ponderings of a lone female

[shootingstar]

Wow badger, such lousy customer service.

I wonder if you went to new/proposed home development sales office, if you would get the same treatment.

Early this year I did go home hunting and ..did in the end, bought. I was treated well. This was in the winter and late fall. (Yea, really I had to walk around...because place had to be walkable to transit, services, etc.)

I met both female and male realtors at different open houses by myself. And then later same folks, with my partner....simply because I did want his opinion ...in case he noticed some basic structural details that I would miss.

I guess I showed up in a variety of outdoor wear. But I was solo in the autumn when I cycled to the sales office in my cycling jacket, ordinary long tights, etc.

I was treated well.

These are developments in the downtown core. Not in the 'burbs.

Come to think of it, dearie was with me on subsequent visits to same male realtor. I was dealing with actually a *****y aggressive female boss of his...who relented NOT to raise the advertised sales price. (They had a strategy to raise price next week...)

Just to explain how dearie behaved, while I could barely keep up with this fast-talking, aggressive loud realtor manager: he soft pedalled his questions and semi-joked his way through but didn't insult her nor him. (or me)

Did it help that dearie was merely there in the same room as I? Most likely.

So be assertive, persistent and knowledgeable, but fake that relaxed attitude if you can, no matter how angry you feel.

I can't get too upset: I bought a new place at a slightly lower price, on a foreclosed building.

[grey]

Everyone's car dealership experiences reminded me of when we were trying to decide between a celica and a tC. I was asking about performance, looking for a sportier car, and the salesman kept showing me sedans and saying how this was a "nice, safe car." Did I say I wanted safe? I have no kids.
Another time, hubby and I were test driving - I really prefer manual transmissions. A few blocks into my test ride, the salesman looked at hubby and said "she's a really good driver." He sounded surprised!

[ZenBiker]

Some years ago I went shopping for a new pick up truck. I live in a mountainous area, do a lot of driving on rough roads, and like to camp and run rivers hence need to haul gear. My first choice was a Toyota. Went to the dealer, told him which model I wanted, and was told I didn't need that truck. He wanted to show me something smaller, not 4WD. I insisted. He told me to look on level 3 of the garage, pointed me to the elevator. Did not even go along. I went and looked in the windows of a few Toyota trucks, which is all I could without a salesman being with me. I debated going back and asking for a different salesman but was irritated enough not to want to deal with that company at all. So I walked across the street (literally) and bought my second choice truck from the Nissan dealer there, who couldn't have been nicer.

Loved the Nissan. My only regret is not asking to speak to the Toyota guy's supervisor and showing him my shiny new Nissan on the way home.

[smilingcat]

I think it happens to all of us. Took a male friend to go car shopping and the sales guy keeps talking to my friend. Friend is nice enough to politely tell the salesman that he isn't the one buying and that I was the one buying and he should talk to me.

I walked out on the bozo.

Another time, I threatened the general manager that I would write to their Japanese manufacturer in Japanese and the rotten service I got from his dealership. That got his attention really fast!!

The places where I didn't have any problem was when I bought my Lotus. Walked in, they asked whether I had an appointment. Said "No, but I'm interested in buying one." I think it had to do with my Hutzpa in getting their attention. Same thing when I walked into an Audi dealer and told the sales guy that I was bummed that A8 didn't have a station wagon style. I settled on A6 quattro station wagon. Again I think it had to do with my Hutzpa! Go into regular dealer and bad service except when I drove up in Lotus or in Audi. Then it was a foot race amongst the sales people.

I've had less trouble in high end store then in average store.
Tiffany's in NYC never any customer no service problem, just lots of tourists.
Godiva before they popped open every where and the shop in NYC had a doorman. Never any customer no service problem...

It's matter of whether they can sniff money on you. If they do, they are all over you. If they don't smell money on you, they will ignore you. It's not so much as how we are dressed but how we say things, our body language. I'll admit, I'm not good looking, I'm not thin, nothing to write home about. But when I do want to buy significant items, I make a point of or rather looking like I have money. Its matter of confidence and you WILL SERVE ME attitude.

The problem for most of us is that we are not direct in asking our question. When a sales person ask us what we want, we normally respond with "May I have such and such" If you want service from the sales person, respond with "I would like to have such and such". Polite way of saying I want such and such. It's more of a command.

Next time you talk to a real estate agent and they want to brush you off say something like. "Just riding by and your house interests me. I want information of number of bedrooms, bathrooms, square footage... I'm looking for a house for my mother..."

They may be put off a bit but if they had any smarts, their attitude will change quickly.

Be assertive!

[badger]

I eventually bought a second hand Honda from a used car dealership, but what I really liked about that experience was that the salesman looked and talked to me from the get-go even though I had my boyfriend there with me. He understood that it was going to be my purchase and for him to make a sale he had to talk to me. And when I signed the sale document, I did thank him because I've had some brutal experiences before that.

I went into a fine dining restaurant yesterday to pick up a gift certificate for my friend's wedding. This experience was actually what made me start this thread. I was wearing jeans and a hoody, but not scruffy. I was on my bike so I had my helmet and pannier. I walked in, and was given the "once over" by the hostess who asked what I wanted ("surely she's not going to eat here" is what she must have been thinking). They had me wait a good 10 minutes before they could conjure up the certificate, and all the while had me wait at the bar with the tender who was none too happy having some poor-looking cyclist. I wouldn't be surprised if they wiped the seat after I left. I'm regretting now getting a gift certificate for my friend to go there.

[GLC1968]

On the flip side - looking like you have money doesn't mean that you do or that you are honest.

When I worked for Gap Inc., I was filling in at one of the downtown Boston stores in an upscale mall. This woman came in with lots of shopping bags from other stores in the mall (yes, we always check this), dressed in a gorgeous silk suit in a super bright color. It screamed 'look at me, I'm wealthy and fashionable". She shopped for awhile, bought one item (I forget what it was), and then left.

Turns out, she'd robbed us blind. About two hours later we got a call from mall security and she'd been caught in another store with tons of our product (all still with security tags on).

Appearances are misleading in so many ways!

[badger]

I know. and I wonder how many businesses lose out because they'll give bad or no service to those who don't "look the type". I'm very reluctant to go back to that restaurant, though it was a place my boyfriend and I went a few times.

I did write a complaint letter to the Nissan dealership who didn't even acknowledge me, but there was no response. I do have a pretty healthy disrespect for that dealership that if anyone's looking for a car I tell them of my experience. If they had responded and made even a poor attempt at apologizing, then it would have changed my view, but they have lost a customer in me forever, as well as who knows how many I tell to not go there.

[withm]

When I bought my house, the first real estate agent I was talking to drove me around to see a couple houses, none of which met the criteria I had given him as to size, price, or neighborhood. Then he essentially blew me off.

In the meantime I started working with another agent who showed me several properties that met the criteria. I made an offer, went through a couple counter-offers, and got my house.

The day before I went to settlement, the 1st agent called me to say a property had just come on the market in the preferred neighborhood. I took great pleasure in telling him "that's nice, but I'm settling on my new house tomorrow, in that same neighborhood." Boy was he surprised! He could not believe that I was working with a different agent?!?!?! Maybe he learned something, but I doubt it.

[smilingcat]

Badger,

Next time you have to write a letter, write it to the car manufacturer rather than a dealer. As a courtesy, send a copy to the dealer. Identify the dealer, the reason for the letter writing. You will get a response. All dealerships have to answer to the car manufacturer and last thing a car manufacturer wants is a negative public image. Brand image takes a long time to develop and can be ruined overnight. So the manufacturers are very sensitive.

GLC,

See because the woman was impeccably dressed, no one at the store kept an eye out on her. Had she been not so well dressed, you or someone else may have kept an eye out on her and you wouldn't have been robbed blind. The ones with real money tend not to be over dressed nor will they be screaming "I've got money look". It has lot to do with attitude.

I surely wouldn't say Ms. Rodham Clinton screams of money nor would I say the same for the new IMF chief, IMF Managing Director Christine Legarde. They are well dressed but they don't scream "I've got money look". Nor Ms. Condoleeza Rice, Madeline Albright... What they do scream is I've got power and you will do what I ask of you!

I have on one occasion been followed by a sales clerk at a small resort town. She got on my nerves so I asked one of the other clerk that I wanted to speak to the owner or the manager of the store. I pointedly told the woman that I was appalled by the lack of judgement by her employee... She got my point and some religion as some would say.