Valerie (if that is her name - the little girl with two nose piercings) needs to be retrained on customer service and professionalism.
It took me approximately 25 minutes to check out. The only reason I was willing to wait was because I wanted to take advantage of the discount I had been told about for my birthday. However, the discount was not reflected in my balance when Valerie was checking me out. She also took an extended amount of time behind the desk trying to pull up my receipt, only to then tell me that the discount did not apply, so I was expected to pay over $40 dollars extra.
The frustrating part is that I had specifically been told by the persons who booked me that the discount did apply - because of the way they booked it. Everyone else I spoke with gave me the same information - and then the first receptionist at the beginning of my booking said she would "fix my booking" to make it even cheaper. But then Valerie did not seem willing to get clarification or make a genuine effort to resolve the issue, I even had to tell her that I did not have enough money to pay the full amount. I had to LIE to get her to budge.
When I continued asking about the discount because I knew what I had been promised, Valerie's responses became increasingly passive-aggressive - though her Customer service skills was not good to begin with. Rather than asking someone in the back ( or anyone available) for clarification, she told me that she had texted her manager (in 2 seconds of her phone being in her hand, apparently), who was conveniently in a meeting. There did not seem to be any genuine effort to resolve the situation - just hopes that I was stupid enough to not pick up on a scam.
At that point, it felt as though she expected me to simply accept the full charge and move on. I refused because, while this is not about the money, it is about principle and honoring what a customer was told when they booked an appointment. People work hard and long hours for their money, and not everyone was just blessed with a financially comfortable life - some of us had to earn it honestly, with sweat and discipline.
What bothered me most was Valerie's attitude and the way she communicated with me - before and after my advocacy about the price discrepancies. But she claimed she was being professional. I do not think she is self-aware of how she was coming across, and that is something that should be addressed through additional customer-service training.
If she is not going to be retrained, I would urgently recommend reconsidering whether she should be working at the front desk. I had an otherwise good experience/service, and it is disappointing that the entire experience was negatively affected by one person's interaction with me. It is also unfair to the other employees who are working hard and earning commission to have a customer leave feeling this way because of a front-desk interaction.
Additionally, if this is a recurring issue with promotions or discounts and customers are routinely being given conflicting information, that needs to be addressed internally for scammers or training opportunities. Customers should not be put in the position of having to argue/debate for an active promotion they were told they qualified for. Regardless of their pocket!
Unfortunately, I will not be returning. Trust is important to any hardworking consumer, and after this experience, I no longer feel confident that I will be treated fairly or that the information I am given when booking will be honored at checkout. And I will be filing a formal conflict to corporate for all the other women who don't have the personality to advocate for themselves and their hard earned money. read more