Who came up with the concept of "the customer is always right"?

Businesses would rather give a person something free than to lose a customer. Just threaten to cancel your cable, phone or something else and see how much you’ll get, usually two free months of service or so.

My job is to never let anyone leave unhappy, which is not always easy, but I’m good at that.

I’m guessing probably the Japanese, because their customer service is over the top! But, seriously, Nordstrom’s is credited with really pushing the customer is always right policy. There is a famous story of someone returning tires to Nordstrom’s when they don’t even sell them. Nordstrom’s took them back with a smile, and raised the bar in this realm for retailers to be competitive.

Might have been that Selfridge guy, seem to remember a scene from the tv series where he said something along those lines & it was bloody ages ago so…

@KNOWITALL That’s the bullshit I’m talking about.

Possibly the first guy who opened a retail business.

@simone54 Me neither, I’d like to reinstitute the ‘kiss my arse and leave’ policy.

Marshall Field (who had a department store in Chicago) seems to be the number 1 suspect according to the internet.

One bad encounter can turn off a customer for life plus make him bad mouth you to others. It is worth the cost of goods to make it right.

Snotty customers

Target has a stricter returrn policy and I do less purchasing there because of it. I am not a big returner, but it still discourages me.

According to the Phrase Finder it was a sales advertisement gimmick for Marshal Field’s Department store in the early 1900’s.

If a company or store stocks what I want and has a hassle-free return policy (the latter is crucial), I stick with them. Amazon, Best Buy, Target, and Bed, Bath & Beyond are four examples. Really, though, I never have trouble returning anything anywhere as long as I have the receipt and original packaging—and I don’t always need those if I’m willing to make an even exchange or take a store credit.

@Pachyderm_In_The_Room Target has a liberal return policy? Maybe it has changed. That has not been my experience. I thiught they limit how many returns ou can make per year, and things have to be returned within a few weeks. I honestly don’t remember the details, I just remember being annoyed one time and thinking I will limit my purchases there.

It’s the way to stay in business. Haven’t you ever been to a shop and been treated so badly you never went back…and told 8 other people about it!

When I was in retail I learned that when a person has a negative experience they tell 8 people. When they have a positive experience they only tell 2.

@KNOWITALL I like the way you think. What a great policy!

I get so tired of customers and their bullshit. I hate that I’m expected to be over the top nice and smiley and bend over backwards to accommodate somebody who’s speaking to me like I’m a child.

* Or worse, speaking to me like I’m not even a human being.

It simply means that you should treat the customer like you you would like to be treated. Also you should maintain a positive “can do” attitude at all times no matter how tired you get. It’s bad for business to present a cranky sourpuss demeanor or to argue or match whits with the customers.

It is just good common sense if you would like to stay in business.

Someone mentioned Best Buy. They sold me two defective phones and I have to go in to get another exchange. How do they explain that?

Best Buy is just a retailer. You need to go back to the manufactures of the phone @sparrowfeed. If Best Buy replaces the phone, good on them.

I’m not sure, but there’s a real ass-wad out there named Jeffrey Gitomer, who wrote a lame book about how hotel concierges should strive for customer loyalty & not their satisfaction. Well, he said if the customer wants something, but the hotel doesn’t have it, the concierge should go get it with their own money. My boss at the time made my department read it. We did software/tech support for a home infusion software company. I wrote Gitomer and told him his book was ridiculous. Pissed him off so bad, he personally replied.

Marshall Field held the opinion “Custom is the god” to advertise his Marshall department store, and it got great influnce. Then all businessmen follow the opinion. When the word was spread to eastern countries, it turned to be “the customer is always right”.

A fool.

@Dutchess_III They’ve redeemed themselves. I got the phone exchanged and even though it wasn’t on sale anymore, they still didn’t charge me anything. And the new (3rd) phone actually works like a charm. I think I just have a bad attitude in general to places that want to sell stuff, particularly if it has to do with cell phones, but Best Buy does not equal Bell.

The person who came up with the phrase managed to distill “How to stay in business” in that one sentence.

@Katniss Yeah, I keep telling our mgmt I’m a great bouncer- lol

Wasn’t it Mr. Crabs, anybody that paid him was golden in his eyes.