Published by deborah.woehr on 08 Apr 2006 at 08:21 am
We’re Watching You
There is something about me that draws salesmen like flies. Yesterday, I went to CompUSA to buy a giftcard for another of my son’s friends. I no sooner entered the store when I was approached by a salesman.
“Can I help you with something?” he asked. He was an older gentleman.
“No, I’m just looking.” I smiled at him before I returned my attention to the Mac software sitting on the racks. Like the bookstore, I have a hard time leaving a computer store without buying something.
I moved to another aisle, where I spotted MacJournal, an offline blogging program. Before I had the chance to pick it up and look at it, another salesman appeared. This one was a young kid with Latino looks.
“May I help you?” he said.
I picked up the software and said, “Have you ever used this?”
“No, but people come in here all the time to ask for it or buy it.”
“Thank you.”
I carried the box across the store, where the PC section was and began looking at DVD movies. The Skeleton Key jumped out at me and made me grab it. I swear!
Next, I went to the printer section. Reams of paper lined the top of the shelves. I grabbed a couple. Another salesman approached me. It was another kid, with longer hair than his colleague and a smattering of acne on his face.
“May I help you?”
What is up with these guys? “I think I’m done,” I said with a smile. I’d yet to get the giftcard, but I knew those were up by the register.
“Well, then let me help you with those,” he said, grabbing a shopping basket before he freed the items I held in my arms.
After he placed the items in the basket, he walked with me up to the cash register. Of course, there was only one cashier, who was helping another customer. The salesman still had my stuff and kept talking to me.
I couldn’t help wondering if these guys thought I was a shoplifter. Perhaps it was because I’d arrived too early and had to sit out in the car until they opened. Maybe they thought I was casing the place. Or, perhaps they didn’t like my black sweat outfit and/or the lack of makeup on my face.
“Have you ever used MacJournal?” I asked him.
“No, but I’ve heard good things about it.” The kid told me that he used LiveJournal for his blog and asked me if I knew how to back it up. I told him that I didn’t, and gave him suggestions on how to back up his blog.
I grabbed a giftcard before I could forget, along with a tin holder, and set them in the basket. We kept talking about blogging as I continued to wonder why I was receiving this special attention. Finally, the cashier finished with the customer ahead of me.
The salesman gave me the basket, said his goodbyes, and then left. As the cashier began ringing up my purchase, she saw the tin can and started to tell me that it would cost extra. I’m not sure why, but she changed her mind.
I left the store with my purchase, wondering if I should feel insulted or impressed by all this attention. My gut instinct tells me that they thought I was a shoplifter, which I find both funny and upsetting.
The only time I ever used the five-finger discount was when I was eleven, when I lifted several packs of gum as my mom was paying for her groceries. The resulting guilt made me realize that I was not suitable for a life of crime.
Lee Pletzers on 08 Apr 2006 at 6:11 pm #
were you fully dressed? LOL. Sorry. I’m usually ignored in shops, apart from tiny cameras tracing my moves.
Did your shirt have a print on it that said: I have a hard time leaving a computer store without buying something. ?
deborah.woehr on 08 Apr 2006 at 7:07 pm #
I must’ve had some sign glowing above my head because they would not leave me alone.
Melly on 08 Apr 2006 at 10:19 pm #
What I find worse than the attention I get or don’t get (it varies), is the fact that when I do want help they rarely know more than I do and hence can rarely help!
Karen Lee Field on 09 Apr 2006 at 2:24 am #
I find that when I want help, there’s no one around…and when I’m just wasting time every salesperson in the shop hassles me.
I can’t win, but it sounds like you had a good day out regardless of the salesmen.
michaelm on 09 Apr 2006 at 3:35 am #
A woman with no make-up, wearing a black sweatsuit, going into a COMPUSA store early in the morning….Hmm…
Sounds like trouble to me.
I often think these people that work at Staples, Best Buy or CompUSA have been specially trained to “sniff” out the people ready to purchase something.
Maybe there’s some kind of strange holographic scan field that you walk through that tells them you’re ripe for the pickin’…who knows. These days, a scenario like that wouldn’t surprise me.
~m
deborah.woehr on 09 Apr 2006 at 7:37 am #
Melly: It’s rare that I deal with a salesman who is knowledgeable. What makes it worse when I go into a computer store is that I own a Mac.
Karen: I’ve had that experience on occasion. I’ll need some information about a product, but the entire floor is deserted. Yes, I had a great day.
Michael: I’ve got trouble written all over me.
Either they smelled my intentions or mistook them. The salesmen at these stores are all alike–lazy or overeager.
Cavan on 09 Apr 2006 at 10:41 am #
Whenever I walk into a Staples, Best Buy or one of those types of stores, the salespeople do all they can to ignore me. I guess I have “poor student” written all over me and they decide I’m not going to get them any sort of sizeable commission.
deborah.woehr on 09 Apr 2006 at 10:49 am #
That used to happen to me when I was younger, especially when I’d go to a high-brow department store like Nordstrom’s. But to get ignored in a place like Staples is poor customer service and just plain rude.
pat kirby on 10 Apr 2006 at 8:21 am #
I hate furniture stores with pushy, follow you around salespeople. My husband and I are, ahem, opinionated and get a lot of pleasure out of sneering at ugly furniniture. Hard to do when some eager-beaver twit is following you around, saying, “Isn’t this set marvelous?”
deborah.woehr on 10 Apr 2006 at 8:29 am #