What Would You Do? A Question About Online Retailers

hark

hark

Member
Joined
Dec 14, 2014
Location
Wellesley, Ontario
First, I am not going to post the name of the store - I don't want this to turn into a public flogging :). I am not sure what I am looking for in this thread, likely just affirmation that I am the customer and the customer is always right :). I am looking for if you would do things differently as well.

I buy almost ALL my supplies online, rarely do I have time to go to LFS and browse around. I don't order on line for the cost savings, those are nice but for me it is convenient. I get home from work late, fire up the ipad and order what I need for the next month. it shows up, I use it, rinse and repeat time and time again. I have spent about $7500 bucks with this one retailed in 23 months of having my tank set back up again....so while I am not bank rolling his store, I think I am a pretty loyal customer.

Don't get me wrong, this vendor was never mean, never said anything derogatory, always ended their emails politely and with a thank you - so as a human being he is pretty good.

where things went bad was I placed an order on Monday of this week, it was about 300 bucks of stuff I needed. I got an email confirmed the order, confirmed the payment and we were all set. Normally with this vendor if there is something wrong you get an email saying 'hey blah blah is delayed, do you want it replaced, removed, shipped later, etc'. Today rolls around and to be honest I was hoping to see the shipment given historically how quick the retailer ships things and since I didn't get anything saying it was delayed I sent them a note asking hey when will the shipment arrive. I got back a nice email that said "the warehouse says there will be an 8-11 day delay". I replied back and said basically no problem, just ship the rest without it just remove and refund the item that is delayed but I need the other things (it was some food I was low on, a replacement PH Monitor mine is on the fritz, stuff like that). the item that was delayed was coralline colour epoxy for gluing down corals, about 12 bucks from the 300 dollar order. The owner said they wont do that anymore, they are too busy and I should cancel the order or just wait for it.

so - now being a little upset I told them send me a refund, don't ship me anything and wished him a happy new year.

From my perspective, maybe again I am just a small fish to them - but you spend 7500 bucks with a place you hope that they remember you, that they add a little extra oomph in their customer service for you, that they go out of their way to make you feel special - even if your not and everyone is treated that way - you leave the experience feeling that way. I will tell you, the reason I stuck with this retailer was they did that early on, they seem to have grown as a company and with that maybe comes more challenges of integrating other online retailers with theirs, maybe it takes longer hours and more focus from the owners , but all of that should not come at the expense of what made that retailer awesome in the first place. I hate to think they have gone 'corporate', but that is how I felt after my experience today...

so....thoughts on what to do next? I believe in second chances....but I also believe the customer is always right. Do you have suggestions on awesome online vendors, I am thinking J&L aquatics maybe? I have ordered things from them years ago and always went well. When I first started my tanks in 1999 we had MOPS.ca as our only online source, but that was along time ago...

oh the drama :)

hark
 
TORX

TORX

Administrator
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Nov 27, 2010
Location
Blenheim, Ontario
Website
www.thefragtank.ca
Well the customer is not always right. Actually, they are rarely right. The majority of the time customers are just taking advantage of the moment (not in this case). Most companies are changing that mindset and you are starting to see that publicly as people are taking advantage of that mindset along side with social media bashing. Most companies will not even reply or respond and just take the hit now. After all, someone bashes Chevy and goes to Ford all while someone bashes Ford and goes to Chevy. My favorite was when people would bash GMC say they are done with that company and buying Chevy next time lol. (Yes, that is the same company)

That aside, I hate when a company does not keep in proper communication about an order. Probably my biggest pet peeve and I found that out the hard way in a situation such as yours. I understand that some items are not readily in stock and may not be understood at the point of ordering. Most online retailers have different terms for in stock vs available. They are 2 different statements. I was not aware the difference in an order, but they messaged me to confirm that for the order. I think this may have been a rare instance as most of the time store keep in good communication.
 
jeffopentax

jeffopentax

Super Active Member
Joined
Nov 11, 2013
Location
Brantford, Ontario
They have just about everything i need. Actually, can't think of anything they don't carry. If i order before 2pm, my order arrives the next day (I'm in Brantford). EVERY TIME.


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hark

hark

Member
Joined
Dec 14, 2014
Location
Wellesley, Ontario
TORX said:
Well the customer is not always right. Actually, they are rarely right. The majority of the time customers are just taking advantage of the moment (not in this case). Most companies are changing that mindset and you are starting to see that publicly as people are taking advantage of that mindset along side with social media bashing. Most companies will not even reply or respond and just take the hit now. After all, someone bashes Chevy and goes to Ford all while someone bashes Ford and goes to Chevy. My favorite was when people would bash GMC say they are done with that company and buying Chevy next time lol. (Yes, that is the same company)

That aside, I hate when a company does not keep in proper communication about an order. Probably my biggest pet peeve and I found that out the hard way in a situation such as yours. I understand that some items are not readily in stock and may not be understood at the point of ordering. Most online retailers have different terms for in stock vs available. They are 2 different statements. I was not aware the difference in an order, but they messaged me to confirm that for the order. I think this may have been a rare instance as most of the time store keep in good communication.
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That's fair, these days you are right you see people bashing the company on social media trying to get a deal. I didn't want that to be here or i would be a hypocrite.

I think i will treat this like when you were back in college and we're dating someone and it just wasnt working out. We can agree to see other people, it wasn't you it was me and let's still remain friends
:p
 
hark

hark

Member
Joined
Dec 14, 2014
Location
Wellesley, Ontario
EricTMah said:
I see why you're upset. But on the same note. Most retailers are busy this week with one stat day and plus recovering from Xmas as well.

Hard to say what I'd do in this situation.

Sony Xperia Z3
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And to defend them he did say that they were busy and would not do anything special like remove items from an order.

Not sure if that had anything to do with holidays or just in general.
 
hark

hark

Member
Joined
Dec 14, 2014
Location
Wellesley, Ontario
jeffopentax said:
They have just about everything i need. Actually, can't think of anything they don't carry. If i order before 2pm, my order arrives the next day (I'm in Brantford). EVERY TIME.


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Cool, I will check that site out tonight to see if i can get everything i wanted there
 
hark

hark

Member
Joined
Dec 14, 2014
Location
Wellesley, Ontario
EricTMah said:
Hard to say man.
Since you've had great service all this time. Are you willing to throw that away on one issue?

Sony Xperia Z3
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Usually no, and i won't likely never order again. But this did make me consider what else is out there and i will be trying a few different online retailers now whereas 4 days ago i was a dedicated customer
 
Cliff

Cliff

Active Member
Joined
Dec 11, 2014
Location
Canfield, Ontario
I totally agree with u hark. If they did not have the item (and it was listed in stock at point of purchase) they should have removed and shipped it AND shipped the missing item free when they got it in stock. If not go somewhere else
 
Nonuser

Nonuser

Distinguished Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2015
Location
Brantford
1+ on Mops, you can actually go visit them, while it's not a store front but a back door into their store room Dan & Glenn will welcome you and provide a wealth of knowledge.

I dealt with an online retailer and purchased a lot less than you the first few orders prompt no issues. Then I had an issue with a product and asked for a replacement and felt a little like a thief with the run around. IT was replaced and n the end. Same store then had the same issue. I ordered around 3-4 hundred dollars and then was told the man item I wanted was on back order and may take several weeks to get it in. I wrote back that I would prefer to cancel the entire order, because I really only ordered for the one main item and the rest was a few items only ordered because heck I figured why not make the order worth while. I was told I couldn't cancel the entire order unless I paid a restocking fee!

Haven't ordered from them since. But I'm a small fish.
 
J

Jesse Servant

New Member
Joined
Sep 27, 2016
Location
Kitchener
Hmm, I was just looking for the appropriate forum to post a similar complaint...although I'm more torn about posting the company name, as I think honest feedback is fair game, good or bad. But its probably right to try and avoid a public bashing...
I placed an online order on December 20, and didn't receive any communications from the seller other than the order confirmation. I emailed them a couple times during the following few days to see what the status of the order was...no response. I was put off by this, as like you stated in your post, the seller has a reputation for quick response, and their website says they ship pretty much anything in stock next day, sometimes same day. So after not hearing back for 4 days, I contacted the buyer through PayPal to request that the order was cancelled. Within minutes the seller responded, stating that they would be closed until January 9! (3 weeks after I placed the order)
I said if that's the case, than I would definetly like to cancel the order.
The seller decided this wasn't reasonable and escalated the claim through PayPal. I now have to wait for PayPal's resolution review process to get my money back. It's going on three weeks since I placed the order, and still have the charge on my card. I feel this was totally unreasonable and that the seller was just trying to be a pain in the ass.
With all that said, I don't think you're wrong to expect good customer service from a professional business establishment. It's not some kid on kijiji...
I personally won't be ordering from them in the future, which is a shame because this place has some really great stuff.
But what do businesses learn when they treat us like crap, and we come right back two weeks later? Nothing...
The only way you really have a voice is by where you choose to spend your money in the future, and where you refer your friends and family...

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TORX

TORX

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Blenheim, Ontario
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www.thefragtank.ca
Online shops that are closed should have updated their site with big flashing signs stating such. That is not appropriate at all. Especially if it is going to be 3 weeks. Some people depend on online for things like food. I myself cut it close this time and I only have about a week left of food for my seahorses. Luckily I am getting more tomorrow afternoon.
 
Nonuser

Nonuser

Distinguished Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2015
Location
Brantford
Exactly why I don't have a problem with not getting stuff from LFS or ordering from many different places. Almost no one seems to be loyal or honourable. I love having the options of more choices so I don't have to put up with the local guy that is the only game in town that treats you badly because they can or think so and explains their additional cost on products is due to convenience.
 
J

Jesse Servant

New Member
Joined
Sep 27, 2016
Location
Kitchener
TORX said:
Online shops that are closed should have updated their site with big flashing signs stating such. That is not appropriate at all. Especially if it is going to be 3 weeks. Some people depend on online for things like food. I myself cut it close this time and I only have about a week left of food for my seahorses. Luckily I am getting more tomorrow afternoon.
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Well I'm glad I wasn't being totally unreasonable...I was just surprised they're fighting me for the refund,

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