I Hate Holiday Shopping
Well, it is that time of year again where the capitalistic leeches again latch onto every person who wants to buy something. I wonder how many self-inflicted injuries occur in the Customer Service field during the holidays. I suppose that by now you have figured out that I have a major complaint about some retail-inspired idiocy…well, you are correct sir!!!
I wanted to do something special for Cassidy for Christmas this year, so I was looking at football jerseys. It is amazing what some people will pay for a piece of cloth with a logo, number and name on it (Ohhh wait, that’s me too! Heh-heh!) Anyway, I was attempting to find out how much the total would be with shipping and the advertised discount. This company was offering a 15% discount on orders over $75; just enter the promotion code at checkout and click “RECALCULATE” to apply your discount. Sounds simple doesn’t it? This is where the wheels fell off. Attempts to apply the discount resulted in an error message “The minimum order for this discount is $75” blah, blah, blah. My order is $99.99 right now, unless the dollar is devalued so much that $99.99 is now less than $75, I am pretty sure my order qualifies for the discount. So I go back and re-read the fine print – Discount ends at blah, blah. Not valid on orders shipped directly from the manufacturer, etc. etc. OK, now I go back to my item to see if it ships from the manufacturer…nothing listed about shipping from the manufacturer, great!! I go back to the checkout page and attempt again, no joy! Now here is where I make a minor flaw. I think to myself (slight mistake) maybe it won’t calculate the discount without credit card information, so I enter my info and click “RECALCULATE.” I don’t know how many words there are for anger in the English language in all its forms, but I used everyone that I did know! Evidently clicking that button on the website automatically SUBMITS your order. OK, it’s Thanksgiving, so I probably won’t get a Supervisor on the Customer Service number. Email, yeah that would be great. “To Whom It May Concern…”
Polite but firm email sent to Customer Service: discount won’t apply, order sent when clicked “recalculate,” nothing written about manufacturer, etc.
Email response received today, and I quote: “That promo code does not start until the 23rd.” End of Message. I cannot begin to express my displeasure at this company now! I have worked in customer service fields off and on for the last 20 years, one sentence responses are the 3rd Rail in customer service. Now, being kinder and gentler than I used to be, I formulate another polite email, expressing my displeasure at the anemic response. Citing my print-outs from Thanksgiving {from the website} showing that there was no start date listed on the promo. I also reiterate my issues with the website and request a response to my problems with the website. Knowing that today is the biggest shopping day of the year {I hated todays when I used to work retail, even more than I do now}, there will be a supervisor/manager at the CS phone number. I doubt that I will get an email response, so I call.
First, I am thankful that the operator spoke English, and without an accent.
Second, I am not thankful that he was a tool. He did follow the script admirably, but tried to tell me there was no supervisor on duty today. Ahem…LIE! After attempting to explain my issues to the operator, I was regurgitated the company line about “shipped from the manufacturer.” There was, of course, no response to the other allegations about website problems, and DEFINITELY no mention of the “start date.” Despite the operator’s allegations that he could help me, I finally told him the only way he could help me was to get an “instant promotion to manager or find me one.”
“Let me see if I can locate a supervisor for you, sir.”
“Thank you.”
Slight wait, no MUZAK.
“Supervisor Rafael, how can I help you Mr. AugiePete?”
So I begin with my problems with the promo code.
“Well sir, it says right on the website, in red letters, that this item ships directly from the manufacturer.”
“Rafael, I am looking right at the website, which I hope you are too, and it doesn’t.”
“Sir, will you please read the top right corner, the red writing.”
Me quoting verbatim…no mention of shipped from manufacturer.
“You see Sir, you just proved my point for me.” Pause. “Will you please hold for a minute?”
“Of course.”
Slightly longer wait, again no MUZAK.
“Mr. AugiePete, we are going to refund that 15%.”
“Thank you…may I also address my other concerns?” long explanation of the shoddy caliber of the website actions, to which the supervisor sounds less than enthused about my problems.
While I can understand and even appreciate the problems that can arise from designing a website, and the glitches that can happen, I fail to understand how a major, multi-million dollar business can attempt to “wave away” customers with improper information, non-existent answers, and a laissez-faire attitude. Ultimately, I got an acceptable resolution to my problem, but I will never shop there again. I could have gotten the item cheaper from a different location, but I wanted to keep the $$ with an allegedly local shop. Not even the home team is home-based anymore.
BTW, Cassidy was selected for the Junior-Varsity team this year, as a freshman; quite an honor. He will definitely get a work-out in practice form the other JV (and Varsity) boys. He is disappointed that he won’t get to play with his friends, but very excited to be moved up to a higher level!
Cassidy sacking the QB!
Well, it is that time of year again where the capitalistic leeches again latch onto every person who wants to buy something. I wonder how many self-inflicted injuries occur in the Customer Service field during the holidays. I suppose that by now you have figured out that I have a major complaint about some retail-inspired idiocy…well, you are correct sir!!!
I wanted to do something special for Cassidy for Christmas this year, so I was looking at football jerseys. It is amazing what some people will pay for a piece of cloth with a logo, number and name on it (Ohhh wait, that’s me too! Heh-heh!) Anyway, I was attempting to find out how much the total would be with shipping and the advertised discount. This company was offering a 15% discount on orders over $75; just enter the promotion code at checkout and click “RECALCULATE” to apply your discount. Sounds simple doesn’t it? This is where the wheels fell off. Attempts to apply the discount resulted in an error message “The minimum order for this discount is $75” blah, blah, blah. My order is $99.99 right now, unless the dollar is devalued so much that $99.99 is now less than $75, I am pretty sure my order qualifies for the discount. So I go back and re-read the fine print – Discount ends at blah, blah. Not valid on orders shipped directly from the manufacturer, etc. etc. OK, now I go back to my item to see if it ships from the manufacturer…nothing listed about shipping from the manufacturer, great!! I go back to the checkout page and attempt again, no joy! Now here is where I make a minor flaw. I think to myself (slight mistake) maybe it won’t calculate the discount without credit card information, so I enter my info and click “RECALCULATE.” I don’t know how many words there are for anger in the English language in all its forms, but I used everyone that I did know! Evidently clicking that button on the website automatically SUBMITS your order. OK, it’s Thanksgiving, so I probably won’t get a Supervisor on the Customer Service number. Email, yeah that would be great. “To Whom It May Concern…”
Polite but firm email sent to Customer Service: discount won’t apply, order sent when clicked “recalculate,” nothing written about manufacturer, etc.
Email response received today, and I quote: “That promo code does not start until the 23rd.” End of Message. I cannot begin to express my displeasure at this company now! I have worked in customer service fields off and on for the last 20 years, one sentence responses are the 3rd Rail in customer service. Now, being kinder and gentler than I used to be, I formulate another polite email, expressing my displeasure at the anemic response. Citing my print-outs from Thanksgiving {from the website} showing that there was no start date listed on the promo. I also reiterate my issues with the website and request a response to my problems with the website. Knowing that today is the biggest shopping day of the year {I hated todays when I used to work retail, even more than I do now}, there will be a supervisor/manager at the CS phone number. I doubt that I will get an email response, so I call.
First, I am thankful that the operator spoke English, and without an accent.
Second, I am not thankful that he was a tool. He did follow the script admirably, but tried to tell me there was no supervisor on duty today. Ahem…LIE! After attempting to explain my issues to the operator, I was regurgitated the company line about “shipped from the manufacturer.” There was, of course, no response to the other allegations about website problems, and DEFINITELY no mention of the “start date.” Despite the operator’s allegations that he could help me, I finally told him the only way he could help me was to get an “instant promotion to manager or find me one.”
“Let me see if I can locate a supervisor for you, sir.”
“Thank you.”
Slight wait, no MUZAK.
“Supervisor Rafael, how can I help you Mr. AugiePete?”
So I begin with my problems with the promo code.
“Well sir, it says right on the website, in red letters, that this item ships directly from the manufacturer.”
“Rafael, I am looking right at the website, which I hope you are too, and it doesn’t.”
“Sir, will you please read the top right corner, the red writing.”
Me quoting verbatim…no mention of shipped from manufacturer.
“You see Sir, you just proved my point for me.” Pause. “Will you please hold for a minute?”
“Of course.”
Slightly longer wait, again no MUZAK.
“Mr. AugiePete, we are going to refund that 15%.”
“Thank you…may I also address my other concerns?” long explanation of the shoddy caliber of the website actions, to which the supervisor sounds less than enthused about my problems.
While I can understand and even appreciate the problems that can arise from designing a website, and the glitches that can happen, I fail to understand how a major, multi-million dollar business can attempt to “wave away” customers with improper information, non-existent answers, and a laissez-faire attitude. Ultimately, I got an acceptable resolution to my problem, but I will never shop there again. I could have gotten the item cheaper from a different location, but I wanted to keep the $$ with an allegedly local shop. Not even the home team is home-based anymore.
BTW, Cassidy was selected for the Junior-Varsity team this year, as a freshman; quite an honor. He will definitely get a work-out in practice form the other JV (and Varsity) boys. He is disappointed that he won’t get to play with his friends, but very excited to be moved up to a higher level!
Cassidy sacking the QB!
posted by augiepete at 3:54 PM
1 Comments:
At least you weren't foolish enough to enter a Norwegian billing address for your credit card. You would think most etailers confuse Norway with Nigeria the way we are treated.
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