Hi Kathy – LOL I thought “hapless purveyors…” was a good one, too. It reminds me of an old AOL chatroom back in the day: Hapless Miscreants. LOL now I’m really laughing. We’ll head over to your blog to see what you do with the topic. Thanks!

Hello Husband – We should probably post that photo of us underneath the Ugly Baby sign. Then everyone could have a field day in the comment section. We’ll give Laura first dibs for being such a good sport through all of this.

Hi Davina – Interesting point about being more than one person. I’d never thought of that. I felt badly about it, too. Good intentions and all. Thank you.

Hi Barbara – Welcome back from your break! There are lots of ways for not-s0-honorable folks to sabotage a business online, as you say. Generally, though, they’ll trip up somehow when they do. It can be a terrible distraction to try and repair a good name in the interim. If a business does a great job, we should give it similar attention to that we give when there’s a foul-up! Thanks.

Hi Laura – Welcome to PassingThru! And as I said above, you’ve been a great sport. We really appreciate your comments, and from the looks of some of the others, you stand to get some additional business out of this. Yippee! Hope you’ll be tempted to weigh in on the other subjects we cover, too. Thank you.

What a fabulous topic. But then, after the Wells Fargo incident, I’m not surprised these types of experiences are turning into a series here at Passing Thru.

I don’t know if it’s fortunate or not that we have blogs and social media to discuss businesses that don’t perform. On one hand, it’s a great way to get the word out, but one “alleged” disgruntled customer can do huge damage to a company whether they’re right, wrong or a competitor.

One thing is for sure; anyone with a business would be wise to spend time and money taking care of their customers, as well as grievances BEFORE they become fodder for blogs or sites like Twitter.
Barbara Swafford´s last blog ..How To Keep Your Blog Alive When Life Calls

Of COURSE business owner’s don’t want to hear that their “baby is ugly” – and they especially don’t want to hear “and you’re dressing him funny” to boot!! However, while the truth hurts – not knowing is worse.

Silence on behalf of the customer in the wake of poor customer service is truly the biggest business killer around.

Thanks for the mention… rather than hijack your comment section – I’ll respond in the blogger way – on my own blog.

Will I be further fanning the flames? Perhaps. But that’s what we DO in the land of social media!
Kathy | Virtual Impax´s last blog ..Customer Service in the Age of Social Media

The response was completely inappropriate. Could you imagine going to a hotel, staying there and having a horrible experience, and when you leave you mention on your blog how your experience was bad.

Then the hotel contacts you and tells you that you should keep your opinions to yourself.

Do they really think that’s going to help their business?

I do think the cookie company owner is going to rise to the occasion. She’s an engineer and they’re used to retooling. Thanks.

Hi Jannie – I, too, think the cookie company deserves points for trying to do the right thing. This will be a learning experience for them, too. And yeah, transparency is a good thing for business and government. Folks tend to do right more when others are looking.

Hi Lance – You’re right, just like telling the truth so you don’t have to remember who you told what to, doing the right thing all the time ultimately is easier in the long run. Do what’s right because it’s right. Thanks.

Hi Barbara – Those encounters can be like watching a train wreck in slo-mo, can’t they? If we all were more secure in our business relationships, and we felt trusted and respected, none of us would feel like we need to resort to less than the right thing – whether we’re the customer or the vendor. Interestingly, most of us find ourselves on both sides as we go about our daily routines. Even if we don’t own our own businesses, we represent ourselves as a purveyor of services to our employers, our families and even our friends if you think about it. Thank you.

Businesses need to lose the ego, customers need to be understanding, and both need to realize that respect goes both ways.
Barbara Ling, Virtual Coach´s last blog ..YOU tell ME – what do YOU want to learn about making money online?