The Astonishing Elf Girl's Tips for Keeping Your Comic Store Clerk Happy. ~ And Other Long Titles
Many comic fans interact well with others, at least, well enough. For those that don't, I, the Astonishing Elf Girl, am here to give to tips on etiquette in the comic book store; or "The Museum of Social Awkwardness". Remember, a happy clerk is a...happy clerk.
Tip #5 ~ Vagueness is Not Your Friend.
Comic store clerks often pride themselves on immense knowlege of useless information all kinds; and fortunately, working in a comic shop, it can be put to some good use. However, our vast knowledge has it's limits. Yes, I know, it's shocking, but your clerk just may not know everything.
If you're looking for something, the less vague you are the better. Don't ask "Yeah, I hear people talking about this great comic about a guy in a cape" or "That X-Men story where they go into space". It's understandable if something comes to you in the shop and you ask in the spur of the moment. But don't come to the store with the intent to get something but not really have an idea of what to get. There's way too many stories to just start guessing. And if your clerk is guessing and it's not jogging your memory, go home, use google, figure it out! Seriously, people...Google. How can you not be using it?
At the same time, if you are going to send loved ones to the store to pick out something for you, give them a list. They may say they remember what you want, but once they walk into the store and see all that spandex, everything blurs together. I've had people confuse Superman with Spider-Man, and not just in name. Yes, they both have an "s", a "p", and "erman", but that's as far as it goes. If your loved one doesn't know the difference, they definitely need a list. Perhaps pictures as well.
More after the jump!
Tip #6 ~ Discount or Comic Shop...Pick One.
All right, so it isn't quite the either or the title suggests, however it is something that comes up quite often. "Does your store offer discounts?" If you're shopping around for a new store and are looking for the best deal, it's understandable to a certain degree to look for a place that gives discounts. After all, with comics at $3 a piece, every little bit helps.
Remember, though, comic shops are often small businesses that can't afford to give much in the way of discounts. It takes a lot of merchandise sold each week just to pay the bills, not to mention the help. Comic stores in many places are going under due to hard times, high rent, and a relatively low interest in comics for the general population. Some places definitely can afford to give discounts to regular customers, some can't. If they don't, don't assume that they don't want to; likely they just can't afford to.
Having a local comic shop is something that, when gone, is greatly missed. I lost my comic shop twice growing up, and it sucks not to have that wonderful place filled with floppies, trades, toys, statues, and other geek stuff.
Tip #7 ~ Use the Card Wisely, Luke...
Everyone's done it. We've all gone to a store and bought something really small with a credit card and felt silly doing it. When it comes to large retail stores, it's just a small drop in the bucket. When it comes to small businesses, it's a loss of profit. Many stores, including my own, won't actually set minimal purchase levels for card use. Still, it does help them out quite a bit if you're paying for a single comic with cash rather than a card.
Each time someone uses a card, a portion of the sale goes to the card company; a little fee for businesses to be able to use their services. As if they don't gouge enough from the people who own the cards...
Ahem, anyway; the little bit that goes toward Visa, Mastercard, or InstaDebt takes away from what little the shop makes on the sale. The bigger your purchase, the less of a problem it is. That's why some places have a minimal purchase for use of a credit card; they have to make a profit; it's the name of the game. Using your card won't kill the store (well, likely anyway), but you'd be amazed at how much it can add up.
Next week's will be a mishmash of various smaller tips like this week's was. Mmmm...mash.
Got a question for me? Email me here! I'll start answering questions in future columns; you know, as soon as I actually have any to answer...
Elf Girl
Posted to Hot Stuff on 9 July 2008
· Comments (4)
Other stuff like this: Elf Girl, tips
Holy crap... I didn't think about the credit card thing at all. I usually spend about $10~15 so I hope that's enough for a credit card purchase.
@clarkspecial: While it is something to keep in mind if you're feeling particularly generous towards your store owner, you should know that it's actually against Visa and MC policy in their merchant contracts to establish a minimum card purchase amount. (Discover and AMEX allow a minimum if it's consistent across all accepted cards. So if they're only accepting AMEX and Discover then they can set a minimum, but technically if they're accepting all 4 they can't set any minimums.)
Ah IC. Well, I will still try to bring cash for smaller purchases out of courtesy.
Thanks for the tip!
$10-15 is ok. Regardless of a merchant policy, it helps the small businesses, Visa and Mastercard have enough money. ;)