The other dirty 'C' word...

Compromise! :)

A few months ago, the Catholic church issued a statement, that women in the 24-35 age bracket were running the risk of missing out on their life partner, if they were too picky. It continued that women needed to reassess their standards and evaluate their wishlist of what makes for a fantastic mate. Essentially women in this age bracket (and any other) either need to settle for Mr Almost-Right, or risk being left on the shelf, destined to become some kind of weird cat lady. 

I will admit, I scoffed at this suggestion. I have been in my fair share of mediocre relationships and so would not even contemplate contentment with a crummy cad.  

What I have been guilty of, however, is settling when it comes to snagging my catch as a consumer. It does pain me to hand over my hard earned cash to an outlet where I feel undervalued as a customer. But where do we draw the line? On principle alone, do we forego our needs as consumers? How much as we willing to compromise in order to complete our shopping objectives?  

I found myself in this very conundrum a few weeks ago, as I searched for a new pair of shoes. The first store I entered had the most amazing shoes, but their service was absolutely appalling! I had to interrupt a conversation between two of the staff ( about their sporting achievements on the weekend no less) just to get out of the store. By contrast, I entered a store, with absolutely wonderful service, but alas they did not have the pair of shoes I liked in my size. I then spent the next two hours pondering. Contemplating. Weighing up with my own conscience if I could handle making a purchase from a store which provided abhorrent service. Yes, I am one of those consumers. The ones who would rather pay a few dollars extra to reward a store for meeting or exceeding my expectations. I am a dreamer, in love with the notion that service actually matters to retailers. 

Historically, retailers have sermonised like the Catholic church. Consumers have been told they will simply not find anyone better. Like a scornful ex, consumers have been manipulated into believing no one will ever love them, as they loved them, and that they will be crawling back on their knees in the foreseeable future. Floundering retailers maintain that their trump card over online retailers is that they offer customer service, and that the product is immediately available. I am dubious of the likelihood of downtrodden consumers willfully ignoring the past wrongs of a retailer, simply because they can provide them with the required good immediately. And with online retailers such as The Iconic, offering same day delivery, traditional stores are losing their power over consumers.  

However, while consumers continue to purchase goods through retailers, even when the customer service aspect of the transaction is deplorable, retailers will continue to tell us, (and themselves) that we continue to shop there because we crave their quality service. Perhaps it is time to assess our relationships with retail stores. We can either give them the silent treatment and sulk off to have our needs met in cyber space, or we can communicate to them when our expectations and needs are not being met. Social media is proving to be a powerful tool for both consumers and businesses, and as such it should be used to both praise and chastise. The classic, "a happy customer will tell no one, a dissatisfied customer will tell ten people" has never been more true than in the present day. Disputes are tweeted, Facebooked, blogged, and shared with the entire world. Businesses, both large and small are accountable to a wider audience and their actions and reactions are noted by potential and existing customers.

If you are communicating, but your retailer has their fingers in their ears shouting, "la la la la...." then perhaps it is time to break up.