Writing Complaint Emails...

I write complaint emails to all sorts of companies (not just doll companies) whenever I feel they are warranted (If people don't complain, the company gets away with it unchecked - many rely on customers not wanting to cause trouble so not bothering to complain about poor service or other problems).

You do, however, have to accept that some companies will ignore the complaint, others will just pay lip-service to acknowledge it with a generic apology that doesn't actually resolve the issue, and (at the other ened of the scale) others will go all out to fix the problem.

Teddy

 

There is nothing difficult, and what do you mean by "not sounding mean?".

One time I received a figure without an important piece (the stand) and contacted the company which send me the piece asap.

When I had problems with a factory face up DC sent me a refund after a while (they tried to send me a new head with a new face up - another terrible failure).

In the case of a RD outfit they totally didn't refund me. They basically told me "it's your business". The outfit was a mess. All uneven. Even the roses. (For those wondering it's the Julia outfit). The crinoline couln't raise the skirt even if you praise God. The only reason I didn't contact pp is because a friend of mine fixed everything for me.

Basically you have to be respectfull, kind, explain and show pictures of the problem.

If nothing of this helps go the nasty way: Paypal claim and that ends everything.

 

At the end of the day, as the consumer, you paid money and should get what you paid for. If it's wrong or defective you have every reason to complain, you spent hard earned cash on that thing.

I've had a mixed bag when it comes to complaints. The few times i've had to alert bjd companies to an issue they've been really good about it (Resinsoul because the doll arrived damaged in transit and Dream Valley because they forgot to include part of the full set) though i've had less luck with big corperations who often go down the "return to retailer" option and refuse to accept any responsibility for borked up quality control. *sigh*

Generally though, I find that writing a polite "oh dear, this has happened, can you help at all?" message is the best way to move forward.

 

Sometimes you have to complain.

There is not necessarily any need to 'sound mean' when you do it, as @purple_monkfish said if you try writing a polite message in the first instance explaining what the problem is and asking what they can do about it, or maybe even asking them if they can do what you would like them to do about it. Show photos if it's damaged goods, as @Demiurgo said. You can even express your disappointment if you like. Then see what response you get.

If you don't get a favorable response, then you go on to a more formal route of a Paypal or credit card claim if you can. Or if you can't you tell them exactly what you want them to do to fix the problem and by when and hope they take notice or you'll have to consider if you have any sort of legal redress.

 

Usually when I have to complain, I write my emails with my office template, because I work as an admin assistant in the summer. So I’ll script out something like
“hi (company/rep’s name),
I’m having some trouble with (x part of my order) right now, it seems to have (x problem.) I was wondering if we could/if you would be able to (solution I’ve thought of), or if you had any other ideas to help me out here.
Thanks,
(Name)”

if you want to be even more polite, and you’re a repeat customer, you can add in a sentence about how “ordinarily your (product of some kind) is so (good/well made/shipped so securely/etc”

 

I will soon be four years into the hobby, and it was only today that I had to inform my local dealer about a brand new doll arriving with considerable breaks on her headsculpt. First time I had to do that, and after seeing my photos + unboxing video, the artist agreed to send a new head, free of charge. For obvious reasons, I have yet to receive the replacement (and who knows when I will get it in this lockdown climate), but knowing that the artist was taking steps to remedy the situation was already a big relief.

I'll echo what others have already said: if you didn't get what you paid for, don't fault yourself for wanting to complain. Word your email politely (i.e. "I really love your company and was looking forward to receiving item X, but..."), include all the needed proof of what was expected vs. what you got, explain your preferred outcome/s, and hope for the best. If things can be resolved without having to resort to PayPal claims, even better.

 

The only complaint email I've ever written was when my Granado tiny came with several cracks in one hand. I was pretty worried the part of his wrist the S-hook goes in would break. I was polite, and after I sent them photos of the cracks, they sent me a new hand. Being polite and having photos of the problem were helpful in resolving the issue of his having come with a damaged hand.

 

I’m going to agree with everyone else here: state the issue and your proposed solution, but be nice. I’ve worked customer service for 16 years, and I’ll bend over backwards to fix things for nice customers, sometimes even when the problem is not my fault. If a customer comes in swearing, screaming, name calling and demanding stuff, I’m going to do the bare minimum. I think most people are like that—people tend to like helping those who are kind to them.

That being said, you spent your money for a product/service and you have every right to receive what you paid for. I’ve received broken dolls, dolls with the wrong body, missing items, etc and usually a polite message to the company/dealer will get the problem fixed. I’ve only had a couple of situations where it was a huge hassle and either resolved unsatisfactorily or not at all—April Story lying about shipping my doll over and over then blaming ME for ordering a ‘difficult’ color; Bobobie sending me a broken doll and only sending me part of the replacement parts after months of me reminding them; 5Star Doll sending me a doll whose head and body did not match at all and they did not fix it, claiming resin varies by batch. (To be fair, this was when they were a new company and overwhelmed with what it takes to run a business. Recent transactions have been good!)

In the situations where being kind and gentle don’t help, then you may need to escalate to being firmer or letting them know you will be filing with Paypal if they won’t fix the problem. No one likes to take it this far but sometimes it’s the only way to get things done. If it does come to this, do not close the claim until the problem is resolved—if you do, and they don’t follow through, you can’t reopen the claim and will have no further recourse.

 

I've only sent a handful in my time. Usually I would just eMail saying that my order arrived and everything was great except the problem. I would also leave it open ended with a few general suggestions and ask what their opinion/solution would be.

Just don't make demands to escalate a situation, that's all.

 

I did once to Bobobie I had ordered directly through them. The only confirmation I had ever gotten was automated possibly normal, but when I got into the last month of the time when PayPal would run out, I tried contacting them. I got no answer, after writing 2 weeks later again asking and leaving it open to my email getting lost, I still received no answer.

I had one week left, so I contacted PayPal, they also tried to get into touch with Bobobie... PayPal got no answer. PayPal insisted on the refund. 2 weeks after that Bobobie finally answered.

I will never go directly though that company again.


Edit: I did have another situation where my Dollzone doll took almost a year, when I was told 4-5 months. After contacting the dealer, who was very nice and found my order, they sent the doll within a week, it seems it has gotten lost somehow. The dealer told me next time do not wait so long to email her if there is a problem.

 

If you’d like, I’d be more than willing to script out how I’d do that. That sounds like a whole nightmare!!

 

Hi (company),

it looks like there might have been a mistake when you shipped my doll. She arrived to my old address rather than the updated one I provided. Could you resend it to (current address)? I’m really excited to see (doll name) and I’m going we can sort this out nice and quickly!

thanks,
(Name)

then when they give you a quote for shipping is when I like to suggest things here

hi (company),

Thanks for figuring out how to arrange shipping. I’d like to confirm again that it’s to (new address). As well, I was thinking, because of my doll getting bounced back, and arriving to the old address, that I’d appreciate it if you covered the shipping for the second time. After all, I’ve already paid to have (x doll) shipped, even if it arrived to the wrong place. (You can possibly add a one-sentence appeal like “I just want to see (x doll) soon, and this shipping is really costly to pay twice” or something if you really want to hammer it home)

thanks,
(Name)

you can combine the two into one email, but I usually do it as two, because the first email is more likely to get a faster reply, because all you’re asking for is help. You can PM me if you need any more help!

 

No problem! Let me know how it goes!

 

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