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Years ago, I was at a huge electronics store in NYC. I wanted to buy something small, maybe 30 bucks worth. The cashier won’t bill unless I gave him my phone nu
by akudha 5y ago
Years ago, I was at a huge electronics store in NYC. I wanted to buy something small, maybe 30 bucks worth. The cashier won’t bill unless I gave him my phone number. I asked him why he needs my number, he said “in case you return the item”. I told him he needs the receipt, not phone number, while returning items. He didn’t budge. I didn’t want to cause a scene, so I left without purchasing.
It is not just collecting the information, it is also treating customers like idiots and with total contempt. I never set foot in that store again.
There should be a oath (like doctors) for software professionals. I don’t think it will practically change anything, but at least it will create a tiny bit of awareness. People who code shit like this parking app should really ask themselves if it is worth it
- chillwaves 5y agoImo, name and shame.
- mLuby 5y agoTo be fair to the cashier, they were probably given no choice in the matter. One of those "I'm sorry, the system won't let me proceed without this info." "Required form fields" are one of those great power/great responsibility things.
- jcpst 5y agoIt makes me wonder, when I draw a line in the sand with a clerk, how often they just enter junk data into the system so they can get on with their shift.
- rurp 5y agoMany years ago I worked as a cashier (at Trader Joes no less) and occasionally had to ask customers for this sort of information. I had zero problem just punching in fake data if the customer didn't want to provide it, and sometimes I just went ahead without asking, if the customer was clearly busy with a crazy kid/pet/whatever. Some cashiers were diligent about the data collection but many, probably most, had a similar approach to mine.
- BeFlatXIII 5y agoPoisoning data collection is one of the many small positive actions a front-line employee can make without too much risk to their livelihood.
- mixmastamyk 5y agoWhat kind of data? I’ve had stores ask for telephone and said no but that’s about it.
- akudha 5y agoI am not mad at the cashier at all. Poor kid was probably paid the bare minimum and had nothing to do with any policy. That is why I didn’t argue with him (plus there were customers behind me, I didn’t want to hold the line). I asked him once, and left immediately after. Retail workers are already in a shitty job, no point in making it worse
- seccess 5y agoNext time you wind up in a situation like this, just lie about your number.
- prepend 5y agoMy number is always 212-867-5309. And it works great for returns. Comically, it seems many others use this as I frequently find loyalty points already there. I’d like to find the club of likeminded folks. Sadly more places are requiring validation.
- chana_masala 5y agoIs the number arbitrary or a reason you chose it?
- wedowhatwedo 5y agohttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/867-5309/Jenny https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/867-5309/Jenny
- deleted 5y ago[deleted]
- prepend 5y agoBelow links to the song. It is arbitrary I suppose as it could be any number that the songwriter worked into the lyrics. It’s also funny when telemarketers from other countries aren’t familiar and accept it as a real number.
- akudha 5y agoYou’re missing the point, I think. Lying won’t help, as very few people would do it. Most people would just give their number - mostly because they don’t realize it is shit practice to collect numbers, some because they don’t want confrontation. By politely pointing out the absurdity, we can maybe raise a tiny bit of awareness. I am sure at least a handful of people behind me in the line noticed.
- ben_w 5y ago“You need a number? Ok, +44 908 …” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Premium-rate_telephone_number https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Premium-rate_telephone_number I hear you though. I failed to receive a flight ticket because the airline accepted but could not use an address with a + before the @; and when I tried to use a website to prove my identity to get a local SIM after moving county, customer service claimed to only support Windows and Android and wouldn’t help me when I connected via a Mac and my phone was from Apple; and the local public transport app didn’t let me buy tickets when it was installed on an iPad, only on a phone; and a few days ago I got an invoice with “click here to pay” text, except the invoice is an image and there is no hyperlink.
- anjbe 5y agoUsing a premium‐rate phone number doesn’t help anything though. Like the parent mentioned, it’s not like the retailer ever actually calls the number. The problem is that advertisers use the number to correlate one person’s activity across multiple retailers and services.
- gnabgib 5y agoWell done standing your ground. Some retailers will try the same with postal code/zip.. that's shameless marketing collection to show which regions are performing with fliers. You should always be able to say "No" (and many cashiers just accept this, but of course it's framed like you must to continue), if they push you `H0H 0H0` (those are zeros) is a valid Canadian postal code for a fellow who won't be visiting the policy creators.
- nicbou 5y agoI like to believe that those who spam this postal code end up on the naughty list
- oceanghost 5y agoCosmo Kramer: They're trying to screw with your head. Jerry: Now why would a junior high school want to screw with my head? Cosmo Kramer: Why does Radio Shack ask for your phone number when you buy batteries? I don't know. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WgfaYKoQxzQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WgfaYKoQxzQ
- JohnFen 5y agoI remember when they asked for your address as well. But, at every one I ever set foot in, they also took "no" for an answer.
- Eelongate 5y ago"My name is Jenny, and my number is 867-5309"
- bojangleslover 5y agoSame thing happened to me at Currys in the UK. Argued with the dude for half an hour and he finally gave in. And they wonder why Amazon is dominating retail. Definitely heard that food and parking are different.
- JohnFen 5y agoWhen I am faced with this sort of nonsense, and if I really need to make the purchase, I just make up whatever data they're asking for.