 I need to bitch...
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Jun. 22nd, 2007 @ 01:18 pm 
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I know, it's been ages, and now I'm just gonna bitch...
So, our old microwave packed it in a while back, so we got a new one, from Sears, that has a built in coffee maker. The thing works great... no complaints there.
But the carafe broke. It's an odd shape and size, gotta get another one for the same brand of microwave.
I find out at Sears that i have to order it from their parts department because, apparently, they don't expect people to ever break glass carafes. I must be uniquely talented in that department.
So, i go online and order it on May 31. It costs $60 plus another $14 shipping and $4 in taxes. Steep, but they have me by the short hairs.
They debit my checking account on June 2.
By June 15 it has not arrived... so i go and look at the status online. Backordered until June 28 or later.
WTF? They charged me! That means it shipped in most parts of reality.
So I call them up. "We charge right away, it's an automated process."
See, I don't think that's right... until you've PROVIDED the good or service, or committed to a special order, you don't get to charge. They make lots of these microwaves and carafes and I cannot be the only person to ever break one of the things.
So, I explain this to them and cancel the order.
"The cancellation will be processed in 1-3 business days."
So today is a week, five business days later. The money they debited is not back yet. It's $78... it's not like it's going to break the bank, but I don't think that they should have taken the money in the first place and I was told 1-3 days.
So I call again. By the way, for those of you who don't know, I pretty much despise talking on the phone when dealing with phone-trees and corporate peons.
After getting hung up on by one idiot (defintely improving my mood, lemme tell ya) I finallly get "hand delivered" to a customer service manager ('hand delivered" means that i didn't let ANYONE put me on hold as i got transferred from place to place). She does some checking and it turns out that it will take "at least 14 business days" for the money to be returned to me. It's the way the process is handled, there's nothing she can do about it.
Again, WTF!?! They were certainly fast off the mark to charge me, but they don't want to give up my money... despite having NOT provided me with anything.
I informed her that, while I am only one disgruntled customer who no longer plans to ever buy something from or related to Sears, that with a set of customer unfriendly corporate policies such as they have, I am certainly not the first and will not be the last to tell them to take a flying fuck through a rolling doughnut.
I miss my old D-land journal... I used to have a listing of the companies that I would no longer deal with because of their poor business practices. Alas, D-land proved itself to be poorly run and managed, too.
I suppose that, with an attitude like mine, I will eventually be unable to shop anywhere, ever. Not necessarily a bad thing, IMHO.
Seriously... all I'm looking for is what anyone should expect...
1) If I order something and it is NOT in stock, inform me of it before I commit to the order. Your fucking inventory is on a computer. Your website is on a computer. Have the two talk to each other and keep a real time inventory. this way you can inform the purchaser if the item will have to be delayed, permitting them the option of NOT bothering or looking elsewhere.
2) If this is impossible, then as soon as the backordered status must be assigned, contact the purchaser and ask if they want to wait or try somewhere else. NOT telling the customer is only going to annoy them when they find out. You're NOT the only game in town, if you give them reasons to NOT want to shop with you, they won't.
3) If something must be backordered, commit to a date that it will be available. Don't keep changing the date, pushing it further and further back. This may keep the buyer "on the hook" but the buyer will be a very unhappy little fish and will certainly look elsewhere in the future.
4) NEVER charge until the item is shipped or the service provided. The only exception is if something needs to be special ordered, and then make it clear to the customer before hand.
Had Sears done ANY of these, i would not be nearly so unhappy. Ditto for my experiences with Target.com and other places that I've had crappy experiences with.
Sure, doing the above might cost you a few orders, but you will wind up with more loyal customers who would rather deal with an up-front and honest business first, if possible. Of course, if a business has a problem keeping things in stock customers will stop coming back.
This lesson was taught in that old movie, Miracle on 34th Street... the Kris Kringle character starts telling people where they CAN find the toys their kids want, even if they're not at the store he's working in. The end result is customers who are happier and more loyal to the honest business that gives the impression of caring for their customer's needs over their own. Corporate culture appears to have forgotten this idea.
So, Fuck you Sears... in-person, by phone, or on the web... you won't be seeing my credit card numbers or check books again in my lifetime.
And maybe some of my friends will read this, agree, and join the boycott, too.I'm feelin' :  bitchy What's that I hear?: Afternoons and Coffee Spoons, CTD |
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