What’s wrong with ‘good morning’?

I wonder if anyone else has noticed that local companies seem to be falling all over themselves to outdo each other with over-the-top greetings that their staff are instructed to welcome customers with.

Last Oct. 17, I was accosted by a promo girl in Landmark who greeted me with “Amazing morning!” It seemed like a pretty ordinary morning to me.

Later at SM Jazz Hypermarket in Makati, the staff stopped what they were doing, clapped their hands and, in unison, yelled “Happy Afternoon! Happy to serve!” Seriously, if the staff were not happy to serve, they shouldn’t be working there.

Then, back home I had to call Globe to be greeted by a call center agent with, “It’s a wonderful day at Globe!” It might have been for him, but like the morning, it seemed a pretty ordinary day to me.

Whatever happened to the good, old-fashioned “good morning and good afternoon”? Personally, if I heard that, I’d take the greeters a lot more seriously.

—ROBERT HARLAND,

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