No more Refunds!

This happens to me pretty often - someone sends me back something I made and demands a refund. Without even asking! They just got sick of what they bought from me and think I'll just hand them money. A free 30-day trial, so to speak. What's worse are the ones that do it over and over... "I'm sick of the squirrel, here it is back, send me the frog". You know who you are.

Perhaps by mentioning it here I'm showing that it's easy to take advantage of my good nature and now everyone who ever bought something from me is gonna try to return stuff. Well, no more. Right now, right here, I am am announcing the end of refunds. If something is broken and you can resonably prove it, I might consider trading a non-broken item for the broken one of the same type & color. I also will exchange a Tiny AV for a large one if you bought the large one by accident in the past couple of days. I will not ever give $L back. EVER.

What do ya'll think? What do ya'll do about this? Make everything no-transfer? Get a little nasty to people via IM? Just say "no"? I do believe in keeping the customers happy but come on! Does every creator in SL deal with these types of customers? Are you this type of customer? I would never have the brass ones to enjoy something for a week then ask for my money back. I've even bought crap stuff/broken stuff from people and didn't ask for my money back. Give me feedback. I can take it. I think.

/rant off

If I give you feedback and you don't like it would you return it and demand a refund?

No transfer is the easiest way to avoid this I find. Or you could shoot mini heads at them from a canon. It probably wouldn't make you feel any better but it won't make them feel good either.

Wynx, I dont get that, but I do get people who decide they dont like how $L10 animations work on them IMing me. All animations can be previewed before they are bought but a week later people actually ask for the $L10 back. Not often, but it has happened more than a few times.

I just make everything no transfer. No reason to insult your customers, just say you can't give refunds on no-transfer items.

Oh, no...! I'm not insulting all of my customers! Only about 1%. Maybe less than that. But transfer items are so nice - you can give them as gifts or resell at cut-rates. I like garage sales.

Anyway, I'm over it. I was having a moment. I do that. Hold it all in and then blow, publicly and ridiculously!

I demand a recount.

What was the question?

Oh, right. Just put "No refunds" in your notecards. Maybe a little sign in your store. If you have a store. It seems reasonable to me if you make it a policy.

Do people insist that they should get a discount and get angry if you won't give them one?

Buster

sigh... gotta love the bad eggs in the human race... sorry you have to deal with people trying to take advantage, wynx.

hell i saw it this morning in my corner deli -- some guy trying to negotiate the price of a sandwich because the shop owner should be a "good guy" ... i hate this gimme gimme gimme culture some people seem to feel quite at home in...

i constantly switch back and forth on my opinion on the whole transfer thing.

Nevah! I asked for it and I'll keep it, thank you very much.

I have two views on this...as a creator/store owner, I agree 100%. It is one thing to have someone ask for help on a product, but to keep doing it, no that's unreasonable.

On the other hand, I never used to be this type of customer until recently. I had purchased a service/product from a person in world. It was supposed to be delivered weekly for 4 weeks and then at the end I received 2 more products. Due to some other outside things, I asked for my products early, repeatedly...I never received it. Still have not even received two weeks of updates to the product that was agreed upon in the beginning. Now for me to get these is useless. I only received 2 of 6 products. I asked for a refund because now the product was useless. I only asked for half back. Not the full amount. After haggling about this, the creator said no they will not give back half the money even though they have not kept their end of it either. So I asked for my products. I still have not received them. Of course, we have no way to report this type of abuse because we all know the drill about contracts and such. So in this instance, when its a breach of some sort, yeah refunds should definitely granted.

Sometimes a vivid imagination is a bad thing.

Have you considered a restocking fee? That's generally reasonable considering the trouble you have to go to.

If the buyer does not show up in your financial history of the last few days, refuse to refund all you want. There are yard sales for used items.

It is just Lindens, giving someone the USD of $.25 (acutally less currently) is killing you?


Recently, someone made a product that really in all honest does not work. Many people reported that it did not work. They refused to give cash refund but only exchanges for other items. If you make one product that doesn't work you have lost my trust as a consumer, why should I want to exchange it for some more of your "crap" products? In the end, it is really such a small amount of money, it is worth the good will just to give it to the people and never do business with them again.

This isn't such a bad idea. The refund amount can decrease with every day. So if they return the item immediately they get 90% back. On day after 75%. Two days, 50%. Three days, 25%. And after that no refund at all.

If you make a sign that clearly states your policy then people will know that they need to try on your item right away to determine if they like it. If they wait until a week later, well they knew your policy, it shouldn't have taken a week to determine they didn't like the item.

I'm gonna have to go with Wynx's idea on this one. I had someone do the same thing to me last night. I have no problem with exchanges, but some people have asked for refunds so they can go buy someone else's avatars. It might just be me, but I consider that a serious insult and would be likely to not sell to that person again if they do it more than once.

It's OK to maybe like one color better than another, and it's understandable that people on basic accounts don't always have the money to collect them all, but when people start taking advantage of others, it ruins it for everyone.

I usually can keep track of the people that are going to take advantage of my niceness. But if it continues, I'll make mine no transfer, too and just keep the special edition ones transferrable. >_<

Exchanges on tinies are OK but refunds for no good reason need a good reason

-Noramyr the Grumpy

Eboni, it's been my experience that quite often the problem with refunds is the time involved.

Especially for 25 cents

This characterization is completely unreasonable ... and very dismissive.

The situation is the same as someone buying an item of clothing today, that they wear to that great party tonite, then want to return tomorrow morning ... generally complete with sweat, food, liquor and /other/ stains.

The value in US currency is not the issue. Individuals who deliberately set out to take advantage of someone is the issue.

Bad behavior is not "less bad" because the amount of currency involved is smaller.

I agree with Jim.

Whether the US value is $.25 or $2500 makes little difference to me, it's still a scam, and still extremely low class.

In Wynx's shoes, I would only offer refunds or exchanges on products that were broken, mislabelled, or somehow didn't work right. I definitely wouldn't be allowing people to repeatedly exchange one product for another as if it were a costume rental shop.

Yes, it's great to have wonderful customer service and to go out of your way for someone, and it's good business, but I wouldn't worry about losing the kind of customer that does this sort of thing anyway.

Holy shit, hon! I'm sorry I ever asked you for the favor I did now that I know tons of people have done similar. -_-; I never told a soul either that you helped me out.

Sweetie, I didn't mean YOU specifically. It's just the last month I've gotten so many strange requests that I can't even believe people are asking. Seriously, don't worry about it, I won't either and I'm glad I made you happy that day. I just can't keep doing it.

Oh, and some of the strange requests are OK. Especially the one with the aardvark.

Wynx, your policy of no refunds unless there is a defect/mistake is perfectly reasonable. If you have a decent business its probably worth the 1% drop in sales to get rid of 90% of your stress and wasted time.

I don't own a shop, but I can't imagine the gall it takes to ask for a refund on used item, but then, thats probably why my inventory is full of stuff that turned out to not be quite as cool as I thought once I bought it (especially clothes).

hmmm Tinies rentals? There's money in that.

Wynx, if people are taking advantage of your lenient exchange policy and getting you down, just don't do exchanges for them anymore. There are much easier ways to make money, so there's really not a lot of point to this unless you are having lots and lots of fun. If they're messing up your fun, change policy!

Your Tinies are one of the coolest things ever in SL. You have provided hours and days and weeks of fun (and some opportunities to profit) to hundreds (gotta be hundreds by now) of people all over the world. There's an entire SL Tinies subculture now, an alternative to clubs, a way to dress up as a bunny or a kitty and suddenly decide it's also okay to dress that av as a princess or a fireman -- people who would never wear that stuff rush to dress up when they're Tinies. It's even completely changed many people's views on Furries and other interesting avs. You did this, Wynx -- you have done this for our community. You deserve to enjoy it. Don't feel guilty because a few thoughtless people try to take advantage for the measly RL pocket change price of a Tiny av because they're wanting to change into a frog instead this week. They're being pigs (full-size ugly ones, not cute Tiny ones with curly tails). Don't let them mess up your fun.

Same goes for you, Noramyr!

I agree fully with everything Kim said.

If someone wants another kind of Tiny, then they should BUY that other kind of Tiny. That's why Wynx MADE a number of Tinies. (And I'm looking forward to new ones!)

After all, when you buy a SL house from a house designer, you don't go back a week later and say you're tired of that one, and demand another one from the line.

I definitely make everything no-transfer, and I have no qualms about this at all. Never mind the real-world philosophy about items; this isn't the real world, lol. (And they aren't even real items!!!)

If one really does want to make things no-transfer, then I think Aimee's idea of "restocking" fees is an excellent, well-thought-out way to offer this and yet avoid some of the pitfalls of same.

coco

P.S. I'm waiting for some game developer to buy rights to these Tinies, as Tringo was purchased, for use in a whole new online game.

But please Wynx don't make them no transfer ! I have bought so many tinies as gifts and give aways at raffles and such.. I love yours and Noramyr's products that it would be a shame if I was unable to buy and share them with others

While on one hand I can understand no transfer, but on the other it drives me batty. I see something I would love to give one of my friends, something cool I think a new person would enjoy but might not be able to afford it or just something I think is special and wish to surprise someone with.. go to buy it and find it's no transfer. Now what do I do, drag the person to the shop, hand them the $ and say buy this kinda ruins the surprise factor. Bother the designer to send a copy to your friend? I've found alot of designers while gracious are just damn busy.

So I applaud you for your decision, I've found you to be most fair and prompt in responding when there was a bug issue with one of your textures on the panda tiny and fixing issues with another but don't let the bad apples get ya down. Set it no refunds, you bought it you got it.

*hugs*

Ashlynne