Great service, but check the fine print
Written: Sep 26 '05
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Getting a good price on a camera on-line can be a jungle. Way too often, the online merchant with a hot price calls back the day after you place your order to "confirm" it, but really to try to pressure you into adding a bunch of overpriced accessories that essentially negate the good price. The worst of these - - if you resist the pressure to buy the "pack" items - - will suddenly discover that the original item is out of stock.
Beach Camera is a pleasant exception to this . . . with one caveat.
When I went shopping for an expensive Canon camera and lens, they had the best price and generally good user reviews on Price Grabber, so I placed the order.
Next morning, sure enough, they called. BUT, it was just a very nice lady who simply wanted to confirm the shipping address and then said it would ship later that day and they would e-mail the tracking number. No sales pressure at all.
Everything went as promised, and the camera arrived 5 days later, despite my having selected "ground shipping" from NJ to CA.
A 5-star customer experience for sure.
Now for the disappointment. In the package was a letter from Beach Camera offering free shipping on "any accessories you purchase from us within 90 days." Sure enough, after playing with the camera a little, I decided to order a spare battery and the system flash. When I logged onto the Beach Camera website, there was a banner confirming the free shipping offer: just order over $50 in accessories and proceed through checkout, where the shipping will be reversed.
Well I did, and it wasn't. The final invoice and e-mail confirmation included $10 shipping. When I called Beach Camera to get it straightened out, they said that the free shipping offer doesn't apply to flashes or lenses. HUH? If flashes and lenses aren't "accessories" what is? Oh, right, high-margin filters, cases, "care kits", battery chargers and what not. The same stuff the bad guys try to force on you when you order. (This limitation wasn't anywhere on the in-package letter, though I did eventually find it buried in some fine print on the website.)
I threatened to cancel the order, and, as I expected, they caved and agreed to give me the free shipping. So you could say that in the end they delivered as promised.
The only problem is that it left a bad taste after what was originally a terrific customer experience. A perfect example of how one little weasel can undo a world of good service. Maybe someone at Beach Camera is reads these and is enough of a student of brand-building to understand.
Recommended:
Yes
What product did you purchase or try to purchase? Canon Digital Rebel XT & 17-85 USM lens
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Epinions.com ID:
spoffo
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Reviews written: 2
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