Crazy customers and dog nails!!!!

[kozak11288]

Was needing to vent and needing some advice here. Just this week had a customer came in with a blue heeler. Complained about the price to bathe the dog. I gave the customer a break since the dog was clearly a mix and smaller then the average heeler and labeled the dog a mix rather then a heeler to help with the price.. Customer wanted nail buffing so I did that as well. Completed the service, owner came to pick up the dog, complained about price and wanted to use a coupon. Used the coupon complained some more because its not enough. But sadly that's all I could do. The customer was given the dog, customer gave her a quick look over. Didn't see any problems and went home.

I get a call the next day saying that I split the dog's nail and cut the paw at the base of the nail. Asked the customer to bring in the dog so I could see my mistake. Course that wouldn't be possible because the customer has left town. Long story short the company told the customer to take the dog to the vet, fax the bill to the store and then come back for a refund. Even though nothing happen to the dog's nails while it was in the shop and two other witnesses to verify that the dog was in perfect condition during the groom and upon check out. Even the owner gave a once over the dog and left.

Does this kind of stuff happen often? I've had nothing but customer complaints about pricing of products, services and our policies of needing rabies verification and not being able to muzzle. But never anything like this. Should I just let it go and if the customer comes back wanting services again inform them that I can refer them elsewhere because our services are not satisfactory?

[HoneyandChewiespal]

First - breathe deeply. The crazies are crawling out of the woodwork already. (I've found that election years seem to bring them out early).
Second- stop discounting and trying accommodate the whiners. You provide a service and your prices are ( or should be) clearly stated. I cite a price range with the follow up of ' and I try to keep the price down but .... And then restate why the price may be on the high end ). Learned that from this forum
Third - keep records on the crazies. In a prior business these were called 'Hoover files' and contained every detail I could include about attitude, habits, kids, medical , and so on. This way when they try to book again I'm forewarned about what to possibly expect. Additionally, take photos when you have someone who is constantly bartering and questioning. You'll develop s sense for these.

Finally - talk to your management about pricing. If you're getting a lot of negative feedback then they need to hear it. Depending on your locale you could be out of sync with the economy Or you could just be living in an area filled with chronically unhappy complainers.

[Dragynwing]

Hello employee! While people like this aren't the norm at my salon, we get a lot of cheapskates. You will not be able to please them. The corporation does not help you out in weeding out this clientel. In fact, they go out of their way to attract them. Our base grooming price is too low. I groomed a Mini Schnauzer today for $40. It's a joke. Their prices aren't even right for the breed. I believe that heelers/cattledogs are being charged like Akitas. It's effed up and they won't fix it. They will, however, offer new and exciting discounts every single month instead of just raising the prices to make us competitive.

We are allowed to refuse service to customers but it is strongly discouraged. We have a client that we see every 2 months who is a royal pain in the butt. If I was staying at the store, I would refuse to see her dogs because nothing we have ever done is good enough for her YET SHE COMES BACK LIKE CLOCKWORK! I'm over corporate. I leave in 2 weeks and while I'll miss my coworkers (mostly) and I'll miss my clients and pups, I won't miss the cheap, undervalued prices, the phone or the of corp.

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[DogGamut]

Yes, Customers will lie but your real problem is management. It sounds like you work for petco which i have worked for and ended up leaving because of how completely out of touch they are with the grooming industry and how they refuse to listen to professional advice and then end up trying to make you the bad guy. these people know they can get free grooms and free health care with corporations. I wish i could offer advice but In my experience corp is just a ball of stress because logic and reasoning never get through to them.

[Countrygrl]

Dragon, what area are you? Just curious for the sake of pricing.

[kaida714]

Pretty sure you work at the same corp I do, the no muzzles tipped me off. People are like that, unfortunately. I feel like at corporate people are more inclined to complain and ask for freebies because they know they will get it. Corporate wants to appease every customer to try and keep their business, unless the customer is a big problem. Talk to your manager, if he/she doesn't say you are doing anything wrong then don't worry.

[Nitewalk]

I can't believe how any self respecting groomer can work for a company that is more concerned with how the public might view a muzzled dog than their employees safety.

As for your issue brush it off and move on. Do you really want that kind of client? There are plenty of dogs to go around.

[ABDG]

The reason that big boxes attract those kind of customers is because they know that they can whine loud enough and get free groom or discounts. It would not work at private salon. Like others said, if you work at corporate big box, a lot depends on your salon and store manager. Being an employee there is really not much you can do. The store manager can decide to continue accept this customer and you will have to do it, unless your salon manager can back you up.

[Dragynwing]

Oh, one more thing. Be careful if they write up an incident report. You will accrue penalty points. Get so many in a year and you are up for immediate termination. If this guy went to the vet and it wasn't a big deal, don't let them rack points against you because of his drama.

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[Brit]

I don't work corp but we have a pet owner take a good look at the dog before they leave, top to bottom.