My Saga Buying a Camera
Today I finally got a new digital camera. It's nothing special, just the model above the basic Canon model. But it has been a frustrating experience, so I feel the need to vent...
I'd seen the camera I wanted advertised on special for Christmas last year ($128 down from RRP of $159). When I went to buy it in late December, they'd sold out. So I went around to other stores to see if anyone had it in stock at a reasonable price. But no luck: I couldn't find it anywhere. Looks like it was a popular model last Christmas.
I tried again on the day after New Year's, and found one store that had the camera on sale for $143. Good enough, so I went to the counter to try to buy it. Unfortunately, the display model was the only one they had, and it wasn't for sale. However, I could order one and "it should arrive at the warehouse at the end of next week". I decided I'd spent enough time, so I agreed to order one in. As I was filling out the paperwork, I was told that a $10 deposit was not enough. Since it was a "warehouse" order, the manager informed the shop assistant that I needed to pay the full $143 up front! I knew I should've backed out right there, but it was a reputably chain of stores, and it wouldn't be more than a week or so, right?
The first week passed, and I didn't hear from the store. Another week passed, still no news. Finally, after almost three weeks I headed into the city to find out what's happening with the order. Apparently Canon was experiencing delays in supplying product. I was tempted to cancel the order and ask for my money back. I had seen the same camera advertised and in stock at other stores. But I decided to give them another week.
As I may have mentioned, it's been a hot couple of weeks in Adelaide lately, so I had to put of going back to the store until the weather was cool enough. Today was the day, but before going to the store I thought I'd check if another store had the camera. Yep, sure enough, I saw the exact model in stock and on sale for $128. So my mind was made up: if my camera had not come in yet, I would cancel my order at the first store and go buy it at the other store. And that's how it turned out. The consolation was that I ended up saving $15 at the end of the process.
While the delay may not have been their fault, what really ticked me off was that the store didn't keep me informed of the progress of the order. They just quietly kept rolling over the expected delivery date. There were apparently six other people in a similar situation, all waiting for the order to arrive. I wonder how long those people will wait before giving up? Not a good way to make your customers happy.
I guess I learned a couple of lessons:
1. Don't expect a store to actually have an advertised sale item in stock.
2. Only place an order for something if you're willing to put up with delays.
[Adelaide's maximum temperature reached 35.6 degrees Celsius (96 degrees Fahrenheit) today.]
I'd seen the camera I wanted advertised on special for Christmas last year ($128 down from RRP of $159). When I went to buy it in late December, they'd sold out. So I went around to other stores to see if anyone had it in stock at a reasonable price. But no luck: I couldn't find it anywhere. Looks like it was a popular model last Christmas.
I tried again on the day after New Year's, and found one store that had the camera on sale for $143. Good enough, so I went to the counter to try to buy it. Unfortunately, the display model was the only one they had, and it wasn't for sale. However, I could order one and "it should arrive at the warehouse at the end of next week". I decided I'd spent enough time, so I agreed to order one in. As I was filling out the paperwork, I was told that a $10 deposit was not enough. Since it was a "warehouse" order, the manager informed the shop assistant that I needed to pay the full $143 up front! I knew I should've backed out right there, but it was a reputably chain of stores, and it wouldn't be more than a week or so, right?
The first week passed, and I didn't hear from the store. Another week passed, still no news. Finally, after almost three weeks I headed into the city to find out what's happening with the order. Apparently Canon was experiencing delays in supplying product. I was tempted to cancel the order and ask for my money back. I had seen the same camera advertised and in stock at other stores. But I decided to give them another week.
As I may have mentioned, it's been a hot couple of weeks in Adelaide lately, so I had to put of going back to the store until the weather was cool enough. Today was the day, but before going to the store I thought I'd check if another store had the camera. Yep, sure enough, I saw the exact model in stock and on sale for $128. So my mind was made up: if my camera had not come in yet, I would cancel my order at the first store and go buy it at the other store. And that's how it turned out. The consolation was that I ended up saving $15 at the end of the process.
While the delay may not have been their fault, what really ticked me off was that the store didn't keep me informed of the progress of the order. They just quietly kept rolling over the expected delivery date. There were apparently six other people in a similar situation, all waiting for the order to arrive. I wonder how long those people will wait before giving up? Not a good way to make your customers happy.
I guess I learned a couple of lessons:
1. Don't expect a store to actually have an advertised sale item in stock.
2. Only place an order for something if you're willing to put up with delays.
[Adelaide's maximum temperature reached 35.6 degrees Celsius (96 degrees Fahrenheit) today.]
Labels: poor service
posted by Bruno at 8:53 PM [permalink]
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