Forum Moderators: buckworks
The packages are arriving, but slowly, and days later than they should have. Meanwhile, I have customers angry with me.
How do you deal with problems that are out of your control?
We don't sell many gift items but I wonder how sites deal with cutoffs. We have a disclaimer on a few of our products that are **often** bought as Christmas gifts, but we simply don't know the buyer's purpose for sure.
I don't want to be put in the position of guaranteeing delivery by a precise date and being set up for a charge back because we're a day or two late.
It's the storms and other things. I was told that UPS and FedEx aren't guaranteeing anything, even if you pay for overnight (and, no, you don't get a refund if "overnight" takes five days).
90% of my orders arrived on time or before promised. It's just these few that have given me a headache.
One woman was complaining so much that I refunded all of my profit to her, and told her that was my profit, even though she'll get the product eventually.
How to handle your lost packages? That depends if you guaranteed the delivery. If you didn't personally guarantee delivery, you can provide the shipping company's information/disclaimers about the service they selected for their package, but if a customer is under the gun for a shipment and stressing, information that will be satisfactory will quickly become non-existent. Posting the cut-off dates may have also implied your guarantee.
If the lost packages were through USPS, they really shouldn't have been expecting any guaranteed times anyway. Upset people want solutions, and you can't give them one regarding delivery because it's out of your control. What you can do as you try to provide them reasons, is to also provide creative solutions... like generating picture-certificates they can print and wrap in case the package doesn't arrive. Help them out of their bind.
I would guarantee delivery, however. That is assuming you can track the shipments. Make it clear that it takes 2 months, or whatever, until you can consider a shipment lost and issue are refund. In the rare case that shipments get lost, you refund. Cost of business.
But that's all what you can do in the future, if you haven't already. You need to do something now, for the complaining customers. I think smartwork's idea about picture-certificates they can print and give as a gift might help. Throw a coupon in there too.
i try to be as polite as possible, give them regular emails, even if they are effectively futile, it shows i'm making an effort, i don't offer a discount or refund, i don't think it helps, you've probably lost them as a future customer anyway if they are really angry.
if possible i talk on the phone, say i've done my best, generally kiss ass etc.
ultimately some people accept that it is beyond your control and just bad luck, others don't accept it - whatever you do i don't think these customers can be appeased anyway.
others don't accept it - whatever you do i don't think these customers can be appeased anyway.
That's where I think I made a mistake with the customer to whom I gave a refund. She won't be back. I just saw today that her package will be arriving tomorrow in time for Christmas, and emailed her to let her know. Not a peep back from her. Other customers have been much more understanding.
I lost a sale today because a customer called and wanted to know if he could get an item shipped overnight for Christmas tomorrow. I told him what has been happening with the postal service, UPS and FedEx, and said that he very likely wouldn't get his order in time. He told me he was going to call another retailer who could get it to him overnight. (bang head).
The thing I always tell myself is that... It's not just me, they're doing that to everybody. Your guy will probably go to a place that will tell him what he wants to hear... it won't get there in time... and then he'll yell at them. But they'll still get the money. There's a moral in there somewhere.
So I said: Actually, come to think of it, I'm not after all... But thanks for calling... Click.
The thing I always tell myself is that... It's not just me, they're doing that to everybody
I don't get them anymore, well I know it's them but it never goes beyond my just knowing.
After many years of experience I have learned to "know" and choose words and voice tones that send them away without them even knowing what's going on, and without there being any anger or basis for complaint, and importantly before it can irritate me and ruin my day. It's like a third sense.
I can't do it yet in person though, just over the phone.
It seems to have all started around December 8th, right around the time when we got a huge snow storm.
*Normal* Priority Mail service is 99% within 2 or 3 days.
These last few weeks, we've had a crazy amount of packages taking as many as 8 or 9 days.
We've had to completely refund some orders, and just tell the customer to keep the product with our compliments.
We've offered to refund the shipping charges (even though we shouldn't).
Some customers accuse us of lying about bringing the packages to the post office when we did.
Its discomforting to hear from some of you that UPS/FedEx can have the same issue.
Recently, I've been upgrading a handful of orders to UPS 2-day air which costs us $18 or so instead of the $5 for Priority, and I'll make a note to do the same next December.
I can't figure out exactly why some USPS packages are being delayed. At first I thought maybe it was because of a mountain pass being closed, but then I realized there were still a handful every day this month that got delivered within their 2 to 3 day timeline. And a big number that took a lot longer. So I'm not sure, are some just sitting around at post offices for a few days before moving anywhere?
So I'm not sure, are some just sitting around at post offices for a few days before moving anywhere?
One of the Priority Mail packages was supposed to go to Michigan, but wound up in Pennsylvania. Another was supposed to go to California, but wound up in Hawaii.
I have nine customers from last week whose Priority Mail packages were very late. Six have been delivered, leaving three who won't have theirs by Christmas. And I know they'll blame me.
Philbish, I wish I could tell the customers to keep the products, but they range in price from $250 to $1400, and my profit margins are only 10-15%.
When I have something go screwy, I send them a little gift that is cheap to make and ship. Lately I've used a photo CD with tons of photos of stuff I know they'll like. I also use that to send to some people who have supported me on forums and such, promoting the products. I sent one out to a guy on a forum the other day, and he's plugged my products like 5 times since then. You can't buy advertising like that.
A couple of customers have sent some pretty nasty emails. The most recent was titled "Christmas without present." The customer lamented his son having to look at a picture of the gift he should have had.
The son is a police officer, and the gift is an aid for defensive shootings. This isn't Little Timmy and his teddy bear. If the son is old enough to kill as part of his job, I'm sure he can grasp the concept of the mail being late.
I went through my slips yesterday, and over all, most worked out. There were numerous ones that got there yesterday that I didn't think would. So that's not bad.
I've often had *amazingly* fast FedEX shipments, watched via tracking number. (Amusing to see where the driver stops.) I never call back to praise the shipper, though.
I'd say, give a guaranteed order turnaround, a shipper tracking number, and let most common-sensed customers be able to deal with it upon reflection.
If the shipment *absolutely* doesn't arrive, then, that's simply a case for collecting insurance for the merchandise from the carrier and refunding the purchase to the customer, after a reasonable time.
(Oh, and, how about you? Are you a difficult customer when your shipment is delayed?)
(Oh, and, how about you? Are you a difficult customer when your shipment is delayed?)
Last year I bought my wife's gift online the Friday before Christmas. I had it shipped UPS 2nd Day. It should have arrived Tuesday the 23rd, but it arrived Friday the 26th. I considered it my fault for waiting until the last minute.
