I should have posted on Tuesday but I was so mad I just couldn't see straight! Sorry if I am ranting,
but just needed to get this off my chest.
but just needed to get this off my chest.
I have known for a long time that when you deal with the public you get all kinds of reactions to the work you do. I think that I am pretty tough and don't take the comments to heart or let it get under my skin, but this women has stepped over the line with me and I am astonished by the gall of some people.
As some of you know I am the owner of the website Kraft Outlet. We sell paper, envelopes, labels and grungy hang tags to many customers all over the world. I had gotten a phone call about 2 months ago telling me she had purchased some grungy tags from Kraft Outlet back in mid 2009. (Now that is before I became the owner of Kraft Out). She told me the tags hole protector had come loose on all the tags and want to be assured that this would not happen with this batch of tags. I assured her it wouldn't and she place a nice order for the tags. I hand make each tag and am always surprised at how different each batch comes out. As we all know handmade items have variations and differences. I shipped her order and never heard any complaints, or praise, back from the customer.
Last month the same customer places a sizable order for more tags and I make and ship the tags to her. Monday, almost a full month from the time she received the tags, I get a nasty phone call from the woman. She says she is calling to tell me that these are not the same tags. I questioned her, did I make the wrong size or what? No, they were the right size, but they didn't look like the first batch of tags I had sent her. I told her that hand made items never look exactly the same and that I had made this group of tags exactly as the other ones, but that I had no control over how the paper takes the stain. She kept telling me she was a small business owner and that the only reason she was calling me was to "help" me improve my product, and telling me she wanted to place a very large order with me for more tags. She kept asking me what I could do to make the tags look like the first batch. After 15 minutes on the phone with her, I thanked her for her "help" and explained again that I could never guarantee the outcome of the tags because they were HAND MADE. She said "So what you are telling me is that you have no control over the paper?" Right lady, that is what I am saying. Now just to mention I never got mad or raised my voice, I just kept repeating the same information over to her. She says OK and tells me if I cannot make sure they look like the first batch she will not be placing the order with me and hangs up.
Five minutes goes by, phone rings and I see on caller ID it is the same women. I am a little steamed now, so I let the answering machine take the call. When I listen to the message I am really mad. She is now raising her voice and tells me that she thinks I didn't do anything to the tags but take them from one box and re-package them with my label and they are terrible and they look like I PEE on them! OK that ripped it, she had crossed over the line, and I didn't care if she had a million tags on that order, I would not be doing business with her! Now the good part, she left her phone number and said I should think about it and call her back to talk about the large order! What is she thinking?
Well, I have gotten over the Pee comment and now I can write about it without getting mad again. So here is a picture of the tags from another batch
from what I understand the tags she received didn't have enough stains on them.
What a whack job!
I will post again later today with happier thoughts.
