PLEASE!! Let me give you my money!

I feel like I have to beg some people to accept our business and it is starting to get on my nerves. Just last week I was looking on Craigslist for someone to power-wash our back deck. I find a guy that has "Reliable, GREAT work, you WON'T be disappointed" in his ad. So I call him. Halfway through our call, we get cut off. So I wait a few minutes and call him back. It goes straight to voicemail (and continues to do so for the next 10 minutes). So, I leave him a voicemail... assuming his phone lost power. 8 hours later, I have yet to hear back from him. Keep in mind, we are trying to get this job done ASAP. I call him AGAIN. He answers. I explain who I am (again) and he acts as though he has NO idea who I am. Now I'm starting to get annoyed. Needless to say, I described our needs and he agreed to come the next night at 5:30 to check out the deck and give us an estimate. He then proceeds to let me go. "Don't you need our address?" I ask... "Uh, sure" he replies. Then I hear him scrambling. "Sorry, I can't find a pen in my van. Gimme a minute." he says. I'm thinking to myself, WOW this guy is definitely organized. Then he has the nerve to ask me to call him back and leave my address on his voicemail. What a piece of "work" (I have another word I would prefer to use, but I like my posts to be PG).

The next day arrives and I am anxiously awaiting his arrival so we can get this done. 5:32. 5:40. 5:45. Nothing. So I call him (he might as well be on my speed dial by now). No answer. So I leave a message to the tune of "are you coming???????". 6:00. 6:15. 6:30. NOTHING. What a ______. Finally... at 7:45 he calls. Says he lost the paper (in his immaculately clean van) that had our address on it. Um, couldn't he have gone through his call history and actually called me to let me know that a) he lost the address and b) he was going to be 2 hours late...?  Let's just say, we didn't give him the business.

I mean, what is wrong with people? When I was in sales, I NEVER got incoming calls! What I would give for someone to call me and say they needed my product like YESTERDAY and I needed to get there right away. Do you think I would just not show up? Or just forget to return their call?

And it's not just this guy. It happens all the time. While shopping, I am always the one that says thank you after I purchase something from THEIR store. What the hell is up with that? I'm buying from YOU. You need to thank ME. I just think people need to be more appreciative. A few more please & thank you's certainly wouldn't hurt either.

Vent. Over.