lfs knowledge?

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darwinvsjesus

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
May 5, 2010
130
1
0
Tonawanda, NY
I've applied at a LFS after years of misery in the restaurant industry. I am fairly confident that I can answer most questions a customer might have, but surely there's a lot i don't know. I'm in the business of being a good employee and would like to know if anyone has any suggestions about certain things I might want to read up on so I can give honest and accurate knowledge about
1.goldfish
2.community fish
3. catfish, particularly the bigger ones
4. salt water (which i have no real experience with)

what would YOU do if you weren't sure about something a customer asked?
 
Best thing to do is just visit the various forums and topics on here and read. There is a lot of great knowledge on here, and I think it is safe to say that there is a much higher percentage of knowledgeable MFKers in regards to fish keeping than there are LFS workers.
 
I would use a couple of my old reference books that have been verified as reliable. Some of the ones you find in pet stores are as full of wrong information as the little tags on the LFS tanks.
 
True, it took me almost no time to quit listening to a word the LFS tried to tell me about anything, other than availability and price, and a hair longer to quit trying to correct them unless asked.
We all get along pretty good now.
If you get the job I would mainly work on keeping all the tanks as healthy and clean as you can without pissing off yer boss. It'll endear you to your coworkers who might not like being elbow deep in fish poop, and the fish will die less and look better which is good for the owners bottom line.
The intertubes are a good place to learn stuff, and I would rather someone told me they didn't know something rather than try to bs me, I hear not all consumers are like that though.
You can always tell them you'll research their questions for them...
 
I'd much rather hear "I'm not sure on the answer to your question; Let me find out for you, and I'll be right back", than incorrect info.....Just be honest with yourself about what you do and don't know. If a customer comes in and seems to know more than you about fish, then find a more experienced person to help them, then help the customer that the other worker may have been busy with.
 
Agreed. Read lots. However, don't trust everything you read on forums as absolute truth. I've worked in several lfs for 10 years, you will find the bulk of customers are not quite as fish fanatical as MFKers. When you do though, they'll be your favorite customers lol.

If you don't know something, don't BS them. Ask someone else, or look it up on the store computer (or on a Iphone as everyone seems to have em). I know it doesn't look professional, but it's better than lying. Also, it's hard to know everything in the industry. LFS workers have to be jack-of-all-trades when it comes to aquarium stuff.

One thing you'll get are "-nerds" like cichlid-nerds, reef-nerds, etc, who expect you to know everything about their particular segment of the hobby. Don't let them make you feel dumb, remember you can also give information about a wide variety of subjects like ponds, reefs, cichlids, plants, etc. There's always someone who knows more than you about something.

When hiring, I'd prefer someone with a broad knowledge base than someone who is totally specialized.

Things to learn about, from my old training schedule...

-Sexing livebearers like platies, mollies, etc
-Sexing gouramis, specifically the Trichogaster species
-Basic African cichlid husbandry and sexing
-Water chemistry (especially tank cycling)
-Common disease diagnosis and treatment
-What fish get huge
-Which fish are good starters and which aren't

If the store has marine, there's a whole new post lol
 
After a while, it's not hard to figure certain information when you're in the hobby "is fish x aggressive, minimum tank size formula, etc". Judging by your DP, I take it you keep fish of your own, so stay active and keep keeping them and you'll pick up stuff on the way :)
 
Having worked in the industry myself, I agree with everything Simon has said. I would mostly get a mix of these:
-people (usually families with kids) new to the hobby who have no idea what they're doing wanting to buy/setup their first tank
-people with some sort of health problem in their tanks
-the general hobbyist that has some knowledge, but still likes suggestions
-the "experts," who may or may not be focused on a niche, who usually mess with you until you prove you know something, they are usually just doing it for fun though, not mean spirited
-the jerks, in one form or another, who will just go out of their way to make things more difficult and unpleasant than they need to be
-the total morons, who, no matter how many times you explain things to them, will never remember anything and continue to kill fish. They can be quite nice though, but you may notice other employees avoiding them at all costs as soon as they walk in the store, lest they be drawn in to an hour long conversation about problems the customer is having.

Do research on basic disease treatment, very important IME. Know how to identify and treat common external parasites like ich and velvet, internal parasites, bacterial infections, and fungal infections.
 
also - did my interview go well???

when i applied, he said 'my fiance was a good salesperson' because she was giving me a reference prior to our 'interview'. he said he didn't plan on hiring anyone till the middle of next week (i applied last week - he meant like tomorrow or thursday). so i called him today - asked my questions, added some additional information about myself that would be useful if i were hired - whereupon he asked me a few in-depth questions about my fish knowledge, willingness to work hard, etc. he then said "i'll be honest with you, i was leaning towards calling you anyway - i've got a few other applicants that i feel are qualified, but i'll think it over tonight and you'll hear from me tomorrow' something to that effect.
i've wanted to work at this store since i was five years old - does it sound like i've done alright?
 
Hard to say without knowing the person, sorry man.
 
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