Everyone's a critic
I know it is impolitic to complain about customers, but there have been four customers--total over the past 14 months--who have ruined my day. That's not a very large number, but those four people really stand out in my mind. And unfortunately, the most recent irate customer also wrote a review online, so if you happen to be one of our 800 satisfied customers, and you have a few minutes, it would be awesome if you'd write a little review online too, to balance things out. Not that I don't appreciate being personally identified as "heartless, rude, and insensitive".
I will admit to rude, occasionally, but I know who this reviewer was, and I wasn't rude to her. I didn't make an exception to our class cancellation policy (cancellations more than 7 days before the class get a full refund, within that time we give 50% credit towards a future class), and I think she felt that it was a rude policy, regardless of my tone while enforcing it. The tough thing is, when people have an emergency and can't come to a class they've registered for, they always think they should be the exception, because they have an EMERGENCY. But that's exactly what the policy covers, and maybe what they don't realize is that we're such a small business and the maximum number of people in each of our classes is 10, so if we didn't get any money from two people because they decided not to come to a class at the last minute, then we would lose at least 20% of our income for that day. Instead, our policy is to meet them halfway--which means we're still losing money because some random person's father-in-law or great-uncle died. That's a lot more consideration than you'd get from TicketMaster ("tickets cannot be cancelled, exchanged or refunded unless the event has been cancelled or postponed"), and it's more generous than some of the other cooking schools in the area (although they generally cap their classes at 24 people, so having a few people cancel is not such a big deal). But people still get mad at us. I don't know how to make this more fair to everyone.
Even if you do think I'm heartless, rude, and insensitive, please consider posting something saying I'm also witty and perceptive, or creative and hard working, or a good speller. If my obit writer relies on Google searches, I'd like him to discover some characteristic about me other than my rudeness. Then again, I'm probably digging my own grave right now. Does this seem like a rude post? Because I'm just trying to figure out the most fair way to run a business. We didn't name it Generous Servings by accident--we actually do try really hard to be generous. I better write a nice post next to regain some good karma.
I will admit to rude, occasionally, but I know who this reviewer was, and I wasn't rude to her. I didn't make an exception to our class cancellation policy (cancellations more than 7 days before the class get a full refund, within that time we give 50% credit towards a future class), and I think she felt that it was a rude policy, regardless of my tone while enforcing it. The tough thing is, when people have an emergency and can't come to a class they've registered for, they always think they should be the exception, because they have an EMERGENCY. But that's exactly what the policy covers, and maybe what they don't realize is that we're such a small business and the maximum number of people in each of our classes is 10, so if we didn't get any money from two people because they decided not to come to a class at the last minute, then we would lose at least 20% of our income for that day. Instead, our policy is to meet them halfway--which means we're still losing money because some random person's father-in-law or great-uncle died. That's a lot more consideration than you'd get from TicketMaster ("tickets cannot be cancelled, exchanged or refunded unless the event has been cancelled or postponed"), and it's more generous than some of the other cooking schools in the area (although they generally cap their classes at 24 people, so having a few people cancel is not such a big deal). But people still get mad at us. I don't know how to make this more fair to everyone.
Even if you do think I'm heartless, rude, and insensitive, please consider posting something saying I'm also witty and perceptive, or creative and hard working, or a good speller. If my obit writer relies on Google searches, I'd like him to discover some characteristic about me other than my rudeness. Then again, I'm probably digging my own grave right now. Does this seem like a rude post? Because I'm just trying to figure out the most fair way to run a business. We didn't name it Generous Servings by accident--we actually do try really hard to be generous. I better write a nice post next to regain some good karma.
posted by The Cooking Doctor at
12:23 AM
2 Comments:
I myself had to cancel a class at the last minute and was unable to attend and, like your irate customer, felt that maybe I should be singled out and you should weigh out my reason and grant me immunity from the policy! However, I realized that if I play by the rules of attending the classes, I need to abide by the rules when canceling. You run a wonderful cafe and teach amazing classes, and all I can say is that kharma is not always a swift teacher that rewards the generous or reminds the irrational with immediate consequences but, it all comes back around eventually. Unfortunately, this is a lesson your irate customers have yet to learn. You and Jill are aces in my book.
Mary: Just saw this post. I was there for classes early on, and have taken classes regularly ever since. Right off the bat you struck me as a terrific teacher with a warm, "generous" personality. On top of that, I've been impressed with how you and Jill have been able to grow this business by the seat of your pants, especially during these tough times. But these days we have to see beyond our mere personal success, and the farmer's market plan and cooking for a cause are perfect examples of making positive contributions to our local community .
Without your solid business policies, none of this would matter, because you'd probably go under. I'd like to see you stay afloat. Please keep up the good work.
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