The UPS Store misses the mark

It was finally my turn, and as I walked up to the counter to send my two packages another woman came in from behind me carrying a FedEX box. She obviously had no idea that she was not welcome there.
“Excuse me, do you accept FedEX packages?”
“No we don’t,” frowned the UPS Store worker. Disgusted that she even had to dignify that question with a response.
“Well, do you know where they accept FedEX packages around here?” The woman asked cautiously.
“No idea,” the UPS worker said cynically, as if it was a completely ridiculous question to ask.

I’m sorry, but the social media world has made me far more sensitive to this kind of poor customer service. What was this UPS worker thinking? Did she really need to act this way?

The customer had a problem to solve, but didn’t find any help at the UPS Store. Granted, the customer wasn’t trying to send a package through UPS, but clearly she doesn’t send packages often. It was also likely that she didn’t CHOOSE FedEX, it looked like a pre-paid package that was possibly sent to her.

The UPS Store could have won a new customer for life by:
-Helping this woman find a store close by
-Looking up a store for her in the phone book or on the computer
-Being civil

Was her question really that absurd? She walked into a “UPS Store” that used to be Mailbox Express in attempts to send out a FedEX package. How dare she, right?

Note to UPS Store employees: Put the customer first by learning where the nearest FedEX drop-off location is. It is probably a frequently asked question.

With the increased transparency of the internet, average customer service won’t cut it. Maybe nobody from UPS will ever read this blog post, but you can guarantee that me and the woman with the FedEX box will go elsewhere to handle shipping needs.