Growing a Business

HPMD Quotes & Sources

In his book, Growing the Business, Paul Hawken writes:
"Mrs. Green buys your widget and six months later returns it and wants her money back.
[1] New policy: 'All goods must be returned within thirty days of purchase.'
Mr. Jones brings back your widget and says he bought it twenty days ago; he wants a refund. But you know that the discounter up the street just had a close-out sale on the item, and you suspect that Jones might have bought the widget cheaply there and now wants a full refund from you.
[2] New policy: 'All items must be returned within thirty days and accompanied by the original receipt from this store.'
John Doe brings back one of your widgets and it looks as if it fell out of his car, or something equally serious. The widget is useless.
[3] New policy: 'Damaged items will be exchanged only within thirty days of purchase, only if accompanied by original receipt from this store, and only if defect is a manufacturer's defect.'
Mrs. White orders a widget and asks you to ship it to her home upstate. Three weeks later it's returned to you in unrecognizable shape. The customer wants her money back but the trucker says she signed for it in "good condition" and he won't accept an insurance claim.
[4] New policy: 'This merchandise left our store in first-class condition and shall not be returned for any reason without proper authorization. We definitely are not responsible for any damage whatsoever incurred at any time to any of our products while merchandise is in transit. Any merchandise returned to us will be refused. You must file a claim for damage, cost of repairs, shipping charges or replacement parts.'"

"This last new policy is not a joke. That statement accompanied $17,000 worth of file cabinets delivered to our offices. It was on a sticker glued to the front of every file cabinet." (Hawken, Growing, pp. 191-92, emphases and numbering added)

The moral of the story: Most policies are in response to a few bad experiences. They punish the 95% of your good customers who deal honestly with your company. The lesson: don't legislate exceptions!

Short Quote:

"Most policies are in response to a few bad experiences. They punish the 95% of your good customers who deal honestly with your company. The lesson: don't legislate exceptions!" --Paul Hawken

Author:	Hawken, Paul
Title:	Growing a Business
Periodical:
Volume:
Number:
Publisher:	Fireside
Place (City):	New York
Publication Date:	1987
Pages:	191-192
Source Type:	Book
Quote Number:	31
Categories:	Case Studies, Customer Service