More fun with math

[freaktard]

A few recent threads about customers and their experiences with math reminded me of this story.

My store, like most, offered employees a 10% discount on store prices. This was extended to immediate family as well, who got a special card to show they were entitled to the discount. One thing about the discount is that it was applied only after all other price reductions (coupons, sales, etc.) were taken. Not that hard a concept, right? Which brings me to my story...

The wife of one of my co workers came in to buy something. I don't remember what it was or how much it cost, so for the purposes of this story, let's assume it came to $100. She had a coupon for $10 off, which brought it down to $90, then handed me her employee discount card, which took 10% off the $90 sub-total--$9 in other words--bringing it down to $81.

Basic math, OK? But no.

Me: Your total is $81.
Her: What? No, that should be $80.
Me: Actually $81 is correct. The employee discount...
Her: No! No! It was $100! 10% of 100 is 10, and I had a $10 coupon, so it should be $20 off!
Me: Actually, the discount is taken after all other price reductions are taken. It even says so right on the card, see?
Her: No! No! That doesn't make sense! Blargle blargle blargle!

There followed a brief discussion in which we argued over basic math concepts for a while. She wouldn't budge on her position, and then she said something really dumb:

Her: Well, you just take that employee discount off then. I don't want it.
Me: OK, I can void the sale.
Her: No, I still want this. I just don't want the employee discount! It's a rip-off! The store should be ashamed of itself trying to cheat it's own workers like this!
Me: Oooh Kayyy...

I rang the sale through again, applied her coupon, and said:

Me: Your total now comes to $90.

At this point I could see her face turning bright red. She finally figured out that she'd cheated herself out of $9, but was too embarrassed to admit it. So she paid the $90 and left without saying another word.

Math is fun!

[simplyanother]

What a dink.

Where I work, we have a 25% discount, which is great, but it's only on regular price non-sale items. A few people don't seem to grasp this...

Or I get people (co-workers) who ask me..., that are buying ONE item"which is better the employee discount, or the coupon?". The employee discount is 25%, the coupon is generally 40%. It's not even a hard concept. lol 40 is always MORE than 25. (ETA: that is, you always get a better discount with the coupon. If buying just one item, I'd use that. lol)

Grrr.

If only everyone were as smart as me. lol

[BookstoreEscapee]

BN gives 30% off on books, and 20% on music department stuff. Only catch is that the discount is off of the list price, not the selling price. So if it's a hardcover bestseller that's 30% off, you don't get anything extra. And if a customer has a member card, they actually will do better than the employee who doesn't have one.

We get that math lesson, too, with the member card. That discount comes off of the selling price, so it doesn't quite get you 40% off the bestsellers like some people think it should. grr. I don't miss that stuff, I'll say that much!

[Kara]

We get a 45% discount on phones (only 1 per account per year) until 3 years, then 65% off until 5 years where we get 100% off up to $500. It sounds great, but our discount comes off the cost of the phone. Most people don't realize how far under cost phones are sold. The most basic, featureless phone will run $125+ at cost. Customers complain about how they shouldn't have to agree to a contract, but when we're giving them a $200 phone for free or even $50 we have to ask for something in return. It takes a year (or two, depending on the circumstance) to recover the money we lose in selling the phone. It actually costs us something like $400 for every customer that activates service and takes a year for us to break even.

[DesignFox]

Even better, try working in a cellular agent store.

We pay for all of our phones through other suppliers...no straight from the manufacturer, mass discount kind of thing.

If someone were to cancel service, we lose everything.

We recover the cost of the phone through the commission the phone company pays us for selling the service plan. If that person cancels their service, we lose the commission...and don't necessarily get the phone back in salable condition (if at all). So, we would have to eat the cost of the phone.

Naturally, most agent stores have a "safeguard" against that and make their customers sign a contract stating that they WILL be charged $XXX if they terminate their service within the first 6 months (which is how long they have to keep their service in order for us not to be charged back).

You can imagine the kicking and screaming this causes.

I have had my fair share of customers who insist that rather than waiting for their upgrade date (usually only a month away) so they could get a new phone ...they would rather terminate service and pay the charges to get the phone "cheaper."
In addition to the obvious stupidity, wouldn't it be better to wait 1 month or just suck it up and buy the phone outright than go through all that hassle PLUS have to change your number?!?