Last night, I went to Dairy Queen to indulge my Blizzard craving.
For anyone who doesn't know, if they don't serve the Blizzard “upside down” (turn it over before they hand it to you), then you get it for free!
Well, last night, it happened to me! This (probably) 16yo teen girl tried to hand my Blizzard to me without flipping it.
Just as I touched it, I said “ahhhhhh!” with a huge smile. She instantly looked terrified, pulled it back, flipped it over, and handed it to me.
I said, “thanks, but don't I get it for free?” Keep in mind, I was really smiling and talking in a fun voice.
She started getting TEARS IN HER EYES!
I then realized this wasn't funny.
She quietly said “yes, you do”.
I asked “wait, will you get in trouble?”
“I don't know, maybe, because this is the second time tonight and my boss already yelled at me”.
I nearly lost it. Here's basically a little girl, who is so terrified to make a mistake, that she instantly cried when making a simple mistake. I'm a 50yo man, and I actually started welling up.
I said, “look, I'm sorry, I didn't realize you might get in trouble. I never thought DQ was an employer that would yell at an employee for something so simple”.
I refused the refund and told her to not say anything to anyone. I then told her “I hope it gets better for you, working sucks, but it can be rewarding and enjoyable with the right job”.
I can't stop thinking about this.. this is one of DQ's biggest marketing points, and a staple of their entire identity. And their employees are terrified of it.
This is a policy literally rewards a customer for reporting the behavior of their employees. For something that doesn't even affect the quality of their service. It's a stupid marketing ploy. And they can be fired over it.
Maybe I'm making too much of this, but maybe not.