Never underestimate the importance of customer service.

After weeks of stressing how a flat-screen TV would make the new mancave whole, my wife finally relented. (The remote car starter she received for Christmas, which has enabled her to slide into a toasty SUV during the current cold snap, may have aided the cause.) With research and a list of questions in hand, we went to a retail outlet where we had identified the appropriate size, brand and price.

And we stood there for 20 minutes waiting for a salesperson to help us. The one salesperson on duty in the department was dealing with a couple who must have asked about every TV in the showroom, including which ones were in stock and which ones weren’t, and still couldn’t reach a decision. (Note to shoppers: Googling information on big-ticket items before you head to the store helps in the selection process.)

We made a trip to the closest service counter asking for assistance, and we were told a salesperson would be with us shortly. Then we waited another 15 minutes. A second salesperson finally appeared, only to head to another customer “who had been in the store earlier,” we were told. “I’ll get to you as soon as I can folks,” the salesperson said in a tone that didn’t make us feel warm and fuzzy.

No need. We walked out the door, drove to another retail outlet, walked in, found the TV we were looking for and had a salesperson patiently answer our questions. We left with a flat-screen in hand, even though it cost $30 more than the first store.

One store made a sale and another didn’t for the simplest of reasons: We were waited on.

Now about that small frig for the mancave …