Registered: Feb 2000
Location: San Francisco
Posts: 3

Here goes... I called "customer service" to add a back-up module to an order I'd placed a couple of days earlier but which hadn't shipped yet (which they were going to do "sometime this week"); I was told that I would need to place a new order and thus incur an additional shipping charge. I asked if they could just amend the original order and then call their warehouse and place the additional item into the shipment and was told that their database could not do this. I then suggested that they could just place a new order and then waive the shipping charge since the original order hadn't gone out yet... After several exchanges between the agent (known only as "Lisa K.") and her supervisor (whom she refused to name) she came back with a final answer - the only solution would be to place a new order with the new shipping charge even though the original order was still somewhere in the pipeline and had not shipped. After a few more attempts at coming to some reasonable solution, I just gave up and wanted to cancel the original order (for a Visor Deluxe + accessories). Agent then said that she couldn't do that either. I would have to receive the product next week or after when they decide to ship it and then return it for a refund.

Clearly, these folks don't know how to deliver on the good faith (and most importantly, the money) potential customers want to place in their product. The customer service folks at least apparently operate by some ill-written guide which leaves no allowance for the contingencies which happen in real life purchases.

I'm buying a Palm Vx.

Registered: Jan 2000
Location: Twin Cities, MN
Posts: 1683

I just can not understand what kind of database/order fulfillment system they are using?! Did they buy it used at some "computer warhouse going out of business sale"?

Anyone care to take a guess at what it is? I have a feeling it is all done on Post-it notes. Some person then rollerskates by as each CS person sticks the "order" to the skater's body as they skate over to the warehouse.

Come on...I could write a database in a half an hour that does more than their system does!

Registered: Oct 1999
Location: Lincoln, NE
Posts: 56

I don't think you understand this setup here. HS hires one firm to take orders. They take orders into a database and every night the database of orders is shipped out to the order fullfillment company. The order fullfillment company loads the database and then begins shipping those orders. There IS NO WAY for the CS to modify record after it is shipped out. This is why customer numbers are based on the date. Your individual record is then a number withing that particular databse. If you don't like it, don't deal with smaller companies. You will find that when you deal with companies who are very small and out sourcing ordering and shipping that this will always be how it is handled. Maybe not the greatest way to do things, but for $150-200 less on the purchase price I think I and most other people can handle it.

Registered: Feb 2000
Location:
Posts: 53

[QUOTE]Originally posted by homer:
Anyone care to take a guess at what it is? I have a feeling it is all done on Post-it notes. Some person then rollerskates by as each CS person sticks the "order" to the skater's body as they skate over to the warehouse.

I laughed so hard, my side hurts!

Registered: Sep 1999
Location: Texan in Calgary for a while
Posts: 1361

The original poster has made another topic witht the same text. Closing.

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James Hromadka
VisorCentral.com
Personal Website: http://www.Hromadka.com