Now this post isn't directly about beauty or babies, it's about being savvy and getting things put right when they're wrong, which is particularly helpful if you're a mum trying to be careful with the pennies.
We all hate it when things break or don't go to plan, whether it be a new product you've purchased, or an existing one going wrong, or if you're so busy you forget to get things done in time. I'm one of those people, I plan to be super organised, not waste money or miss chances to collect points, I write lists, notes and reminders but somehow, quite often, all my good intentions fail.
My family and friends think I'm the ultimate complainer. If they need to return a problem item to the shops, they ask me to do it, or if they've bought something they're not happy with, they ask me what to do. I'm no expert, but I think we are all trying to spend wisely these days, and we choose our purchases with care - so if something doesn't do what it's meant to we should get our money back or a replacement...no need to be a nasty complainer, just politely get things rectified and more often than not, companies want our custom and are only too happy to oblige.
And I don't stop at shop bought products. If there's a service I'm not happy with, I tell them. I don't do it on purpose to gain money or credit etc, I just believe that you should get the service or product you pay for. I want to inspire you all so here are some of my recent examples: (I've had a bad few months)
{Faulty product}
I bought a lovely happy sunny yellow K-mix toaster from Tesco. It cost me fifty quid! For a toaster! It is gorgeous, it brightens my kitchen and toasts my bagels to perfection. To my horror one Monday (of all the days) it decided to only work if I held the button down. Never before did I realise how long it takes to toast a piece of bread. I'd had the toaster almost a year, no packaging, no receipt – but I did buy it online from Tesco Direct. So off I toddled down to the local branch with my k-mix wrapped up in a plastic bag complete with breadcrumbs. The man at customer service checked my online account to see proof of purchase, apologied for the inconvenience and gave me a brand new replacement there and then, along with another 1 year warranty. Breakfast disaster averted! Even though it was a Kenwood product, I had to take it to Tesco as that's where I bought it, they are the merchandiser, so it's their responsibility to fix the problem, not Kenwood. (This goes for any faulty product, you return it to where you purchased, not to the brand directly as your contract is with the shop.)
{Wrong description}
I was trying to be clever and save a little cash earlier this year by buying my little girl a pricey but cute wooly romper in the spring sale, ahead for this winter. The tag said age 12-18 months so I snapped up the deal and packed it away in her special drawer. When I decided to delve into her treasure chest of new clothes I was really annoyed to discover that whilst the tag said 12-18, the garment label was actually 6-12!! Waaaaaa!! What on earth could I possibly do? I'd paid good money for something that now would only fit her for a month or two. My friend said to just give it to charity and not get hung up on it – but I thought it was worth taking into the store (Baby Gap) and explaining the situation? I had no receipt but the Manager could clearly see it was their error, and whilst he couldn't offer me a refund as I had no proof of purchase, he said I could take a look around and if there was anything I wanted to buy, he would give me a 40% discount! I would've been happy with a £5 giftcard! My husband wasn't too impressed when I came home with two large Gap bags, but who could resist such an offer?
{Mis-sold}
More than ever I am trying to grab every opportunity to collect points and save money. My purse is bulging not with money but with loyalty cards. Starbucks give you a free drink for every 15 purchases with their loyalty card and as I don't go there all that often it's taken me quite a few months to even get halfway to seven. You can imagine then that I wasn't thrilled to find out that you can't actually collect points officially unless you've registered online – the lady in the shop told me I could! Now I know we are only talking about a coffee here, and it certainly wouldn't be worth the effort of a formal letter of complaint but it turned out worthwhile to mention it to the store manager. Not only did she rectify my card error and give me a free drink (yes, ahem, I always order venti caramel lattes with extra cream) she also apologised again on my next visit that weekend and gave me a voucher for yet another drink! So it turns out, I now go to Starbucks quite a lot :(
{Expired giftcard}
One of my best friends gave me and my husband a wonderful anniversary present, a giftcard for a fancy London hotel with the idea of indulging in some cocktails or going to their private cinema. As it was such a special gift we wanted to save it for a special night out...and you guessed it, pregnancy came, and out went my organised self and in came chaos and baby brain. A year later I was feeling really regretful about missing out, so following my own mantra "don't ask, don't get" I figured it was worth a try. I emailed the hotel and explained the situation and gave the giftcard number. I sat and waited a week, then chased them again. I thought oh well, it was worth a try. Over a year out of date, they must be thinking I'm being a bit cheeky? But no! To my surprise they emailed and said 'of course it's no problem' and they look forward to welcoming us soon! Yum yum, hello passionfruit mojito with a twist.
This list could go on and on, in the past year I've returned many things that just weren't right. Chicken that was off (but in date), a broken tap (brand new replaement and got plumbing cost reimbursed), beauty product that irritated my skin, baby thermometer that wasn't accurate, a jumper that bobbled after one wear, my buggy (wheels weren't turning properly, Mamas and Papas fitted new chassis and 4 new wheels) ....why should we put up with things that are wrong?
I want to encourage you all to seize the day, take the bull by the horns, and any other phrase that gets you to get things sorted - banish stress and annoyance from your life! You don't need to be an annoying complainer, just be polite and get what you pay for, it's worth mentioning if it's not right. If you don't ask, you don't get.
Let us know if you have any good results and inspiring stories.
CQx
