Sometimes I wonder if the companies and brands really understand what it means when they don't seem to listen and just keep repeating the same thing over and over again. A recent example could be my interaction with these folks. Someone is surely not reading the content and just responding for politeness's sake.

An even recent example would be the conversation with the Airtel Digital TV folks I had yesterday. All I needed was to check up why it was taking more than 4 days to add a channel to my package inspite of using approved text messages and, while I was at it, I needed to add two more channels. It took me a sum total of 25 minutes with 15 of them "on hold" listening to either "your call is very important to us" or, the funky hold music. The problem that I see is that if you are telling for 10 minutes that "your call is very important to us" and yet not putting a human on the other end, then you have an issue with how important the call is. And, repeating that mantra time and time again without actually demonstrating to the customer (remember this is a phone - the customer has no way of knowing whether you've just put him/her on hold and decided to trim your moustache/file your nails) that there are events happening is a bad way of handling calls.

Providing the customer with an option to disconnect the call with an option for a charged call back might actually be something that is preferable than being on hold watching paint dry.

Last afternoon/evening was spent in the company of Indranil and Stephanie at the Barista on Park Street. There's nothing much to be said about the outlet except that they should have a method to control the stuffiness of the place if they don't want to switch on the air-conditioning. The excuse that all the ceiling fans are linked to a single switch and hence would cause discomfort just doesn't translate to a good design. The music was loud but at least it allowed a semblance of polite conversation. That was good enough.

What I did find alienating was the behavior of the floor staff of Westside at 22 Camac Street. An elderly gentleman was looking at the rack of jackets. You know the ones with the patch at the elbows. And, turns out that the ones they had on display had some issues with a proper fit or, fall. The on floor staff, when asked to check up the stock for a different size were impudent enough to say that they would actually do so if he was planning to purchase. I don't know the entire history of the interaction between the staff and this gentleman. But sure as hell this isn't a way to treat a customer. Not only do you end up pissing off the immediate customer, you end up creating a bad impression with the customers around and within an ear-shot of this incident. Simply unacceptable and ridiculous.

This inability to read a customer is something I've noticed at the Barista outlet too. The staff was ready to hustle me out of the shop till the time I had to mention that I was expecting company and, they better have some sense to expect more custom. Compare that with the all mushy couple on the other wall (I don't have anything much against them save the heavy PDA within a glass fronted showroom during afternoon) sharing a smoothie for half an hour. Either they regularly share a smoothie and are as permanent as furniture or, the staff were enjoying the show.

There ought to be a better way to train the floor personnel.