So This Happened...

Below is an email exchange I had with a sales person at a major upholstery supplier, which BTW I have bought from several times in the past with good experiences. Sorry, but you'll have to go to the bottom and read up. After taking out all the unnecessary crap, I don't have the energy left to turn it all around. What do you think of it? I subsequently followed up with a phone call to her manager, but I'll save the result of that until a little later.

"Jim, Can you please give me your # so we do not have to go back & fourth on email? There's no mistake made I quoted a rear seat price then I quoted a $50 up charge for color change. I would prefer to just talk to you on the phone to get this issue solved these emails are draining Heather

You made a mistake. I never wanted a price for a standard color rear seat. I wanted a price for a rear seat with a non-standard color. Please re-read the emails. No, I won't be going to Mustangs Plus. I will be complaining to the company.

Jim, I quoted a rear seat, I then sent you a revised email for pricing within the same day...this was not an order. You can place the order with me or you can order through a dealer they will sell a rear seat. Call mustangs Plus they will help you.Heather

The dealers won't sell just a rear seat. That's why I came to you in the first place, asking for a dealer that would sell me a rear seat. You said you could sell me one. I'm sorry, but your logic doesn't add up. Why would you quote me a standard seat when you knew all along that I wanted a custom color?

These are only quotes I quoted you this is not an order. I quoted you a rear seat only I am not going to change the price if you want a 65 rear in 2002 parchment there will be an addition $50 up charge. You are more than welcome to order from one of our dealers, in fact you may pay less through a dealer because our dealers get dealer pricing where you will pay direct retail. Heather

Why didn't it include the color change? That was what I was asking for all along. The price you are quoting now makes me have to consider having a local shop do it for me. Many of your dealers sell the front set for $155 and a full set for $225. The difference is only $70, which would account for the added rear seat upholstery. I understand that I would have to pay more than that for the rear seat, but not that much more.
I originally asked you to quote the rear seat upholstery in the 2002 color. You said you would have to talk to your supervisor for that price, and in the meantime would send me swatches of the color. You did that, and I emailed you for a quote. You quoted $186. Ordering the original color was NEVER talked about.
So what you are really saying is that you quoted one price, and now that I accepted it, you want more. Nice.

Hi Jim, When I gave you the price I quoted a rear seat only and did not include the color change up charge. The rear seat is 70% of the full set price and I cannot take off the up charge because whenever something is not original or custom we do charge for that. You are more than welcome to order from one of our dealers if you'd like.

Heather,Please re-read my email. I only want the rear seat upholstery. I do not want anything for the front. I'm am also very disappointed in the $50 additional charge. You already quoted it at $186, and I thought you were clear that I was ordering it in a different color. I can buy a complete set from a Mustang house for $224. How do you justify $236 for just the rear seat? I thought the $186 was high, but figured it was because of the color change. Unless you can sell it to me for $186, I'm going to have to re-think all of this. Jim

Hi Jim, I did receive your message and returned your call but there was no answer so I'm replying back to your email. Just to clarify you want to order the front only for 2002 mustang in Parchment which is part # 43-76300-7221 $413.99, the 2 front seat foams part # 43-7669 you will need qty 2 $183.99 each, and a 65 fastback rear seat only in 2002 parchment vinyl part# 43-72215-7221 $236.99. One thing I forgot to add was the $50 up charge for the color change on the rear seat so you will notice the price is $236.99 not 186.99. If you would like to proceed and place this order please advise and I will this entered. Please feel free to call me or reply to this email. I will need your address and a credit card and the order will take 4 weeks to ship.Heather

Heather,I'd like to go with the rear seat only, in vinyl. I think the number on the back of the swatch is Y-7221, but it's hard to read. Just to clarify, this will be for the rear seat in a 1965 Mustang fastback, in the 2002 Mustang Medium Parchment color and will have the seat belt cutouts that are needed for the fastback, correct? Also, do you offer the foam for the rear seat? Jim

You can call or email whichever you'd like. The order will take 4-5 weeks to make. Heather

Heather, Once I decide, do I need to call you to order? And what would be the approximate lead time? Jim

The faskbacks have the cut outs, the coupes do not Heather

Heather, Would the rear seat bottom have the seat belt cutout? Jim

The 2002 front only seats in leather is $785.99 and the seat foam is required which is $183.99 each and you will need qty 2. 2002 front only in vinyl is $ 413.99 65 rear in leather is $400 for face leather (side bands would be vinyl but face of seat is leather), $600 for 100% leather 65 rear in vinyl is $ 186.99 Heather

Heather, I received the samples, and both of them would work. Would it be possible to get a price on both? I'd like to do it in leather like the front, but if the cost difference is too much, I think vinyl would also work. Also, can these be made with the seat belt cutouts in the bottom cushion? Rear seat belts were optional on '65 Mustangs, and mine has them, but I didn't see where you offer them both ways. Jim

No problem Heather

Okay, fair enough. I'll get back to you after I get the samples. Thanks for your help!

As of right now I do not have a price. I need to get with my general manager to see what pricing is and he is out of the office until next week so for now please see which swatch you would like to go with once you receive them and I will gladly supply pricing to you once I speak with my manager.Heather

Thanks! Do you know what the pricing on each would be?

No problem at all. I will get the swatches mailed tomorrow. Heather

You understand me correctly. The front seats are leather, but if the cost is too high, I would consider doing the rear seat in vinyl. Is it possible to send me a sample of both? Jim

Ok so I think I understand, you need a 65 rear seat but you want it in the 2002 parchment material? I can do that but I'd prefer to send you a swatch to make sure our material will match your front seats. Do you have a vinly, leather or cloth? Heather

Heather, Sorry, I'll try to clarify. I put 2002 medium parchment Mustang GT front seats in my 65 Mustang fastback. I still have the original 1965 palomino rear seat, but ideally would like to be able to buy covers for it that are the 1965 design but made with the 2002 parchment material. If that isn't possible, then I would probably buy the palomino rear seat covers and dye them to match the front. Jim

Jim, So let me be sure were on the same page....you have a 65 mustang but you put 2002 seats in it. Is it just the front seats that are the 2002 or did you out a 2002 in the rear as well? The reason I ask is normally when people put different seats in their cars it's just the front buckets that they change and your requesting to purchase the rear only and I want to make sure we get your order correct. Heather

Heather, It's a standard seat. While I'm asking, is it available in 2002 Medium Parchment? I have 2002 Mustang seats in my 65 fastback, and was going to get the Palomino covers and dye them, but if you can sell me a set in parchment, I would prefer that. Please let me know either way. Jim

Hi Jim, I can sell you a rear only. Just need to make sure we order the correct upholstery. Do you want the standard or Pony? Heather

Hello, I need just the upholstery for the rear seat of my '65 Mustang fastback. Every Mustang supplier I check with only sells complete sets. Where can I buy just the rear seat cover? Jim "

That is why I hate dealing with companies unless I'm standing right in front of the person I'm talking to.

Hmm. Neither of you communicates very clearly, but she's way worse than you. Once you clarified in the 3rd? email (rear seat only, 65 fastback, 2002 color) I understood exactly what you were looking for. She kept going on about front seats and then snuck in that upcharge. I'd complain too, that was crap.

I'd also just take it to a local guy and be done with it. Then you know exactly what you are getting up front and no BS like this.

Interested in the follow-up for sure!

"Heather,I'd like to go with the rear seat only, in vinyl"

"Just to clarify you want to order the front only for 2002 mustang in Parchment..."

People make mistakes. It appears she corrected hers promptly. In your shoes, I'd be disappointed but I wouldn't expect them to honor the lower price quote.

Either way it seem cheap to me, but I'm accustomed to the Teutonic Tax.

Aside - I suggest you read it again and edit to delete your last name from the post. Like I said, everyone makes mistakes.

This is why I break questions down so that sales staff only have to look up the prices of some items for me, then I choose what I want to buy. If you make other people use their reasoning ability you're asking for screwups

I would just go custom locally......they can probably match your fronts flawlessly.

In reply to GameboyRMH:

I only asked for one price. Edit - Sorry, two prices, one seat. I don't think that should have confused things too much.

she made a mistake by not hitting you with the $50 up-charge earlier. but you became a bit of a dick with:

So what you are really saying is that you quoted one price, and now that I accepted it, you want more. Nice.

Things went off the rails when she started quoting you prices for front seat covers that you never asked for. Seems like she skimmed over the e-mail instead of going back over the e-mail train each time you replied. A phone call may have gone a long way towards straightening things out, but after the $50 upcharge she hit you with that went out of the window as well. While the OP could have been a little clearer, the sales rep really dropped the ball as far as customer service is concerned. That upcharge should have been explaned once the OP expressed a desire for a non-standard color.

As someone who deals with product details via email every day, a lot...there's simply NO WAY you were going to get your point across in an email string like you have above...especially given the gap waiting for shipping/decision of material.

Frankly...Heather seems very patient, if you ask me...and has gone beyond what I would have to try to smooth this out over the phone (which is probably what you should have done to begin with...and believe me...I prefer email to phone...but sometimes you need the phone).

Everyone in a customer-service capacity will disappoint, given enough time. It's how they handle it when it happens that shows the true colors.

When it really comes down to it...if you want a standard product that they sell a ton of and have on the shelf, you'll get what you want at a reasonable price, quickly.

If you want something custom (out of the ordinary) you're going to pay more, it's going to take longer, and the opportunities for things to go awry increase exponentially.

Not that I'm trying to put it on you, but both of you communicated poorly and put way too much information that wasn't needed into your emails. My 2 cents: you should have NEVER mentioned the front seats at all. Putting in the part about you having 2002 front seats confused her it looks like (it kind of confused me for a second as well). Since you weren't getting front seats, shouldn't have mentioned them at all.

Should have just said in the first place:

"Heather, I want 1965 fastback Mustang rear seat only in Parchment color code 1x-227 Vinyl"

period.

Keep it simple stupid.

In reply to irish44j:

Good points. It seemed clear to me at the time, but now after reading it again its even a little confusing to me! But here's my question - do you think that really had anything to do with her mis quoting the item, and never owning up to that mistake? If so, how? Thanks to you and everyone for the insight.

Seems she asked her general manager for the pricing and s/he gave the standard pricing.which doesn't include a color change, and she gave that information to you.

Edit: Also she did own up to her mistake of forgetting to mention the charge for color change

In reply to fritzsch:

Yes. But why did she have to ask her manager to give me standard pricing? And why did she give me standard pricing when all along I was asking for special pricing?
At my company, all the tech questions get forwarded to me. Sometimes the result of these calls is that we made a mistake. I've always judged a company more on how they deal with a mistake more than the fact that they made it. When we make a mistake, I make it right with the least angst to the customer as possible. This often means sending them parts for free. The next time they need parts they come back to us. The result of my experience with this company is that I'll never buy from them again.
Interestingly, I went to their main competitor and they are selling me the same thing for less than half the cost, so I'm happy.

you might let her manager know this

You knew it was a special order. She made a mistake. It's not as if she was doing a bait and switch, or otherwise trying to pull one over on you. I'd be inclined to move on and proceed with the order. Life's short. People sometimes make mistakes. She did ask you to call her -- did you? I read the exchange, and I ended up a little confused, too.

fritzsch wrote: Seems she asked her general manager for the pricing and s/he gave the standard pricing.which doesn't include a color change, and she gave that information to you. Edit: Also she did own up to her mistake of forgetting to mention the charge for color change

This. People make mistakes all the time. I know, I know, the customer is always right. Got that. Understand it. There are times when there is NO substitute for face to face or phone interaction to be certain both parties are on the same page.

It's easy to goof up an Email or text string, that's why I (as someone who deals with a lot of customers on a daily basis) will back out of one of those instantly if not sooner. I will pick up the phone, dial a number (I notice she asked for yours at least twice and once mentions calling you with no answer) and we speak. I will then send a text or Email as a confirmation of the conversation. Saves a LOT of aggravation.

Curmudgeon wrote: It's easy to goof up an Email or text string, that's why I (as someone who deals with a lot of customers on a daily basis) will back out of one of those instantly if not sooner. I will pick up the phone, dial a number (I notice she asked for yours at least twice and once mentions calling you with no answer) and we speak. I will then send a text or Email as a confirmation of the conversation. Saves a LOT of aggravation.

Yup. This is why I hate getting texts from tenants when a phone call would do. It's so hard to gauge the tone and urgency of their requests. The worst is when some 20 year old fails to grasp that some people don't spend their entire day with their thumbs hovering over a virtual keyboard, and sends you an increasingly hostile series of texts over the course of the 3 hours or so that you've been in a client meeting. Ugh.

but... but .. people don't talk on phones anymore ... phones are for texting, not talking

I don't use the phone any more than I have to because I'm hard of hearing and also have a terrible memory (because of a medical condition), so emailing is actually much more reliable than calling. That said, it doesn't make me the best writer!
Like I said, I don't fault her for making the mistake, I fault her for not making it right. I was already on the fence about the original price. Increasing it $50 at that last minute not only screwed up all my planning, but put the price close to what I'd pay a local shop to do the whole job. Keep in mind, I was just buying the cover. I still needed to shell out $150 for foam, and then do the work myself. What you guys don't know is the long decision process that I went through to get to this point. I won't go into details, but it was a long process, and I was very relieved to have finally come to a decision. She screwed with all of that when she made that mistake. I know something like this will always elicit many different opinions, and that's all good. But all I know is that I'd never lose a customer for life over $50, especially if I was in the wrong.

bravenrace wrote: Hi Jim, I did receive your message and returned your call but there was no answer so I'm replying back to your email. Just to clarify you want to order the front only for 2002 mustang in Parchment which is part # 43-76300-7221 $413.99, the 2 front seat foams part # 43-7669 you will need qty 2 $183.99 each, and a 65 fastback rear seat only in 2002 parchment vinyl part# 43-72215-7221 $236.99. One thing I forgot to add was the $50 up charge for the color change on the rear seat so you will notice the price is $236.99 not 186.99. If you would like to proceed and place this order please advise and I will this entered. Please feel free to call me or reply to this email. I will need your address and a credit card and the order will take 4 weeks to ship.Heather Heather,I'd like to go with the rear seat only, in vinyl. I think the number on the back of the swatch is Y-7221, but it's hard to read. Just to clarify, this will be for the rear seat in a 1965 Mustang fastback, in the 2002 Mustang Medium Parchment color and will have the seat belt cutouts that are needed for the fastback, correct? Also, do you offer the foam for the rear seat? Jim You can call or email whichever you'd like. The order will take 4-5 weeks to make. Heather Heather, Once I decide, do I need to call you to order? And what would be the approximate lead time? Jim The faskbacks have the cut outs, the coupes do not Heather Heather, Would the rear seat bottom have the seat belt cutout? Jim The 2002 front only seats in leather is $785.99 and the seat foam is required which is $183.99 each and you will need qty 2. 2002 front only in vinyl is $ 413.99 65 rear in leather is $400 for face leather (side bands would be vinyl but face of seat is leather), $600 for 100% leather 65 rear in vinyl is $ 186.99 Heather

After this exchange of emails, I would have just looked elsewhere, and not recommended this company to anyone in the future. I have never really had much problem finding companies who were easy to deal with without this kind of stuff happening.

bravenrace wrote: I don't use the phone any more than I have to because I'm hard of hearing and also have a terrible memory (because of a medical condition), so emailing is actually much more reliable than calling. That said, it doesn't make me the best writer! Like I said, I don't fault her for making the mistake, I fault her for not making it right. I was already on the fence about the original price. Increasing it $50 at that last minute not only screwed up all my planning, but put the price close to what I'd pay a local shop to do the whole job. Keep in mind, I was just buying the cover. I still needed to shell out $150 for foam, and then do the work myself. What you guys don't know is the long decision process that I went through to get to this point. I won't go into details, but it was a long process, and I was very relieved to have finally come to a decision. She screwed with all of that when she made that mistake. I know something like this will always elicit many different opinions, and that's all good. But all I know is that I'd never lose a customer for life over $50, especially if I was in the wrong.

On the flip side, is it worth you losing a company for life that has what you need? AgaIn, she made a mistake -- but otherwise she seems pretty committed to you as a customer.

Have you dealt with them before? Do they offer a quality product? Is this a mom and pop, or a multi-million dollar industry? I'd be inclined to let it go depending on those answers. For example, let's say I ordered from a well-known Miata vendor whose employee posts here often, and I've made dozens of successful purchases from. If there was a mistake on their end (unheard of, I know), I wouldn't begrudge them making it right.

On the other hand, if I'd purchased from a well-known Honda dealer who made a mistake, say by forgetting to tighten a drain plug, I might have a different reaction . . .

I've purchased from them before. Their product is good, but so is the product of their competitor, who like I said before will sell me the same thing for a fraction of the price. So yes, it's worth it to me.