I need your opinion! please read

[Bderick67]

Customers should be treated well, with respect - and in business I've heard many times "the customer is always right" - to do well in business to avoid such things, instead of counting on MFK's helping them brush "incidents" under the rug.........

Not always true. Example; your dealings with TFD

 

[santoury]

I never did business with TFD... Sorry mate if you misunderstood me.

 

[repair]

Customers should be treated well, with respect - and in business I've heard many times "the customer is always right" - to do well in business to avoid such things, instead of counting on MFK's helping them brush "incidents" under the rug.........

I'm not trying to sweep anything under the rug.... I'm not the one that spammed the other forums to try and direct more attention to this.

The customer is not always right, maybe they were 30 years ago when people took resposibility for things but I can tell you that customers try and scam and abuse business all the time because they feel like the business man has lots of money and they can afford the loss.

I'm not saying that Joe is all sunshine and lollypops but I know a lot of people that own petstores and you wouldn't believe the things people try to pull.

 

[repair]

I did call and talk to Joe, in addition to emailing him. I am really not trying to scare wholesalers from selling to individuals, and I really appreciate Joe's great selection and prices (they are the best I've ever seen). And I know I'm a small drop in the bucket of his total business. I just think that customers at any level deserve a certain level of respect and fairness that I did not receive. They knew I had never shipped airport to airport before, and if they don't want to sell to a small fish like myself then they are free to set their minimum order at $500 or $1000. But as long as they do want to sell to us, I want the same respect their other clients get. That's all I'm asking.

What did Joe say over the phone?

I'm not against you and I would hope that Joe would offer credit on your next order.... did you get the employees name? Believe me employees will lie they a**s off so you need to always get there name. I have learned it the hard way.

 

[aranos]

I just look at these posts and wonder about customers that want to buy at 1/3rd the cost but don't want to accept any responsibility.

Why would you email a business instead of calling them? they called them to place the order why not call to talk about a problem?

I really don't think I'm responsible in this situation. If I knew they were waiting to be picked up and couldn't get around to it, for example, I know it would be my fault and accept what came. And why does it matter what kind of communication one uses to resolve problems? To me, emails seem preferable in cases like this because things are in writing.

 

[N-E Cichlids]

First off this response is in regards to the threads. This is strictly my oppinion and based on what I have read and not what may or may not have happened in actuality. I am very aware that you can not please everybody. I am speaking as a bussiness owner and rule number #1 is always customer service. You always find out all of the facts before you put blame on the customer. I read the other thread about the the 5 lungfish arriving dead. The policy is the policy and you can not fight it. I am really sorry for your experience. This thread however is a different story. First off if you ship a package, you contact the customer when the fish are shipped. That would have solved the problem to begin with. The customer could have called the cargo company a few hours later to see if they arrived, not the next day. Stating the customer is wrong because he/she has never shipped through air cargo. That is 100% the sellers fault for not helping the customer out. Then the seller tells the customer that he should grow up and take responibility for his own actions. An owner of a company is responsile for everything that happens, even if his employee screws up. The OWNER takes responsability for his actions and employees actions and does not blame the customer. Again this is just my oppinion and is only based on what I have read.

 

[Bderick67]

I never did business with TFD... Sorry mate if you misunderstood me.

My bad, your bashing was of "Fish Rooms Plus"

 

[Bderick67]

First off this response is in regards to the threads. This is strictly my oppinion and based on what I have read and not what may or may not have happened in actuality. I am very aware that you can not please everybody. I am speaking as a bussiness owner and rule number #1 is always customer service. You always find out all of the facts before you put blame on the customer. I read the other thread about the the 5 lungfish arriving dead. The policy is the policy and you can not fight it. I am really sorry for your experience. This thread however is a different story. First off if you ship a package, you contact the customer when the fish are shipped. That would have solved the problem to begin with. The customer could have called the cargo company a few hours later to see if they arrived, not the next day. Stating the customer is wrong because he/she has never shipped through air cargo. That is 100% the sellers fault for not helping the customer out. Then the seller tells the customer that he should grow up and take responibility for his own actions. An owner of a company is responsile for everything that happens, even if his employee screws up. The OWNER takes responsability for his actions and employees actions and does not blame the customer. Again this is just my oppinion and is only based on what I have read.

 

[aranos]

What did joe say over the phone?

When I called him on Friday (and I hadn't picked up the fish yet) he told me I had to take some responsibility, and that my fish were probably dead. And I remember the colorful saying of "You're f**ked." He gave me the tracking number at that point and then I drove to the airport and rushed back with the fish. I got back at about 7:00 p.m. but had a birthday dinner to attend for my mother. After that it was pretty late, and I knew no one was going to be at the office, so I emailed Joe before I went to bed just to let him know how things turned out. (I didn't want to email him the next day because he might wonder why I didn't contact him the same day if the fish were in fact dead on arrival).

 

[repair]

I really don't think I'm responsible in this situation. If I knew they were waiting to be picked up and couldn't get around to it, for example, I know it would be my fault and accept what came. And why does it matter what kind of communication one uses to resolve problems? To me, emails seem preferable in cases like this because things are in writing.

I find that email is so cold, I always call and speak with the person first to see if we can resolve the problem, if we do not come to an understanding then I will send an email just restateing our converstaion and I will again ask for a resolution.... that way I will have a written record.

This does all change if I'm dealing with a contract.

I'm sorry that it looks like I'm defending TFD just because they are a wholesaler....

N-E CICHLIDS does bring up some good points. Maybe online sellers should have a link to shipping information to educate the customers on all the shipping options that they offer.