Here's a first...

My local Sprint store has instituted a new restaurant-like waiting list, complete with a host standing at a podium with a clipboard to manage its customer service demands. He takes my name, and then I guess I'm just suppose to stand around and wait to be called.




I am fifth in line, and it's 4 in the afternoon. There are three clerks working, and someone who looks like a manager milling about. Here's an idea: why not just schedule more staff so customers can simply stand in line for the next available clerk? Better yet, why not have a dedicated register just for people who want to buy or return a retail item (such as yours truly) - and not signup for cell phone service (a time-consuming task) or talk to a technician to solve a problem? What makes them think this system makes any sense for a person who has stopped in to make a retail purchase (it is a Sprint STORE, after all!)? Maybe it's just their way of encouraging customers to use their web site to make purchases. If they don't drive them away to other service providers, that is.