I’m a sad customer

I’ve been contemplating for months to buy an Instax Camera. For those who aren’t familiar, they are basically polaroid cameras except by Fujifilm. They’re expensive at Php6,600++ so I’ve been holding off my purchase thinking that it’s only an impulse. However, 3 months later, I’m still constantly surfing the net to find a reasonably priced camera.

On Friday, I went on Sulit.com.ph and found an online seller,  Cutegadgets, selling the one I want at Php5,400. This was a good deal and she had it in stock. I spent all of Saturday chatting with her via Viber regarding my upcoming purchase. She runs a reputable online business selling gadgets so she seemed legit. We were all set for Monday. I was gonna deposit it into her account when the banks open on Monday and she would ship it to me. It would be in my hands by Wednesday. Throughout Saturday, we were texting because I wanted films and I messaged her to add that to my order. In short, I was racking up a bill.

Anyway, today she sends me a text to say that lots of people bought and paid for it on Saturday so she has no more stock for me. I was PISSED. My heart is so set on this camera, disappointing me is not a good idea. Even if I don’t have a choice but to wait, I still told her how disappointed I was. I said how the least she could have done was inform me that stock availability was an issue because we were texting all-day saturday and if needed, I would go to her office and pay for it in cash. I said that we wasted all this effort and I got my hopes up now I have to wait. She explained that many people express the desire to buy but never actually go ahead with the purchase. I’m an online seller myself (I sell designer bags) so I’m all too familiar with this. However, I already gave her my full name and address and we were constantly texting on Saturday about the products. The least she could have done was to tell me at one point that hey, we’re out of stock. Or.. maybe you should come here because we’re running low on stocks. Anyway, I’m pissed and disappointed. I make sure to express this to her. I sent her a bunch of messages because I was really upset.

I asked her to confirm that she can allocate one camera for me in two weeks. She said that she will refer me to another seller. I guess she is making too much money that she doesn’t want my business anymore. It disappoints me. Here’s a screenshot of what I said. She no longer wants to deal with me. I guess I’m too difficult.

Since our family business has a large service component, I’m all too familiar with customer wrath. We are on the receiving end quite often. Unfortunately, in our case, no matter how much we want to, we cannot tell people that we no longer want their business. I’ve come to realize that many customers just want to vent their frustrations and want a commitment that their situation is being rectified. In the same way, I was willing to wait for two weeks yet this girl said she “should not be in a position to deal with me.” (The wording is really offensive. No businesses should ever say this.) In a difficult and unpleasant way, customer complaints actually help improve the business. It’s not easy to face but in not everything in business is all fine and dandy, whether you’re selling cars or cameras.

Please note, there’s nothing wrong with her. I’m sure her business is legit and gets lots of positive ratings, so if you are her customer or potential customer, don’t let this entry deter you from doing business with her. I just don’t like the way she handled this situation so I’m posting this to express my disappointment. As a rule for all businesses, if you don’t address your customer properly and/if they are dissatisfied with your responses, they will find another outlet to vent their frustration.

Time to start searching for another Fuji Instax Camera.