LM_NET: Library Media Networking
Given customer service threads of the last two weeks regarding Scholastic
and our own facilities, I would like your opinion of my most recent customer
service complaint. I am beginning to see why Amazon's stock price is way
down and they haven't made a profit in their history. I should add that the
two ground based "superstores" compete directly across the street from each
other a few miles from my school. I chose to order personal copies of the
paperback in question at the time I was making my school order for library
bindings from another vendor. Since my school order has to be processed
through central office and if I am lucky will at school when we open after
Labor Day and I wanted to be able to read during the three weeks I planned
for vacation, I placed a personal order that would no doubt be placed into
circulation when I was through. My e-letter and Amazon's response follow.
Please comment.
TIA,
Dorothy E. Tissair
Library Media Specialist
Mark Twain School
Hartford, CT
ricflair@mail2.nai.net
X-Mailer: Microsoft Outlook Express 5.50.4133.2400
> >Date: Sat, 29 Jul 2000 17:25:27 -0400
> >Subject: Dissatisfaction with latest service
> >To: orders@amazon.com
> >From: "Dorothy E. Tissair" <ricflair@mail2.nai.net>
> >
> >I am writing to express my displeasure with the service I received with
my
> >latest order. It was definitely not up to what I have experienced with
past
> >orders from Amazon. I chose to order a dozen children's paperbacks, on
the
> >morning of July 18. All of these books were listed as "usually ships
within
> >24 hrs." My past experience had shown shipping estimates to be
accurate, so
> >I specifically delayed the order of a book with a longer shipping date.
I
> >wanted these books for reading during vacation which started today
(July
> >29). Expecting 24 hour shipment standard shipping of 3-7 days would
have
> >the books to me in plenty of time, especially since all of my previous
> >orders form Amazon have been shipped Priority Post. I was not even
> >concerned when I didn't get shipping confirmation until last Saturday
> >morning. I anxiously waited for delivery when I came home each night.
I
> >began to worry by Thursday night that perhaps my package had been
stolen
> >from my door step during a rainy week that had me working late. When
the
> >books still did not arrive in this afternoon's mail, I went to your
site to
> >trace the order. I was shocked to find out that my order had not even
left
> >Reno, NV until late on the 25th (three days after I had been advised
that it
> >had been shipped) and had just arrived in New Jersey today. This means
that
> >it will not arrive at my door before Tuesday, two full weeks after the
order
> >(that was to ship in 24 hrs.)was placed. As I plan to leave for my out
of
> >town vacation tomorrow this means that I can probably count on the
package
> >being stolen from my door step, if my house doesn't get broken into
because
> >someone notices that the package hasn't moved. It also means that if I
want
> >to read the Nutmeg Award nominees before school starts I will have to
make a
> >trip to one of your competitors stores tonight. I will have to pay
cover
> >price for the books but I will have them in my hand. Given the fact
that I
> >have paid back more than my supposed "discount" to Amazon.com in
shipping
> >and handling fees, I will have to reconsider the "convenience" of
shopping
> >with your firm in the future. Of course I know that I am a very small
> >customer by volume for Amazon.com, but I do believe that the 13,000+
members
> >of the LM_NET listserv where I am an active participant will find this
worth
> >discussing.
> >
> >Dorothy E. Tissair
> >Library Media Specialist
> >Mark Twain School
> >Hartford, CT
> >
> >ricflair@mail2.nai.net
> >
> >
> >
>
----- Original Message -----
From: <orders@amazon.com>
To: "Dorothy E. Tissair" <ricflair@mail2.nai.net>
Sent: Monday, July 31, 2000 7:34 AM
Subject: Your Amazon.com Order (#104-0310340-0059968)
>
> Dear Ms. Tissair,
>
> Greetings from Amazon.com.
>
> Thank you for writing to us concerning your order. Please accept my
> sincere apologies for any inconvenience this may have caused you.
>
> If this package arrives too late to meet your needs, please feel free
> to return it at our expense. We will issue a full refund for the
> price of any item you return.
>
> I am sending you a postage-paid return merchandise label, which you
> can expect to receive within the next 1 to 2 weeks. Simply affix this
> label to the package and give it to your mail carrier.
>
> I hope you'll understand that we do our best to ensure that all of our
> customer orders leave our distribution centers as close as possible to
> the availability and shipping estimates that are listed on our web
> site.
>
> I've checked into the availability of the items in your order and
> found that these items were listed on our web site with this
> availability estimate: "This item usually ships in 24 hours." This
> means that we can usually ship these items within 24 hours after an
> order is placed.
>
> This reflects the fact that our distribution center has made known to
> us that they have at least *one* copy of this item. It's worth noting
> that, in general, we strive to keep the availability listings on our
> web site accurate for single-copy orders. Larger orders may take
> longer to assemble than single-copy orders.
>
> We currently use both UPS and the U.S. Postal Service for standard
> domestic shipments, depending primarily on the weight of the package.
>
> As stated on our web site, we expect these shipments to take 3-7
> business days to arrive. A package shipped via UPS Ground which
> leaves our distribution center on a Saturday or Sunday does not
> actually reach the first UPS hub until Monday morning. I do apologize
> if you were not aware of this at the time your order was shipped.
>
> Our shipping charges reflect the handling costs for assembling and
> packaging each order, as well as the cost of shipping. Shipping costs
> are an inherent feature in any mail-order service. We understand that
> sometimes, the shipping costs may represent a large percentage of the
> overall price of an item.
>
> It is always important for us to hear how customers react to all
> aspects of our service. Strong customer feedback like yours helps us
> make important decisions about how our shipping procedures can be
> improved over the course of time.
>
> In addition to our large selection, one of the benefits we'd like to
> offer our customers is convenience, and I realize that we have not met
> that standard in this case. I hope that you will give us another
> opportunity to prove the quality of our service to you in the future.
>
>
> Best regards,
>
> Jill B.
> Amazon.com
> Earth's Biggest Selection
> http://www.amazon.com
> ==============================
> Check your order and more! http://www.amazon.com/your-account
> Questions? We have your answers! http://www.amazon.com/help
>
>
> >
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