Quote:
Originally Posted by mr_magoo
Communications goes a long way.........
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Bingo.
I'm gonna put on my "old man" hat here and have a word. This is all about mutual respect and communications.
When I buy something online or "mail order" (told ya I was putting on my old man hat) whether it's from an individual or a business, I expect one of two things within 24 hours of sending payment:
1) Confirmation of payment received and a shipper number to track the package, or;
2) Confirmation of payment received and an expected ship date, with explanation of the reason for delay.
That tells me they've received the payment and will work to get the item out. That's all I need to begin with. Then, if it cannot be shipped immediately, I expect ongoing communication as to its status. This assures me that the "seller" has not simply taken my money.
Now, at some point ongoing communication will become lame, as in no shipment of a common items after, say, 2-3 weeks. If that items was something someone had on-hand (used parts that they provided photos of) then I'd say we're starting to approach "lazy" territory. Much more than that and we're approaching "theft" territory. As someone noted above, if you've got the item in-hand and are taking that long to ship then you should not have offered it for sale until you were prepared to consummate the transaction.
On the other hand, if it's a part that the seller had to obtain (e.g., headers as part of a group buy) then ongoing communication as to the status should be sufficient, as long as the seller made that delay clear in advance.
By the same token, if the seller has followed these guidelines, then the buyer truly needs to "chill out". But, it is a rare person that cannot be kept patient when treating respectfully.
I had a similar experience with someone shipping me parts from overseas. I understand the vagaries of overseas transaction and such, but this seller broke both cardinal rules: no communication and delay in shipment. I got a lot of excuses such as "busy" and "school" and "no boxes" but in the end it finally happened, but only after cajoling and online arguments. In the end this could have all been avoided if that person had simply kept in touch with me and let me know how things were going.
As to this particular situation, we only have one side of the story. But, I'd suggest at least one of my "rules" has not been followed...
