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Re: Wal-Mart Hurst Store Manager, Picture Me Studio Corporate Manager & Picture Me Experience Customer Service:
Due to the my recent experience, I am highly upset and agitated in regards to the treatment I received from your representative at the Picture Me Studio located in the Wal-Mart Super center store number #5080. The behavior of the Picture Me representative, Mary, was shocking, ludicrous, incomprehensible and absolutely unacceptable. On this occasion an acceptable standard has clearly not be met. I have detailed the chain of events of this terrible experience below and expect nothing short of:
- A full and formal apology from Mary and Picture Me Portrait Studio
- A full refund of all monies paid to Picture Me Studio for the photo’s of my children
-A formal apology form Wal-mart
- An explanation of how an employee such as Mary could be allowed to interface with customers in this manner
I attempted to resolve this dilemma by contacting the corporate customer service; however I am still offended by the actions of your employee. I will be reporting this experience to the Better Business Bureau, Wal-Mart’s Regional & Corporate Offices and will seek to pursue legal action as necessary. At 11:20am on October 2, 2007, I arrived at Wal-Mart on Precinct Line Road in Hurst, Texas to pick up my photo package. I patiently waited for a couple of minutes because Mary was conducting a photo session with another patron.
Once their photo shoot was finished she completed the transaction with that patron. At that time, another man and I were still in the studio. I handed my receipt to Mary. She located my pictures and pulled up the order on the computer. She did not tell me that there was a difference in the totals on her screen verses my receipt before; I gave her my credit card. The representative just swipes my card and proceeded to speak to the male patron in the studio. When the representative handed me the credit card receipt to sign, I told her this is not my ticket because the total was different. The representative said that is my total according to her screen and that my receipt is wrong. I stated that is not the case. At that point in time, I asked for a refund. Mary stated she does not give refunds in her studio and I would have to call the customer service number on my receipt for the refund. She stated what is on her computer is my total and I would have to pay for the product received.
Mary left the counter to assist the same male patron that was standing at the counter. At that time, I called the customer service number on the receipt. I was explaining the scenario to the first customer service representative on the phone. Mary is assisting the male patron. She then, starts making rude comments about the conversation I am having on my cell phone to the customer service lady. I told her I am on the phone and that she needs to stop talking to me. She starts yelling and acting belligerent. The customer service representative asked to speak to her. I advised her I was on my cell and that she had to contact her on the business phone. The representative puts me on hold twice and attempts to call the store. When she comes back on the line, she informs me that the line is busy and asked what is the representative doing? I said she is just standing there. Then, Mary starts yelling that she is working and that I am being rude in front of other patrons. I told her to talk to the other patrons because I am on the phone and I am not speaking to her. At that time Mary completes the transaction with the male patron in the studio and he leaves. Then she directs all of her negative energy toward me. I am still on my cell speaking with the first customer service representative. The customer service representative puts me on hold again to attempt a phone call to the studio and I am disconnected from the line.
When the line was disconnected, I called the customer service line right back and was connected to Fran. I explained my situation to Fran. Fran was asking me a series of questions and whenever I commented, Mary would comment in the background as well. I tried to continue to focus on my conversation with Fran however Mary kept interjecting rude comments in the background. I am astonished because this situation is escalating over a .77 cents refund.
Fran asked to speak to Mary and I informed her that she would have to call her on the store phone. Fran puts me on hold and calls the store. While Fran is speaking with Mary, they are going over something on her computer screen. When Fran comes back on my line, she says the representative will give me a refund of $1.37. Mary states she is not going to give me a refund that Fran would have to complete that transaction. Fran puts me on hold and calls Mary back. When Fran comes back on my line, I noticed that I did not receive all of the portraits in my package. Fran asked if I could fax my receipt to her and she proceeds to give me the number. As I am writing down the fax number, Mary starts writing the number to Amy’s store on my receipt that is sitting on top of my portraits. I asked her why is she writing on my receipt. Mary starts yelling that she is trying to be nice to me. I told Mary again I was on the phone and not to speak to me. Mary becomes theatrical and starts yelling for me to get out of her studio. I asked Fran is she hears all of this because this girl is going crazy. I continued to converse with Fran on the phone to resolve this matter. Mary threatens to get security if I do not leave her studio. I am still in the studio on the phone with Fran and Mary leaves to go get security. There was no reason for Mary to get security involved in this matter since, the corporate office was attending to the issue.
When the security personnel arrived, I was still standing at the counter on the phone with Fran. Mary came back in the studio, snatched my portraits, and stated I could not take the portraits because I have not paid for them. I reminded her that she had already swiped my card. I asked Fran if she could hear all of the commotion going on because Mary was acting psychotic. Mary then started running around the studio and yelling that I had not paid for the portraits. I advised Mary that she had five seconds to hand my portraits back to me. At this point, Fran said she would send me the two pictures I was missing, a $5.00 refund check. I starting looking in the portrait package for the receipts. I put a big X on the receipt and walked out.
I can not believe a simple task; such as, picking up my portrait package escalated to this extreme ordeal. This simple task which should have only taken a couple of minutes, instead it lasted almost an hour. Mary’s dramatic actions could have landed her an Oscar if she worked in Hollywood; however, she is employed at Wal-Mart Picture Me Studio. No one should have to tolerate Mary’s irate behavior. This is not the way you are suppose to treat your customers. What happened to good old- fashioned “CUSTOMER SERVICE”? I believe Picture Me Studio owes me a formal apology for this incident. Actually after all I had encountered in the studio, I should receive a full refund for my entire purchase!
I have been a patron of Wal-Mart picture studio for the past 11 year to take portraits of my children. I have previously used this particular studio twice in the pass. After the nightmare I experienced, I will never take pictures at this location or any Wal-Mart studios again. This was a very demeaning and embarrassing experience. Never in my life have I been treated in such a manner. I will become an advocate by encouraging others not to use your studios.
Regretfully a very dissatisfied customer.
OK people...
First let me say that never, ever should a customers service employee treat a customer so badly. I too would have been just as upset.
I can see that it wasn't about the .77cents. It soon became about how bad the customer was being treated because of the small difference. If Mary would have acted like an adult and handled the situation like she was trained to do this would have never happened.
I have been using Picture Me Studios for many years and yes I have had a few small problems with some of the photos.
The people working in the studios have always been very kind to me and have worked very hard to fix the issue, going as far as giving me a free session.
I just took my two small children in to the studio in October and November for birthday photos and then Christmas. Crystal the studio manager at the Decatur, Texas studio was very sweet!
She worked very hard to make sure that the photos of the kids were the best that they could have been.
She didn't pressure me into getting anything I didn't really want to buy.
My photos came back and they look great! I would and will use that studio and Crystal for all the photos that my family needs. Actually we are going back this weekend for family photos.
Please don't let one bad person ruin it for you.
I too have had a bad experience with Walmart Picture Me Studio. I am from Cambridge, MN and I had my twin girls pictures taken there when they were 3 months old. I thought the pictures were okay and so I decided to buy the biggest package, which was very expensive. I paid for the pictures in full and then went home to wait for the call to pick up my pictures. It took almost 2 months calling everyday getting the same line they are backed up and blah blah. I then decided I was going to go in there and get an answer. I went to the studio to learn that not only was my pictures not ordered but the manager decided she did not like them or the poses of a few pictures and deleted them out of their system along with my 11x13 matted picture. I then asked them for a refund or atleast a new photo shoot with my children free of charge. They said they could do the photo shoot but only 40 pictures with 2 poses. I was furious, I ordered and paid for over a hundred pictures that cost me approx. $175.00 and that was all they were going to do for me. I decided I would take the new pictures but I was still going to write a letter to the company and I vowed never to use them again. I then proceeded to make a date for the pictures to get done and it seemed everytime I made an appointment they would call and reschedule. I then wrote a letter to corporate and I have never heard a thing back from them to this day and my girls will now be two. I understand anyone and everyones pain who has been to the Walmart Portrait Studio, they are unprofessional and hire inexperienced employees.I amamazed they are still n buisness.
I have never used this company but plan to soon. I am however very impressed with this web site. When I googled picture me studios the first several hits I got were linking to this site. I will have to remember that next time I recieve poor customer service. I have been on both ends of disputes in a store ( as the store attendant and the customer) and it is NEVER acceptable for the person working to conduct herself the way Mary did. I agree that .77 cent is not that big of a deal but it is the principle of the matter. She had a reciept showing what she should of had to pay. That was not "people lying" as someone else put it, that was someone at the store's fault
I had my pictures done with my boyfriend last Thursday in Somersworth NH. My appt. was for 10am and we were the a few mins. before 10 and the person was no where to be found. She finally shows up at 10 after 10. Running through the studio turning on everything. Then a customer comes up and is there to pick up their pictures, then she ends up helping 2 more people with pick ups. Then the phone rings and she answers that. Mind u its 10:20 now and we havent even gotten one picture snapped. Finally we take one picture and the 11 oclock appointment shows up. So she starts to rush us. Then more pick ups come in and she stops taking our photos. mind u that its only the 2 of us getting them taken. She hardley changed the backgrounds. She did one single picture of me and 2 single shots of my boyfriend and the rest were done as a couple but they were pretty much the same poses. I just to work for the portrait studio a long time ago. So I expected some delays. But not to have the girl 10 mins late cause she lost her license and her mom has to take her to work. I work at a hotel and some of the workers here dont have cars or their licenses and they r here on time. She wasnt really dressed very professional. I called customer care and asked them to see if they could help with a discount for my troubles or anything and they said that they will send me 3 free sheets for next time. I said there wont be a next time. I was dissapointed cause these were our first photos together and they werent what i really expected. The cheapest packeage was $79.99 . I am on a budget and i remember that they used to have a $30 deal or something. Whats with the 16 keepsakes and hardly any walletts in the 3.99 deal? I remember getting 1-10 x 13 2- 8 x 10 2 or 5 x 7 and 8 or so walletts and 3x 5 and some of those minis. But u can do much w/ those. I really wanted the cd but i wasnt gonna pay $120 for it thats OUTRAGOUS. I understand u get the rights to it. But we used to give those out for 9.99 and i understand its digital now. That is a huge rip off.
Sincerly a unhappy customer.
I know there are studio employees that act badly but I am a new pictureme employee and a worker in the service industry for years now.You wouln't believe what people will pull or say just to get a discount or items for free! I try to be kind and well spoken to customers if there isnt a way i can help them i find someone who can.Also if II am taking pictures and running 15 miniutes late because i had to wait for a child to calm down dont get mad and say rude comments about me to the person with you.Shall i just tell the person i am with to leave your finished because your child is cranky! No i must take their pictures because they are a paying customer jst like you!I have been working at picture me for over a month now and i have been cursed out, told off, have had rude comments said to me and i always said how sorry i was for the wait or whatever the problem was how sorry i was over this inconvience.Some people just need to relax!Here is a tip as well if you want the child to look at the camera let tme do my job instead of standing in the other direction getting their attention and then saying oh well he not looking at the camera.The employee that flipped out was wronge but i would like to hear both sides of the story as well.We have to put up with abusive parents hitting and beating their children to get a nice picture and also time limits.Some employees have patience but the customers do not! The lab issue is a different story sometimes we get pictures back with names or heads cut off! That is not our fault and we can easily fix it.Just give us a chance to fix it! if it takes over two weeks to get a reprint then blame the associate but untill then.Everyone calm down and imagine if you were in our shoes.Kindness goes both ways.
hi.
im a manager in a wal-mart portrait studio, but not in USA. i think that this employee made a mistake by askin you to pay for that 0.77$ refund. i had this problem many times, the computer told me that the costumer owe money (less than a dollar)... this girl would have known that it was only taxes adjustment in the informatic system if she asked her supervisors... i never asked any costumer to pay for these taxes adjustments. i would only have to make the bill normaly or create a 0.77$ discount on the bill... O_o
i can understand that you had a very bad experience and i think the way you been treated was awful...
but in every costumer services things like these happen. we're only humans after all... i had bad experiences twice with a lady... the photo session did get awsome. but when she came to pick up her pictures i asked her to wait 5 minutes cause i wasnt done with another costumer, she started yelling at me... and when i say YELLING, i surely can tell that all wal-mart cashiers and costumers heard from her O_o
im not here to complain bout my job, IM IN LOVE WITH IT :) but was just to let you know that i was agreeing with a part of what you said here. our job is the make sure all costumer are happy and satisfied with the service we gave. i never let an unhappy costumer left before i offered something that would make him leave the store with a big smile :)
First of all how lame do you have to be to take an hour out of your day to complain over .77? Seriously. But anyways Just because Walmart rents a space out to Picture me Portrait studios does not meen that they are responsible for the behavior or hiring of their employees... Picture me is Actually owned by SEARS.. thats why the name changed... Complaining to Walmart corporate will do nothing for you! I have my sons pictures taken very frequently at Picture me studios and I have never had a bad experience. I love the pictures and get treated great every time. Maybe it was your attitude? You probably had nothing better to do than harass someone trying to do their job... I see this all the time, I work in Customer Service.. at WALMART...:D!
Picture me is a horrible photo studio. Their employees dont know what they are doing and have no experience in this field. After my bad experience there, I will never go there again!
Tyrisia M Dials
126 Bobolink Dr, Stockbridge, GA 30281
[protected] or [protected]
Objective Obtain a position with a progressive company where my experience can be effectively utilized to our mutual benefit. I am determined, dedicated, and dependable.
Education Redan High School, Stone Mountain GA Diploma 2000
Georgia Perimeter College, Decatur Ga Associates Pre-Pharmacy 2002
Dekalb Technical, Clarkston Ga Diploma Cosmetology 2004
Georgia Medical Institute, Morrow GA 2006
Experience Rite Aid Pharmacy
Certified Pharmacy Technician Buckhead, Ga
2007-Present
Assist the pharmacist with transcribing prescriptions
ordering meds, counting meds, answering phones, organizing and
filing prescriptions, customer service, customer accounts, insurance billing,
make doctor calls for refill request, and keep the pahrmacy area clean.
Farrar Financial
Front Desk Receptionist Riverdale, Ga
[protected]
Answer phones, set appointments, prepare insurance policies, file contracts
customer service, give insurance qoutes as needed, assist insurance agents as needed,
internet, microsoft, excel, microsoft office software, facsimile machine, type 60 words pm.
customer specialist.
Dennis Dean Catering Atlanta, GA
Cocktail/Banquet Server/Bartender 2000-Present ( on call based on availability )
Serve menu items to guests in a prompt and courteous manner and according to the banquet event order; time the service of courses to correspond with the dining pace of the guests. Perform pre-and post-shift side work; set-up, condiments etc. Open, operate and close bar, ensure that open bar is not left unattended under any circumstances, responsible for the cash collected. Monitor drink limit of guests. Mix and serve drinks.
Spalding Regional Hospital Griffin, GA Pharmacy Technician 2006-Externship Program
Assist Pharmacist with compounding and filling prescriptions, pull and return medication to shelves, take medication to various floors to the nurse’s station as needed, trained in aseptic techniques and IV hood.
GA Student Finance Commission Tucker, Ga
Customer Service Perfessional [protected]
Assist students/parents with financial aid questions, process
Hope Scholarship, Pell Grant applications, Stafford Loans, and other government
funded programs available to Georgia high school graduates, and higher education programs.
K&L Package Store Riverdale, GA
Assistant Store Manager (Part time) [protected]
Control inventory, order inventory, prepare employee schedules, process timecards, accounts payable, prepare sales tax, prepare and make bank deposits daily, customer service specialist.
Georgia Medical Gases Tucker, Ga
Receptionist [protected]
Answer phones, schedule appointments, schedule deliveries, customer support, customer accounts and billing, order office supplies and maintain a clean and organized area.
After arriving 30 minutes early, I was told by the employee, that she was running late (as she was waiting for another employee to arrive), and that we'd have to wait for another hour. Being that it was Walmart, I tried to be forgiving, and took my 3-year old to look for awhile in the toy department. Upon returning back to the counter (45 minutes later), the same employee was still short-handed, whereas six other people were now in front of us in line. My husband wasn't very happy. Especially at the professionalism and appearance of this employee. She dressed almost like a 'Bratz' doll, with her backside exposed whenever she bent down, and bare midriff exposed. And I am not one to judge, but when one decides to be transgendered (man into woman), you would think that the individual would take more care in their appearance to remove facial and chest hair in the process. This in itself, made my husband not want to allow this person to touch our daughter, and it led our toddler to ask why this person had a beard.
I work for Picture me and customers can really be rude. We have a very hard job. We work on baby time. So You customers just try our job one day and you will see its not an easy job
PictureMe Studios is not owned or operated by the Wal-Mart Corporation. They simply lease space in the stores, the same way McDonald's or SubWay does. This is not a Wal-Mart matter and, therefore, Wal-Mart does NOT owe you an apology.
I just returned from the Rockwall Super Walmart after a horrible experience with the unprofessional young lady there. She was most upset because we came in at 5:35 pm when she wanted to leave. She would not tell us what backgrounds we could choose from and did NOT work with my two boys as all. I was set to spend whatever but ended up just wanting to get out of there I was so disgusted with her attitude and meaness and disinterest toward the boys. You are lucky I spend $27.00. I won't go back which is a shame. I have taken all my grandkids there over the last 12 years. Your loss.
Sandy Lingnell
I feel like this. We are all human beings, capable of error. None of us are infallible. I do notthink that hers or anyother persons bad experience at a place should determine whether or not the company is bad. I had my son's pictures taken there without conflict. It was a very pleasant experience. I think that as long as we continue on living, and as long as people continue to be fired and hired from a place of employment, we run a chance of finding ourselves in a situation that we don't like. I think it is very immature when people label others or a group based on what an individual opts to do of their own accord. Certainly, no one would meaningfully hire a liability to their company, knowing that it would bring bad business.
I am just calming down from a crazy Picture Me session that took place today. This employee obviously did not want to help me. He was so rude to me that I finally said "If you don't want to take the picture we will leave". It escalated into a shouting match and I finally had to ask a store manager to get me the photo registration form back from him. This employee yelled at me and was the most rude, obnoxious, lazy individual I have ever met. I will never use this studio EVER again. I am convinced that he did not want to help me by taking my child's picture so he chose to "run me off" by being rude. In this bad economy he should probably hang on to whatever job he has. This is no way to keep your job.
Wow ... I am blown away at all the negative comments regarding Picture Me. Wal-Mart needs to kick them to the curb and demand a better, respectable studio to take their place. Tell everyone you know to boycott them until they are replaced!
I will not visit my local Wal-Mart until he is gone. Hopefully his actions will help him find his way to the unemployment line. Maybe he can argue with himself all day instead of innocent customers.
I will never use Picture Me Studios again. I switched to them after having problems with JCP and will never go back. The lady was rough with my baby, took pictures that I was not looking for (and they were the majority of what she took), did not offer all available packages, wasn't honest about the costs of the portraits, among many other things. AND, the pictures I was really looking forward to, look like crap.
I have had pictures taken @ our Picture Me @ Walmart location twice now. The 1st photographer was really good. Last time the photographer was awful, missed all the pics of my daughter smiling, but she was trying really hard and my daughter was uncooperative. She spent plenty of time with us. However, their internet was down. So she had to call in my credit card to pay for my order. When my order is supposed to be in, I get a call that it will be late because of the internet issue. This isn't really a big problem, but what irritates me is the nasty attitude of the girl calling to tell me my pictures will be late in a rude nasty tone that says "I could give a crap if your pictures are late." I felt this was very unnecessary. On top of that, I get a call from the manager a couple days later that the photographer did not write down my credit card info ('cause she called it in over the phone) so they need it again to charge me for my photos. Very suspicious, but as far as I can tell from my bank statement, they only charged me once. Still haven't got my photos though. All in all, I find Picture Me to have shady business practices sometimes, but you always get what you pay for.
I'm getting the idea here that alot of these stores you guys are taking about are in the US..
I work at a studio in Ontario, Canada and have been there for a month. I also run my own business.
Firstly I have to somewhat agree with Mary's side and somewhat disagree... In my district in order to give a refund for portraits we must call our district manager and explain the situation. They will then decide if we are to give a refund or not...
Secondly.. If you know you paid for the purchase before why would you give her your card and not question it first.
Thirdly... Whoever said if the appt is not there 5 mins before their time than a walk in is allowed is crazy and same goes for the person letting a 3 in before a 1. we wait until 15 mins after an appt time before letting someone walk in for portraits, especially for someone coming for children, it takes time to get them in and out of the car, etc. and if we know we have appts between say 1 and 3 we would never let the 3 o'clock customer go in without making sure the customers booked ahead of them we're done first.
fourth... as for nikkis comment about lunch and only 1 person working... i have given up all but 10-20 mins of my lunch and worked up to 30 mins after we are supposed to close specifically to satisfy the customer, and have gotten great praise for it. This is a place where customer satisfaction is KEY, go the extra mile for a customer believe me they will greatly thank you for it.. and why exactly do you have only 1 person working? From the beginning of this month I have always had a 2nd person with me, no one is ever alone except MAYBE mornings during the week when most people are at work.
As a note for anyone else, and I have asked about this many times for clarification... Our main priority is the customer in the camera room appt first then walk-ins, during this time we are expected basically to stay in that room and do our job, we do not answer the phones or deal with anyone else, we may come out and explain to someone standing there that we are busy and will be done soon... especially with christmas coming up, anyone with kids will understand that from time to time we do get backed up, we cannot make your kids smile as well as you can.
A good note to other employees that i have learned, is if you have both parents there and they aren't in the shot, get one of them to stand with you, your like 85% guaranteed a smile.
O ALL YOU IMPATIENT PEOPLE OUT THERE... REMEMBER YOU WERE IN OUR SHOES ONCE...IT TAKES TIME TO LEARN THESE THINGS IF YOU DON'T ALREADY KNOW IT. OUR JOB IS ALOT MORE COMPLICATED THAN PUSHING BUTTONS AND ENTERING THINGS INTO A COMPUTER...
UNLESS of course you want crappy pictures, then it is as simple as pushing a button.
if an employee disagrees with me on that then you shouldn't be a photographer or you need to learn to take better pictures. go buy an SLR and try creating portraits as good as many of us..
now that i'm done with that... i do happen to have one complaint about my company...
need to stop hiring people with no photography experience period! I have seen to many people walk out of a studio without purchasing anything because the pictures are horrible. This ties in with the push a button thing.. this is proof that its not!
You're seriously thinking about pursuing legal action over 77 cents!? Wow some people just have no life. I would have grabbed the pictures, walked out and told them that I'd be taking my business elsewhere.
one question: Why didnt you contact the customer service at home? Then you wouldnt of made such a big scene and you wouldnt of been in such a conflict with mary. I understand that you wont want to go back to a store that treats you "bad" but not all wal-mart's are the same. And not all people that work there are the same.
If you are getting so worked up and causing a scene over 77 cents, I really feel sorry for you! Life is too short to make such a big issue over a trivial matter such as that. If I was one of the other customers in the store, I would have given you a dollar just so you would shut up and leave! Everyone wants customers service to be better but respect is a two way road! I dont even work in customer service, but I feel sorry for people that have to make their living dealing with people such as yourself.
I have been going to Picture Me Studios for six years now. Although I haven't had any problems and that the incident that I am commenting on is a year old, I had to put my two cents in! This comment is for Amy Jewett and her response to the TOP COMPLAINT which is about MARY! How in the world could you leave such a rude and inconsiderate response? First, you know as well as everybody else that a lot of fraud has occurred and is continuing to occur with credit cards! Second, if my receipt (WHICH WAS PRINTED FROM THE SAME COMPUTER THAT YOU SAY DOESN'T LIE) states a balance that is different then what my card is swiped for then Im going to ask why and Im sure u would too. Once the customer asked the employee about the difference in the balance, Mary should have automatically compared the receipt to the computer, not the customer. Then, Mary should have contacted customer service herself. That is what u call CUSTOMER SERVICE! Amy Jewett u made it seem as if this incident was the customers fault when indeed it wasn't. I truly hope that u aren't in customer service.
I took my daughter took get her pictures done when she was born and i got the introductory package and the woman was so upset that we had came in and she was getting off in a half hour. So she took the pictures in like 5 minutes and they were all crappy! Then when we picked the picture we wanted she told us that we could only have the first picture taken, and it was the worst one of all! Then she proceeded to try to sell the most expensive package there was and i wasnt going to pay for pictures that were terrible! so she still sat there and fought with us about the pictures because she was in such a hurry to go home. This happened 4 months ago, I have taken my oldest daughter to walmart to get her pictures done since she was born but every time we take the kids the service is worse worse!
I am a Studio Manager with PictureMe and I came on here because I wanted to know what our customers think of us and I have to say I am absolutely appalled. Not by what you all think, but by the level of service you all have received. I am extremely sorry for the horrible experiences you've had. I have been an employee for over 7 years and I have no doubts that your complaints and concerns are absolutely valid. That said, please remember that all of the PictureMe employees are not the same. I wont lie and say I've never had a bad day and unintentionally let a customer leave the studio dissatisfied, because unfortunately I have, but I pride myself on knowing and admitting when I am wrong and I have also been known to admit to guilt that was not mine to admit to just to make a customer happy. For example, just last week I had a customer come into my studio 20 minutes before my lunch break was over. I had just walked back in to grab my purse and she told me she would like her Grandbabys portraits taken. I told her no problem and that I would be back in just a minutes so I could run to the restroom. I came back from my break fifteen min early. I didnt mind. I had had a bad lunch break and she seemed like a nice lady and her grandbaby was adorable. The session was great and she loved all of the portraits. At the sales table she became very unhappy because she wanted all of the portraits and wasnt able to afford them all at that time. I told her I understood and I went about trying to get her a good deal so she could get everything like she wanted. I ended up giving her 25% off, but she was still unhappy and felt like she was spending too much money. She started getting pretty rude with me and asking me just to hurry up and finish the order because she just wanted to leave the studio. I wrapped it up quickly and took her to the register to ring her up and she saw a sign of some specials I was running. She asked me why the "hell" I didnt offer her that. I told her I didnt offer it to her because- she cut me off. just finish my order she said. I realized I should have offered it to her even though I had a reason for not doing it. So I tried again. I'm sorry but I didnt tell you because I knew that with what you were wanting to get it wouldnt have given you the deal that I was able to give you. She was very mad and just told me to focus on her order and stop talking to her. I told her I could do both, but left her alone anyways. Call me ridiculous but I started to cry. I couldnt help it. It was very quiet and I held my head high and finished her order, handed her receipt, told her the pick up date and to have a nice day. At that point she noticed I was crying and switched gears. She told me to have a nice day too. This made me want to cry harder so I nodded and had to go to the back of the room before I embarrassed myself more. A week later I called her to let her know her portraits were in. When she walked up I smiled at her and got her portraits for her. I gave her the package and pulled out the extras that they printed. I knew exactly what I had to do. I looked her right in the eye and told her I just wanted to tell you I am sorry for my behavior last week. 5 minutes before I took your Grandsons Portraits I had just broken up with my boyfriend of 2 years. ( I realize my personal business should be left at home, but I felt like she deserved an explanation for why I was crying) I told her it wasnt her. I was just overly emotional. She told me she had been having a bad day as well and she was sorry for the way she acted. She loved her portraits and she would be back. I gave her the extra ones for free. She is now one of my best customers. Im sorry this is so long, but I really would like to remind you all that we all have bad days and to please not let a bad experience make you decide not to visit our studios again. I also understand that it is extremely frustrating when something goes wrong with your order. Just remember that most of us employees feel awful when we have to call you and let you know. Now that we are all digital there are A LOT less mistakes, I can assure you. Our business has horrible turnover. Basically because people think it is an easy job and dont realize that there is a lot of hard work to be done. When things get hard they break under the pressure. We are constantly having to get new employees. In closing, I am again SO SORRY for all of you who have had these awful experiences. I just want to let you know, I take my job very seriously. I love my job. We are not without fault, that has been proven, but please know there are others out there like me who would love to have a chance to change your mind about our company.
Sincerely,
Saddened Employee
I have had my daughter's pictures taken at Picture-Studios since she was 2 mos, she is now 6 mos and I have enjoyed every minute. The workers are like family and know my child by name, they are always friendly, cheerful and professional.
But if your looking for somewhere different don't go to Sears Studios. I had pictures taken at Sears Studio while I was pregnant, the managers are horrible. The pictures where terrible, they didn't call when the pictures came in after the manager assured me I would be called. But I still went back to them after my child was born and had her pictures taken, the worker LaKeisha, was great. The Manager, however, violated my confidentiality rights by showing all my pictures to her son's pregnant girlfriend, who happens to be the Asst. Manager's daughter, none of these people work there. I know this by her on self admission and she was making pictures so her "friend" could use some ideas when she has her baby. I don't care, these were pictures of me and my child not to be shared with anyone else. Corperate didn't care about my rights and gets compaints on this Manager all the time, but they do nothing about it because they plan to close that office soon, yeah right. Now on the other hand, the other workers are great, they were helpful in everyway, but the higher-ups need new jobs.
If you experienced bad customer service, you just have to remember that one person at one studio does not represent the entire company. And sometimes people are going through hard times and still are expected to be at work, they really could be having a bad day. (my case with sears had nothing to do with anyone being rude directly to me I just had bad pictures and poor service.)
FYI (Picture-Me Studio & Sears Studio are operated by the same company for those of you who don't know.) So even though one is terrible the other is great, some of you just happened to have a bad experience like I did, but I'm not going to stop having pictures of my child taken, just because I ran into one unprofessional person. Where I work we use the moto "one monkey don't stop the show" and I work with emotionally disturbed adolescents.
I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE my picture me studio and their workers. To those of you who hate the studio so much, do what we have, buy your own professional camera and lens (you'll need a couple), start taking your own pictures and you will not have any customer service problems. I still plan to take monthly pictures at Picture-Me Studios even though we have the same camera and program.
Re: the original 0.77 cents complaint, I don't think the poster was as concerned about the amount as much as the fact that the rep made a mistake (regardless how slight) and failed to remedy it. I actually would feel the same, I don't like to be taken lightly and whether it be 77 cents or 77 dollars, there was obviously an error that needed to be fixed. Everyone knows the customer is always right, but I do notice at Walmart some employees have that attitude...which you can't blame them, most of them are probably not very happy with the job they have anyways.
My problem with the portrait studio has always been the sales pressure to buy buy buy. Obviously if everyone took the special offer for 4.99 or 6.99 or whatever, the studio wouldn't be in business. However, the sales pitch there is more brutal than timeshare sales. Of course your kids and cute and lovely and beautiful but most of us go to walmart for low cost pictures not a 100$ package or a picture CD for $120! Obviously they get a commission because some are rather ruthless when it comes to selling you anything beyond the basic "cheap" package. If so, they need to work on selling without coming off really mean and demeaning.
As we all know any company that you could ever go to has had the complaints and has also had songs of praise. Unfortunately, as with any company, we do sometimes get the "bad apples" who are employed with us, and believe you me, we do have them, but you can't damn the entire company because you have had one bad experience or a couple in the same studio. We have over 2500 studios in the United States alone. The customer, in this case, was right and according to what she wrote, she was due a refund which the employee should have gladly given her... I mean come on, we're talking .77 cents! It would have solved the entire problem... I would have adjusted it in a heart beat. My point here is that the photographer makes the difference when you get the portraits taken. It could mean the difference between a great experience and a horrible one. My customers love the way that I treat them. I truly care about the work that I'm doing and it shows! So I guess my point is that we do have some really great employees working for us, and unfortunately, like any other businesses we have some bad ones... but the good news is we usually get rid of the bad ones pretty fast... well in my area at least. Maybe try going to a different location it could be a big difference in the way that you have been treated in the past, because like I said before... If you happen to find a photographer like myself who happens to love what they do, it will be like night and day! I truly am sorry for the way that you have been treated and nobody deserves to be treated like that. As far as the comments posted on here saying that we are bad photographers the same goes, you have to find the right one! Ask for the most experienced photographer at the location or in the area near by. This doesn't necessarily mean that they will be good either, but you have a better shot of having a great experience with someone who is a tenured, experienced employee. Who may not be there for just a paycheck.
I too am a Picture Me studio employee. I actually was looking for the main site to find a store to transfer to. WOW! I didnt expect to find this site but it has opened my eyes to a few things I would have never thought of.
First to the person who says their name is professional photographer... I'd say your anything but. Just cause you can point a camera and push a button doesnt make you any different than one who pushes a remote control button... I have two associates degree's and in college for my Bachelor's, I work at Picture me because I LOVE my job, not because I have to. My husband is a safety instructor and makes more than enough for our family. I DONT have to work. I dont live in a "trailer" and Im not trailer trash! If you were standing in a pile of poop does that make you poop as well? NO. it doesnt, although your statement made you sound like a complete jerk! And just to make sure you get this, I was raised in a small town, in a small mobile home, my home was always clean and my mom worked hard to support us, that doesnt make us "trailer trash" I think you have watched too much tv.
Im getting off track and I apologize but that comment really upset me. As far as the .77 cents refund, if it had been me I'd have given her the change out of my own pocket just to provide a better service. It wasnt worth the argument and the drama! Mary was correct, we are instructed not to give refunds, but omg! Even if it had been out of my drawer(how hard would it have been to show the .77 cents and put an explanation on the DTR) I'd rather do that than to have such a complaint on me.
I agree that it stinks when you have to wait, I do my best to give you quality time, to work patiently with your child, family or even with you as my customer. The company gives me 15 minutes to take your information, take the photographs and sell your photo's to you. If your child is hungry or sleepy or just anxious about being a confined area, with a flash going off in their face and a strange person making faces and noises at them... you will probably go over that time limit. Most days we are alone, answering a phone "just to see if pictures are in, " juggling a schedule that's behind, a family with 6 kids under the age of 7, confined space, greeting the customers and trying to keep the studio clean all while taking portaits of the twins who are 9 months, the six year old who keeps making faces instead of smiling and the four year old who wants to cry cause he's hungry. I 'd love to see mr. professional photographer handle all of this and still keep a smile on his face! I do so almost every day and I love it.
So for those of you that I've upset because I've taken too long, or those that have called and I have not answered because the one month old Im trying to take photo's of is on the verge of a melt down, for the person who stood for ten minutes outside my counter waiting to pick up pictures and Im engrossed in getting the family posed correctly and capturing everyone smiling and their eyes open... I apologize to you cause Im only one person.
Picture me studio's may not be the "best" but we do offer some pretty good prices for a small package. 4.99 or 7.99 for thirty pictures isnt bad at all. Most of the studio's have now converted to digital and we have so many more options. You dont have to choose from the first one for your package, we can do things like sephia and black n white, vignette's and color enhancements. I love being able to get creative with my photographs.
I have been taking kids to wal-mart for 20 years first my neices and nephews than my own kids the last few times I have taken my kids I have been treated rudly and my kids which is 5, 7, 11 and 14 have been treated even worse. With the rudeness of the employs and the prices and the poor quality of the picters I have no idea how they even stay in business. I take my own and have the pakages made by mail and there just as good and alot cheaper.
I was planning to go that studio however after reading these comments... I will not go...thanks
.77 cents? Lady you need a life!I feel for Mary
geez. i jsut went and the photographer was great. she was interacting real well and she was very professional. Lets just wait and see how the pictures come out.
Over 77 cents...its not all of her fault...
I am an employee of the Wal-Mart Portrait Studio, I agree that Mary was in the wrong and should have given a much higher standard of customer service. How ever I don't agree that the whole company should take blame for the situation. It is a hit and miss with associates with this company, personally I love my job and I put my best effort in to please the customer. My manager is however someone who should not be with this company, I have firsthand witnessed the bad customer service that she has preformed. I have seen her rip people off, yell at people, and treat people with total disrespect. In one day I receive about 5 MAJOR customer complaints about her, I don't know why my district manager does not fire her. That is one of the biggest problems with this company, the reason that there are so many hit and miss employees is the simple fact the company does nothing to get rid of the bad ones. They are pretty much given a stern look, and then are left to do as they please again. I have worked with many awesome people with this job, but have worked with a few disrespectful people as well.
Seriously 77 cents! Wow...and it probably was tax or something, you made it sound like she swiped for a few hundred or something. So as a previous employee of Picture me...NOT Walmart portrait studio..Walmart leases the space, they don't own the company...we got about one of y'all a day! I left for personal reasons, not because of problems at work. Most the problems we got were from stay at home moms with nothing better to do than get pictures done on sleepy, hungry or hyper children. And anyone with a 2 year old should know that they have stranger anxiety and some person taking pics of them freaks em out and they aren't too keen on smiling! I've been abused by many customers who just want something for free! As for having for not being able to talk to a supervisor...only one person works per day usually and I don't know of many other places to work where you have no coworkers or bosses to confer with when there is a problem. We can try to call someone but they don't usually answer the phone, we are in charge all by ourselves and it's not easy. Nothing is free...if you get something free, it will come back on us somehow. We get two weeks training on how to work a camera, computer system and deal with customers and then it's "see-ya" and "good luck" and we are on our own! I know that there are bad ones out there but you can't judge a nationwide company on one person...I mean, sometimes McDonalds forgets my fries but I don't never go again because one person messed up...that's just STUPID! Children are difficult to deal with sometimes and you can't expect someone to always make them smile on cue...just keep that in consideration and stop waiting for a "perfect" picture...sometime we get it sometimes we don't...my own son cried in most of his pictures but you know what, that was him and I didn't complain!
And about having to wait...our policy is to take walk ins always, it doesn't matter if you have an appointment at 1 we have to take someone 5 till if you aren't there! And more often than not we run behind, it's not unusual to wait up to an hour on a busy day, deal with it! You have to wait at a doctors office but you don't complain...and please don't make an appointment and not call if you can't make it...it is so agrivating to have no shows!
And yes, lunch is required and it is posted on the time board! Don't ask us to take your pics during or right at lunch...that bugged me so bad when I would say, "sorry, it's my lunch, I can get you in a little bit" and they would be pissed and say they were going to complain! When are we allowed to eat? And if you make me do it during lunch, you think I'm going to be happy and smiley about it...probably not!
Main point, USE YOUR BRAIN and think of how you would want people ### about the most stupid thing, like 77 cents! And if you don't have a reciept or id...they do NOT have to give your pictures to you if they don't know you...it's policy and they can be fired over it so don't ### about that either...just bring your reciept!
I completely disagree, You are the one that demanded a refund of .77 cents, are you seriously having that hard of a time trying to figure out why that situation escalated?, Mary probably should have kept her a cool a little better, but working for wal-mart in the past i see how customers like you react to the littlest mess up on anything. She gave you the number to call about fixing this error and it seems all you did was call that number just to bash Mary when all she was doing was her job. You are getting all your pictures and your damn refund from this location, i really don't see why you need to make it your goal to give every location a bad name. Thats just selfish on your part. Simple answer: don't go to that location again... and to all the rest of you who have complained about picture me studios, it sounds to me like they did everything they are allowed to do within the studio to help all you ungrateful people out and all you can do is ### about their service out of anger.. grow up and get over it.
Your asonished that this situation has escalated over .77 cents yet you were the one to to make a big deal over 3/4 of a buck? get real drama queen
And for you idiots that think people should quit their job if they don't like it think about this. If you're getting paid $6 per hour to entertain ###s like this one how much professionalism and training do you think is involved. How do you think a portrait studio can afford to offer $6 portrait package deals. Just like shopping at walmart. How much customer service do you expect from someone who is working 25 hours a week for $7.25 an hour? You people are stupid if you want Glamour Shots for $6 a package. Now who's stupid.
When I used to work in retail, i had a customer just like you. A customer made an unnecessary complaint over 46 cents. The difference was because she returned an item from a Walmart in another county. I tried to explain to her that counties have different tax rates and we do not compensate for the difference. After I realized she didn't understand economics, I just gave her the 50 cents out of my pocket. She had the nerve to complain to the manager and said I was being "nasty" to her. You people make me sick about meaningless complaints. I'm wondering how much you spent on making that call. Just so you know, customer complaints like that only make the salesperson's actions justifiable. Call when you have a real complaint.
I have been going to the Wal Mart Picture Me studios for a few years now, for family photos, with my 2 sisters. We have never come into contact with anyone this bad. Yes I aggree, they aren't "proffesional photographers", but come on, what do you expect for $5.99 or what ever they cost for a ton of pictures. It is an amazing deal for the amount of photos you get. The employees I have worked with, were all very happy and creative people. I recently went to the Maple Grove, MN location and worked with Chris, he was awsome. He Put us in poses we would have NEVER thought of, and we loved them all. He even changed some to black and white for us.He knew exactly how to work with our personalities to. I feel bad that you had such a terrible employee, but you can't blame ALL of Picture Me studios, or Wal Mart for that matter. You take your chances at any studio honestly.