last minute cancellations

[ShineShop]

Some business ethics being tossed around in this thread, maybe I can pick some brains for my most recent scheduling problem:

I opened some large accounts last year, and gave away a few gift certificates with clearly marked expiration dates of 03/30/09. I got a call on 04/17/09 from a person who wanted to put the value of the expired certificate towards an upgraded service. The service they wanted was advertised at $85 for a small vehicle, the vehicle in question was an Armada- the price goes up to $100-$110. Minus the value of the certificate and I told her I could do it for $60- which I thought was very generous on my behalf. This person wanted it for $85- $50 = $35, I told her I couldn't accommodate her and was sorry.

This person has had the certificate since Christmas, and in CT it's illegal to use an expiration date on a certificate that has been purchased by a customer. This was a promotional/thank you campaign out of my own pocket so the law does not apply.

Come to find out she is now threatening to bad mouth me to her office mates and anyone else who will listen. Was I wrong to deny her a full interior detail on a three row SUV for $35? I don't think so, and don't plan on providing any service to her if she does call back.

All you have to do is clearly state in your advertising that you charge based on the size and condition of the vehicle. We have 3 basic starting points for vehicles:
- cars
- midsize minivans/suvs/pickups
- large vans/suvs/pickups

There are NO arguments when someone tries to book an appointment here as to which is which. Not to mention doing a full interior detail for $85 is nuts her expecting you to do the job for the wrong price is ridiculous. We did a similar promotional giveaway last fall and had a woman come in with a $50 certificate and wanted a wash/vac on her van. The interior was absolutely trashed and needed a full detail - no way around it. I told her I couldn't perform that service because it wouldn't correct the problems with her interior and offered her 5-10 different other things I could do if she only wanted to spend the $50. She stood and argued for another 10 minutes when I finally put a stop to it and just thanked her for her time and politely told her I couldn't help her out. No matter what you do in that situation you lose. You do what they want you lose money on the job. You do the cheapo job their way to accomodate what they want to spend they aren't happy because they expect the full detail results. I won't do a job unless I am doing it properly and profitably. Reasonable people understand that you have to make something for your time and will pay you if you educate them properly. The others you don't want as a customer anyway - you'll never make any money off them and they will be your most critical customers.

[Ivan Rajic]

Some business ethics being tossed around in this thread, maybe I can pick some brains for my most recent scheduling problem:

I opened some large accounts last year, and gave away a few gift certificates with clearly marked expiration dates of 03/30/09. I got a call on 04/17/09 from a person who wanted to put the value of the expired certificate towards an upgraded service. The service they wanted was advertised at $85 for a small vehicle, the vehicle in question was an Armada- the price goes up to $100-$110. Minus the value of the certificate and I told her I could do it for $60- which I thought was very generous on my behalf. This person wanted it for $85- $50 = $35, I told her I couldn't accommodate her and was sorry.

This person has had the certificate since Christmas, and in CT it's illegal to use an expiration date on a certificate that has been purchased by a customer. This was a promotional/thank you campaign out of my own pocket so the law does not apply.

Come to find out she is now threatening to bad mouth me to her office mates and anyone else who will listen. Was I wrong to deny her a full interior detail on a three row SUV for $35? I don't think so, and don't plan on providing any service to her if she does call back.

No you weren't... if there's a clear expiration date tell her to go screw herself and her office mates and get a new pair of reading glasses... I know the exact type of person you're talking about and have luckily met only 1-2... if I was a higher volume shop I'm sure I would meet more but thankfully I've been lucky in that regard...

[EcoAutoCT]

All you have to do is clearly state in your advertising that you charge based on the size and condition of the vehicle. We have 3 basic starting points for vehicles:
- cars
- midsize minivans/suvs/pickups
- large vans/suvs/pickups...

The others you don't want as a customer anyway - you'll never make any money off them and they will be your most critical customers.

Pricing surcharges are all clearly stated in our pricing and advertisements, I use a set percentage. These kind of customers are the worst, they want 110% of the work for a 75% discount. I was polite, understanding and as accommodating as I could be- after that it's out of my hands.

No you weren't... if there's a clear expiration date tell her to go screw herself and her office mates and get a new pair of reading glasses...

My reasoning exactly. She started her entitlement crusade last week, and just after posting that message I got a call from the head of another company on the same floor- scheduling him for next Wed.

[Jakerooni]

Tell her the "law" applies to gift certificates and what she is holding in her hand is a "coupon" that dosen't hold to the same laws. (unless of course you have "Gift Certificate" clearly printed on the thing then you might actually be hosed)

Take head guys. The laws are changing very very quickly on Gift Certs and what you can and can't do with them. I know Michigan is a 5 year experation minimum. Meaning we HAVE to honor it by law for 5 years if it says gift certificate on it anywhere. (the way around it is above) Other states like California have mandated no experation date at all. So they can hold you accountable forever for that. Last I knew there were at least 5 states that made it illegal to put experation dates on them. And a LOT of states that have years of minimum "valid" dates. Check you're local laws carefully and constantly because it's almost a month to month thing. If you're state hasn't done it yet they may here soon.