Rant: Tired of customers who watch YouTube and then tell me how to do my job

Last week a guy rolls in with a squeaky bottom bracket and before I even touch it he says 'my chain is too tight, just loosen it'. I ignored him, pulled the cranks, and found the bearing was completely dry and pitted. I showed him the damage and he still argued with me for 10 minutes because some video said squeaks are always the chain. I charged him $85 for the new cartridge and he paid, but he kept muttering about the chain. Has anyone else had customers who fight you on basic diagnosis because they watched a 5 minute clip? How do you shut that down without losing the sale?

2 comments

2 Comments

lucaslee24d ago

The part about him saying "my chain is too tight, just loosen it" is where I'd stop him. A squeaky bottom bracket and a tight chain are two totally different sounds, but customers can't hear that when some video already told them the answer. I usually just say "Okay, but I gotta check it first" and then show them the part when it's out. Most people back off once they see the actual damage, but if they still argue, I just repeat the part number and the price, and let them decide.

piper_burns24d ago

Man, come on @lucaslee, half the time the customer is right about the sound and the part number, you just don't want to swap a cheap chain when the real fix is a $60 bearing job. If the guy heard a click and the chain was tight, letting him pay for a loose chain first is just wasting his money and your time, even if you're right about the bottom bracket.