I hate calling people. I hate answering the phones. And honestly, most of the questions people ask are things that can easily be looked up. Yes, yes… I know. The general public isn’t bright and therefore, need to call places because they’re too stupid to actually look the information up themselves. But you know what? There needs to be a place of business where there is no phones and everything you need to know can be found online through their website.
Honestly, if I ever win the lottery and created a bookstore, there wouldn’t be any phones involved. Just our website with everything people need to know. Maybeee a texting chatbot for specific questions, but that’s it.
I’m tired of people calling or having to call places where things can easily be used online. I don’t want human contact.
Okay, um, counterpoint I live somewhere where internet is extremely bad on a good day so actually have to call places because I can’t just look it up online because I can’t access online. I also can’t just go to my nearest bookstore because the nearest one is over a three hour drive away. Let’s say hypothetically you were a bookstore I frequented or were the closest one to me or the only one whose number I memorized, how would I be able to contact you?
Well I co-own a bookshop and uhh we need phones for supply and purchasing Most of our communication with the public happens through the website or instagram tho.
I get your point. It’s a pain answering calls. But at the same time the customer or enquirer will feel far more reassured if they can talk to a real person.
Someone called work the other day, asking about something that could’ve been found on our website, and I got flustered trying to help someone else at the same time and overlooked where I was originally looking at and said that I couldn’t find it, and then the person the phone was rude and said, “Why do they hire people who don’t know what they’re doing?” Like lady, what you’re looking for is on our event calendar. She wanted to see if the kid’s movie we’re playing next week is suitable for her 3 year old.
I’m just tired of customer service jobs needing phones and people being able to be rude over it because they don’t have to talk to you face to face. Like, sure, I still get rude people in front of me, but if I were to own a bookstore, I’d allow staff to also yell at the customer yelling at them and then kick them out or have police escort them. The whole “customer is always right” goes out the window and bursts into flames. I want a healthy working environment for staff, and the first thing that comes to mind is making sure it’s a safe space—no degrading, yelling, or other rude acts. If a customer cannot act mature, then they simply do not belong in the store. Sure, this isn’t how most—or all—places of business are like. But things need to change.
Okay, okay. Valid point.
I think this would depend on the country and area the bookstore would be in, because where I live (which is the US), you can get decent internet in any town or city. If you live in the middle of nowhere, then internet access or reception will lack. Happens to me when traveling through the nothingness of fields, farmland, and some high mountain ranges. But most people here have decent access to internet unless it’s not paid for or used through their cell data, and usually works okay wherever you are in the US besides being in the middle of nowhere (though this may depend because it can still work).
Where I’d put a bookstore would be in the middle of a city, so most traffic would be through people who live in that city… and should have access to internet (whether at home or somewhere public since a lot of public spaces here have internet (cafes, restaurants, stores, etc.)). But perhaps we could have a phone that uses an automated voice for most things and then if the person reallly needs to speak to a person, we would most likely have someone that customer could contact.
This kind of elderly group probably wouldn’t be my target audience for a bookstore. Especially when a lot of them don’t even know how to use flip phones. Yes, I’ve met quite a few of these people… and they just don’t know about any technology itself. It’s surprising some of them know how to drive, even though they shouldn’t. xD
Fair enough. Perhaps the marketing/sales people may have phones, but not the customer service people working the front lines. Give them a break from the crazies of societyy. lol
Customer service jobs really do suck and I definitely agree the whole “customer is always right” thing is absolute BS. Some people just don’t seem to understand the concepts of 1) basic human decency and 2) they’re not the only person on the planet. But, sadly, unless you work in a workplace that actually understands it’s workers are humans with emotions, you can’t just get rid of them or, at the very least, give them a good b-ch slap
My grandfather doesn’t have a cellphone and barely picks up his house phone . My grandma’s cellphone… I don’t know the last time she charged it since she barely leaves the house.
I live somewhere where internet is extremely bad on a good day so actually have to call places because I can’t just look it up online because I can’t access online. I also can’t just go to my nearest bookstore because the nearest one is over a three hour drive away. Let’s say hypothetically you were a bookstore I frequented or were the closest one to me or the only one whose number I memorized, how would I be able to contact you?
During my time in retail, I met older people who still use flip phones 
Especially when a lot of them don’t even know how to use flip phones. Yes, I’ve met quite a few of these people… and they just don’t know about any technology itself. It’s surprising some of them know how to drive, even though they shouldn’t. xD