Suddenly no one will talk to me

[Realitea]

I live in a tiny close knit town. Great if you like a sense of community but not great when someone turns against you.
Suddenly everyone in my local shop aren't talking to me. They look away if I see them in the street whereas we used to talk.
I know I should rise above it and I'm a real wimp when it comes to confrontation.
I overheard one lady in the shop yesterday say something about me when she thought I'd left (but I was actually loitering around the exit!)
I couldn't quite make out what she said.
This is driving me nuts now. I feel like I can't go there anymore.
How does this happen with adults?

Atenco it is more professional to either approach the manager or head office. the manager can then speak to the SA. Personally 'miserable' is a bit of a moot point as I mentioned before, maybe the SA is generally miserable for a variety of reasons. If she is consistently rude and unhelpful then those are far more valid reasons in my opinion for making a complaint.

Twitter is social media and on the one hand I can see that certain things can be said there (if you read where I tweeted a company who charged my paypal account wrongly twice because they didn't properly respond to an email). I still think OP should have spoken to management or HO before making a comment on social media.

As I said again and OP says herself 'she feels like she can't go there anymore' well as I said before it's tiny close knit town mentality, rife with gossip etc.

Consequences for pulling people up on their poor behaviour? Then great! Bring on the consequences! It is truly shameful when we as a society feel fearful of 'consequences' for standing up for ourselves and/or speaking out against disgraceful conduct by others, including those who give horrible customer service. I would be happy to suffer the consequences for standing up and be counted. What is that saying "all that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good wo/men to do nothing".

Whether it be a small village or big city, never fear the consequence of people 'not speaking to you'. What is this? High school? What do we teach our kids? Don't stand up for what is right, don't let our voice be heard in case some horrible folk do not speak to us?

OP, go shop elsewhere and wear your 'they are not speaking to me' as a badge of honour. The moral fabric of our society is decaying because too many of us turn a blind eye to these things or take a cowardly route. The manager cannot fail to see that this member of staff is rude. The OP's complaint is certainly not the first to bring attention to the conduct of this woman. She has been there for some time abusing customers. So the evidence that she has been there for some time and continues to be there is evidence that no amount of complaints to the manager will change anything.

Baba - ok as a customer you can comment but her manager is there to discipline her not a customer.

also you do not know if other customers have spoken to the manager about this SA.

Of course the customer is there to discipline a business for poor customer service. Through complaining directly to the business, through taking their business elsewhere, through publicly shaming them, or all of those. I absolutely believe customers have a vital role to play in disciplining business especially if they continue to condone poor behaviour by their employees.

Competition (reasonable prices and high quality service) depends on responsible customers like the OP.

The store can pursue it's own form of discipline of the woman but that does not preclude the OP from legitimately pursuing hers.

A lot of businesses will only make changes when the are hit by reputation erosion.

The OP has done nothing wrong and should laugh in the face of this truly childish and bullying behaviour by the store and its employees. If that store was truly serious about customer service, no way would the OP enter the store again and face 'consequences' of the store employees continuing to dish out terrible service with attitude towards her. Their behaviour proves that she was right and should have done more. Going to the manager would have done zilch. Why else can the staff feel it is okay to treat the OP, a customer, in this way when she enters the store? They have clearly stepped up the bad customer service.

Baba I can see you've never worked in public facing roles...

My last boss wouldn't have had clients who were rude (and rude estate agents) discipline me - by all means they can pass comment.

I am actually staggered by your comment - so you think a customer should discipline a SA in a store for customer service if it is brusque or not to their liking?? don't you think the manager is there to discipline the staff?!

All this SA has done for the OP to comment has been 'miserable'. If she was rude or unhelpful why not tweet and FB that too?!

You have no idea what the OP was like - maybe she was rude to the SA - we only have her version of events.

I think I'll step away from this now as you clearly think it's ok to discipline SAs etc and expect them to be 100% perfect every day and not to have an off day.

Atenco it is more professional to either approach the manager or head office

Since when is a customer a professional? You are confusing workplace problems with customer service problems.

ok as a customer... it is best to approach the manager or HO.

either way I'm getting sick of other people's attitudes towards front facing staff.

my last and only reception incorporated role you would not believe how many people take it upon themselves to be rude even when you are polite, friendly and helpful. estate agents are the worst. I stuck 5 years of dealing with rude and abusive customers. I was polite and helpful to them all.

either way I'm getting sick of other people's attitudes towards front facing staff

Well you have a point there, SuperFly.

Super fly, please re-read. You clearly misunderstood. I never said customers should discipline staff in store. I said customers have their own means of disciplining staff/businesses. Please re-read and try to understand instead of claiming I have said something I clearly did not.

first para - err no can't see where I misread that Baba - ah no apologies I did read your second sentence. still it came over wrongly. I dread to think how you come across in real life if I can misread that para.

Of course the customer is there to discipline a business for poor customer service. Through complaining directly to the business, through taking their business elsewhere, through publicly shaming them, or all of those. I absolutely believe customers have a vital role to play in disciplining business especially if they continue to condone poor behaviour by their employees

Superfly, what is so hard to understand that a customer can discipline a staff/business THROUGH complaining directly to the business, THROUGH taking their business elsewhere, THROUGH publicly shaming them, OR all of those/combination of those? Are you seriously saying that customers are NOT allowed to discipline staff/businesses through these means? Surely you cannot be serious to say that only the business should discipline itself or its staff.

I think you are mistaking what I have said for a customer directly approaching a member of staff and "disciplining" them. If that is not where you confusion lies, then I can only say thank God the UK does not subscribe to your idea of customer complaining about poor customer service.

Superfly, I have been thinking about this and I can't get my head round why you think customers cannot (or should not?) discipline those providing poor customer service. Is it because of the use of the word 'discipline' or are you really saying that customers who are unhappy with the service received must ONLY speak to a manager who will then decide on next best step in dealing with the employee? That a customer who uses Twitter, FB, pens bad reviews on available websites, etc are out of order to use these means of disciplining businesses/staff who are rude?

Businesses have means/procedures for addressing staff behaviour. Equally, customers have means (and thankfully the freedom here in the UK) to express their dissatisfaction.

You phrased your sentence wrong obviously you find it hard to express yourself hence social media.

I'm not replying anymore to this inane post!

Ok I will now reply again as on phone earlier.

This is a small shop part of a chain - do you really think a tweet or FB comment was appropriate in this context?

with larger companies - John Lewis etc a tweet would be fine. if you complain about eg a small boutique in your village/home town you have to prepare if you frequent it that people talk.

so no I do not think customers should tweet/FB personal comments (which this was). in fact it was out of context as the only comment was 'miserable' and nothing about rudeness.

I have commented on TripAdvisor re B&Bs, small local beauty salons and in one case got into a slanging match with the owner of such a salon (she was very rude to everyone and has since sold her business) as she was falsely posting glowing reviews about her business) through Wahanda. But I wouldn't go in that salon again not just because of bad CS but because I disliked the rude owner and didn't want her to get my business.

Really Superfly? I phrased my sentence wrongly? Which sentence exactly? Your level of comprehensive is clearly questionable.

Thought you were not reply any more to "this inane post". You display a level of childishness that is pitiful.

Yes, I think it was entirely appropriate for the OP to use Twitter, FB, or whatever else she chose or chooses (if she wishes to further call the "small shop part of chain" out on the continued poor customer service). The size is irrelevant.

I came back partly because i re-read both your charming posts.

Just because you hear what you want to hear, can't obviously type well enough to separate a paragraph and resort to insults...

it's 'comprehension' not 'comprehensive' the latter refers to a secondary school....

oh and I bolded your paragraph. Obviously your eyesight must be going.

There was me and another poster who thought social media inappropriate. As I said before it is not me who's bleating about being frozen out of a local shop. And if I did do this (not that I would) I would accept people talking behind my back.

You are obviously a foreigner not used to the UK's way of working/customer service, quite obvious by your way of using words and phrasing.

LOL! My sentence was perfectly fine. It was short and then followed by the exaplantion. Your comprehension is definitely suspect. I am not precious about spending time checking my posts for typos, you can do that for me. What I can say categorically is that there is nothing wrong with my sentence. You clearly understood that I meant to tupe comprehension rather than comprehensive.

I don't know what you are expecting. For me to say that you have won the "argument"? Well yes sweetheart, you have won the argument. Now run along and play in your juvenile world,.

To reiterate before I leave, the OP was absolutely right Twittering, Facebooking, or whatever else.

I suggest you have a new career in diplomatic corps...

patronising as well?! I am not your sweetheart.

go away you rude woman. oh you're quite new or namechanged?!

Sweetheart, whether I am new or namechanged, what does that have to do with you or the subject matter of this thread?

Go away, you lovely person.

ah a troll well reported honey.

Someone disagrees with you and respond in kind to your rudeness and you call me troll? Good day sweetheart. I hope you feel the better for it.

Very strange and overly sensitive behaviour. If you can't take it, then don't dish it out.

you have few posts and the ones you DO have seem to be in a fighting mode...

I call troll... albeit one who can't spell or use English, doesn't offer up new or name-changing (I admit see if I've name-changed which I have about twice).

and a patronising person (very rude to use 'sweetheart' in a patronsing tap on the head way) to boot. Hope you don't topple off your pedestal any time soon!

I feel sorry for you my dearest. Long live fighting mode and I feel flattered that you have tracked my posts. You must have been really bothered to have taken the time and effort to do so. I could care less whether or not you have named changed (or name-changed or change names).

You English is top-dollar (or top dollar or top of the dollar). You must spend a lot of time on here ensuring your English and spellings are precise. Frankly, I do not have the time and have better things to do that obsessing and reviewing my posts to ensure that they are without errors.

My pedestal is very stable. I hope you do not fall of yours?

buh-bye. like I say I've reported you.