Tuesday, December 05, 2017

2017 How not to do e-commerce (a case study)

This is based on my 2017 black Friday shopping experience.

Like many retails, frys.com, send promotion code to all the e-mail subscribers. So, I registered. Based on subscriber preference frys.com send daily e-mails. Up to this part, everything is OK.
For 2017 black Friday time also, I received e-mail with promo code. Both my kid’s laptop is not working so I decided to buy couple. Based on e-mails, I picked two laptops and I placed orders on 11/23/2017. After 10 or 15 minutes, I received an e-mail saying your order is ready for pickup. We are closed on thanks giving day & pick order on 11/24/2017.  I thought, wow. next day, I received the store around 10.15AM, went to straight checkout register line. After waiting for 90, minutes, I reached cashier and showed my order number. He took, my info went to back room and came back said, no one picked your items. Let me go and pick your items. After 40 minutes, he came back and said, one of your item is out of your stock. (standing with family, I was bit shocked.) finally paid bill and went to manager who is standing at service desk.  I show the order pick e-mail etc. He called someone & after 15 minutes, he said we are out of stock. Apologies. I told, if come next week, will you honor the prices. He said no. we don’t… So, dumb… while, I was standing, another customer came and he is saying, I came after driving 45 miles and his item is not there.  (like me so many disappointing parents.) after seeing this, I felt old circuit city stores experiance.  Absolute mess.

1)     If you are offering online sales, make sure your order processing system works.  (if ORDER is ready for pickup means they have mean it.)
2)     In my case, my chaser completed only two transactions per hour. Frys.com employees need to go to Walmart/target/kohls store. How quick they do the job.
3)     Don’t merge online order customer with in store promotion chases. There is is reason, we placed order online and we simply want to pick and go.  If you go to Kohls, even they have special parking slots for online customers and separate service line to process only ONLINE order. Please learn.

I will append more items later

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