OK, we've heard of good CS. How about really BAD CS?
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free skin care · Tue Nov 27, 2007 10:22 am

I know many of us have seen the "Whose CS has really impressed you?" thread, but I just had a particularly snotty CS agent dis my perfectly legitimate question over the phone, and I'm feeling annoyed by her (and all the other companies who have been like that).

I think us EDS gals (and guys!) are a fairly savvy consumer bunch when it comes to skincare, so we can sometimes be a customer service person's worst nightmare, because we ask all kinds of specific and difficult questions and the person often can't produce an answer on the spot. (Which I personally have no problem with, as long as they try and route me to the right target, ya know?)

Anyway, I think a lot of us really value CS above almost all else -- I for one have a great respect for Osea even though their products largely make me break out in some sort of horrible reaction, simply because their people I spoke with were superb about helping me handle my complaint. And of course we all adore EDS, and I know I've raved about a few other folks on here.

But I've seen threads like the Anne Borlind (sp?) one, where the CS was just terrible, and I believe Seattle Skincare was also pretty bad (which I can vouch for, as I tried calling them up to ask a question once and felt like a Doberman was aurally sic'ed on me, ugh!). So does anyone have any other crappy CS experiences they want to rant about?

I know this can be interpreted as a kind of mean-spirited thread, and I don't mean for it to be -- but personally, I honestly want to know what I'm getting into when I order from ANY company, because if there's an issue with my order I don't want it to feel like pulling teeth when I try to get it resolved. And there's so much that can go wrong with skincare -- broken/exploding packaging, bad batches that go sour, etc.

Anyway, I just thought I'd see if anyone wanted to join me in cataloging some bad guys. The folks I was just brushed off by were Internatural -- the gal on the phone said she had no way to check the expiration date of some products, and refused to try and help me get in touch with someone who might be able to answer my question. (The reason I asked in the first place is that they've posted a different ingredient list than the one on the manufacturer's website.)

Anyone else? Whose CS soured you from wanting to do business with that company?

free skin care · Wed Nov 28, 2007 8:45 am

Whew, I posted a long tome on Sears a few months ago. Experienced such pis#poor CS every single time I had to contact them I'll never step foot in a Sears again! Laughing

Recent poor CS experience at EZLube to get my oil changed prompted me to write a letter and demand a refund. I didn't get it and I'll never spend another dime with them either.

I agree CS is what makes anyone in the retail or services sector truly stand out when similar products and/or services are offered.

free skin care · Wed Nov 28, 2007 12:39 pm

Read the thread re: Anna Bellina Organics for awful war stories on poor CS.... Very Happy

free skin care · Wed Nov 28, 2007 12:45 pm

Hehehe ironically enough, I started this thread just BEFORE the Anna Belina drama-rama. But yes, the tiny snub I just got is NOTHING compared to the amazing BS behind Anna Belina. Nothing like that kind of bad PR and immature tactics to turn me off of a company forever and ever!

free skin care · Wed Nov 28, 2007 12:54 pm

ya, but this malcontent Rolling Eyes

just couldn't resist! Laughing

free skin care · Wed Nov 28, 2007 6:55 pm

A couple of months ago a friend and I went to breakfast at our (then) favorite spot. As we were finishing up I had to use the restroom. I went to go into a stall and saw a freakin' MOUSE SWIMMING IN THE TOILET!!!!!!!!!! This was a nice respectable place, not some dive...so I immediately went and told an employee who then went to get management. I sat back down, still having to pee, and waited for an apology for the unsavory incident or at least some acknowledgement from someone. All we got was the bill slapped down on the table. That's it. So I went and paid the bill and my friend picked up a "how was our service" card. When I got home I went pee finally, then called the head office. They were so apologetic and kind....took all my info and made it sound as if I'd be getting a call or something from the restaraunt. To this day I haven't heard a word back from them.

free skin care · Wed Nov 28, 2007 7:05 pm

Was there actually bad Borlind service or was this just a name mix-up?

I have had experiences with people beginning their exchanges with me by being extremely insulting and self-important, while not actually knowing what they were talking about. I withheld my business from the places that employed their services, simply on accountability/consequences-for-conduct principle.

free skin care · Wed Nov 28, 2007 8:31 pm

Melanie, it's definitely Anna Bellina we're talking about: check out this thread. (Try the last page for the controversial bit.)

free skin care · Thu Nov 29, 2007 7:49 pm

OK, I didn't want the Borlind-maligning left unadressed and hanging!

and kittylove, what jerks!

free skin care · Thu Nov 29, 2007 9:20 pm

I had a really dreadful experience with Beauty Bridge. I ordered some stuff from them, and about a month later I realized I had never received my order, so I emailed them about it. I got an email back saying that my order had been shipped and if I wanted a tracking number they would provide it. I wrote back and said yes, I'd like my tracking number if you please, but I never heard back from them.

A few weeks passed and I still didn't receive my order, so I contacted them again. I was told this time that there had been a mistake last time, and that my order hasn't actually shipped. Instead, it seems that some items were on backorder, so my order was on hold waiting for them. It would have been nice for them to TELL me this, but oh well. They assured me that the items would be in any day, so I let it go. ANOTHER month passed with no sign of the goodies and when I finally contacted them again they let me know that my order had finally been shipped. I thought the nightmare was over but actually it was just beginning.

When I FINALLY received my order, you can imagine how happy I was to find that I had been shipped the WRONG item. I called up customer service to complain about having to wait so long and then to be shipped the wrong item, and they told me that I was mistaken and that they had shipped me the correct item. Um, no. They also told me that I had no reason to complain because I was promptly notifed that my order was on backorder. Again, um, no. To make a long story short, they treated me like I was being crazy and irrational but they agreed to let me mail them the items back for a refund. This was almost 2 months ago and I just got a refund check in the mail today. BUYER BEWARE of Beauty Bridge!!!!!!

free skin care · Thu Nov 29, 2007 9:29 pm

Oh my GOD, the worst thing ever is when you have to go to the trouble to mail the stuff back after all that. Making a trip to the post office (especially with a big or fragile package) is a major hassle for me on most work days and I especially resent having to pay for shipping on stuff like that, when it was THEIR mistake. Thanks for the warning, Liz!

free skin care · Thu Nov 29, 2007 10:03 pm

ginnielizz wrote:

Oh my GOD, the worst thing ever is when you have to go to the trouble to mail the stuff back after all that. Making a trip to the post office (especially with a big or fragile package) is a major hassle for me on most work days and I especially resent having to pay for shipping on stuff like that, when it was THEIR mistake. Thanks for the warning, Liz!

Tell me about it!!! I had to go through all that and then I had to go to the trouble of packing everything back up and lugging it to the post office? SO not cool!

free skin care · Sun Feb 03, 2008 2:06 am

Okay, so this isn't really bad CS, per se, but WEIRD CS.

I was recommended the Dr. Lewinn sunscreen based on my picky-picky sunscreen preference, so I decided to go ahead and order a sample. They have them for free on their site, even though it's international, which is quite nice! So I placed the order via the awkward web form, and then kinda forgot about it.

FIVE months later, I get a packet from them in the mail. I was confused, but the name sounded vaguely familiar and I finally remembered it was my long-lost sample. Sweet! I mean, I know things can take longer from Oz, but this was kinda a darn long time to wait.

So I tear into it, all excited, and... there are three samples, NONE of which is the sunscreen. They sent me the Facial Polishing Gel, the Line Smoothing Complex and the "double intensity" line smoothing complex. Um, thanks, but what about the one I actually ordered? Laughing

This actually happened a while ago and I just came across the samples when I was cleaning out a drawer, so I thought I'd mention it because I thought it was pretty funny.

The killer is, I can't even test these samples. It's incredibly hard to find a complete listing of ingredients for any products this company carries, and I'm not willing to risk it with my crazy-sensitive skin (ESPECIALLY now that I'm back on Retin-A and thus even more sensitive than before). I remember it being a pain to track down an ingredient list for the sunscreen I originally ordered, and after 20 minutes of irritatedly searching, I give up! These will go as extras in my MUA swaps, hopefully to someone braver than me. Or if anyone on EDS wants to claim 'em, PM me. Very Happy

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