Microsoft and Takealot FAIL

S

S_p_i_k_e_s

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I recently purchased a Microsoft Wireless Desktop 3000 Bluetrack bundle from Takealot, on the 24 April 2012 for my home office. Delivery was excellent, as I received it less than 24 hours after placing the order.

The wireless keyboard works perfectly. The wireless mouse functions as expected. However, there seems to be a manufacturing flaw on the mouse, as the left mouse button makes a weird noise when clicked. It alternates between a squeak and "Cracked plastic" sound, and its very annoying, as any power user expects a certain response from hardware and can immediately pick up if something is wrong. It started doing this a few days after I bought it, and it's now that the sound is strong enough that I wince every time I click the button.

I'm familiar with this mouse and keyboard as I have the exact same models (Wireless Desktop 3000 Bundle) at my two offices. There is definitely something not quite right with this mouse, as the other 2, which I have tested and I have been using for over a year now, don't make the same irritating noise.

As I mentioned previously, the mouse works, but the sound is annoying and distracting. It may be indicative of a manufacturing flaw, which happens in every product manufacturing process, and could this be a symptom of something that could eventually break down.

I was hoping that since the product is still very new, and that I'm not enjoying the experience of this mouse, that I could exchange it for another model. Obviously I'd have to exchange the keyboard as well as the products come in a bundle and they are tethered to the same USB dongle. I'm not looking for a refund, or anything like that. I'd just like to swap my mouse out for 1 that works 100%, and therefore get the value for the money I spent.

So I contact Takealot. I was on hold for over 8 minutes, with no explanation or queue management communications. Nothing. Just a hold message and canned muzak. The polar opposite of the online experience when buying. So I send an email. No response to the email other, not even an autoreply.

So I register a returns request, and I get a call back from the courier saying they will collect the equipment tomorrow. Great response time, but it defeats the purpose. I'll be left without a mouse and keyboard.

And Microsoft has zero support for their branded hardware in this country. What's the point?

Now if I had bought from a retailer, I would've gone in, demanded that my unit be swapped out and walked away with a replacement.

Sigh, I love online retailing, but corporate policies in SA regarding customer experiences leave a lot to be desired.

Thanks Takealot, you've lost a customer that had a real crush on you.
 
Unfortunately this is the reality of buying from an online retailer and not a physical store.
If you are in Cape Town, then you can always go to Takealot who is based in Milnerton and I suppose they can replace it on the spot for you.

When my HDD was damaged, Takealot replaced it, but it took like 2 weeks in total. Fortunately for me, I didn't rely on the HDD.
I did the whole process online, so I was never placed on hold with a voice call.

So if you're buying parts for business use, you should either buy like Dell computers where they'll come and replace it for you on-site within 1 working day OR you'll have to order the parts from a physical/close by store that can also replace things for you within 1 day OR you should have enough spares that you can wait for replacements without losing valuable time
 
Thanks guys. Very very very helpful.

Posted my feelings on twitter, and takealot promised to call me back tomorrow.

I just don't understand why companies make it difficult for themselves. I've run massive business units in my time, all with strong service expectations and my teams were instructed to resolve the customer's need first, and address the policy issues later.
 
I've had some issues with them being rather unfriendly about support/order issues; on the other hand - they've also been extremely slick in the past when there are no problems.

Their prices these days are nothing like they used to be - where you'd actually find most things rather cheap, maybe not the lowest, but certainly within a few rand. But about the only reason I still use them is that they're about the only shop that seems to take security seriously.
A number of other shops I've had a dig into(when thinking of buying), often getting db access or some remote code exec, in one case (strangely a custom cart/framework) a set of secure transaction keys, a db full of unencrypted CC info, vnc (and a few other shops hosted on the same box)... and then the operator didn't even want to say thanks for doing private disclosure :/

But hey, at least I now know who's worse than Standard Bank's web sec :)
 
TAKEALOT seem to fail quite hard when it comes to support after the product is purchased everything else is good though.
 
ROFL!

Yeah, my previous e-commerce team had to give me a monthly report on a security analysis of all the top 20 of our competitor e-retailer sites, and then a benchmarking comparison against our group sites. Takealot/Take2 used to have a pretty high ranking.
 
Plus I'm going to advise their "Customer Service Exec" tomorrow that he should start following comments about his brand here on myBB.
 
:confused:
So they did everything as expected after finding out you have a defective part, but now you are moaning? You accepted the risks when you bought from them, and its all spelled out very nicely in their help/faq section. So if you really expected them to give you a brand new mouse BEFORE even looking at the old one, the only person to blame is you, for your ignorance. Or would you expect a brick and mortar store to also swap out a defective part before you give/show them the broken one?

edit: and blaming Microsoft now for one defective unit, more lolz. As if nobody else ever makes stuff thats DOA. Hardly worth creating a thread over one broken mouse
 
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Mr.Jax said:
I had a similar experience with Prophecy.co.za...lets just say that they won't see anymore business from me ever again.

Hope you get your problem solved.
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I've only had great experiences buying from Prophecy and takealot. Worst experience was one kalahari.com order where they sent me the wrong stuff but up to now most of my online purchases came off smelling like peaches and cream and rainbows.
 
I can say the same for takelot, they've always met or exceeded my expectations.
I guess when things go the right way, them most of the e-tailers perform well, but when things go wrong then the apple cart fall over at some of them.

Not to highjack the thread but I bought a rather expensive item at prophecy.co.za that was partially faulty and when I tried to get it exchanged/get refunded they just weren't interested! (numerous calls, numerous e-mails) (best of all I realised too late the original packaging wasn't even sealed) Such a shame....
 
You're returning a part to the other side of the country... how quick did you expect it to happen?

Agree with Archer this is hardly worth a thread.
 
I have bought quite alot from takealot and personally feel they are way better than kalahari or anything similiar

But ... It depends what you buy though and being that one unlucky customer out of 1000 is always sad though
 
Like another person said, Microsoft does have support for their hardware in South Africa. I had a Microsoft Habu for years when it finally stopped working. It was past its warranty period and Microsoft wasn't selling them anymore. I contacted Microsoft support and asked them if they have a replacement cable for me (since that is where the fault was) and they said that they will come and collect my Habu and see what they can do.

They did that and later contacted me that they will replace it with a Sidewinder X5 since there wasn't any Habu mice left. They delivered the new mouse and they did all of this for free.

Absolutely amazing support.
 
So I contact Takealot. I was on hold for over 8 minutes, with no explanation or queue management communications.
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Good lord, clearly you've never tried to call Telkom...

So I send an email. No response to the email other, not even an autoreply.
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How long did you wait? Generally I've gotten a response within 24 hours, but there has been the odd occasion where I've had to wait two days while the found out if they can source something for me.

So I register a returns request, and I get a call back from the courier saying they will collect the equipment tomorrow. Great response time, but it defeats the purpose. I'll be left without a mouse and keyboard.
Click to expand...

The problem - your mouse is faulty. This solves it. Yes, it's a minor annoyance, but the fact that you don't have cheap backup hardware (in case of emergencies) is hardly Takealot's fault.

Now if I had bought from a retailer, I would've gone in, demanded that my unit be swapped out and walked away with a replacement.
Click to expand...

You'd have also paid a lot more. One of the "benefits" of retail.

Thanks Takealot, you've lost a customer that had a real crush on you.
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Errrrr, am I missing something here? As many people have pointed out, Takealot are pretty much the best local online retailer. Best stock, best turn around time, best for handling exchanges and refunds. If you get your panties in a knot over this, good luck with dealing with some of the other online stores!
 
The good news is that Takealot responded like rockstars after I tweeted about the issue.

The unit was still less than 10 working days old, but that was irrelevant as they happily couriered a new unit to me on Friday and collected the faulty unit. They acknowledged that front line staff focus on policy rather than resolving customer issues, and their new Customer Services Exec is fantastic. She's certainly going to fix their aftersales support.

So two thumbs up to Takealot.

And @Archer - the point was that the unit was new, and defective, and FAQ or not, retailers have a right and duty to address the needs of customers. Internationally, the unit would have been swapped, no questions asked. From a CPA perspective, I have a right to choose either a refund or a repair from anyone in the value chain (retailer, wholesaler, manufacturer etc). Instead of a refund which would have affected their cash flow, I asked them for a replacement unit. Their execs saw the big picture.

I've headed up a massive direct to consumer portfolio at a major national retailer, which included e-commerce. My staff were instructed to resolve the customer's problem, reward them with something extra for taking the time and effort to complain, and then address the problem internally afterwards. It's not about moaning based on FAQ's, it's about demanding value for your expense.
 
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