Friday 15 November 2013

Poor Service from across the Pond

I'm not generally in the habit of moaning about retailers but sometimes I do wonder how certain companies stay in business. I'm also not in the habit of 'naming and shaming' but in this case I'll make an exception because this is a cautionary tale and it's retelling may be of some value to fellow gamers and potential customers of C-in-C.

Let me start by saying that I love C-in-C's miniatures and on the whole I have had a very positive experience purchasing their products through their UK distributor, Wargames Emporium. But on this occasion I wanted a product from their accessories range which I suspected might not be held in stock here in the UK. So I contacted Wargames Emporium to check their stock and they emailed me straight back confirming they didn't have it and would have to wait for their next restock order. Rather than wait I decided I'd try purchasing the items I wanted direct from the manufacturer, reasoning that although it might prove more expensive to pay shipping from the US, I would probably get my order delivered quicker. Oh how wrong I was! Here's the short version of the story (the long version ran to 8 paragraphs before I edited down!)....

I ordered my items on the C-in-C website on the 17th September. I knew shipping would be expensive, but I wanted these models quickly and was prepared to cough up the money to get them (yes, a bad case of shineyitus). I received an order confirmation by email and expected a further email confirming the shipping costs and advising a dispatch date. So I waited, and I waited.... 28 days later my patience crumbled and I emailed asking for an ETA on dispatch. They replied saying the order would be worked on over the weekend and delivery would be 7-10 days thereafter. However two weeks later and I still hadn't received confirmation that my order had been dispatched, so I decided to email them again. 

This time I got a rather strange reply stating that my order was below the minimum for any discount on shipping and did I want to proceed with my order? I was slightly alarmed at this message because a) it still hadn't been sent and b) it sounded a lot like they didn't want to fulfil my order because it was so small. I immediately replied back confirming my intention to proceed with my order and asking for confirmation of the shipping costs. I heared nothing back and after five more days days of silence I emailed again, repeating the same message that I wanted to continue with my order and asking how they wanted me to pay for the shipping costs. I did eventually get a response and last Friday - seven and a half weeks after placing my order - I received an email saying my goods had at last been dispatched. 

I understand that it may not be economical for a company like this to fulfil small orders but if that is the case the minimum order value ought to be clearly shown on the website. Similarly if delivery is going to be outside the stated ETA then it would seem to me to be simple courtesy to communicate with the customer to keep them informed. CinC state 7-14 days for dispatch with delivery 7-10 days thereafter so orders should be at most 24 days... I'm still waiting for my order to arrive and its now 59 days and counting.

One mitigating factor to bare in mind (to be fair) is that the company had to relocate to new premises in June and they have been quite open about the fact that this has impacted on delivery times. However they also posted an update on their website early in September stating that production was up and running and the backlog was shrinking. So either there is a backlog or there isn't, but either way a little communication with their customers would go a long long way.

So, is this an example of bad customer service or am I just being a grumpy and impatient Englishman stamping my foot in petulant frustration? 

18 comments:

  1. I often encounter similar problems when ordering from a bigger historicals company over in the UK so I understand your frustration quite well. Sometimes you feel like they don't really want your money.

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    1. I suspect this company (which I think is a one man outfit) would rather deal with big orders to its distributors. I can understand that is aprobably a more econmical business model but why then allo individuals to order direct without setting a minimum order value? Rather than gaining a happy return customer they have just pee'ed me off and earned themselves a bad review.

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  2. We're pretty spoilt by how good the service is in the wargame hobby, so when you do get a questionable one it really sticks out. Let's hope it turns up soon and that they've included a little something extra as a thank you for your patience :)

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    1. We are spoilt, compared to service a decade ago. But the internet marketplace means the rules have changed and fast delivery and good communications are now the Norm rather than the exception.

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  3. your well with in your rights to be annoyed Lee. Communication is the key to keeping customers happy I'm personally willing to wait if you tell I will have to and you give me an ETA and stick with it or fully explain why you cannot meet it.

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    1. On the handful of occassions they have emailed me it has always been after I have chased them for an update. Very frustrating.

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  4. I think the main problem is the communication and I don't think it is too much to ask. There are several suppliers that seem to work in the stone age of a 1990's style website, no pictures and no or terse communication. It does make one wonder if they really want to sell their product.

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    1. Their website isn't great, but at least there are pictures of the products. And they had just what I needed but couldn't find anywhere else. Otherwise I might have thrown in the towl by now and cancelled.

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  5. Know that feel, it's been a month since I ordered from ModelHobbies, sent the third email today, no answers, order is 'processing'. Guess what, I will not buy a thing from them again.

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    1. The thing is I like CinC's products and their UK Distributor is an excellent company to deal with - regular communications and prompt service. But if they are out of stock even they have to wait for resupply and on in the past that has often taken several weeks. This was why I decided to cut out the 'middle man' on this occassion thinking I would get what I needed quicker.

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  6. UPDATE: Well how about that! My wife has just phoned me to say that a parcel postmarked 'Princeton, Minnesota' has just been delivered. It looks like my order has finaly arrived.

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    1. all´s well that Ends well :-D

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    2. Lets hope it the right thing then!!!! God forbid its not!!!!

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  7. I hope it will Lee! Nothing worse than waiting for something that you really want but doesn't show up! And this is bad service indeed!

    Greetings
    Peter

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  8. Good to hear that it has been delivered, finally. That, however, is not the service I remember from CinC. Being in the States makes it a bit different, of course, but there was a time that I could mail a cheque and order list to them and have the goodies back in ten days. Two months is far too long.

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  9. Yes, you're definitely right. There are things that can go wrong of course, things beyond a company's control, and they can't really be blamed for that. But communication is always 100% in the company's control. When they fail to keep a customer updated or, worse, ignore the customer's queries, that's the company's choice, and it's just bad business.

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