Starbucks Baristas: The daily grind
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To all my SSVs out there... (self.starbucksbaristas)
submitted by ResidentialSaltbox
TL;DR. I had to train myself on most shift stuff, is it wrong to ask a customer to fill me in on a situation when they’re demanding a refund?
When a customer asks for a refund, is it out of line to ask about the situation and why I am giving them their money back? The last two times I have had to do it, the customer acted like I just shot their puppy between the eyes right in front of them.
For instance last night, we had a little problem customer who gets a short pike in a tall cup with steamed soy on the side and my DTO misunderstood her and charged a short pike and a short steamed soy. She asked what the total was and my DTO said $5.— and she was like that’s wrong it should be $2.–. That’s fine whatever we figured it out.
She got up to the window and went to pay and I hear my baristas calling for me (I was in the back doing the pull and count and didn’t know the exact situation.
I got up there and asked (in my nicest customer service voice) “hi I’m sorry, what was the issue?” She just said I want a refund. I responded with “oh okay what is the issue, would you just like a remake?” And she got irate and said no, I want a refund, I’m not explaining myself, you’re going to give me my money now. And I was not in the mood to deal with it so I did it and she goes “so do you want these back?” And i said, “unfortunately due to covid, we cannot take drinks back once you’ve touched them” and she just left them on the drive thru shelf and said well it looks like you just did and drove off.
Turns out she was complaining the coffee wasn’t hot even though it could not have been over 5 minutes old, was steaming, and when we temped it, it was almost 200F.
Like you could have just said that instead of being a bitch. I just want to know why I am giving you your money back so I can enter in the code. I don’t actually care but you don’t have to act like I just hit you repeatedly with my car.
When a customer asks for a refund, is it out of line to ask about the situation and why I am giving them their money back? The last two times I have had to do it, the customer acted like I just shot their puppy between the eyes right in front of them.
For instance last night, we had a little problem customer who gets a short pike in a tall cup with steamed soy on the side and my DTO misunderstood her and charged a short pike and a short steamed soy. She asked what the total was and my DTO said $5.— and she was like that’s wrong it should be $2.–. That’s fine whatever we figured it out.
She got up to the window and went to pay and I hear my baristas calling for me (I was in the back doing the pull and count and didn’t know the exact situation.
I got up there and asked (in my nicest customer service voice) “hi I’m sorry, what was the issue?” She just said I want a refund. I responded with “oh okay what is the issue, would you just like a remake?” And she got irate and said no, I want a refund, I’m not explaining myself, you’re going to give me my money now. And I was not in the mood to deal with it so I did it and she goes “so do you want these back?” And i said, “unfortunately due to covid, we cannot take drinks back once you’ve touched them” and she just left them on the drive thru shelf and said well it looks like you just did and drove off.
Turns out she was complaining the coffee wasn’t hot even though it could not have been over 5 minutes old, was steaming, and when we temped it, it was almost 200F.
Like you could have just said that instead of being a bitch. I just want to know why I am giving you your money back so I can enter in the code. I don’t actually care but you don’t have to act like I just hit you repeatedly with my car.
lilangel05 11 points 2y ago
Im not an SSV. am barista. Have been with the company for over 3 years now.
I would ask your barista what exactly is going on before speaking with the customer in DT. If you knew that she was being charged for milk instead of the free 4 oz steamed milk you would be able to approach them with a “hi im so sorry im fixing it right now” instead of approaching them with no clue which can make {emotionally unstable} people more upset
I would ask your barista what exactly is going on before speaking with the customer in DT. If you knew that she was being charged for milk instead of the free 4 oz steamed milk you would be able to approach them with a “hi im so sorry im fixing it right now” instead of approaching them with no clue which can make {emotionally unstable} people more upset
esaeklsg 7 points 2y ago
Adding on this, if you don’t know the situation and can’t quietly get caught up, even coming in with a “How can I help?” can be a little easier than “What’s the issue?” just tone wise. You can follow that up with more information questions, but it starts off with the vibe that a) you’re there to get it fixed for them and b) you recognize there is something to be fixed. Something like “what’s the issue?” could come off like you’re annoyed the customer is complaining (whether true or not.)
But to answer OP’s stated question, yes, as a shift I would ask before processing a refund. But also yes, sometimes people are just gonna act shitty no matter what you do.
But to answer OP’s stated question, yes, as a shift I would ask before processing a refund. But also yes, sometimes people are just gonna act shitty no matter what you do.
ResidentialSaltbox [OP] 3 points 2y ago
Im Just sick and tired of making the moment right and the customer always being right. 😭
esaeklsg 3 points 2y ago
Oh the emotional labor of being a barista, let alone a supervisor, is real 😂 And dealing with that nonsense is definitey emotional labor. It can get exhausting
ResidentialSaltbox [OP] 5 points 2y ago
We fixed the milk charge before she even got to the window which is why I was confused as to what was going on.
Vosstonmass1 2 points 2y ago
Well said
Edit:spelling
Edit:spelling
CRSN-Atomic 3 points 2y ago
As a former SSV, I did this every single time because like all things in life there is two sides to the story. My baristas would call for me and say over the headset what they thought happened and then I would talk to the customer and they would give me their side. I then made the choice I needed to make knowing both sides!
SnooPies4372 1 points 2y ago
i never refund anything. i tell em to call 1-800-SBUX
colonade17 1 points 2y ago
If a customer can't explain what they want a refund for I don't know how to figure out how much to refund them. I usually try get them to explain what was wrong, and tell them that will help us get it right next time.
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