buyers aren't "planning accordingly"

[Former_Member]

I'm just frustrated with this one. At the beginning of the month I put "NOTE"'s up in my shop announcement, policies page, the message buyers get when they order from me, and at the beginnings of the listings themselves. These notes say that from the beginning of June to the end of July I am shipping on Wednesdays only and that orders may take 1-2 weeks to process. I make this very clear, apologize for any inconvenience, and ask them to please plan accordingly. Still, three or four times in the past week now I've had buyers order something and then email me asking me to cancel and refund, saying the order is taking too long. I've refunded, but I feel like it's getting financially difficult for me to keep doing this. Do you think I should just keep refunding despite the fact that I spell out the situation so clearly at the beginning of the listings and in many places throughout my page? I want to have satisfied buyers and don't want to be a jerk about it. Or should I take a stand and tell them "I'm sorry, but these terms and conditions are crystal clear from the get-go." ? and risk crappy reviews. What are your thoughts? : /

[GreenMarthaBoutique]

Refund. Maybe find a way to keep in touch with them, invite them to follow yoru social media presence... You've made some contact and they like wha tyou do, try to build on that for the future by giving them an incentive to come back !

[Former_Member]

Do you have it in your processing times and in your note to the buyer?

Those two places seem to work the best.

[LeedsRadio]

I read your terms and they aren't "crystal clear".

"Please be aware that from June 7th until July 21st I will be checking my messages and sending orders out on Wednesdays only. During this time it may take 1-2 weeks for me to process your orders."

next paragraph:
" I ship twice a week typically on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Because I am in graduate school full time I usually can't get to the post office immediately after an item is purchased. Therefore I generally ship 3-7 days after an item is purchased."

Which is it?

Your terms are also loaded with unnecessary details;
If you're going to accept credit cards anyway and don't like COD's why not just have:

"PayPay preferred. No COD's please"

The whole thing is too long and convoluted

[Former_Member]

Thanks for the suggestions, everyone. Marta, I will certainly invite them back, give them small coupon codes, etc. I try to do that whenever possible, but I will invite them to follow me on social media too. I don't think I've been doing that. I also do have it in the purchase note to the buyer, but I probably don't have it in all the shipping times for the listings (although it's been my experience that buyers seldom look there anyway - at least for me). I may change it there. Richard, I removed that 2nd paragraph from my policy page and re-worded the payment section which is long because I have needed to address all the individual methods of payment with multiple buyers multiple times and many have suggested I add them all to my payment section.

Hopefully this will stop some of the refund requests. Thanks again.

[PotteryLodge]

Are you sending a message personally to each buyer after they purchase with expected shipping times?

Many people DON'T read! They see a picture of the item they want, they buy it. Now when they look at your shipping & policy the first thing in BOLD font is READY TO SHIP IN 3-5 DAYS...because you have your shipping profiles set to 3-5 days. You either need to change your shipping profiles to 1-2 weeks or you need to personally send a message after each purchase. This is what I do when things get hectic and orders are taking longer than normal.

[Former_Member]

Thanks Casi. I've been trying to send a message to everyone after they buy, reminding them of my situation but I'm sure I've missed a few. I'll change the shipping times too.

[SpangGangDesigns]

On a side note, if you are having trouble getting to the PO and this is delaying your shipping, USPS has free front door pick up. Maybe this would be beneficial during this time.

[PotteryLodge]

I agree with Erica! I always use USPS pick up. It makes shipping so much easier not having to drive to the post office everyday. Would highly recommend using this free service.