Did you know that some companies try to get rid of customers? Yes, that’s right, many companies look for ways to get rid of shoppers and clients who complain too much, return a lot of items or otherwise hurt their profitability. This is something I would have never imagined.

I guess it makes sense. If a customer is repeatedly calling customer service about the same issue (even when they have been told there is nothing that can be done) they are taking up the time of employees who could be helping other customers. The company is then forced to either make the other customers wait (and lower client satisfaction) or higher more employees (and raise operating costs) to make up for these “problem customers” and their calls.

Similarly, on the retail side, if shoppers come in and ask a lot of questions and try out new products on a regular basis but never buy anything because they can find it cheaper online, they are costing the store money by taking up salespeople’s time and in some cases forcing the store to sell the item as a display model and offer a discounted rate on that item.

I was alerted to this situation by an article on MSN that also gives some tips for consumers to help keep you off of the naughty list.