I travelled recently in the US and accompanied some people I was with on some shopping trips. I was once again struck by the fact that EVERYWHERE we went, we were greeted by courteous, friendly and, apparently, genuinely engaged staff. Wow!

It would seem that business owners in the US take customer service far more seriously than they do in “the frozen north”. In Canada there are a few places or individuals want to provide excellent service, but overall I find retail staff far too indifferent. Maybe it’s just the Canadian way to be laid back, but it comes off as disinterested and unfriendly in comparison to the US. This is even more apparent at certain “specialty stores” where, if you are not some sort of known expert in the product or field it is downright intimidating to deal there. Music and bicycles stores are a classic example of this.

Here’s a thought for business owners, the on-line shopping world is forever expanding – I can generally find most of what I want at competitive prices without having to deal with some patronizing, unfriendly (but “wicked cool”) dude at your store – who is more interested in texting or talking to his “bros” that are constantly hanging around. If you want me to be a customer, treat me with respect and courtesy and make me want to come back because of the service. I would actually prefer this and I would happily pay more for your products.