High-quality customer service is preached by many, but actually keeping customers happy is easier said than done. Shoppers seldom complain to the manager or owner of a retail store, but instead will alert their friends, s, co-workers, strangers--and anyone who will listen. Store managers are often the last to hear complaints, and often find out only when their regular customers decide to frequent their competitors, according to a study jointly conducted by Verde Group and Wharton School. "Storytelling hurts retailers and entertains consumers," said Paula Courtney, President of the Verde Group. "The store loses the customer, but the shopper must also find a replacement." On average, every unhappy customer will complain to at least four others, and will no longer visit the specific store. For every dissatisfied customer, a store will lose up to three more due to negative review. The resulting "snowball effect" can be disastrous to retailers. According to the research, shoppers who purchased clothing encountered the most problems. Ranked second and third were grocery and electronics customers. The most common complaints include filled parking lots, cluttered shelves, overloaded racks, out-of-stock items, long check-out lines, and rude salespeople. During peak shopping hours, some retailers solved parking problems by getting moonlighting local police to work as parking attendants. Some hired flag wavers to direct customers to empty parking spaces. This guidance eliminated the need for customers to circle the parking lot endlessly, and avoided confrontation between those eyeing the same parking space. Retailers can relieve the headaches by redesigning store layouts, pre-stocking sales items, hiring speedy and experienced cashiers, and having sales representatives on hand to answer questions. Most importantly, salespeople should be diplomatic and polite with angry customers. "Retailers who're responsive and friendly are more likely to smooth over issues than those who aren't so friendly,"... Shop owners often hire moonlighting police as parking attendants so that shoppers _ . A) can stay longer browsing in the store B) won't have trouble parking their cars C) won't have any worrier about security D) can find their cars easily after shopping
B
(Question)
The bicycling craze came in when we were just about at the right age to enjoy it. At first even "safety" bicycles were too dangerous and improper for ladies to ride, and they had to have tricycles. My mother had (I believe) the first female tricycle in Cambridge; and I had a little one, and we used to go out for family rides, all together; my father in front on a bicycle, and my poor brother Charles standing miserably on the bar behind my mother. I found it very hard work, pounding away on my hard tyres; a glorious, but not a pleasurable pastime. Then, one day at lunch, my father said he had just seen a new kind of tyre, filled up with air, and he thought it might be a success. And soon after that everyone had bicycles, ladies and all; and bicycling became the smart thing, and the lords and ladies had their pictures in the papers, riding along in the park, in straw hats. My mother must have fallen off her bicycle pretty often, for I remember seeing the most appalling cuts and bruises on her legs. But she never complained, and always kept these accidents to herself. However, the great Mrs. Phillips, our cook, always knew all about them; as indeed she knew practically everything that ever happened. She used to draw us into the servants' hall to tell us privately: "Her Ladyship had a nasty fall yesterday; she cut both her knees and sprained her wrist. But don't let her know I told you." So we never dared say anything. Similar little accidents used to occur when, at the age of nearly seventy, she insisted on learning to drive a car. She never mastered the art of reversing , and was in every way an unconventional and terrifying driver. Mrs. Phillips used then to tell us: "Her Ladyship ran into the back of a milk-cart yesterday; but it wasn't much hurt"; or "A policeman stopped her Ladyship because she was on the wrong side of the road; but she said she didn't know what the white line on the road meant, so he explained and let her go on." Mrs. Phillips must have had an excellent Intelligence Service at her... Cycling became popular when _ . A) air-filled tyres began to be used B) the writer's father popularized it C) noble people started enjoying it D) newspapers had pictures of cyclists
(Answer)
A
Ques: Toyoda said those changes were being made nearly around the clock,but during three hours of often tense questions and answers he repeated that there was no link to the vehicle's electronic systems. Many drivers making complaints against Toyota and the government say their acceleration problems had nothing to do with floor mat interference or sticky gas pedals .Outside experts have suggested electronic problems. House lawmakers expressed serious criticism on Toyoda,the grandson of the company's founder. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration(NHTSA)is seeking records on Toyota's recalls and is conducting its own review on whether electronics were behind the car faults.NHTSA also continues to look into steering complaints from drivers of the popular Corolla model. Toyota has recalled 8.5 million cars,more than 6 million of them in the United States. It may be a while before car buyers believe that Toyota really makes safe cars. Toyota's January sales already fell 16 percent even as most other automakers jumped back from last year's bad results.Analyst Koji Endo of Advanced Research Japan in Tokyo said he expects February sales,due out next week,to be down 30 percent to 40. Toyota's sales problem could continue beyond that. It will take some time to feel the full effect of this,he said. The best title for this passage is _ . A) Toyota is in trouble B) Toyota is under hearing C) Toyota is finished D) Toyota is still running
Ans: A
Every culture has a recognized point when a child becomes an adult, when rules must be followed and tests passed. In China, although teenagers can get their ID cards at 16, many only see themselves as an adult when they are 18. In the US, where everyone drives, the main step to the freedom of adult life is learning to drive. At 16, American teens take their driving test. When they have their license, they drive into the grown-up world. "Nobody wants to ride the cheese bus to school," said Eleanor Fulham, 17. She brought the pressure back to memory, especially from kids from wealthier families. "It's like you're not cool if you don't have a car," she said. According to recent research, 41% of 16 to 19-year-olds in the US own cars, up from 23% in 1985. Although, most of these cars are bought by parents, some teens get part-time jobs to help pay. Not all families can afford cars for their children. In cities with subways and limited parking, some teenagers don't want them. But in rich suburban areas without subways, and where bicycles are more for fun than transportation, it is strange for a teenager not to have a car. But police say 16-year-olds have almost three times more accidents than 18 and 19-year-olds. This has made many parents pause before letting their kids drive. Julie Sussman, of Virginia, decided that her son Chad, 15, will wait until he is 17 to apply for his learner's permit. Chad said he has accepted his parents' decision, although it has caused some teasing from his friends. "They say that I am unlucky," he said, "But I'd rather be alive than driving, and I don't really trust my friends on the road, either." In China, as more families get cars, more 18-year-olds learn to drive. Will this become a big step to becoming an adult? The passage mainly gives information about _ . A) an American culture B) a cultural difference between America and China C) a change in the Chinese culture D) the relationship between driving and a person's development
A