Bitching and Complaining....
by Roy Mackey
Here is a collection of my favorite things I like to bitch and complain about. Minor things that mean nothing but better to vent them. Ok my life is kind of dull and I do obviously have too much time on my hands. But you gotta admit a lot of them are true...
Cheap Couches
Have you ever wondered they made couches bullet proof back in the fifties when kids were too disciplined to jump o them. Now today they make them barely strong enough to even hold you sitting their politely and kids jump on them steady? We got stabbed on an iskea couch once. I flopped back into it once a little too hard and heard a crack.... sure enough the main spine broke and I had to patcher up to make it useable again. Being somewhat handy I was able to too. Though when I opened up the bottom what I saw made me realize how stupid buying cheap stuff is. The quality of the frame is so pathetic I was embarrassed to have even bought the thing. It really is true you have to be rich to afford cheap couches.....
Have you ever noticed that a lot of people hate spam with a passion?
They whine and complain about it non stop.
Yet go home and spend fifteen to twenty minutes an hour
watching commercials on tv every night?
Receipts
Have you ever noticed receipts stores hand you to prove you actually paid for the junk they sold you? I mean have you ever really stopped and looked at them? Man what a confusing nightmare? Why is that? Well like every other problem in the world there is a self centered accountant to blame. All they think about is how easy it is for them to keep their records straight.
Strange actually since you think someone smart would ask the simple question. Does anyone care about the receipt? Well the answer is most don't and the rest desperately do. The rest being everyone in business who needs that receipt for their income tax!!! If you own a small business you know what I am talking about. Cheapo receipts that are impossible to figure out not only cost money but time also. Good receipts are vital. At one point I was forced to stop shopping at Cambodia tire since their receipts were fading to nothing in less than a couple of months!!! I am sure they had an agreement with the income tax people. I lost a lot of deductions in that scam. Receipts for small business are worth what the receipt was for. If you loose the receipt then you cannot deduct that amount off the tax you owe. That means you have to pay that amount again in the form of taxes!!!
The worst part about it is they also hide the date... usually mixed in with some other numbers. On top of that what happened to Sept/19/2011 instead of the new 09/08/12? Is that the day first or the month?? Wait I will just look it up on the net since some stores put the day first other put the month first? They also use code words for the products you buy so at the year end you cannot remember if that was for your brothers hemorroid cream you bought him or parts for your business. Great idea since it saves them ink... those accountants aren't stupid. Of course if you shop at hopeless depot almost one half of the receipt is some network marketing type of win something scam to lure you to their tedious site which will likely just get your email on some spammers list!! I often wonder how many real people slog through that stupid tactic? And people wonder why so many businesses fail. It is obvious... people arnt stupid and willing to just lop money into some business that does not treat them like the humans they are. Quite simple actually. If they spent a little more time keeping the customers happy then the share holders would be even happier.
OOOOOOOOOOOOO
Have you ever noticed the dumb, accountant run, bakeries and coffee shops around that put their very large muffins in the display case right up at the front? It is a fools marketing trick that people not too sharp in business do. Sure it draws your attention right in since they look so good and at a good price. Trouble is when you get yours popped on the plate from the back row it is this little runt of the crowd. You feel like you were ripped off and misled by false advertising. This always leaves a bad taste in your mouth that often over rides the sweet taste of the muffin. Sure if you are desperate you might order one again but likely not.
Quite often I have seen those of a bolder more confident nature actually ask the server for a particular one in attempts to counter the counter trick. I do it all the time. Sure the bad taste is still there but not near as bad. The trouble with that is it means I have to fight for my food. I gave that up years ago when I stopped fishing. I figured if I have to fight for it I don't need it that bad. I admit I am a little on the lazy side. Mostly likely you are too or you would be walking around in the forest with a thunder stick look for meat.
Now I have actually noticed a cafe once that was doing the opposite. They put the larger muffins on the back row. I had Sam Slick right behind me in line so did not want to look poor by asking for the bigger one. Thus I just placed my order for one without picking. Well when that sucker landed on my plate with a thump was I ever impressed. I felt like I had really scored a free bonus. I was in love with this joint and could not wait to go back there again and order another one. That experience made me feel the exact opposite of the other joint that "ripped me off" so to speak. What made it so great is I got more than I had bargained for. It was great. A lot of the other shops think they are fooling people but sadly that's not the case. People are not as stupid as they sometimes make out to be. Most owners of those "cheatin" shops will eventually be going on about how tough their business... was.
Apple knows this especially with their app store. I buy an app there, download it and use it. Then next week when the designer makes the app even better mine gets a free upgrade!! Can you imagine if you bought a new car and that happened!!! Sure it is easier for the app guys to do that but still what a score. I have bought apps in the past that sucked and then after a few upgrades were actually quite good. A free score. Everyone loves a free score no matter how much money they have. It is so funny but with companies like Apple setting such an obvious example you would think that more people would follow suit? After all Apple may be stupid but their banker sure don't think so.....
OOOOOOOOOOO
You know business tricks are a favorite of mine. I never apply them but love to observe them. It is all in the details that make a place great. Sharp business owners watch for these details that could be improved. It is what makes your business stand out in the crowd. Especially these days. With the latest "business clean-up" (hard economic times) under way tons of business will be biting the dust. Why? Mostly because they started letting the details slide. A prime example of this is Home Depot. Have you been there lately. At least the one in Vancouver on terminal? I don't go there much any more mostly because they are almost always out of stock or quit selling something based on I assume their Inventory Management Software. I guess with the economy down they are stocking less and sure enough sales are down. Anyway I had not been there for quite a few months or more. On my last trip though the the place was filthy, absolutely no staff anywhere to be found, shelves half empty everywhere, no more burger joint. Generally a slobs mess. I had three hundred to spend but no luck... outa stock. Thus I opted to do what I am doing more and more lately which is to go online and have a servant bring it right to my door in a few days. Usually the charge for this is only $20. give or take. Of course I have to wait a bit but sure beats the frustration of driving across town, fighting traffic, taking twenty minutes to find help only to have him tell me they were out of stock on this, no longer stock that and would have more of these in tomorrow. Sure if you are unemployed or rich with all the time in the world then no big deal head on over if nothing else you can get a little fresh air and exercise.
OOOOOOOOOOOOO
You know one of my favorite pet peeves is when I am getting change from a cashier. Not all do it but some do which makes it really awkward. They first put the bills into your hand and then set the coins on top of your bills. As if the bills will wrap the coins and keep them in place. The opposite is true. You have to hold your hand dead level or the coins will slide off onto the floor and you end up crawling around on the floor trying to recover your change. If they put the coins into your palm and then the bills next you can hold the bills with your fingers and cup the coins safely and easily in your palm. Once you have walked away from the till and made room for the next guy you can put the bills back into your wallet or where ever and then stuff the coins into your pocket.
Part of the reason this happens so often is the business owner is in the back room being hypnotized by the accountants, who think they can run a business. While they are busy trying to convince him to no longer stock some particular product, actual paying customers out on the front line are being irritated and embarrassed into crawling around on the floor looking for their change!! Irritation and embarrassment will not help convince your customers to come back again soon!! After all the most important time and place in any business is when the customer is handing, you the owner, their hard earned money. How they feel then will determine the likely hood they will want to "transact" with you again. It has always amazed me that businesses staff these extremely important areas with often underpaid, under-trained and over-worked people. It's kind of like saying "thanks for ya cash sucka... and come again soon"