Comments on: Inconsistent Information Will Confuse Your Customers http://www.returncustomer.com/2007/08/27/inconsistent-information-will-confuse-your-customers/ Learn beneficial marketing and business principles from everyday experiences Fri, 12 Mar 2010 15:50:33 -0500 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.5 hourly 1 By: Joe Rawlinson http://www.returncustomer.com/2007/08/27/inconsistent-information-will-confuse-your-customers/comment-page-1/#comment-3376 Joe Rawlinson Fri, 31 Aug 2007 01:25:59 +0000 http://www.returncustomer.com/2007/08/27/inconsistent-information-will-confuse-your-customers/#comment-3376 Adrianna, Controlling the supply of products to create a false sense of scarcity is very tricky. One could question the ethics of such a ploy. Nevertheless, you're right: consumers can vote by spending their money elsewhere. Beth, Your example highlights how the employees that are "on the ground" with the customers can make or break a great consumer experience. No matter what IKEA's corporate slogans or advertising say, one bad employee can undo all the effort. Adrianna,

Controlling the supply of products to create a false sense of scarcity is very tricky. One could question the ethics of such a ploy. Nevertheless, you’re right: consumers can vote by spending their money elsewhere.

Beth,

Your example highlights how the employees that are “on the ground” with the customers can make or break a great consumer experience. No matter what IKEA’s corporate slogans or advertising say, one bad employee can undo all the effort.

]]> By: beth http://www.returncustomer.com/2007/08/27/inconsistent-information-will-confuse-your-customers/comment-page-1/#comment-3358 beth Wed, 29 Aug 2007 17:26:45 +0000 http://www.returncustomer.com/2007/08/27/inconsistent-information-will-confuse-your-customers/#comment-3358 Ikea is a great store, but man does their customer service suck. Especially the phone service, hope you never have to call. My nearest store is two hours away, so it's quite an event when we go. We found a print that matched another one we had in our living room, and were eager to buy it. Of course the only one was hanging on the wall as a display. I asked a cluster of sales people chatting in the corner (and ignoring everybody) if anyone could help me. And after some slight huffing and puffing, someone finally came to see what I wanted. The sales person informed me they could only sell a display item if they weren't getting any more in, and he knew for a fact this particular print would be back in. A few weeks later we had to stop back in, because (not surprisingly) a lot of the furniture we bought was missing crucial pieces. So we drove all the way back out there, and I had hoped to find the print. Not only did they not have it in stock, they'd sold the one off the wall! I am fairly certain the snotty sales person "helping" me was just too lazy to get a ladder and get it down in the first place. Ikea is a great store, but man does their customer service suck. Especially the phone service, hope you never have to call. My nearest store is two hours away, so it’s quite an event when we go. We found a print that matched another one we had in our living room, and were eager to buy it. Of course the only one was hanging on the wall as a display. I asked a cluster of sales people chatting in the corner (and ignoring everybody) if anyone could help me. And after some slight huffing and puffing, someone finally came to see what I wanted. The sales person informed me they could only sell a display item if they weren’t getting any more in, and he knew for a fact this particular print would be back in.

A few weeks later we had to stop back in, because (not surprisingly) a lot of the furniture we bought was missing crucial pieces. So we drove all the way back out there, and I had hoped to find the print. Not only did they not have it in stock, they’d sold the one off the wall! I am fairly certain the snotty sales person “helping” me was just too lazy to get a ladder and get it down in the first place.

]]> By: Adriana http://www.returncustomer.com/2007/08/27/inconsistent-information-will-confuse-your-customers/comment-page-1/#comment-3337 Adriana Mon, 27 Aug 2007 19:35:18 +0000 http://www.returncustomer.com/2007/08/27/inconsistent-information-will-confuse-your-customers/#comment-3337 This is not only bad service, but it is also a marketing ploy. Look at what DeBeers does with Diamonds. The planet is filled with diamonds but DeBeers control the entire market. Look how much we pay for them, but we still want them. The Game console companies release limited amounts when they release a new console to drive demand. Ikea is witholding the curtain fabric... Another similar example is the Enduraglide dry erase markers from Quartet. These markers, which I have used for the past year and a half, actually do last twice as long as the expo markers, but try finding them in the store... Is this because expo is trying to keep them out of the stores through some kind of strong arm tactics or is Quartet creating the illusion of scarcity? When I do find them, typically online, I buy more than I need because I'm not sure if I will find them when I am ready to order more. This is why I won't trust Ikea or the Staples or Office Depot stores because they all do the same thing. They hire teenage kids and don't train them in how to provide good service. These big stores just see us as a number. Find that fabric at another store. This is not only bad service, but it is also a marketing ploy. Look at what DeBeers does with Diamonds. The planet is filled with diamonds but DeBeers control the entire market. Look how much we pay for them, but we still want them. The Game console companies release limited amounts when they release a new console to drive demand. Ikea is witholding the curtain fabric… Another similar example is the Enduraglide dry erase markers from Quartet. These markers, which I have used for the past year and a half, actually do last twice as long as the expo markers, but try finding them in the store… Is this because expo is trying to keep them out of the stores through some kind of strong arm tactics or is Quartet creating the illusion of scarcity? When I do find them, typically online, I buy more than I need because I’m not sure if I will find them when I am ready to order more. This is why I won’t trust Ikea or the Staples or Office Depot stores because they all do the same thing. They hire teenage kids and don’t train them in how to provide good service. These big stores just see us as a number. Find that fabric at another store.

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