Tuesday July 28, 2009
A boon to some, a bane to others
Stories by BAVANI M and FAZLEENA AZIZ
IMAGINE this scenario, you are enjoying a quiet meal with family or friends in a restaurant or coffee shop, and your pleasant meal is disrupted by a salesman trying to peddle something to you.
Now, despite telling the person politely that you are not interested, they become persistent and insist on explaining about their product. You firmly tell them you are not interested and to leave you alone.
The salesman finally gets the hint and leaves with a sullen look on his face and you continue to finish your meal but with a bitter taste in your mouth and an afternoon spoilt.
Under watch: Micheal looking on as one of his boys polish a car at a parking lot in KL. The same applies to people representing welfare groups and disabled members of the community who are even more persistent than salesmen.
You can find them making their rounds in Bangsar, especially joints like Devi’s Corner and Chawan where your teh tarik sessions with friends are almost always disrupted by these “irritants” every 20 minutes.
Even a trip to the neighbourhood mall is marred by the presence of these peddlers. Booths offering services and products such as Wimax broadband, credit card promotion, spa packages, slimming services and beauty products dominate the shopping malls where it becomes so annoying and exhausting to have to deal with not one, but countless aggressive salesmen and women all the time when all you want to do is enjoy yourself.
Loh: There are some who are aggressive and chase you, especially the credit card promotors. But then again, there are some who think that these peddlers are providing a service to the community and that they should be respected for earning a decent living.
“They can be annoying at times, especially when they don’t seem to understand the word no. But, at times we need their services, too,” said IT executive Kumar Nathan.
“For instance, I find the car polish salesmen a necessity. They usually operate at parking lots in the city and approach people who park their cars there. My girlfriend finds their aggressive sales tactics irritating but honestly, I have no problem with that. They do a good polishing job on my car,’’ said the 32-year-old.
Retail executive Suguna Malar however, thinks otherwise. “I find these boys (car polish salesmen) annoying and at times intimidating,’’ she said.
“They don’t take no for an answer and I get really angry when they start spraying my car without my consent,’’ said the 26-year-old.
A man, who wished to be identified only as Micheal and who supervises a group of youths selling car polish at the open car park near Campbell Complex in Kuala Lumpur, said: “At times we have to be aggressive to make a sale but we never cross the line,’’ he said.
“My boys are instructed to sell as many cans as possible and are offered a commission for it. But a good sales person must at least try and persuade people to buy,’’ said Micheal, 29.
Seemalrit (left) and Raasianna: They feel that promoters should polish their skills and be more polite to people Jeeva, 16, who works for Michael, said he was polite to the clients.
“I treat them with respect and only address them as brother or sister. We are never rude but I do realise that some people may find us annoying. We usually leave a customer alone if they are not interested,’’ Jeeva said.
For consultants Seemalrit Kaur, 26, and P. Raasianna, 25, promoters can be annoying at times.
“They can be very persistent and never take no for an answer and they lack interpersonal skills,’’ said Seemalrit.
“Although they are pleasant, the way they approach people is not quite right. But we do understand that at the end of the day they have to sell their products,” added Raasianna.
Both girls agreed that promoters should polish their skills and be more polite to people.
Retiree Andrew Loh, 63, said he understood the promoters position even though they were annoying.
“There are some who are aggressive and chase you, especially the credit card promotors.
“I do not agree with the way they push you to buy their products. One of their sales tactic is promising clients a gift,” he said, adding that he understood their need to earn a living but that they should improve their style in terms of approaching people.
Public relation officer Rosmawatie Abdul Halim, 29, said there were good and bad promoters.
“Sometimes, when you tell them you are not interested, they let you go but there are some who insult you loudly for refusing,’’ she said.
“However, the credit card sales people are the most aggressive and persistent and they chase after you. They don’t understand the word no,” she said.
Richard Lee feels that peddlers offer a service to the public but added that it all depends on the service.
“Sometimes we look forward to special promotions and bargains such as Wimax broadband services, so it is all right with me,’’ he said.
Catherine Loeng, on the other hand, looks forward to buying VCD’s from the peddlers. “I know it is illegal but it is cheap,’’ she said.
Consumers who are not happy with the way salesmen and promoters approach them at shopping malls can lodge complaints with the mall’s management. Most malls have a list of guidelines that promoters must adhere to when carrying out promotions.
The company they represent are required to sign a contract which list the guidelines before booths are set up.
According to 1 Utama Shopping Centre assistant public relations manager Lee Li Lian, promoters are not allowed to chase after shoppers and are only allowed to move two feet away from their booth.
“Conducting surveys are not allowed unless it is related to specific sales,” she said, adding that regular checks are made and reminders given if they are found violating the rules.
Sunway Pyramid Shopping Mall marketing communication manager Darren Chear said: “Those found violating the terms and conditions may lose their security deposit. They sign a contract with us which binds them to matters like cleanliness, activities as well as space and action will be taken against those who break the rules,’’ he said.
A spokesman from Kuala Lumpur Sentral said the terminal’s security, advertising and promotions team were constantly on the lookout for aggressive salesmen, especially those who walked in.
“We also look out for beggars and those who claim to represent charity organisations,” she added.
When asked about complaints and feedback from the public on sales promoters, most said it was quite rare as people were generally accustomed to them and accepted their presence.
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