came he couldnt eat it because it was fried and he cant have fried food. hellllooo!!! he just ate french fries 10 minutes earlier.Manager takes it off the bill. I dont think thats right why shouldnt he have to pay? i wouldnt even want that kind of person to come back especially with no tip!!!. guess he just wanted a free meal and hes just a real jerk

Answer 1

Its not just confined to restaurants. The worst two jobs in the world is when you deal with someone's money or their food.
No, they are of course not always right. However, (and exclude the person you used as an example) customers spend money in restaurants and other places. If they don't spend it where you work, they will spend it somewhere else and you will be out of a job.
The expression of the customer being right is just an example, a metaphor, to express the way a customer should be treated.
Most customers are really bad, some are downright stupid or ignorant. nevertheless, they have to be treated nicely and be catered to. Otherwise, they shop somewhere else.
I once had a customer who returned an item that she had used for around five years. Yup... five years. I said that I didn't know if I could exchange it and she said it had a lifetime warranty. When I asked for the lable or receipt, she got nasty. I asked if she had her sales receipt, and she got even nastier. so I just smiled and told her to find something close and we would exchange it. However, since costs have gone up, she would have to pay something. she agreed and I sold it at our cost. We lost nothing in the process but gained a little good will.
I understand your frustration, but unless you are the owner, the only thing you can do is smile and show that you have more class and integrity than the customer you serve.

Answer 2

No, the customer is NOT always right. When I was a hostess, I once had a customer complain because I sat her in the order on the call list, but the booth I put her in was too skinny for her fat butt, she thought I should be fired. How was I to know, I was just calling names off the list and seating them at the next available table! That being said, if a customer has a horrible experience, they are very likely to share it with their friends and family and those people won't want to eat there again (or ever) either. This is why the managers bend over backwards to make people happy. I think it is terrible when people have legitimate complaints and the manager does nothing, in these cases I am sure to spread the word. Of course, some people really are just looking for a free or discounted meal, and will find something to complain about, no matter what, they are just not nice people, unfortunately they don't come with little warning lights on them, or you could ask someone else to serve them! :o)

Answer 3

Is the customer always right? I say the customer is rarely right. Most people will try to get something for nothing. A good customer will make a valid complaint and expect nothing in return except the promise and hope of better service next time they visit. A guy eating french fries and then saying he can't eat fried food is like someone ordering a few tequila shots before dinner and then ordering a Margarita and complaining that they can't drink it. Just doesn't add up.

Answer 4

No, customers are not always right. That's a bs line that worked back when the honor system was still honorable.

My boyfriend used to be a server at a national chain. There was a couple who came in about once a week, and truly worked the system. They would order quesadillas with chicken. When my bf brought them out, they would say they didn't want it with chicken, and would swear they had said that. He would go back to the kitchen to put in a new order, when he got back, the quesadillas were gone. The new order was eaten as well. Then they would make trouble until the manager removed both appetizers from the bill. The next time they tried it, my boyfriend took the "wrong" appetizer back, the people made a stink about that as well. This time they were asked to leave.

If a customer has a legitimate complaint, managers and servers should respect that. But people working the system to rip servers and companies off are wrong, and managers are in their rights to kick them out. It's theft.

Answer 5

No, the customer is not always right. But that doesn't mean that they can't get their way. I have worked just about every position in a grocery store including the customer service desk. They say "The customer is always right." because the customer is the reason that they are in business and that you have a job. If there isn't a customer, there is no money and no business. That is why a you give them everything that they want from the business (within reason) to make them happy and want to return. I have learned that when a customer is demanding something that is completely ridiculous, just let the manager or acting manager handle it. That is what they are paid to do. I know that it won't stop that guy from coming back or from being a real jerk; but, unfortunately, that just comes with a job in customer service.

Answer 6

as a former restaurant owner, i would do whatever it takes to make the customer happy. HOWEVER, respect is a two way street. There are some people who cannot be pleased no matter what. I found that 90% of my workers time was spent on 10% of the customers and the effect was three fold. First, the good customers suffered because of an unhappy person and didn't get the attection they deserved. Second, my workers morale was hurt, and third, the complaining customer still left unhappy. So, no, under certain circumstances, the customer is not always right.

Answer 7

working with public is a great experience to anyone who wants to be in business, but deal with the public is the worst experience someone can have. Any job where you have to laugh is sucks. I am working in a gas station everyday I have problem with limo drivers for stealing news paper and maps. when they get caught they get upset at you. After many years of working with the public I become to realize the more you know about certain people the less tressful your job become. There are some people once they don't have something they don't somebody to have it. there are some people who just wants an associate to get fired because that associate would not let them getaway with anything. Especially, if that customer has been coming to that place for years, they think they are part of the business. The way I look at it Customer always right when they do the right thing otherwise you will get kick out jerk.

Answer 8

No. The customer is not always right. Anyone who has worked for any length of time in customer service will come to know this, such as yourself.

A customer is essentially making an agreement of exchange with the business. Each party should uphold the terms of that agreement. It can be very easy to abuse a businesses desire to please their customers. I'm sure most people are familar with the "hair in the pasta" trick to get a free meal, I've seen much worse than this performed by customers in an attempt to back out of their end of the agreement. In such cases, the customer is clearly not right and in fact, is only damaging business for honest customers and should not be allowed to patronize that company/business again. Depending on the management, they may or may not investigate the sincerity of the customer complaint and take further action from there. It sounds to me as though your management chose not to investigate.

Answer 9

I am a waitress and I hate customers (most of them) with a passion....i have people who would order something and then 2 minutes before the order is up, they would be like "Id like to change my order, im not in the mood for fish in the more, I'd prefer a filet"....or they would order something, read the discription for an hour, and when it comes out, theyd be like " O no, i thought it was going to be this" wtf?? u read the discription- fried mac and cheese means just that.....or when theyd eat the WHOLE meal except one bite and then decide to complain that something was wrong with it....or when i used to host, i personally packed an order and double checked it and i get a call 2 minutes later saying its missing 2 orders of wings even though i personally put them in the bag and my manager watched me..and guess what?: they got credit....i could go on forever but basically the customers usually wrong except a select few

Answer 10

No. The customer is not always right, but I think the point of that saying is to make staff behave as though they BELIEVE the customer is right. If the customer thinks you believe they are right, they will be more easily pacified.