What am I missing? (Customer service question)

[tbn.al]

This is not simply a music industry problem. I was in Dillard's last night looking for a replacement for my worn out walking shoes. I finally found what I wanted on a shelf but had to look over and around a sales clerk who was restocking. The shoes turned out to be the wrong size and I asked him if he had the right size in stock to which he mumbled an unintelligible response. By placing myself between him and his restocking project I finally got a face to face admission that what was on the shelf was all he knew of. At which point he resumed his restocking without offering to check in the back or another store. I'm really not used to this at this store. The store manager is a client of mine and I know he will be glad to hear about my experience. Yes, the customer is always right as long as he has money in his pocket.

[Donn]

Yes, the customer is always right as long as he has money in his pocket.

I believe he stands a better chance of being right, if he has some extra money in that pocket that he's willing to spend at a place that suits him better.

[Three Valves]

Me me, rightness and righteousness are synonymous!!

[The Big Ben]

It cost a little over $100. Incidentally, I now found one somewhere else so they lost a potential $100 because they didn't want to answer a question that would have literally required taking a two second look.

Says someone who obviously has never worked in retail, much less run a business.<cut>
For someone who may or may not end up buying it. That's spending dollars to chase pennies.

Somehow, I doubt they'll lose much, if any, sleep over not getting your business.

It's called "prospecting". Every time something is put up for sale, you can expect to get questions from people who are not going to buy. Sometimes tire-kickers, sometimes the product is unsuitable for the customer. That is just how retail business works. Yes, I have worked retail. You can't expect to sell something if you tell a customer "We can't tell you exactly what you are buying until you buy it." OK. You can't tell me. I can't buy it. I'll go somewhere else. Not a good way to run any business.

With modern digital technology, a seller can answer simple questions before they are asked by offering photos and descriptions. A simple photo set up (camera on stand, two lights to light object, plain background) is cheap if the business is trying to sell things online. Take pictures of what you are offering all at the same time is a very efficient way to do things. Putting all of the items online with prices right from the beginning is how things get moved. Even easier if the business has some sort of shopping cart purchase and payment system. Yes, it takes effort but do you want to move stuff?