Are you being served?
It is true to say that ‘customer relations’ are not the first priority for most French businesses, and very often ‘customers are an irritant we have to deal with’ seems closer to the mark.
Ever tried taking back a faulty product in France? Or perhaps tried to discuss your phone contract or ring a helpline? Bought stuff from the supermarket without noticing it is already days beyond its sell-by date, or paid 5000 euros for a pool liner which is immediately wrinkly – from a company who immediately deny all responsibility…?
I could give you many examples of this ‘the customer is always wrong, and a bit of a nuisance as well’ approach, both from our own experiences and the many that get told around expat dinner tables – in truth, poor service is not an occasional problem in France it is the ‘rule that proves the exception’.
I guess that we are kind of used to it now, but visiting New York was a stark reminder that there is a different way of doing things.
So in the hope that a few French shopkeepers might drift passed this blog I thought I’d share a few shopping experiences from NY which might just work in France as well…
Idea 1: ‘anything at all that you buy from us and decide you don’t like when you get it home and start using it – bring it back for an immediate no-quibble refund‘: a beauty products type shop based its advertising on this technique. This idea would be so alien to most French businesses that it might seem incomprehensible – but why not give it a try anyway, it might just work! And ‘no-quibble’ means just that – it doesn’t work if you interrogate the customer and make them feel guilty about bringing something back!
Idea 2: ‘ensure the customer finds what they are looking for’: I went in to buy a pair of jeans. By the time I had tried the first pair on, the assistant had scattered half a dozen similar pairs in different styles and colours in front of the changing cubicle, and went on to suggest which she thought would be right for me, while simultaneously doing the same for half a dozen other customers, and smiling throughout. I guarantee that almost everyone in there will have quickly found the item just right for them – and will have bought it!
Idea 3: ‘Be so cool and trendy that everyone loves you and your products’: We visited Abercrombie and Fitch, a trendy clothes shop on 5th Avenue – the shop was plunged into virtual darkness with halogen spotlights on the clothes, music was blaring, and the staff were all super-beautiful (both the boys and girls) and dancing around when a customer wasn’t to hand. A bit like a party where, by the way, you could buy great clothes.
I wonder how many French shops pay beautiful people just to dance around and smile a lot?! Radical? Complete waste of money? Judging by the number of customers in the shop it was a pretty successful idea. I’m not sure if there are legal issues in only employing beautiful people though!
Anyway, hopefully that’s given at least one business in France a few ideas for making their business a bit more customer focussed. The only challenge? It seemed to me that that the staff in these places genuinely wanted to be friendly and helpful, they weren’t just doing it because the boss had said ‘smile a lot or you’re sacked’…
And if you know of any French businesses that do offer great customer service, let us know below – they deserve a few minutes in the spotlight!
It is just the same in Germany. The companies in france may not give customer service, but the French people now thats another matter. i remember our very first visit to France. We booked a holiday with brittany ferries. We took the car and they had booked us into different hotels most nights whilst doing a round trip of the loire. We were looking for a hotel one night and ended up in a dead end street. a lady was just leaving her home by car and in perfect English asked if she could help us. i told her the name of the hotel we were looking for she said, follow me, and and took us round the one way system to the door of the hotel and just drove off without us being able thanke her properly. we have never forgotten that kindness.I have never had a bad expearience with the french people.Have I been lucky ?. Now in Germany ………….
Several times when we were looking lost in New York people came over to ask if they could help, and I don’t remember the same happening here, but hopefully I don’t look quite so lost in France after living here for so long, which perhaps explains it. It’s amazing what a good (or bad) impression we can get of a place from such a small incident. Speaking of which I would have sworn that Sarkozy told staff at CDG airport to smile more at arriving foreigners a while ago, but I can’t find any mention of it now so perhaps I dreamed it up myself?
The after sales service on white goods at Geant was always super, as were the delivery men and ther sales staff.
They stood out like a good deed in a dirty world.
Glad to hear about Geant, I don’t think we have one near here (but I’m probably wrong).
I was thinking again about what Johnny said above and it is true we seem to get better service from people at our own home – I’m thinking of various delivery people and white goods installers who have usually been very chatty and helpful. It’s pretty shocking if corporate culture in France turns naturally helpful smiling people into miseries as soon as they get to the ‘customer service’ desk and have a boss glaring at them and a ‘no-refund-ever’ policy sat on the desk – makes you wonder what their management training courses are like…!
I have had the odd unpleasant experiance with french people when i think hard about it but again talking to Mrs N ( we do talk now and again). She reminded me of a time we were in Normandy. we were in a med sized town looking for a recomended reasaurant on foot. We just could not find it. we stopped 2 ladies and asked them if they could direct us. After much arm waving and thinking they were not sure. They asked us to follow them round the corner to a friends house. She knew exactly where it was and sent out her grand son to take us until he was sure we would not get lost. i just could not get over it. Would I have done that I asked myself. The meal was fantastic but thats another story.
Oh my goodness, I sincerely hope that the French do NOT try and imitate the Americans in the ‘trendy & cool’ department.
I’m Canadian and still in Canada but on the verge of moving to France. If it turns American I’m going to be SO sad. I cannot stomach the US influence – for so many people with so many tastes, trends are all they have. it’s ugly and awful.
– sorry for interrupting but I just had to say it. –
Hi Sherri, you’re welcome to ‘interrupt’. I love America (from visiting) but not sure I could live there. I Don’t know Canada very well, sorry to group you together! You’re right that nowhere needs to or should copy America – I guess I’m always dreaming of the place that combines the best of all worlds…French individuality, American customer service, British humour, Italian history…