"Where's the non-drowsy Claritin-D?"
Almost ALWAYS they feel the need to stress the "non-drowsy" part of their sentence. Then when you grab a box for them, they'll ask, "Are you sure that's the non-drowsy one?" while giving you the squint.
When you try to explain to them that there isn't a drowsy version, they just look at you like you're insane. I think it might be the power of advertising... a TV ad which tells the views to "Ask for the non-drowsy Zyrtec-D at your pharmacy counter!" so that's exactly what they do. Have we become so dumb-downed in our society that everything must have a clarifying adjective added?
It just sounds stupid on our end. It would be like asking:
"Where's your pain-relieving Tylenol?"
Oh, that's right next to the non-pain-relieving Tylenol.
"Do you have any vitamin-containing supplements?"
Yes, it's on the aisle with the placebo vitamins.
"Where are your sterile band aids?"
We keep them separate from the non-sterile band aids to prevent contamination.
And all this makes perfect sense... until you get this question, which I did yesterday:
"Where's the non-drowsy Benedryl?"
2 comments:
"But, Dr Oz told me. Why are you lying to me?"
"My friend, who happens to be a doctor, said that you wouldn't know what you're talking about. Show me where the ZZZquil is NOW!"
Ever notice how the dumber and more emotionally out of control the customer is, the more likely they are to demand name brand for everything? Think about it.
I think this is because a lot of people (I'm thinking of people I know personally) use familiar brand names to indicate an entire type of medicine. For example: "the Tylenol with the Motrin in it." When people ask for that, or for non-drowsy Benadryl, it's because they use Tylenol to mean "OTC pain-reliever" and Benadryl to mean "OTC antihistamine." A great many people I find don't even know the difference between APAP and ibuprofen, let alone the difference between diphenhydramine and loratadine. Most people don't even look at the actual drug name on the label. It's still funny though.
Post a Comment