Got screamed at by a customer in Tulsa for offering free samples

I was working a booth at the Tulsa State Fair last year and a lady lost it on me because I handed her a free sample of hot sauce. She said I was trying to force her to buy it and threw the cup at my face. Has anyone else had a customer go ballistic over something free?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_charles12d ago

Got a similar thing happen to me at a farmers market in Ohio a few years back. Started just handing out samples of my homemade salsa to people walking by, and this one guy grabbed the cup, sniffed it, then threw it back at me and said I was trying to poison him or something. Honestly what worked was just smiling real big and saying "no worries, it's totally free no strings attached" and then I pointed to the sign that clearly said free samples in big letters. He still looked mad but he walked away and I just kept doing my thing. Some people are just looking for a reason to be angry, you know? I found that keeping a calm voice and not matching their energy helped a ton, plus I stopped handing samples to folks who looked like they were already in a bad mood. Just got better at reading the room.

the_jamie12d ago

Ugh, the "sniff and throw" move - classic. That guy sounds like he was auditioning for the role of "Suspicious Shopper" in a bad improv sketch. I gotta hand it to you for just smiling through that, because I probably would have been tempted to ask him if his nose detected a hint of "common sense" in the salsa. It's wild how some people treat a free sample like it's a live grenade (you know, wrapped in a tortilla chip). Glad you didn't let his bad mood ruin the whole batch for everyone else, though.