Blog
How Not to Gain A Customer
The other day, I couldn't find the remote for my garage door opener. I don't normally have a need for it because my car has a built-in remote with the Homelink system. I probably haven't looked for the remote in a year. Now I need it (to reprogram a new car), but it's nowhere to be found. I went to Home Depot and to Lowes, but none of their remotes were compatible with my garage door. So, I called a local Genie dealer. They had the remote in stock. Great! No so great. They want $45 for a remote that has a retail price of $25. Overhead, I was told. If they need to have a $20 overhead on a $25 item that they probably bought for half of that then they probably don't deserve to be in business. Anyway, I ordered the remote from eBay for $18, including shipping. That company lost out, not just on the remote, but on any future business. Am I going to willingly do business with a company that takes advantage of its customers so overtly? No, and fortunately I don't have to. This company, Marko Door Products., in Davie, is entitled to sell their products for whatever they choose. Consumers, however, are entitled to do business with whomever they choose.
Fed Up with FedEx
FedEx claims to run "the tightest ship in the shipping business." From my perspective, it is staffed by incompetents, unable to provide anything beyond empty promises. On February 6th I ordered an espresso tamper. Due to a PayPal error (that's another story) it was shipped to an old address of mine in another state. I called FedEx to correct the address, but was told that it would have to be corrected by the shipper. I sent an email to the shipper, who called FedEx. Too late. The package was on route to the wrong address. I was told that once it arrived at that distribution center, the address correction would be made and the package rerouted to the correct address. That never happened. On the FedEx Website I read that the package was being returned to the shipper in California. I called FedEx again. "No problem," I was told. They would correct it and call me back before it was returned to the shipper. Do you think that happened. Of course not. Now it's in California. They may or may not be able to reroute it. If they can't (and you know that they won't), the shipper has to request a credit and ship it again. I'm completely disgusted. I've called FedEx five times. Their system is so automated that their employees are incapable of making corrections, if you sent a package to the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, FedEx would probably drive a truck into the sea.
Half Full or Half Empty
Is the glass half full or half empty? Maybe it's time to rethink how we look at that phrase. Someone who thinks the glass is half full may feel that life has passed him by and that he's only achieved a portion of what he deserves. The person who thinks the glass is half empty may have already filled the glass and has been consuming and enjoying its contents. He's getting ready to refill the glass. Which is the more positive person?