Why do salespeople always say hello and goodbye when you can't see them? You walk into a store, a voice says hello, you turn to look for a person attached to the voice, but it appears to be coming from a mannequin. Or a lamp. Right away, they have you at a disadvantage. Do you say hello back to an inanimate object? Or aim your voice somewhere beyond the object? Are you sure they're even talking to you? Already they're forcing you to make a choice, and you haven't even looked at the merchandise yet!
And when you leave the store, there might be a salesperson stationed right on your way to the door, who is in full view as you walk toward it, but this person will not say "goodbye, thanks for shopping with us" until you are past him. Why?? He sees you coming, has plenty of opportunity to give his spiel, but he waits until you are beyond him and you either have to turn around to answer or keep walking and aim your answer at the door. They must have instructions on how to make customers feel the most uncomfortable: Victim is one step past, two steps, three steps -- OK, now!
I went into a mattress store once that had a mirror all across the back wall. This not only made the store look enormous, it also gave the salespeople more opportunities to trick customers. As I walked toward the back of the store, a voice said, "Hello!" "H-hello," I answered somewhat tentatively, not knowing whether the voice was coming from the mirror, in front of me, or somewhere off to my right. I looked furtively around for a body attached to the voice, while trying to look like I was interested in the mattresses.
"How can we help you today?" the mirror said. I turned toward it. "Oh, I'm just looking for a new mattress," I told it. Come out and show yourself! I wanted to say.
"What size are you looking for?" the mirror went on. I still could not see an actual person, and this was getting frustrating. Was he rooted to the floor somewhere, unable to move? Or was he amusing himself at the spectacle I must have made as I whirled from one side to the other, trying to locate him? I did not want this to continue, shouting answers into oblivion, so I did not answer, just kept moving toward where I thought he might be.
"Well? What size mattress are you looking for? Full? Queen? Twin?" His voice was sharper now. Ah, I thought, I must be getting closer.
"Uh, I'm just looking," I said. Looking for you, pal.
The conversation continued this way, him trying to get answers from me while staying hidden and me trying not to give any information while trying to find my torturer. I never did see a real person, and I finally got fed up and left. I thought later that I should have looked up. Maybe he was hiding in the rafters.
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