Greetings!
To a lot of traders out there who lack proper marketing etiquette when it comes to approaching clients and customers, most of them justify their behavior by claiming it’s a reaction to how poorly they’ve been treated by customers. However, this isn’t entirely true. As the saying goes, “charity begins at home.” A trader who consistently acts unprofessionally towards 80% of the customers they encounter is likely naturally inclined to behave that way.
I decided to bring this up because I’ve worked in sales alongside colleagues and observed how poor their attitudes often were when attending to customers.
Personally, as a customer to any trader, I expect to be treated well because I extend the same courtesy to anyone providing a service or selling goods. If I’m not treated the way I expect, it’s difficult for me to leave the situation without addressing it. Depending on the individual’s age, I’ll either speak to them politely or raise my voice to make my point.
The time I was treated badly by a trader:
I have experienced poor treatment many times, but I’ll talk about the most recent one.
Last week, I went to buy wood from a shop not far from my street. When I arrived, I met a lady about my age, who happened to be the daughter of the shop’s owner. After selecting the wood I wanted to purchase, I asked her for the account details to make payment. She pointed to a piece of paper pinned to the wall with the account details. I chose one of the accounts listed, made the payment, and informed her to confirm the transaction.
When she checked her POS terminal, she couldn’t find the payment and immediately began complaining that I had sent the money to the other account, which she had no access to. I asked her if she had specified which account to use, and she insisted she had, but she hadn’t. Her attention was clearly focused on her phone, and judging by her expression, it was obvious she was upset that morning—her face was scrunched up in frustration.
When she attempted to blame me further with her confrontational and girlie attitude, I quickly raised my voice and made my point clear. My choice of words was so direct and educational that she couldn’t argue back. Her mood changed, and she eventually apologized, reluctantly. That incident left me angrier than I had felt in a long time.
The time I was treated nicely by a trader:
Just as I always expect, I’ve been treated kindly many times—so many that I’ve lost count, as it’s become a normal occurrence for me.
I go to the market once a month to buy materials for work. There’s a particular shop where I buy most of my supplies, owned by a lady. Personally, I’m not a fan of over-familiarity, so I prefer to simply make my purchases and leave. Occasionally, I visit other shops nearby if I don’t feel like going to her shop, and I don’t feel guilty about it.
One day, after making my purchases at her shop, I realized that the money I had—both in my account and in cash—wasn’t enough to cover the bill. When I suggested dropping some items, the woman told me not to worry and to take everything without paying. At first, I thought she meant I could pay later, but to my surprise, she said the items were free. These items were worth ₦5,000!
I couldn’t believe her generosity. I know I’m a regular customer, though I don’t always make large purchases, but for her to give me ₦5,000 worth of items for free was extraordinary.
Perhaps this was her way of trying to tie me to her shop. However, I'm double-headed, I can't be tied. Lol
Thanks for reading.
Image is mine
See you reading things into a simple generosity by a kind trader. She was just taken care of her special customer. See it as a thank you for your patronage gift rather than a gift to tie you down 😜.
In life, we encounter the good and the bad. That's life o and it won't change
You can't blame me. This is Nigeria and things like that don't happen often. They're once in a blue moon thing.😂
Thanks for stopping by
You're welcome
Interesting read, @kingsleyy Kingsley. It’s true that dealing with traders is just like flipping a coin. Some leave you with a bitter taste, while others care and value customer relationship. That first experience you shared must have been frustrating; it’s sometimes normal to have a mistake happen, but it's frustrating to face unnecessary attitude on top of it.
That unnecessary attitude, that thing can vex me ehhh! As if they forced the trader to come out for business.
Well, that's life for us.
Thanks for stopping by
Some traders can really piss you off and some are just naturally nice.
Seriously, some traders lack manner of approaching, some would even insult you for not buying from them.