# Got an unhappy customer



## Gixxerjoe04 (Jan 31, 2014)

So I've been selling some small stuff on etsy, with pallet wine racks being the best seller , not a lot but a handful to make a little money to help pay for some tools. Haven't had a single complaint or anything with anything I've sold until today. Apparently the woman doesn't like the color of the wood…. In my description I say where every pallet is different and made from different woods so the coloration will be different with each one and from my picture for my display. I thought it looked good or wouldn't have used the pallet, i don't use nice clean ones because people like the rustic look but i sand them down so they are smooth and don't put finish on them. This particular one i thought looked good oak pallet with spalting on the front, besides my personal one i think it's the best looking one I've made. Not sure what to do, shipping is half of what i sell them for and that's with me building my own boxes because of the awkward size they are. So her sending it back and me sending a new one would be pretty expensive. I emailed her back asking what exactly she didn't like and told her and sent pictures of where she could go spend a few bucks and stain it. I've been making them as ordered, think I might i have make them before hand and have a picture of the exact one so this doesn't happen again. Sucks because I've only been selling for a few months on there and a bad review would probably make people skeptical to buy from me I'd say. Might just make another and send her pics before i send it to make sure it's ok and hopefully she won't leave a negative review.


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

There are a number of things you can do.

offer a full refund.

offer to take half off.

offer to replace it if she pays the return shipping.

send her some paint or dye so she can change the color.

You've already done this ask how she wants to resolve this.

If she leaves the choice to you ,think how you would want it resolved if you were the customer.

I think of the positive reviews I've read that say things like "I was amazed how well I was treated as customer.


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## NoThanks (Mar 19, 2014)

Send her a picture of 2 or 3 other ones and let her choose the one she likes. Ship it to her free of charge and let her keep the one she has. Above and beyond is what makes a good reputation. Your not out that much in the long run.
The small amount of money you will be out is nothing compared to a bad review.


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## Rxmpo (Feb 23, 2008)

Gixx, you have gotten some great advice… think of the reviews we pass around about tools and companies and how many of the "issues" get forgotten when the customer service is highlighted as great… Worth every penny.


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## shawnmasterson (Jan 24, 2013)

I agree with ask her what she wants to do. My wife sells on ebay and every once in a while she gets a buyer that is fishing for a discount. I would put the ball in her court and she how she responds. Let her *feel* like she has the power, but don't let her control you. and treat her the way you want to be treated.


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## Loren (May 30, 2008)

Welcome to life as an artisan. She's a problem client. In the future
build the cost of the loss into what you charge.

You might try to reason with her as suggested.

A week or so back I got a call from a clearly overwhelmed lady
who had sent me an email saying she needed an island and
that price was a concern… so I told her about staining alder
to get the dark color she wanted and she said "isn't that 
a cheap wood?" and I said yeah, it's inexpensive. Then we
talked about frame and panel in something more fancy like
walnut with veneer panels and she said "will I be able to tell
it's veneer?" and I said, yeah, if you've got a discerning eye, 
so she wanted solid wood but not a "cheap" wood.

Then she said she wanted a waterfall edge and I'm like "huh?" 
and eventually I made it clear that I don't do stone and she
would need to get a stone guy and I'd work with him to
make something she would like.

... haven't heard back yet.

A flustered, unhappy person is going to hit you with it at at 
the slightest provocation. For me, I don't want to build
anything for a client in the emotional state this person was
in. It's a recipe for dis-satisfaction.


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## InstantSiv (Jan 12, 2014)

I don't know if you'll like my opinion. I would send her pics of the selection of wood I had on hand and tell her to pick out the wood she likes and make her another one. I would mail it to her with packaging to send back the one she did not like at no cost to her.

That's what I would do. I would take it as a lesson learned and change how I did things, like you said about putting pics up of the actual item from now on.

--

If she was to leave a negative rating… I don't know… It would depend on what she said. Most people aren't affected by negative ratings IF you get mostly positive reviews. People understand that there's aholes out there or that crap happens. If you don't have very many ratings a negative rating can affect you and I would write something in the description that would relate to the rating. Don't overtly talk about it but word it that if someone was to read the rating and description they would put two and two together.


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## Yonak (Mar 27, 2014)

I tend to think shipping all ways is on her when allowing her to exchange or return. You stated in your description that the color may vary and that the characteristics of wood are subject to the whims of nature.

In your response you could tell her about all the satisfied customers you have had and that she is, in fact, the first that wasn't completely satisfied. If you had known she had a certain color in mind you could have sent her pictures to choose from but how could you know ? .. She didn't say.

I think you're totally covered and if she's reasonable she'll understand. What's the consequence, that she will write a bad review ?

In the future, maybe you could say you could send a picture, beforehand, of the item you will send if they request it, since each one looks somewhat different. On the other hand, the number of those who are that critical may not justify opening that can of worms. You could put it at the bottom of the page, maybe.


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## Loren (May 30, 2008)

I agree that considering your describing that items will vary, 
that she's the one to pay for shipping. She can pay for shipping
it back and get a refund or she can pay for shipping both
ways and get a replacement. You are not a big concern like
Pottery Barn or whatever and she may not be considering that.

If the person wants to be dis-satisfied unless you lose your
shirt on her behalf, let her write her bad feedback. That's
life. As stated above, crazy bad reviews won't dissuade
reasonable buyers.


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## fge (Sep 8, 2008)

I Dont have anything more to add, great advice has been already given. But to be safe it is best the customer gets to see exactly what they are buying.


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

You might add a disclosure to your items you have for sale in the future, saying "full refund if not happy (not including shipping).


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## TRHeath (Jan 20, 2014)

I've never really sold any woodworking projects but I have managed businesses all of my life. The true cost of an unhappy customer is enormous. On the other hand, it is also an opportunity to gain a lifelong customer and other potential customers by going above and beyond to please them. Either way, they are going to let other people know how their experience was. It's up to you what you want that message to be. An angry customer will tell (I don't remember the exact numbers as they were from 20 years ago or so. With social media now, the consequences are probably even more dire now), an angry or displeased customer will tell an average of 12 people about that experience. Each of those 12 people will tell an average of 5 other people. Those numbers were from the restaurant business and about 20 years old but you get the picture. You cannot afford to NOT fix this problem. It may be painful and it will cost you money but I guarantee you it will be money well spent. I also agree with all of the other comments about showing her some pictures of what wood you have and finding out what she likes so you can make her another one. As far as the one she already has, she can give it as a gift to anyone she wants if she will give them the information on where she got it (assuming this other person likes it so be careful on that one). I would not ask for her to send the other one back. It is an added inconvenience to her and could compound the problem. To sum it up, send her pictures of what you have, let her pick something out. Send her another one and maybe even send her some sandpaper and anything else she may need to finish the other one as well. Just my 2 cents worth. Good luck!


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## MNgary (Oct 13, 2011)

The world of retailing, whether online or in a big box store, is the same. If you want to build your brand-offer full refund upon the item's return.


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## Loren (May 30, 2008)

The spiraling cost of an unhappy customer is a toaster-and-automobile
sort of thing - already scaled-up mass-production business models.
Big brands are scalable, you are not. You have a production
bottleneck and a market price ceiling. It is a bad position from
an industrialist's point of view and one in which you're going to 
have to make some tough choices.

The argument that any customer must be mollified at any cost falls
apart for consultants, lawyers, vets, plastic surgeons etc. where 
irate and sometimes insane customers are part of the business and 
the stakes are way higher than the price of a dinner out.

A plastic surgeon who refunds every displeased customer will
not succeed. In the end, it is about managing customer expectations
and setting boundaries.

Why not one-man wood shops?

In the end, you and only you decide the terms on which you
will sell your time. Read Dan Kennedy.


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## wormil (Nov 19, 2011)

Don't build her another one. I bet she'll like the color a lot more for a 50% discount. And in the future I would send them a picture before shipping.


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## Buckethead (Apr 14, 2013)

Satisfy the customer. Sometimes it is painful, but that's why we do business… To satisfy the customer. All other reasons for doing business are a by product of having satisfied the customer.

Offer to make her a new one, offer her a discount, don't charge her. Bite the bullet.

Learn from this.

Prior to shipping, photograph the piece and submit it to the customer for approval. Having a few different pieces on hand is smart. If you photograph the piece for sale, there will be less chance for dissatisfaction down the line vs having a single stock photo as a representation.

Also consider this: Making ten at once is far more efficient than making one or two at a time. Even using various types of lumber.


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## jerrells (Jul 3, 2010)

My advice - make her happy. Ask her what it would take to be happy.


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## Puzzleman (May 4, 2010)

Ask her what she would like to resolve the situation. You might just find out that what she wants is within your ideas listed above.

When I have a customer complaint, I listen to their problems , then ask what would they like me to do. Most of the time, they are stunned into silence as they expect me to have all of the answers. I have learned that I want to hear their ideas and go from there. I use their idea or a variation of it to resolve the situation. I know they will be happy as it was their idea.

Customer complaints will happen all the time. I once had a board of maple that had birds eyes in the grain all over the board. My guys at the shop were wanting to buy the board from me. When I made product from it, I got several complaints that there were these spots all over the wood. When I explained what it was and that it was desirable by wood workers most were satisfied. I replaced one because she didn't like the spots.


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## Buckethead (Apr 14, 2013)

This dad diddly doggoned spots!


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## Finn (May 26, 2010)

This is one of the reasons I do not focus on long distant sales. When I do one, I send a photo of the finished item before shipping, if I can. I sell locally about 99% so I have not had a problem like yours…yet.


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## stefang (Apr 9, 2009)

I think the best idea is to ask the customer how she wants to resolve the issue before you decide. There will always be some difficult or unreasonable customers and since your business heavily relies on not having bad reviews, you may be willing to lose some money occasionally to appease those customers even though, strictly speaking, it can be unfair to you.


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## Gixxerjoe04 (Jan 31, 2014)

I emailed her again with pictures of pallets I had and asked if she liked any of them. Told her I'd make another, give her a refund but still haven't heard back from the first time I emailed her to get details about what she didn't like about it. Luckily pallets are free and it will only cost me shipping, time and some sand paper, so I won't lose money on it send her a new one. I will be upset if I send her another one of her approval for free and her leave a negative review. Problem with selling on etsy is it's mostly women I'd say shopping on their and women can be picky/hard to please haha.


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## huff (May 28, 2009)

You've received a lot of good advice from above. Jim (Puzzleman), pretty much hit the nail on the head.

Ask her how she would like you to resolve the problem. Not only does that show her you are willing to work with her to resolve the situation, but also puts the ball in her court.

The biggest problem to resolve is, her being so unhappy that she will give you a bad review.

It was mentioned above that a satisified customer will tell (they couldn't remember the exact number), but I was always taught 20 of their friends about their dealings, but a dissatisified customer will tell 200! That's the "old school" formula, but with selling on the internet today, the satisfied customer number still remains about the same, yet a dissatified customer can tell thousands with a simple click of a button.

I personally would not recommend sending her some sandpaper, dye, stain or paint for her to improve on something you already made her pay for. If she could do that, then there would be no reason for her to deal with you in the first place.

I hope all the advice you've been given from everyone above will help you out of this situation, and I also hope there will be some good advice for others that read this forum and find themselves in the same situation.

Right now, it's important to satisfiy your customer. You'll have plenty of time later to figure out if she was simply a "pita" type customer or if she had a legimate complaint, if you need to change how you advertise and discribe your work or if you need to change your return policy and if you should find another way to market your products.

Good luck.


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## huff (May 28, 2009)

Joe,

Guess I was typing while you where posting your reply. Glad to see you have communicated with her. The ball is now in her court and it will be up to her to respond. It's real hard for her to leave a negative review since you responsed and she hasn't.

Wish you the best.


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## woodchuckerNJ (Dec 4, 2013)

Like TRHEATH says…

Satisfy her so you can make it go away.


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## bbandu (Mar 4, 2014)

I have sold alot of different items both on the internet and locally and i go above and beyond to make sure the customer is satisfied, But as many have said before me how you handle this could go along way to have a life long customer.

A Little story about being a customer and the way a situation got handled.

I needed to have my carpets cleaned and being new to the area I asked around and got some recommendations for a few friends. I call this highly reccomended mom and pops style company and they showed up to clean my carpets. About a week after my carpets were cleaned we noticed a few things missing from our house ( little things that are not used everyday). After searching the house top to bottom for them and not finding them and knowing that to my knowledge no one else other then the carpet cleaning company had been in my house, one could only assume that someone from the company had taken these items. I call and talked to the owner and he said that he would investigate my complaint and let me know. I expected to not hear from him again but to my supprise about 2 days later he called me and said that someone in his company had taken the items and that they would be returned immediatly. He offered to replace any items that did not work properly after they were returned and gave me a 50% refund on my carpet cleaning.

This was a situation that could have gotten out of hand real quickly because the person that took the items from my house was the owners daughter. The way he handled the situation was with total class and respect for the customer and because of the way he handled this situation I did not leave a negative review for his company. I have continued to use this company and will continue to use this company simply because of the way the owner handled this situation.

I know this was not about wook working but its about making customers happy.


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## 33706 (Mar 5, 2008)

Ebay used to have this affiliate website called "half.com" It was only for books. As a seller, all you had to do was put in the ISBN number, and state the condition and price! Half.com already had the synopsis of the book on file.
So you'd get these well-written, professional listings….What could go wrong?

Well… people used the feedback system to slam the book, story or author….BY GIVING *ME* BAD FEEDBACK!!!
Cripes I shouldn't have cared about that, I mean I cannot guarantee that they'd love the story or author. These people were just too stunned to understand that Feedback was for evaluating my performance as a seller…not for complaining about how a story ended that was not to their liking, fer gawds sake….After it happening for the fourth time, I pulled all fiction listings off… the problem went away. but I lost my 100% rating because of those dip-sticks.

Don't cater to the fickle and flighty. They'll sometimes come back and be a PITA. Just not worth it. Ever.


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## Gixxerjoe04 (Jan 31, 2014)

^ wow some people aren't very smart but not surprised at all, well it's been 24 hours and still no response. I check my email all the time, you'd think having a complaint, knowing you should get a response you'd check it and respond.


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## joeyinsouthaustin (Sep 22, 2012)

It may be half the price to do the shipping, but you are thinking of profits in terms of what you are going to make on this item. Your profit comes from ALL your sales.. and you may have to take a loss on this one in order to protect your overall margin.

How to protect it: My favorites have all been mentioned.. mostly by *A1Jim*

*Loren* Your first post reminds of Soooo many I have dealt with. I recently had a lady go through the same scenario from affordable, all the way to walnut, on a whole house remodel. When I met here on site the house was a MESS with no real architect involved. I gave her a ballpark price, and she asked me if I could make it cheaper. I told her I would rework the numbers, and added %10. I did this two more times, and she hasn't called back. Thank goodness, and God bless whoever got the job. Will this effect my business reputation. I don't think so. What can she tell her friends others than it was too expensive!! And in the neighborhood she moved into, "I couldn't afford it" is not something you can tell your friends.


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## Buckethead (Apr 14, 2013)

There are "those" customers. I would try to ascertain if she is one of "those". Most people are reasonably honest. I think.

If she isn't pounding your door down, (meaning she hasn't responded with demands for your firstborn) she is probably just disappointed with the color or grain. I won't jump through hoops for maniacs, but I will for an honest customer.

Wood grain. Isn't that what we all love the most? Some like oak, others like walnut, some like plain sawn, and still others like very thin women. Se la vie.


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## Gixxerjoe04 (Jan 31, 2014)

So i finally got an email, after two lengthy emails i sent asking what she'd like to do yada yada, all i get is 
"The "raw" wood (for lack of better word) see picture. Staining may help. I was looking for a color that will blend with a couple pieces of furniture I have (see pics)."

So she's upset because the (i believe)oak pallet, doesn't match some cherry stained cabinet she has. So red oak is the darkest pallets i have and it probably wouldn't have pleased her, would definitely need need to be stained to get what she's looking for, don't know how she thought she'd a pallet wine rack would come close to matching what she has. The raw wood part is because there was a little section on the from that was broken off, i thought it looked good and added to the rustic look but apparently she didn't so i won't let that happen again.


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## HorizontalMike (Jun 3, 2010)

Gixxerjoe04,
What about selling "UNFINISHED" pallet wine racks? Let the customer deal with the entire proper color thing? Kind of like the furniture in the raw thing…

Your above response came as I was typing, but the jest is pretty much the same. Sell unfinished and let the customers do as they will.


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## Gixxerjoe04 (Jan 31, 2014)

Well in my description, i say they're sanded but unfinished.


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## HorizontalMike (Jun 3, 2010)

Well then I would go out of my way to emphasize that she should finish the wine rack "...as she pleases…" and leave it at that. Her problem, not yours. But then again, you could offer (in the future) ADDED SERVICES, for a surcharge, that could include finishing, provided colors samples were provided or "chosen"...


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## JAAune (Jan 22, 2012)

You mentioned that you've just started doing this a few months ago. The given in any business is that losses are to be expected during the startup phase. So taking a loss now to ensure that you don't get a bad review is advisable.

With this new experience, you'll be better able to refine your site, policy and communication to reduce the chances of this situation repeating itself. Eventually you'll have enough of a reputation that you'll get more sales and the desired profit margin.


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## Gixxerjoe04 (Jan 31, 2014)

Well i emailed her back apologizing for her not being satisfied(even though i dont feel like it's my fault at all) and asked what she wanted me to do to fix the problem and make her happy. I'll see how long it takes for her to email me back this time.


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## fge (Sep 8, 2008)

I do agree that you should do all you can to get things right and have a happy customer to save your reputation. I also think for the future a customer should have a picture of exactly what they are buying so that they can determine if what is in the picture will work for them or not.

But, in the end, if all else fails and your customer is out to take advantage of a situation, then you may have to live with the fact that you did your best. And with this in mind, I want to point out that most sites with a feedback system also allows the seller to respond, in which you should be able to kindly and tactfully indicate your item was received by the buyer as it was described in the listing as "pallet wine rack sanded but unfinished". You could in a few words explain that the customer is looking to match some "cherry" cabinet using your product which will not work unless finish work is completed, but since item is listed as "unfinished" customer was unable to achieve her goal without extra steps involved, with regards to finishing work. Sure what I just said could be worded much much better, but you probably get the point.

I really don't want to dwell on the negative, and we always strive for greatness and attention to detail in our work. That said, a year ago I had some minor, very minor issues come up on a past job. My problem was I was just too swamped and was unable to respond timely. Hind site 20/20 I should have prioritized my schedule differently. So the customer left me a very bad review, for an awesome project I might add, on both Angie's List and filed a complaint with the BBB. I spoke with the customer about the very bad review, I was very very upset. I was able to work out terms that allowed me to correct the very minor adjustments and the customer agreed to completely delete the review off of Angie's List. The customer did delete the review completely.

As for BBB. I have not been a fan of them since 2010 when they found out about my business and began calling me every month for a sales pitch to sell me ratings. I researched their company on the internet and found some questionable patterns the BBB utilized. OK, so fast forward to last year, and this is after me fielding sales calls from these guys monthly, when the customer filed the complaint with the BBB and then the BBB attempted to contact me, I just ignored their contact as I have had in excess of 30 past sales calls from them that I have also ignored. Actually I ignored some of the sales calls while answering some other sales calls trying to be nice to them. So for this, I now have an "F" grade from the BBB site. This "F" grade is a result of not answering their phone calls, they even indicate this on their site. What they fail to indicate is the 30+ phone calls they made to my phone prior to this incident when they were simply just harassing my phone and life in the name of making a sale. And if anyone could lay hands and eyes on the project that earned us the "F" rating, you would see the level of quality and craftsmanship we always aspire to achieve as it turned out excellent.

So now, unless I am willing to open my wallet for the BBB, I am stuck with an "F". It does not deter me in any way.


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## DrDirt (Feb 26, 2008)

Send some pics - tell her to pick the one she likes best, and tell her you will ship it as soon as the current one arrives back.

I would NEVER tell a customer to refinish/stain something they *just bought *from me.

Sometimes folks like different things.

Some people like wood, but hate "figure".

Lon Schleining was teachin a class I was at, and he talked about making a staircase and had some white oak for the newell post that was curly.

So he put that in the front facing the door to display the figure. The owner didn't like it and asked if it would always "Look so Blotchy" 
So out came the sawzall - and he built another.

You really don't want any bad reviews on Etsy. take care of her and accept that this ONE sale was a zero sum game.

Perhaps in the future, e-mail a pic of the piece you will send for 'approval' so nobody has any surprises.

Good Luck


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## Gixxerjoe04 (Jan 31, 2014)

Well i said the easiest and cheapest fix would be for her to stain it, would cost like $5. Her mailing it back to me would be at least $30. Of course I did send her pics asking if she liked any of them better and I would just make her a new one. She didn't respond to that email and hasn't responded to my email yesterday asking what she'd like me to do to fix it, and that I'd be happy to do whatever. Maybe she just wont leave a review, no review is better than a bad one. At the pace she emails back, I'll figure out what she wants me to do next month.


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## DrDirt (Feb 26, 2008)

Sorry joe - - there are also some customers that have buyers remorse - and just want to return things… so they look for things to complain about.

Perhaps she needs some "olive branch" of the…'your satisfaction is my goal, if you would prefer to return it, I can exchange, rebuild or refund the purchase price'

There really are no cut and dried answers…. as you say, she may have decided she is fine with it, and will never post a negative on this.

for a CYA - I would save the e-mail offers you have sent to her, and if there is a posting later, you can have Etsy take down the negative based on your handling of the issue.

making her happy is obviously the best…. but some times and with some people that is just not possible.

Cheers


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## j_dubb (Jun 13, 2013)

I'm going to go against what nearly everyone here has said. You clearly outlined in the description of the item that they're not exactly the same as what's pictured.

If her intention was to match existing furniture by purchasing something built from a grab bag of materials then that's on her, not you. She's holding your ebay feedback hostage in an effort to get completely uncalled for preferential treatment. I do not play that game with eBay buyers.

I recently sold an item on eBay. The winning bidder sent me a message after they'd won asking me to cancel the transaction because they didn't read the description of the item. No sweat. I did a second chance offer for the next person in line. Fast forward 8 days - the second chance offer wasn't accepted, but the original winner reaches out and tells me that they want to buy the item after all. I had that thing packed up and out the door within 8 hours of receipt of their payment.

They received the item and left me negative feedback indicating the packaging was faulty. I reached out to them and asked them to send me pictures of the faulty packaging and told them I'd open a claim with USPS since it was insured. "Oh, no the item is fine, but it could have been damaged because of the packaging." which was complete and utter BS as I've sold many of the same thing and packaged the same way without error.

Reached out to eBay and pleaded my case and they sided with me and removed the negative feedback.

I don't ever let an eBay buyer screw with me when what they're doing is completely unwarranted, and I wouldn't recommend anyone else either - it just enables that type of behavior.

Edit: If your customer decides to return it to you, it should be on her dime, not yours. In the future it would probably be most ideal for you to take actual pictures of the item you're selling, though, just to CYA from this sort of thing in the future…..but even then you're going to get some whack job that says "The picture on ebay must have been with different lighting because it looks completely different here!"

Can't win for losing.


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## shawnmasterson (Jan 24, 2013)

Thanks for the update keep us posted.


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## CamHarley (Jun 4, 2014)

Hey Gixxerjoe,

I also sell things on Etsy. I sell olive wood necklaces, and they are all different sizes so I list them up individually so that the customer can see exactly what they are buying. However, it is a bit of waste of money having to make 25 different listings, so in future I am going to do 1 listing and say that each rune is different. But if you only have a few items to sell, then you might as well always have a couple made and listed for sale online.

If you said it in the description that each one differs, then they shouldn't complain that it's not the same colour as the one they saw in the picture. But I agree with one of the other comments, that you should do whatever you can to please her so that she doesn't post a bad review, as it is worth being out of pocket by a little bit rather than having a bad seller rating.


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## TheFridge (May 1, 2014)

Women. Can't please em. Can't beat em.


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## DrDirt (Feb 26, 2008)

Ahh Fridge… you posted what I was 'thinking' and probably some others too!

LOL


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## Aee77 (Jun 4, 2014)

In my opinion an unhappy customer will cost you far more than the loss you will suffer in making this customer happy. Your feedback rating is what future sales will be dependent on. While it may seem (and often is) unfair this is a part of doing business.

My advice is to - ask the customer what they would like you to do and then, if possible, do that. Often customers will not tell you what they want but they always have a solution in mind that they would like. If you offer a solution that is not what they have in mind - even if your offer is better than their own idea - they will often feel slighted.

In the future - you may want to consider posting photos of the actual item followed with a statement that due to monitor color variations and the weathered nature of the wood returns will not be accepted based on varied color/characteristics. It won't deter all returns, but it will help you avoid some.

Good luck!


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## Aee77 (Jun 4, 2014)

as to j_dubb's response - were you on ebay I would agree completely, however the Etsy marketplace is a different sort of beast. The young online presence, choosy and narrow customer base, and "elite" mentality of the average Etsy customer do not allow for such a hard line, especially with a new business presence and the recent seller changes that did not go over well with a hefty number of the site's fan base.

Just my opinion


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## Gixxerjoe04 (Jan 31, 2014)

Sold another wine rack, this time i sent the woman a picture and she approved of it. Time to make some new wine racks and have those pictures on my account along with my "stock" photo, can't hang every wine rack i make and put bottles and glasses on them and take pictures.


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## Yonak (Mar 27, 2014)

joe, would you please post a picture of one of your wine racks that we're talking about ?

It seems to me, if you've sent her more than one message and she hasn't responded to any, I wouldn't beat my head against the wall. If she's not interested enough to acknowledge your trying to solve the problem I would guess she's not ambitious enough to post feedback. ..And if she does post negative feedback without trying to work the problem out with you or even respond, you would have a good case with etsy to have it removed.


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## newwoodbutcher (Aug 6, 2010)

What a1Jim said is, in my opinion spot on.


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## Gixxerjoe04 (Jan 31, 2014)

My first wine rack is in my projects if anyone wants to see what I'm talking about. The woman has responded to my emails finally, she just takes awhile. She asked what kind of stain I'd suggest and all this other stuff. Stained it herself then emailed me saying the stain is too red (minwax gunstock), now she's asking about putting darker stain over it. Been a headache, would have rather had made a new one at the beginning of the week and called it done. Hoping I get lucky and she gets it the way she likes it and is satisfied with me giving input everyday with every question and everything will be all good.


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## joeyinsouthaustin (Sep 22, 2012)

You should tell her to join LJ's for staining advice  We'll help take the burden off your shoulders.


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## Gixxerjoe04 (Jan 31, 2014)

Haha, well she finally got it stained this weekend and sent me a picture and thanked me for helping. So I'm hoping everything is good now.(knock on wood)


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## Yonak (Mar 27, 2014)

That is good news, joe. It sounds like she's getting happer, which should make you happier.


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