It's called customer service

[Stray Piers]

If builders and merchants want new or repeat customers, try actually backing up your products. A recent experience with a builders is a glaring example of how to LOSE customers. An item was purchased by my partner for a considerable price. The first time it was used it gave a script error and has been useless to us. Resetting scripts was no help. A note card and IM was sent to the owner/builder and for weeks there has been no reply or contact of any kind. We will never again purchase from this builder due to the fact that there is NO CUSTOMER SERVICE!

I have removed the name to comply with the rules here, but stating honest facts is not bad mouthing. I didn't post this as an angry vendetta, but to let you builders know that no response to an issue with your products is not wise. 

[Jaylin Wytchwood]

Just for info, you should take out the names, or this is in danger of being deleted.

 

Badmouthing someone isnt allowed, and actually we know only your side of the story.

 

[Rya Nitely]

Here is something I just thought of when reading your post and seeing the price of the item. Before investing so much money on an item, this is what I would do -

IM or send a notecard to the creator saying you are considering buying the item and do they offer costomer support if anything goes wrong or if you can't work out how to use it. No reply or an unsatisfactory reply then you move on. As a merchant I would send back an IM within 24 hours guaranteeing my support. This way you have made contact and you get an idea of who you are giving your money to.

Edit to add - Also I am assuming that you didn't purchase from the marketplace as you didn't leave a rating. It might also be a good idea to make your purchase from the marketplace so that at least you have the ability to rate the item and leave a review to make others aware of the problem. It might also prompt the merchant to get in touch with you.

[Paladin Pinion]

On the other side of the spectrum: A customer sent an IM saying they couldn't edit the notecard in my product because they kept getting a server error. They wanted to know what was wrong with my server. I responded within 3 hours as soon as I saw it in email, and said my product doesn't use a server, the message they were getting was from SL's server, and asked if they could create a new notecard as a test.

No reply. Three days later I wrote again and asked if the product was now working okay. No reply.

[Rya Nitely]

 

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Paladin Pinion wrote:

On the other side of the spectrum: A customer sent an IM saying they couldn't edit the notecard in my product because they kept getting a server error. They wanted to know what was wrong with my server. I responded within 3 hours as soon as I saw it in email, and said my product doesn't use a server, the message they were getting was from SL's server, and asked if they could create a new notecard as a test.

No reply. Three days later I wrote again and asked if the product was now working okay. No reply.

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I see your point, but did it cost you L$10,000?

Although price isn't the issue because even paying L$10 deserves cusomer support. IMO the customer doesn't owe the merchant anything.

 

[Fabien DeSantis]

I sympathies as a builder I know how much support is needed as these products are incredibly complex and require a certain level of skill to set up. I've noticed recently that my rep for service has paid off in sales. I suspect many of the now absent merchants who've left SL to play elsewhere will soon suffer a backlash from justifyably pissed off customers. I think many merchants underestimate the value of trust in a brand. When I started a girl told me "You just have to hang in there until people trust you enough" .. **bleep** right  ( did you know that 'Kellogs' is the worlds most trusted brand.. two places higher that the church.

I've been waiting 5 months for oak trees from yet another absent but left running merchant. Though in a way I understand after waving goodbye recently to three more big merchants who've closed up in world and dumped everything on the marketplace . "Still 100USD's a month for doing nothing "as one friend said last week..

 

[Lyra Blackthorne]

Most merchants are very responsive and do offer customer service but just like in RL there are always exceptions

[Josh Susanto]

My business isn't my products.

My business is my customers.

[Relm Foxdale]

I always respond to customers, even to the point of ridiculousness sometimes. Merchants are always within their rights to not provide support, but customers are always within their rights to not support those merchants, too. ;-) I know some of them figure they have a ton of customers and can't help everyone, and some are of the mindset that you just slap some stuff up on the SLM and walk away, but while there are always more customers besides the one you didn't help, it's amazing how much even a little help can do for customer loyalty, sales, and word of mouth.

[Blot Brickworks]

I just read this after trying to get back in for 5 days.Don't get me wrong,I do agree that service and stuff is so important.

Last Sunday morning my PC went T-T's up.oops.panic.I got it down to hard drive failure,sure I got back up ,of sorts ,but still this was my main rig and I needed to sort it.

This took 5 days,I live in the sticks and had to get the drive and stuff,took time but job done.

All that time I was worrying that there might be a problem that I could not sort whilst not inworld.

Anyway ,forgive the ramble,I got back and sorted a few little hiccupps with no problems.I said sorry for the delay.

This is just a post to say that not all merchants that do not respond are bad apples.

Though lots are LOL.....................I had a stressed week..................:smileyvery-happy:

[Persephone Emerald]

I think many of the rules of real life hold true in SL as well. Statistics say customes are about 4 times as likely to tell others to avoid a merchant they feel did badly by them as they are to tell people to go to a merchant they liked.

Thankfully I've had very few bad merchant experiences in SL. Some have been wonderful about helping me with product issues, even when those problems are as likely to be my own fault as some oversight of theirs. I recently bought a chair with an animation in it. The creator showed up while I was looking at the chair, answered my questions about it, & was very helpful. When I somehow later lost the pose ball connected to the chair, she tried to walk me through fixing the problem, then TPed to my place to look at it herself.  We weren't able to resolve the problem, but she asked me to try the chair again & call her back to try to fix it again if it still doesn't work. She's already made one house call to fix an $L 80 chair, and she's willing to make another & probably give me a replacement if the problem can't be fixed.  It's rare to find that kind of customer support in RL, let alone in a virtual world. I know I'll go back to buy more from her & tell my friends to visit her shop as well.

[Pamela Galli]

The way I would handle the problem is to trade her the broken chair for a new one. A lot faster.

[Chelsea Malibu]

I am a huge proponent of good customer service.  Not just for my business but it reflects on all of us in the end. It sends a message that you can spend money in SL and be safe that you know what you got was backed up by someone who cares about their customers. 

Calling the bad ones out in my mind is not the way to do as I prefer to catch someone doing things right.  Recently I made a pledge to my customers to do things right. I put what I am and my retail philosophy in writing and posted it in my stores.  It makes me accountable to my customers.

This is the direction I feel we should take. Make a commitment to our customers and make yourself accountable to them for this.

--------------------------

As a conscience business owner who is more concerned with creating unique works that others can enjoy than making lindens, I am committed to good customer service and value in my products.  As such, I pledged to support my customers and to understand their wants and needs while providing the best of my talents at a reasonable price. 

Therefore I pledge to you, my valued customer to provide you with the following:

• I will not spam you with group joins, landmark givers and note cards. You can make that decision after you have seen my work and I hope you do return, but I will not fill your inventory my stuff unless it is what you want.
• Anything you buy here, you can rezz here. I will not sell you items in a box that you cannot open in my stores. If you do leave something here, this land is set to auto return.
• I will keep my stores set up in logical order and by department. I will make it easy for you to buy my creations while also making it easy to find them.
• Everything I make is modifiable.  If you own it, it’s your right to modify it. My scripts are not mod therefore, you may see something in your inventory that shows No Modify but I assure you, when you try to adjust the prims, they will modify.
• Anything that you cannot make copies of, you can transfer and anything you can transfer, you will not be able to make copies of.  It’s a fair trade off and I believe you deserve one or the other.
• I will show my work to you as it is without misleading ads, images or claims. I work very hard on my wares and I take pride in my work.  I want to earn your business and hope you recommend me to your friends.
• I will name my products appropriately so you can find them in your inventory and include as much information as possible in that name to help you should you have problems remembering what you bought.
• I will spell check my note cards and if needed, will help you personally when you need assistance.
• I will come to your home or place of business, if needed, when you have issues with any product you bought from me. I stand 100% behind my work even if it’s working perfectly, I want you to be happy with your purchases and I truly want your home or business to look the best it can look.
• I will not force you to land in one spot and will allow you to teleport to anyplace within my store, or teleport your friends here.
• I will not scan your IP address or attempt to capture your personal information through RedZone or any other devices. I will remove anyone in my store that does this and is not respectful to my customers.
• I will replace or refund any product you purchased that you are not 100% satisfied with.
• I will respect your taste, your lifestyle and your background and I will never treat you as if you are a nuisance. You are important and to me, you are never a newbie, we just have different rez dates.
• As much as I am a creator and merchant, I too am a consumer and these are what I want when I shop. If you find anything you want or need and I do not provide it, I am always open to suggestions. Your opinion matters to me!

 

[Eloise Baily]

@Pamela,

I would hand her the chair in person to make sure it worked right.

Often, the error is with the way the customer sets the product up.

Handing them another one without support may be faster, but it won't solve the problem and if they set it up wrong again, they won't be coming back to you for anything.

[Eloise Baily]

@Chelsea,

I want to shop in your shop.

[Pamela Galli]

@Pamela,

I would hand her the chair in person to make sure it worked right.

Often, the error is with the way the customer sets the product up.

Handing them another one without support may be faster, but it won't solve the problem and if they set it up wrong again, they won't be coming back to you for anything.

_______________________________________________________

 

I know when I need to tp out to a customer and when I don't. I don't need to hand someone a chair in person to make sure it works right. I pull it out of inventory, sit on it, and if it is fine, I send it. If they still have a problem, then I go check out their land settings to see if scripts are working. (And my chairs don't require "setting up".)

My goal is to take care of problems as quickly and efficiently as possible. This is my full time job and I treat it that way.

 

 

[Phil Deakins]

Another "other side":-

Make sure that your partner hasn't muted the seller. I had a customer once who IMed me for support. I IMed back. The next day she Imed me again looking for support. I IMed back. This went on for a few days and her IMs became threats to AR me and that stuff. I kept IMing back but her IMs were such that it seemed she wasn't getting mine. Then a friend suggested she might have muted me, and the friend IMed her. It turned out that she *had* muted me for some reason that she really didn't know - by accident it seems. Everything was dealt with after that.

[Eloise Baily]

"

 

I know when I need to tp out to a customer and when I don't. I don't need to hand someone a chair in person to make sure it works right. I pull it out of inventory, sit on it, and if it is fine, I send it. If they still have a problem, then I go check out their land settings to see if scripts are working. (And my chairs don't require "setting up".)

My goal is to take care of problems as quickly and efficiently as possible. This is my full time job and I treat it that way.

 "

@ Pamela.

You didn't make that clear on your last post and your suggestion to send it again didn't infer any service attached to the redelivery.

I can see now that you do provide, but not all merchants sell what you sell to be useable "straight out of the box", so as I said, it's not always faster to just send another one. My post wasn't aimed at you. It was trying to see the other side.

[Pamela Galli]

The redelivery IS the service. When an item such as a chair malfunctions:

 

1) You tell the customer to send it back (and how to do that if they don't know how).

2) You pull out your copy and test it to make sure it is functioning properly.

3) If it is, you send that one to them.

4) If yours is also not functioning properly, you fix it and send it to them.

5) If the item works on your sim but not on theirs, you ask for a tp to check out why. (Usually they have scripts off.)

Additionally, you check the floor model that they bought and see if it is functioning properly and replace it if it is not.

There are times when the description of the problem requires a visit to see what is wrong, of course. But this is for complicated items, not a chair.

This is if your object is to get a properly functioning item to your customer as quickly as possible. A home visit to look at their chair and verify that their script is malfunctioning only delays this, and serves no purpose because they have already reported that it is malfunctioning; you can take their word for it that it is. You just need to give them one that works.

 

[Persephone Emerald]

To clarify the brofken chair issue.

1.The chair is No Copy, so the merchant needed to be sure it was really broken. For all she knew I could've been scamming her for an extra free chair.

2. I never claimed her script was malfuntioning. The chair rezed a posed ball & instead of adjusting my avatar's positon with the menu (because it was confusing to me), I moved & rotated the pose ball. When I selected "Stop" from the menu, the pose ball moved to the side a bit & went "poof".

3. Second Life was also behaving oddly at the time, with region restarts going on & the merchant getting a weird message when she tried to TP to my region at first. There was enough reason for her to suspect the problem I had with the chair might be based in weird SL glitches.  She also thought I might be able to just reset the script for the chair. (The pose ball was apparently gone, though, so the chair script couldn't find it.)

4.) The time of her visit to try to fix the chair was 4 am for me, so I was tired. She suggested I should try the chair the next day & then contact her if it still didn't work for me.

[Pamela Galli]

If you return a broken item (I presume it is transfer if it is no copy) and the merchant sends a new one, how can that be a scam? If a customer's chair gets broken, or she breaks it, regardless of how, trade her for a new one. I do it every day. Takes 3 minutes.

I certainly would not make the customer wait until the next day to get a replacement chair.

I am glad you are happy with the service you received, but my customers often remark that I give the fastest service they have ever received, and are very happy with that.

[Phil Deakins]

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Persephone Emerald wrote:

To clarify the brofken chair issue.

2. I never claimed her script was malfuntioning. The chair rezed a posed ball & instead of adjusting my avatar's positon with the menu (because it was confusing to me), I moved & rotated the pose ball. When I selected "Stop" from the menu, the pose ball moved to the side a bit & went "poof".

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That sounds perfectly normal. It sounds like the chair uses an MLP system. If it does then the STOP button causes the ball to delete itself, which is normal.