It is frustrating seeing people not take the top newspaper on display – and usually make the display more untidy as a result. Internally you scream it’s the same paper but you smile and let it pass. I wonder what happened to them that they do not trust the top paper. Is it they missed a catalogue or a tv guide? Or is it they think the top paper has been used?
Last week in London the hotel had a stack of The Independent newspaper on a table outside the lift on each floor. It is a neat paper, no inserts. The stack on my floor was clearly fresh product, no curled corners, no dirty marks. These copies looked fresh, untouched. Yet I saw two people move the top copy and take the next one down without giving it a thought. It was as if this was the normal thing to do.
Is this something taught in school that I missed?
Just to amuse myself I occasionally switch the top copy to the 2nd copy……I really do give that customer a genuine smile then…..!
Funny you should write this today. Just this morning I “marked” the top paper with a small x in the corner. It took an hour and at least 15 paper sales before the top one went. It was in perfect condition. What’s worse though us the people who insist on taking the 8th or 9th paper from the top causing the other papers to tumble off the stack. It’s like they have to have one that hasn’t yet been exposed to air.
Allan I do the same thing , ah well keeps me amused
Ha – its very old school and shows how much habits affect people. The funny thing is the mercury paper here in tassie have gone back to small single straps on their bulk meaning the top and bottom paper are basically unsaleable, so this habit is now coming back with a vengence.
I do the same as Alan when I get bored from time to time however I usually make sure the same customer saw what I did. Sometimes I get the “what’s the purpose of that?” question. I answer I don’t want the copy to get dirty so I put it down the pile. I know, small things, small minds however this issue can sometimes extend to mags. The customer reads the mag to some extent then buys the next one on display putting the one he was handling and this their saliva on some pages.
The flip side of this however is when papers are provided in cafes or Maccas. It’s obvious the copies of the dailies are well fingered complete with food stains and sections missing but no one seem to mind in the scamble to secure one with their meal.
The most frustrating ones are those that place the top copy on the papers next to the stack, its not until someone asks for a particular paper that we realise whats happened (I do this at the supermarket)
I think there is a Phd paper to be written here. They seem to get Phds for some weird and wacky stuff.
aaahhhh yes the daily grind…. #newsagentlife