Designers Beware

Lately I have noticed alot of this going on more than ever...

I dont know any better way to exaplain it other than to give one of the most common examples...


Monday... customer goes to your shop buys an outfit, matching shoes.. the works... Friday... customer wants a refund because he/she claims she was unhappy with thier purchase... Friday night you find out that the customer has won at least 3 contests with the outfit that week, and no longer has a use for it...

Solution.. NO REFUNDS... if its broke, sure fix it... other wise exchanges only... this is really sad, but what other choices do we have?

I'd say for things like clothing, which you're probably going to be trying on immediately anyway, give a 24 hour window for a refund. That's plenty of time for someone to try it on, figure out if they like it or not, and ask for a refund.

Ha ha... I have learned that this happens in real world as well... By all with returnpolicy.. use it all at the evening - back day after.. some with sweat marks to..

....TRY to get money back... ha ha ha..

Some... are insane.

this happens more than just clothing... I had someone want thier money back for a dance machine they purchased 3 months ago... they sold thier club and no longer need it... then they harrass me calling me a rip off, even called a Linden on me... it sux that people like this can actually make you look bad and smear your name into the ground...

i usually offer exchange or "money coupon" but i usually do not refund if there isnt a good reason

Whoa, nearly the exact same senario occured with me. Isnt it funny who some idiots treat L$.

Typical Idiot: "I paid $700L for that dance machine!!!! Thats alot of money to me, I need a refund."

Less than 3$US??? A trip to starbucks must be a painful splurge.

Imagine the cost if they had kept a video or a library book for 3 months.

D

You could avoid some problems by posting a sign at the entrance to your store, citing your refund policy.

I'm with the others - a 24 hour refund window is adequate to figure out if something works or isn't quite right. Three months is ludicrous. They couldn't return something - anything - in RL after 3 months.

But in the future you could point them to your sign.

Cindy

Well, while I agree with this thread entirely, I do want to point out that some people avoid getting into the USD/L$ conversion scene. I do, for example... When I start thinking about lindens as real money, the game gets less fun.

Not that 700 concerns me, but I just wanted to point out there is some justification for this mindset beyond "I'm poor as hell IRL too".

working on it

I had someone demand that I give them new copies of several items that his girlfriend intentionally deleted in anger about a month after purchase. I gave them a couple of the items, and tried to explain that since it wasn't a malfunction, wasn't a bug, wasn't a defect, and wasn't an accident, that I shouldn't be held liable. I ended up giving them a couple of more, but finally just left and ignored them, more because of the demanding way of asking for such cheap items, for something that they, themselves caused.


That's like me deciding I didn't want a vehicle cluttering my inventory, deleting it, and then deciding I wanted it after all a month later, and demanding the creator give me a new copy free of charge. People just don't come with much common sense these days.

I always ask if there is a problem with the product. I am perfectly willing to replace items that have broken scripts.

9 times out of 10 I can tell when someone just wants a refund because they're bored with the product and want to spend the money on something else.

I think 24 hours is more than generous. How long does it take a person to try on an outfit and decide they hate it? Don't know why that original person wasn't honest in the first place. Or why they wouldn't have been satisfied with an exchange.

I think exchanges are generous, too. Some people just don't deserve to be customers.

As for Starbucks, I wouldn't pay that much for coffee even if I drank coffee.

coco

Of course, many customers like this will simply lie to force the issue. If you can spot them from the legit folks, more power to ya.

I've bought a LOT of stuff in SL that didn't work as advertised, or didn't look right on my avie after I put it on (mostly applies to hair and jewelry). But I think the only time I've ever actually complained to the creator was last night, when the server deleted a key script in my Owenimations dance ball. It wasn't Owen's fault at all, and if he can't or won't replace the missing script I'll deal with it (probably by shelling out another $800L for a new one). But even things like that horrible necklace I bought yesterday, which didn't fit right and used attachment points I'd already taken, did not prompt me to scream at the creator. I simply won't buy her stuff anymore.

I vote with my wallet. I think of it as "capitalist natural selection".

Cindy

We have never had a customer ask for a refund but it's just not possible to give one since all of our products are copy/mod. A few people have asked for help with their purchase which we are more than happy tp provide even making home calls if necessary.

99% of what we sell it set out for demonstration purposes which avoids people asking for refunds I think. I know this isn't possible with clothing shops or people with prim limits.

I don't ask for refunds. I like to think that I'm mature enough to make an informed decision to buy without needing the refund safety net. That's not to say that I've never suffered buyer's remorse. I once purchase a L$2000 body which looked nothing like what the vendor depicted. Rather than looking like a model from Elle, the av looked like Corky from Life Goes On. Even then, I didn't ask for a refund. I just know never to shop with that store ever again.

As far as handling refunds: I've had only a couple of refund requests. One of the requests I honored, one I refused. If someone contacts me and is belligerent or insulting, they've got almost no chance of getting a refund.

Sorry to hear that happened Sensual - that's a really crass thing for someone to do in RL or in SL.

Instead of, or in combination with, posting a sign about your refund policy, you might want to consider a note card that dispenses with the clothing or item that defines the policy as well.

Also - I agree that 24 hours should be enough for a return window on clothing and even then you may want to consider giving them an "exchange certificate" to exchange for other clothing for the same value instead of giving actual lindens back. I'm not sure how that would be handled, but I'd bet that something could be scripted to do this.

.

with simple things like clothes and cheap items you could offer a small window like mentioned, but even that means keeping up with each customer and thier purchases. if you just adopt the idea of no refunds or echanges unless there is a product error. customers will know where they stand, and be less likely to harass you. however there are a ton of loons out there and sadly SL has a way of attracting them like a fly to honey. I believe this will always be an issue and the best solution is disclosure of info. line your shop walls in policies,and add 10 dialog box scripts making them agree to their purchases and agree not to sue!
LL has a policy of buyers be ware, it might be a good idea to include that in the login screen.

David, in the future tell the person who deleted it to check their trash! thats there for a reason. (saves some time) and if it was done maliciously, the owner should report the deleter and / or go after that party for any losses they encountered. your right it's not your fault nor your problem.

Three months and hundreds of customers after my first product shipped, I've been lucky enough to receive just one refund request, and that was in my first weekend. The guy was polite and not at all belligerant about it -- he just got bored with the product and wanted to buy some other toy. I politely declined his request.

If a customer brings to my attention some critical flaw that is impeding his enjoyment of the product, I'll endeavor to fix it quickly. If the customer feels somehow deceived in the proper operation and function of one of my products, I'll try my best to offer some accomodation -- but that hasn't happened, since the owner's manual is dispensed for information purposes at all points of sale prior to any purchase being made.

There'll be cheats and low-lives trying to scam honest business folk, but they're easy to spot. Don't accomodate them.

In this particular case, wouldn't an exchange just give this customer an opportunity to enter more contests wearing yet another dazzling creation from what was proven to be a winning designer? Maybe the best <fill in the blank> contest prize should go to the creator who can then award the customer a finder's fee for having brought the design to the contest. Hehe, okay, that won't happen; it's not the point of those contests anyway. But a more appropriate response would be to use some of the prize money to pos rate the creator of the winning ensemble.

On a rare occasion, I will get a refund request for one of my radios. Normally, it's usually set up incorrectly. In cases like this, I attend in person, look at the land ownership and make the recomended changes. As a result, I have never had to refund a single unit.

There you go: Quality and support are critical to protecting your bottom line. It's amazing how much just sitting down with a customer for ten minutes will put them at ease.

Indeed. Likewise, you meet a new friend.

I did, but as he explained to me, it was his estranged and pissed off ex-girlfriend that had deleted the items. She, of course, must have had mod rights at that time....

This is up all over our store now lol

nvm