The customer is always wrong

I must admit that, in many ways, living in the US (or any country for that matter) for most of your life, you get used to a certain way of living and certain expectations about day-to-day living. There’s no doubt that when you move to another country and culture it is essential that you adapt your expectations to the prevailing way of doing things, whether you like them or not, or you’re going to have a tough time dealing with things in the new culture. This is true in many aspects of living whether it be eating, going for medical care, getting your hair cut, parking your car or simply going to the bathroom! I think in my blog this past year I’ve talked about or alluded to many of these unique cultural differences between the US and Argentina and I think, for the most part, I’ve done a good job adapting my expectations and have been able to “go with the flow” in my many dealings in Argentina. This, however, doesn’t mean that I have to LIKE them!

Indeed, as you will see now in #8 and #7 on my list of “Things that I will NOT miss about Argentina” – and I will stress again that adapting is essential for you to survive in another culture – there are many things that in my time in Argentina, that while essentially part of daily life here, are not things that will hold fond memories for me. Without further adieu, then, here they are… a couple of things that not only affect me but likely almost all Argentines and expats alike.

Things that I will NOT miss about Argentina

8) Customer service/lines

I must say that I think that those of us in the US are pretty spoiled. Customer service in the US, for the most part, is something that is taken very seriously and that old adage “The customer is always right” is an apt phrase regarding the general approach to it. Indeed, I think Americans, by in large, would say that, while, of course, not perfect, most businesses that are successful are partly so because their customers like and appreciate the amount of care and customer service they are given. Off the top of my head, Apple comes to mind as a company that, even before the Ipod generation took over, had a loyal following partly thanks to its reputation for quality customer service in addition, of course, to high quality products. Getting things done, returning items, getting yourself listened to, by and large, has improved tenfold during my life in the US and, to me, I think US customers have never had it any better!

Unfortunately, this business model, for whatever reason, be it lack of funds, lack of understanding, or lack of caring, has not taken hold in Buenos Aires. Maybe it’s because people accept it as “just the way it is” and don’t demand change or don’t show enough frustration with things believing that whatever they do won’t make a difference. Whatever the reason, customer service in Argentina is not nearly at the level as it is in the US and, particularly if you’re from the US (or Europe) but even if you’re not I imagine, can often be a frustrating exercise in dissatisfaction. A few examples of what I mean:

1) Flying on Aerolineas Argentinas – you may have read my story from our trip to Patagonia back in January, but, to sum it up, we got to the airport (after having paid a small FORTUNE to fly to Patagonia) and, after waiting for the attendant who disappeared for 15 minutes, were told that the flight was overbooked and that they only had seats for 4 of the 6 in our party. So, my wife and daughter had to go back home, hope they got on a morning flight as a standby the next day (which they ultimately did after even more hassle), and we all, essentially missed a day together in Patagonia. Upon returning, I sent a complaint to Aerolineas, waited almost 2 MONTHS (the norm apparently) for them to respond to me and, without apology, offered me vouchers for US$50 for my wife and for my daughter which ONLY could be used on a future Aerolineas flight a year from the flight and ONLY if I bought the ticket at their office in downtown BA. Does this sound like fair compensation to you? I was not happy. (For the record, I did take another flight later on and the flight was on time and smooth as can be)

2) Returning things – it’s very difficult to return items, even with a receipt, in Argentina. They’ll likely give you credit but not your money back. For the most part, stores close their books at the end of the calendar month and after that they certainly won’t give you anything other than credit. One time, I bought something for about 20 pesos and tried returning it 2 days later. Unfortunately, unaware, I bought it on the 30th of the month and returned it on the 1st of the next month and they informed me that since the month had changed they would only offer me credit. One other time, my wife made major purchases of books and other supplies for my daughter’s school before school began. It was confusing enough for her (and me, for that matter) trying to figure out what all of the stuff was and it turned out she bought lots of stuff we didn’t need. When I tried to return it all (with the receipt) saying that she bought things she didn’t need, I had to fight tooth and nail to get my money back and even after they relented they said to me something to the effect of “this isn’t really how we do these things in Argentina”. You can say that again!

3) Supermarkets – lines, lines, lines! Now, I’ve waited in lines plenty of times in the US but Argentines seem to take this to a whole new level. I must say, though, Argentines are VERY good at it! Not only do they wait on lines well, in a very neat and orderly fashion but they rarely complain while doing it, no matter the length of the line nor where they are waiting – at bus stops, at banks or, what I think is the most classic line here, supermarkets . Indeed, supermarket lines seem to be the norm here and it’s amazing to see how long they get and to see many registers open but no one working at them. Why they don’t have other workers working these aisles I can not tell you but it certainly seems that no one seems to care. I’ve waited over 1/2 hour easy on multiple occasions! Part of the problem is the credit card process takes much longer, part of the problem is that sometimes people pay their BILLS (electric, cable, etc.) at the register and part of the problem is that you just can’t know which ones are going to move quicker. Still, Argentines seem resolved to the lines and rarely complain about them so I’ve, as I’ve already written, adapted my expectations and patience to the Argentine way and have resigned myself to the wait calmly…

Still, as I said, though I accept it as part of the culture and don’t let it frustrate me, I don’t have to LIKE it! 🙂

7) Banks/Money

Apart from the costs and inflation as mentioned in #9, banks, and using them as much as I have, are not something I will miss about Argentina. In the US, I rarely even enter a bank anymore save the rare trip to an interior ATM or for some other ancillary need. Banking is something that my wife and I do online almost exclusively nowadays just as many other Americans do and are starting to do more and more. While I remember the days of going into banks to make deposits, cash checks, make withdrawals, etc. for the most part, those days are a thing of the past.

Not so here in Argentina. As a foreigner without a DNI (National ID card), I cannot open an account in an Argentine bank and therefore cannot use checks to pay for things. For this reason, in a cash economy like Argentina, to pay for things we are reliant on our credit card (which most places, except some restaurants, supermarkets and high-end stores, don’t take) and ATM machines for the most part. I need to go to banks to make deposits for deposits for hotel rooms for trips and, more often to make deposits into school accounts for my kids’ schools. I’ve waited at many banks and it is the rare case where I have anything less than a 15 minute wait. Banks, by law, are open for business to its customers ONLY Monday – Friday (that aren’t one of the zillion feriados – holidays) and ONLY from 10AM – 3PM (though they stay open until every customer who entered before 3 is served). Usually, there are very few tellers and MANY customers waiting to do business which leads to LONG waits (I’ve waited as long as 3 1/2 hours at a Banco de la Nación). I’ve asked tellers if they could open another window to help customers and they just say no… like why am I asking such a stupid question) but clearly customer service is not a priority, once again for whatever reason. See #8. Argentines, once again, I think, are resigned to just wait in these lines for hours on end since with no online banking and the need to pay their bills the majority just don’t have any other option. This is all ironic, of course, since, for the most part, Argentines deep down don’t trust banks since most of their savings in the banks were taken away by the last economic crash 10 years ago. Indeed.

Believe it or not, even though the peso is the currency of the country, many places for tourists, schools, et al… and even our apartment (and most tourist apartments) won’t accept anything but US Dollars. It’s an odd thing because, for the most part, it’s virtually impossible to get access to US dollars now. Can you imagine someone in the US saying, “sorry we only take Euros”. Well, here, because of the wild instability of the peso and inflation I talked about in #9, many places feel the need to demand the much more stable dollar for payment or, at the very least, demand the equivalent in pesos at the black (or blue) market rate. Heck, the only way to buy property in Argentina is buy doing so with cash US dollars – mortgages virtually don’t exist! (Not surprisingly, it’s now VERY hard to buy and sell property here!) It seems strange and, well, perhaps somewhat unfair to charge dollars but, in the end, it’s just another example of the craziness of dealing with banks and money here in Argentina. Definitely something I’m not going to miss.

Despite these things and my dislike for them, I still feel that I’ve adapted well to the inconveniences and rarely get irritated or frustrated by them. I recognize that these are just cultural norms and to try and fight them would be fruitless and getting annoyed would do me no good either. Argentina, like any country, is going to have its “things” that I don’t like and am unaccustomed to.  To accept them and understand that they’re part of the culture is just part of the overall experience that I’ve had here and, while they’re negatives to me, they’re just one small element in the larger picture, positive and negative, that is Argentina.

Next week – onto #5 and #6 – and a post about a trip we’ll be taking this weekend! I promise, by the way, to start giving the many positive things about Argentina soon enough – I prefer to finish my blog on a positive note! 🙂