Unsavoury accents in business. Offputting?

Lando Griffin

Whilst shopping for some new trainer in a busy well established shop at the weekend I approached an assistant to ask if she had a certain size to which she replied in a rather unpleasant accent.


“I don’t think theres nathin der dat size, Ill takes a look for ya” and off she went.


This caught me by surprise and her rough accent actually put me off buying.
I was edging towards the door when an attractive well-presented young lady approached and enquired in a well-mannered tongue “Good day sir, do you need any assistance?
I replied that I wanted xyz size in the trainer and she replied she had one in the back and off she went.
She was very prompt and came back with the exact size and I needed and popped them on my feet and they were very comfortable indeed.
She boxed them up and although a large queue of irate customers had gathered she ushered me to the front explaining that her colleague must have disappeared!
The other one came back and was scorned rightfully by the other customers.


Do accents decide who you do business with or would a bad accent put you off?

blatantrereg

No.

earlytobed

No, not snobby about accents. More concerned about costomer service

How Soon Is Now

Its just an accent ??

If someone in a shop is nice and actually does there job the right way and shows they actually seem interested i couldnt give a ****e what way they talk !.

TommyKnocker

No, neither would their skin color, race religion, age etc etc

maximoose

I find any sort of uninitiated contact off putting in a shop, regardless of their accent. If I don't come looking for help, leave me alone.

Shoe shops are the worst for it too, I know they are forced to do it by their employers but I feel like face-kicking the "greeters" in the doorway of Schuh/Office whose sole job is to say hello and goodbye. How f*cking pointless is that?

MagicMarker

No, because I'm not a gobshíte.

KERSPLAT!

If the person is professional and courteous that's good enough for me. Their accent would mean nothing to me

MagicMarker

maximoose wrote: »

but I feel like face-kicking the "greeters" in the doorway of Schuh/Office whose sole job is to say hello and goodbye. How f*cking pointless is that?

If it were pointless, they wouldn't be made to do it in the first place.

Plazaman

Lando Griffin wrote: »

“I don’t think theres nathin der dat size, Ill takes a look for ya” and off she went.

Unless it's the receptionist at a high class escort service, then no.

Sergeant

I wouldn't buy a car off someone with a strong Dooblin accent. Or a house for that matter. Wouldn't have much problem with buying a pair of runners off that same person though. They'd tend to know a lot about them.

blatantrereg

I do think less of people who affect rough accents.

Pumpkinseeds

OP my husband and I experienced the same type of thing last month in a menswear shop while suit shopping for him. There seemed to be 2 types of suit available, 1 with very narrow lapels and 1 with intentionally obvious stitching on the lapels, both of which we hated. When my husband described what he was looking for the assistant said 'Ah sure that'd be for older gentlemen'. Dafuq, you don't have what he wants so you'll try to embarrass him into buying some overpriced cheap looking suit?

We went for a browse in Brown Thomas after that and sure as sh*t there was none of that cheap looking crap in their mens dept and plenty of the suits my husband wanted(sadly out of our price range).

Zulu

Ahoy there; snobs ahead!

MJ23

Loike, what soize Dubes? They're totes comfortable.

KERSPLAT!

Pumpkinseeds wrote: »

OP my husband and I experienced the same type of thing last month in a menswear shop while suit shopping for him. There seemed to be 2 types of suit available, 1 with very narrow lapels and 1 with intentionally obvious stitching on the lapels, both of which we hated. When my husband described what he was looking for the assistant said 'Ah sure that'd be for older gentlemen'. Dafuq, you don't have what he wants so you'll try to embarrass him into buying some overpriced cheap looking suit?

We went for a browse in Brown Thomas after that and sure as sh*t there was none of that cheap looking crap in their mens dept and plenty of the suits my husband wanted(sadly out of our price range).

So it was nothing to do with the persons accent but the suits which the store stocked....

A sales person trying to sell you something... the horror

bb1234567

Judging people by their accents is very unfair, hows that any better than judging people based on skin colour,religion ,social class etc.

youreadthat

Not really. A person's view on an accent is almost entirely down to their own prejudices and says more about them than the person or accent they are judging.

Sergeant

youreadthat wrote: »

Not really. A person's view on an accent is almost entirely down to their own prejudices and says more about them than the person or accent they are judging.

How would you feel if you were about to get complex spinal cord surgery carried out and the surgeon who was discussing the procedure with you in advance sounded like Damien 'Damo' Dempsey?

KERSPLAT!

Sergeant wrote: »

How would you feel if you were about to get complex spinal cord surgery carried out and the surgeon who was discussing the procedure with you in advance sounded like Damien 'Damo' Dempsey?

If he has the qualifications and experience what does it matter??

The Backwards Man

I wouldn't change my accent for anybody, I try to be as clear and talk as slowly as I can without the local slang, but if you want me to hide where I come from you can sling your hook.

MJ23

Would you buy furniture from a lad in a van, wearing a striped shirt, slacks, black loafers, and who has a fat red face and blazing copper topper?

miamee

Sergeant wrote: »

How would you feel if you were about to get complex spinal cord surgery carried out and the surgeon who was discussing the procedure with you in advance sounded like Damien 'Damo' Dempsey?

If the surgeon is qualified to perform the surgery, what does it matter? Really?

Sergeant

miamee wrote: »

If the surgeon is qualified to perform the surgery, what does it matter? Really?

It wouldn't fill me with comfort. It may be a prejudice, but I wouldn't feel comfortable with someone like that operating on my spinal cord. Nor would I like someone with a Limerick accent to call to my door offering to carry out a home security assessment. It's just the way it is.

It would take the most insufferable type of self-professed egalitarian to fool themselves into thinking they don't make judgement calls based on accent.

bgrizzley

Sergeant wrote: »

It wouldn't fill me with comfort. It may be a prejudice, but I wouldn't feel comfortable with someone like that operating on my spinal cord. Nor would I like someone with a Limerick accent to call to my door offering to carry out a home security assessment. It's just the way it is.

It would take the most insufferable type of self-professed egalitarian to fool themselves into thinking they don't make judgement calls based on accent.

you do realise that not all people in Limerick are criminals?

IzzyWizzy

Sergeant wrote: »

It wouldn't fill me with comfort. It may be a prejudice, but I wouldn't feel comfortable with someone like that operating on my spinal cord. Nor would I like someone with a Limerick accent to call to my door offering to carry out a home security assessment. It's just the way it is.

It would take the most insufferable type of self-professed egalitarian to fool themselves into thinking they don't make judgement calls based on accent.

'Someone like that'? Someone with a Dublin accent? Jesus. Yes, we all notice accents and have preconceived ideas about them, but I'd hope most of us realise how silly it is to take it seriously? If I had a surgeon with a strong working class Dublin accent, I'd think it unusual, but I wouldn't worry about his skills.

Sergeant

bgrizzley wrote: »

you do realise that not all people in Limerick are criminals?

I do realise that. It doesn't mean I don't develop an inherent prejudice when I hear a strong example of the accent.

Quazzie

Unfortunately I have to admit that a thick Dublin accent is very offputting for me when I am a consumer. It just sounds like you can't trust the person.

Also a Kerry accent makes someone sound simple and I find it hard to take their opinions with any authority.

Esoteric_

I don't see how somebody's accent could affect their work ethic, so no, I judge them on their customer service skills. Sorry, OP, I'm not enough of a snob for you, although I come from north Dublin, so that may make my point invalid in your eyes.

H3llR4iser

Regardless of what most claim, I would say the way people working in retail (and generally in contact with the public) present themselves, including the way they speak, is absolutely fundamental - especially when said retail person is the one initiating contact with the customer.

I would not be put off buying something because I'd be ultimately interested in the product, which in most cases is not made by the clerk, however speaking in a clear voice, pronouncing words well and well separated, without the use of abbreviations, slang and local terminology, is the most basic form of courtesy.

Besides, approaching customers trying to sell something is kinda pointless if they cannot understand you...

Pace2008

Sergeant wrote: »

How would you feel if you were about to get complex spinal cord surgery carried out and the surgeon who was discussing the procedure with you in advance sounded like Damien 'Damo' Dempsey?

I'd be surprised because it's quite unusual for people from the socio-economic background with which the accent is associated to rise to that level in the medical profession. And it's even more unusual to go through so many years at the relevant universities within having the edge taken off a stronger accent. But you don't fluke your way into a job as a neurosurgeon so, no, I wouldn't care what his accent was like if he had attained the relevant qualifications and was deemed fit by the hospital board to carry out complex surgery.

We all have our prejudices. For example, if I were calling up a seller on adverts.ie looking to buy an ipod, and were greeted with a thick inner-city accent, I would not go through with the purchase if there were no feedback on the account in question. If, however, there were numerous reports of positive dealings with the the vendor then I'd have no reason to assume that their inner scumbag (inherent in all people who possess a particular accent) was going to manifest itself and fleece me. They've proved their worth and I have no reason to judge them based on their accent rather than their actions.


What you are saying is that no matter what someone does with their life, you will always think lesser of them because of their background. That is straight-up bigotry.