Would you like it there tomorrow?

[PO1]

Can I ask how many are being harassed into delivering this little gem as the opener for a mails conversation?

Apparently we're getting told it's "business standard" to say this to EVERY customer with a letter/packet and then wait with a pause for the hopeful answer of "yes please" to which our reply is supposed to be "for £5.45 (or whatever the Special Delivery price comes in at) we guarantee to get it there tomorrow before 1:00pm with inclusive compensation of up to £500"

How can this fall in with the sales code of practice to
1. Not encouraging the hard sell
2. Always be open and honest with our customers
3. Not knowingly sell goods and services to cutomers which are inappropriate to their needs or means.

The day I'll rob a fiver off someone's granny in the name of sales is never going to happen. By all means offer them all options open to them and if it's appropriate for what they've got then Special Delivery could be right, but to try and con them

[The BFO]

A perennial source of debate in our office. Occasionally halted when I ask our Assistant Branch Manager, who knows nothing about cars, how she would feel if she were duped into paying for work to be done on her car which she later found to be unnecessary.

You should feel lucky, we are told to nod whilst asking the question, because the customer is more likely to be receptive.

Marvellous...

[Postman Plodd]

[capitalbiker]

'I can guarantee it will be there by next working day'

sorry but there's no way I'll say that because within two hours or so of receiving said item into my care it's out of my hands and into the many hands of RM over whom I have no control - it's Royal mail's guarantee not mine or POL's

[kathleen1]

I got an old lady today at the counter with two parcels, I asked "would you like to send them special delivery guaranteed tomorrow by 1'oclock" ? the old lady replied "yes " I then said it would be £7.00 each, she looked very shocked and said "haven't you got anything else cheaper? I replied "its not anything worth more than £46.00 or very urgent"? "NO" said the lady just some hand-knitted cardigans" so i said she could send them 1st class packet £3.40 each, she said "thats fine".
The old little dear went away I put the packets in the correct bag and I walked back to my counter but got pulled up by my B.M, he wasn't happy because I didn't give the benefits of Special Delivery. I replied back that the goods were not urgent or valuable, no money, vouchers or jewellery, the problem is they are so DESPERATE for sales they will try and rip people off.
OPEN, FAIR, HONEST, you have to be joking. I don't care what POL say its business policy/standard whatever it is morally wrong and I will not be a part of getting brainwashed because of silly charts and targets set by someone who has never served a customer.

[capitalbiker]

In a thread elsewhere on related matters there was the thought that there now seemd to be a pursuit of revenue at the expense of customer needs, I 'm all for giving the customer the information to make an informed decision as to the service meeting their needs but is not the ski slope approach just a step away from the slipperly slope that the bankers got onto, where goes the much lauded customer's trust in the brand if we get into that mindset?

[PostalOfficer]

Had problems with this myself. Asking if they want it there tomorrow goes one of three ways:

1. Customer replies "No". You've instantly downgraded to 2nd class where they may well have had 1st.

2. Customer replies "Yes". You say "£5.45". Customer goes ballistic and you spend the next five minutes on the defensive.

3. Customer replies "Yes". You say "£5.45". Customer is delighted. You know there's something wrong. Yep, it's going to Japan.

Neither seem a very good sales technique to me!

Actually I've had more luck saying "Got anything valuable or irreplaceable in there?". Customer frequently tells you and you can make an intelligent recommendation, including SD or PF24/48.

Having had a few run-ins with a (thankfully departed) ABM about this I actually got b*ll*cked for selling 3 Specials using the wrong wording! Who cares? Customer happy, money in till, letters in locker, job done. I began to suspect that the object was not to sell things and make money but to recite the wording perfectly.

Thankfully since then our office has become a little more sensible and if we make a good attempt at selling the service and checking the value/urgency we seem to be left alone.

[simjan]

today, got a word in ear, seemingly asked if they would like it tomorrow, but did not say did not ask the exact wording on the script for next sentance, so I could have missold a letter, so I am told, already said I would like help from a distance as finding the wording difficult for people who have not got a clear understanding of english,and find it easier and get more responce if you ask exactly what is in the packet. really busy in postshop, under stress, they know about this and nothing has been done, tried to get me to sign a letter last friday stating that I did not want one to one help( the idea of one to one is someone sitting at the side or standing behind me while working, I did not say I didnt want any help with the converstion just wanted help from a distance, the help they have given me is get someone to listen to a conversation {a member of staff} pull me in office and threaten me with a warning

[silkspectre]

I've argued this out with my sales manager too many times. I don't say this to every customer as sometimes it shows no common sense at all and like you said completely contradicts some of the more important elements of customer service. I hate seeing any of my colleagues reciting all the sales babble at a customer, completely oblivious to how unhelpful they sound. As long as you've sold the customer the best service to suit their needs, you won't get any complaints from the public. Which imo is more important rather than whether or not your sales manager is going to get a big bonus for reaching their targets through YOUR hard work.

[kathleen1]

I've argued this out with my sales manager too many times. I don't say this to every customer as sometimes it shows no common sense at all and like you said completely contradicts some of the more important elements of customer service. I hate seeing any of my colleagues reciting all the sales babble at a customer, completely oblivious to how unhelpful they sound. As long as you've sold the customer the best service to suit their needs, you won't get any complaints from the public. Which imo is more important rather than whether or not your sales manager is going to get a big bonus for reaching their targets through YOUR hard work.

One of our staff argued this out with our manager and a sales manager who was at our office on this certain day doing coaching on the counter, next thing we know she had put a report in about the clerk who showed her no respect and was not selling special delivery to script, he is now on an unofficial plan for his behaviour so that just shows us we are not allowed to speak or have an opion of our own or maybe its POL bullying again.

[silkspectre]

I've argued this out with my sales manager too many times. I don't say this to every customer as sometimes it shows no common sense at all and like you said completely contradicts some of the more important elements of customer service. I hate seeing any of my colleagues reciting all the sales babble at a customer, completely oblivious to how unhelpful they sound. As long as you've sold the customer the best service to suit their needs, you won't get any complaints from the public. Which imo is more important rather than whether or not your sales manager is going to get a big bonus for reaching their targets through YOUR hard work.

One of our staff argued this out with our manager and a sales manager who was at our office on this certain day doing coaching on the counter, next thing we know she had put a report in about the clerk who showed her no respect and was not selling special delivery to script, he is now on an unofficial plan for his behaviour so that just shows us we are not allowed to speak or have an opion of our own or maybe its POL bullying again.

Your sales manager sounds unreasonable to put a report in on something from one day of coaching. As the people who have to deal with the customers day to day we deserve to have an opinion about the way we interact with them seen as WE'RE the ones who have to take all the hassle from them when they're not happy with pricing/services. That's what bugs me about all these sales people in PO, they seem totally deluded about the experience of being on the counter and try to talk as if we're all a 'team'. Difference being I'm on minimum wage, getting no rewards for how many sales I make, and they're getting bonuses for teaching us a poxy conversartion -rant over- : )

[kathleen1]

Its not a rant you are 100% right we are the ones sitting there all day, sooner they get rid of all these sales people the better,
thats my opion I can't believe the time and money wasted, roll on the Mutualisation we might get back to basics and serve the customers who are left and to be honest its not many now because we have done a pretty good job driving them away with all the sales culture.

[silkspectre]

Its not a rant you are 100% right we are the ones sitting there all day, sooner they get rid of all these sales people the better,
thats my opion I can't believe the time and money wasted, roll on the Mutualisation we might get back to basics and serve the customers who are left and to be honest its not many now because we have done a pretty good job driving them away with all the sales culture.

This exactly!

[FinancialSpecialist]

Your sales manager sounds unreasonable to put a report in on something from one day of coaching. As the people who have to deal with the customers day to day we deserve to have an opinion about the way we interact with them seen as WE'RE the ones who have to take all the hassle from them when they're not happy with pricing/services. That's what bugs me about all these sales people in PO, they seem totally deluded about the experience of being on the counter and try to talk as if we're all a 'team'. Difference being I'm on minimum wage, getting no rewards for how many sales I make, and they're getting bonuses for teaching us a poxy conversartion -rant over- : )

You are living in a dream world if you expect the Post Office to not have a sales culture. Ultimately if the government were bankrolling us we wouldn't need a sales culture, but that is not the case. Have a look around you at all the public services cutting back and closing down and while you are at it take a look at any private sector, public facing businesses and how they are adapting. Resisting the sales culture will only make you unhappy, it is not going to go away.

Your own manager is not to blame, although it seems that this treatment was a bit unreasonable. At the end of the day though, if we want to keep our jobs the business will have to make money. If you walked in to any other business and asked for something, you would expect them to offer you all the options and not just assume that you wanted the cheapest one. Asking if they would like it there tomorrow and if it is worth any more than £46 is such an easy thing to do and ensures they are sending it the right way. If they answer no to both then I don't see why you should offer SD, but if they say yes then as a service to them you should offer SD. I seriously don't see what the fuss is about.

[kathleen1]

Someone doesn't understand the question, probably because we serve the public all day long and they play on a computer, whats all this big fuss about? Its only mis-selling to our customers and ripping them off for at least £5.45 for a christmas card that would normally be 46p first class stamp and arrive tomorrow anyway.

WHATS ALL THE FUSS? I have no idea do you?