Thank you for doing an “internal investigation” and finding no reason to correct any single critical point that I raised in this previous post. In fact, you have confirmed to me verbally and in a written email that my narration of the events was factually correct. In the same manner that staff from Apple’s own call center likewise did after they spoke to staff of Power Mac.
For those of you following this issue. I wrote a post about a service experience at Power Mac last week. At the time of writing the post, I had spoken with one member of Power Mac’s staff (and had requested that I speak to her supervisor but was never patched through to him/her) and two members of Apple’s “Singapore” call center. Shortly after I published the post, after a few readers had apparently passed the post to Power Mac management, a call from Power Mac’s Technical Services Director was received at my home. I was out and by the time I had returned it was after office hours, thus I did not return the call. After checking my email, I received this:
“Dear (MM),
It has come to my attention about the incident you narrated on marketmanila.com. I tried reaching you through your landline (xxxxxx) this afternoon, but unfortunately, according to the person on the other line, you were not available.
Kindly give me some time to get into the bottom of this issue and let me get back to you after. Rest assured that what had happened was not a normal practice.
Please do accept my sincerest apology for all the inconveniences you experienced with our service. I will be communicating with you soonest and I would be more than glad to meet you in person.
Thank you,
(TSD – Technical Services Director)”
Within two hours of TSD’s email, I responded by email:
“TSD,
Thank you for your email. I have far more detail with respect to the incident and would be happy to discuss it with you if it would help. I am headed to Cebu on Monday but will be available by phone. Please email me if you need further information.
Regards,
MM”
To which TSD answered a couple of hours later, still on Friday:
“Hi Sir,
I will surely get in touch with you this coming Tuesday as I’m on leave Monday. I would be very much interested on the details you might like to feed me.
Have a safe journey then. Thank you.
Regards,
TSD”
On Tuesday morning, from Cebu, I dialed the telephone number of Power Mac several times and got busy signals. So I sent this email to the TSD:
“TSD,
I have tried to reach you this morning on 725-1411 but it has been constantly busy (as it was several times during the repair issue last week as well).
Please call me at 032 xxx xxxx or 032 xxx xxxx when it is convenient for you.
Many thanks.
MM”
TSD then called me in Cebu soon after I sent that email. He mentioned that they had done an “internal investigation” and would like to see if what they had discovered matched with my narration of the events and the critical issues raised. I offered to give him a summary of the service encounter and started from the beginning. We cordially agreed immediately that if the answer was that I was not eligible for a new battery based on Apple circulars, they should have stated that right at the start or at the latest, after the battery had been forwarded to the Central Services Office. The issue, was clearly not the battery, nor alleged Apple’s delayed response. It was the excuses, lies, and 16 days of sitting on the issue that characterized my particular service encounter.
July 27 : I dropped off the battery at Makati Power Mac. It was subsequently forwarded to their San Juan central service center.
July 30 : I called San Juan, and spoke to “Fabulous” who confirmed the battery was received the day before and who confirmed that the issue of replacement would be escalated to Singapore by email. She indicated that the normal timeframe for a response would be 2-3 days.
Aug 03 : I called San Juan again, and the call was answered by Ms. Fabulous, who assured me that “the case had already been escalated to Singapore,” but they had not yet received a reply. (The first fib, apparently).
Aug 12 : I called San Juan again, and the call was answered by Ms. Fabulous again, and after some checking, she informed me that Apple Singapore “had just sent their reply the day before and the battery replacement was denied.” (The second fib, apparently) I said okay. But asked for documentary proof of the escalation and the answer. I was placed on hold for some 20+ minutes while discussions ensued. At some point, Ms. Fabulous responded that her supervisor said it “was against company policy to release such communications.” (Another fib, because at that point there were NO communications with Singapore yet.) And more minutes on hold ensued. At this point, and ONLY at this point, was the matter escalated through a chat system to Apple Singapore who responded with a denial.
After the final word that there was a denial, and that they would fax documentary proof, I ended the call and decided to call the Apple Singapore Service call center directly. To make a long story short (more than an hour on the phone with Apple call center), their customer service representative expressed “extreme frustration” with Power Mac’s answers. And they confirmed to me that no escalation to Apple Singapore had occurred between July 27 and Aug 12, until just when I called Power Mac on Aug 12 in the morning. In other words, the issue had been pending without action with Power Mac for a total of 16 days. Essentially, the TSD did not refute any of the key issues raised, but did apologize profusely for the inconvenience. We did go further to discuss constructive ways to improve service, such as immediate notification to customers for issues that clearly had a standard answer from Apple. A discussion about queueing of repairs and triaging basic and serious repairs occurred.
A few hours after we spoke on the phone, I received this email from the TSD:
“Dear Sir,
Thank you for your time speaking with me over the phone.
It was indeed unfortunate that all these had happened to you. There was a breakdown in communications and internal escalation process with you and with Apple. While your expanded battery was considered an outright rejection as per Apple internal technical bulletin, it was not an excuse for us not to exert extra effort to confirm Apple’s decision on the matter. You were right in saying that such was a simple case of battery and that escalation or notification should have been done right away.
From this experience, I have instructed my Customer Service Head to implement preventive measures like collating all Apple product defects that fall under outright rejection (if beyond the the warranty) that must be properly explained with affected customers at the INITIAL transaction, enforce separate repair lead time for main units from accessories/consumables, and feedback system to clients. The CS staff (Ms Fabulous) with whom you spoke with several times is no longer allowed to handle incoming calls and is relegated to less critical admin functions effective immediately.
Complaints and commendations are part of after-sales service & we in the management are grateful to those who may raise their factual issues with us, the way you have done it. I just would like to believe that by bringing such to our attention, the customers are actually giving us a chance to rectify things and improve our service delivery.
I dont know at this point how much we could make it up to you, but the best thing to do is to move forward and deliver excellent service our customers want or demand from us – with or without complaints.
Again, kindly accept our sincere apology. And if there would be time you will be needing after-sales service for your various Apple products, I hope you wont be hesitant to come again to our Service Center.
Many thanks to you.
TSD.”
I am glad that the TSD looked into the matter. I am glad that we were able to speak at length to discuss the issue. I trust from his responses and email that something positive has been done to improve service for customers with the same or similar problems who go to Power Mac Service Centers in future. I hope that customer service staff refrain from fabricating answers in future to avoid a similar situation. And as always, I firmly believe in a well-crafted and factually based complaint. A few new readers have come onto this previous post on Power Mac obviously due to the topic at hand, not because they visit marketmanila.com regularly for 95+% food programming, but because they are concerned about the ramifications of publicly posted service complaints such as these. I suggest that they read a little more of this blog, and get a better feel for it, understand the concept of credibility, before you assume I only write these things with negative intentions in mind. If the service at Power Mac Center during my encounter with them was reasonable, honest and timely to begin with, there wouldn’t be bad experiences and posts like this. The more consumers hold service providers to reasonable levels of service, the better for everyone concerned.
58 Responses
“rant” from the word “warrant” which means: something that serves to give reliable or formal assurance of something; guarantee, pledge, or security; or guarantee the quantity, quality, and other representations of (an article, product, etc.), as to a purchaser. (from http://www.dictionary.com)
Have a great day!
just a thought MM- what if unknown people like me bugged them with similar problem(s), would I be given the same treatment?
Edik, you SHOULD receive the same service and response to your well framed and factual (and I emphasize well framed and factual) complaints. But the reality, I fear, is that many businesses do tend to “discriminate” when they choose to respond… and that is wrong.
Hello MM, i am glad that my text to one of the owners regarding your incident has a “positive” outcome… Good day!!
thank you MM, what you did was not merely complain about bad service. you were able to empower consumers in your own little way and by doing so you single handedly helped power mac improve their services. at this point, i would say that it would be best for apple users to visit power mac as i am sure that they are now very diligent in providing utmost customer service.
Here goes another complaint :)
Fair enough but pale. They erred, investigated, apologized, and took some action. However, the corrective action was somewhat short as it did not address the core issue at hand and the crux of the matter – lying to a customer. “Enforcing… feedback system to the client” does not cut wood. You did get feedbacks but they were lies because you have no means of knowing – from their perspective at least – until you escalated the issue all the way to the top. What Apple must do is implement a tracking system for all service requests so that their customers could track the progress in real time, either on-line or by calling the regional customer service center’s 1800 number. Oh that Macbook Air which I plan on buying this fall? Back to the drawing board.
I completely agree with “a well-crafted and factually based complaint,” Marketman.
I have written or made polite and clear complaints to Tiffany & Co., the Ritz Carlton, Louis Vuitton, Gap/Banana Republic, and Nine West. All have made efforts to accommodate the flawed initial customer services with the exception of Louis Vuitton (who simply restated their policy of customers having to pay and wait up to 6 wks. for repairs, wear-or-tear or defect) and Nine West (who never responded to repeated customer service e-mails about damaged full-price goods).
Needless to say, I will not be shopping at Louis Vuitton or Nine West ever again–and I am happy to tell everyone why.
By the way, Mr MM, I did not moderate your comment in my blog about the comment I made in your blog. In fact you can read it here
https://the-f-word-blog.blogspot.com/2009/07/marche-restaurant-vivo-city.html
:)
Very cute shan, you WISH I made that comment, except you can’t fabricate the IP address that went with it. Too bad it took another reader Ted to point out how dopey your earlier comments on “humility” were. If your blog content were worth commenting on, you would get a lot of readers and comments on your blog. As it is, I think Ted pointed out you had one comment for the entire month of July, is that correct? And you didn’t have the “humility” to ignore it? Hahaha. You have zero credibility so far on this front. :) And I will follow your own sage advice and simply delete further comments from you since they are pretty feckless. Yes, look it up if you need to.
That sure caused you a lot of time & effort MM but that is the right thing to do.
wilde, yes. I actually understand why so many consumers don’t bother to complain, because they don’t have the time. But I have never yet regretted any effort I have put into communicating with a service company when something has gone wrong over the past 20 years or so…
Well that was resolved in a civilized manner.
My Macbook battery broke, and when I dropped it off in PowerMac, they informed me that it was under the battery recall, and that it was eligible for replacement. So i turn over my battery to them. Then they call me and say that the request was denied, because apparently, the recall lasts only for 2 years. So I’m stuck with a battery that broke for reasons other than my own acts, but i can’t even get it replaced. I told them that it was unfair, and they just said “Well, call Singapore” And i cant reach the Singapore call center everytime i call. A new battery is expensive and i refuse to pay that much when my own battery was internally defective. It’s been a while and i still don’t know what to do. I think I’ll call them back. I’m glad your issue was sorted out.
shan, give it up. you’re this close to getting a fishpan award! (LOL)
Hi Mr. MM,
Thank you for further encouraging me to voice out complaints (in a factual, civilized manner, of course). The problem with most of us Filipinos when on the receiving end, is that we do grumble and mumble but don’t do anything about it! I admit, I was like that, too, when I was younger. But not anymore! Somebody cut the line? I tell him/her to qeue properly. The cashier is leisurely chatting with his/her co-worker while I’m waiting for my change? I tell him/her to not keep me, the customer waiting. Ok, ok, so not exactly in the major league, as yours, but still! Hehe!
More power to you! I love reading your posts, whatever they may be about. :)
SHAN and his 4F’S:
1. FISHPAN AWARDEE
2. FECKLESS(weak,ineffective, worthless or irresponsible).
3. FIEND (a person of great wickedness or maliciousness).
4. FRIVOLOUS(having no sound basis as in fact or law)
HEHEHE!
information is power, very informative post and truly inspiring.more power MM! you rule!
Shan is xxxxx! (though mild, I edited it as I don’t want to start a food fight. :) Doesn’t he know how the live feed works? Of course marketmanila.com will show up for every visitor who comes to his site when they come from MM’s site.
/rant.
Thanks for sharing the resolution of the Power Mac problem. In that post, I also posted a comment about the inept service I got from HSBC as it was taking 10 months for them to replace my son’s supplementary card. It took hours of relentless long distance calls to HSBC giving each call center associate a factual rundown of events and like you, it had a happy resolution. This morning I picked up my son’s replacement supplementary card as well as my renewal platinum card. Your posts on inefficiencies of customer service sure give us readers the courage to demand better service. Thanks MM.
Hello Shan,
Not everyone is meant to be an A-List blogger. No amount of time and megapixels can guarantee success and a following or a fan-base. Keep on blogging and mind your manners, I might visit your blog if i have a few precious seconds to spare… Blogging is all about great content, not discontent.
..but discontent also makes great content…
let me borrow ted’s comment.. we have another advertiser on the loose here.. posted a link on his site so we might glimpse on it?? well, i just did to satisfy my curiosity..and rest assured i won’t be coming back.. lol
MM, I believe your fishpan award is actually coveted by some chowderheads! Maybe instead of the positive fishpan “award” you should give these folks a virtual fishpan whack in the head. But I have to say, they seem to be unappreciated for the halfwitted humor they provide once in a while =)
kawawa naman si shan. sa kanya pinakamaraming comment sa sariling blog. nag-advertise pa dito. take note, may ads ang blog nya. need traffic much? shan, hilarious ka. here’s your fishpan.
I’m glad the complaint was resolved. Fully agree with you that lies, poor service, and faulty products should be exposed, so that we customers get what we deserve. It’s as simple as that, not powertripping, as some people allege. Ewan ba, napakasimpleng bagay, I can’t understand why some people inflict other motives.
I’m also a bit confused about responses to blogs. It’s my choice to read their articles, it’s their choice to write what they want. I can disagree or point out errors if called for, but otherwise I can simply choose not to read if I don’t like them. Tapos!
What’s it about August ba na pagkaaaadaming matigas at masakit na ulo, ha! O sya, back to you, MM.
glad the TSD had some sense and hopefully future services rendered will not be that bad.
and MM…you know you’re really “up there” in the blogosphere when you have you’re own regular troll (too bad not the gift gate cute variety teehee)
Lee,if “rant” does not work then go to “war”
great! all’s well that ends well :-)one tenet of knock-your-socks-off service companies: “do it right the first time. do it VERY, VERY right in case you fail the first time” :-)
Hi MM,
its good to hear that this issue went to a resolution. the best resolution i should say is the response of the TSD to you:
“From this experience, I have instructed my Customer Service Head to implement preventive measures like collating all Apple product defects that fall under outright rejection (if beyond the the warranty) that must be properly explained with affected customers at the INITIAL transaction, enforce separate repair lead time for main units from accessories/consumables, and feedback system to clients.”
i think, as a previous tech support agent for dell laptops, this means that the TSD forwarded guidelines to tech agents concerning the request for replacement. meaning, if the customer gets in touch with the support team [like calling the call center] they would be able to give outright decision on the request [depending on the warranty policy]. thanks to the incident you have raised.
it’s this kind of instances that the internal process of customer service is being changed. future services should then be better this time
I work in technical support department for Dell computers, we are allowed to put customers on hold but not that long.. I understand with MM’s frustration, from the long wait he incountered and also with the false information he was left to believe.
Its so unfair for customers left hanging with nothing though they are still covered with warranty… This is the most common way of an agent to make the conversation shorter by making stories that’s true enought be believe…. really bad experience. I hope everything is okay now sir
I am glad that the issue has been resolved.
This area is a buyer’s market. Sellers who do not pay attention to buyers risk being passed over in favor of suppliers who do.
I think it is still different for those markets where there is a near-monopoly. For example, when typhoon Millenium struck several years ago my dsl service was down for three weeks. I think that the company should have automatically suspended collection of fees, but it did not. I think it was explained to me that I had to provide documentation, a formal request, etc etc for which I had neither time or energy. Companies earn lots of money over situations like that.
All those calls and correspondence and they never gave you a free battery. That company sucks big time.
Ariel, I intentionally turned down the offer of a free battery from Apple. If I wasn’t really eligible for the new battery under compan policies, I didn’t think it right to accept a replacement just because I caught them fibbing.
and with that MM you just climbed another notch in the credibility scale :D
i missed checking this site these past few days due to bad internet connection, and too bad I wasn’t there when the commenter “shan” first showed up.. I went to his blog anyway…
It was pathetic… He can’t even take pictures of food properly. Blurred pa, cameraphone ba ginamit dun? haha, sarcasm aside, he’s just enjoying the free publicity, he may get a lot of traffic from this site but since his blog is crap and he’s getting desperate, mga one time visitor lang makukuha nya. I would never go back to that blog again…
MM, glad that’s all settled. I hope someday Filipinos will work faster and be more efficient than they do now in most service related jobs. I live in Korea and they work like time is precious(PALI PALI or “work fast” in korean). It’s more of a habit here I guess. Most older Koreans recall that the Phils was a rich country in the 1950s and that time because of the war Korea was in a very difficult time, the president even sent Korean nurses to Germany just to keep the economy going(refer to a letter written by a Korean for the Filipinos)but what happened? The rich Philippines stopped growing on that decade?! And most Filipinos have to work abroad just for a more decent living?! Or maybe it’s what we’ve learned for 300 years with the spaniards that has been passed on for generations…
I was home last year and since I’ve been living here for 5 years now I start noticing the differences and now understand what or how we Filipinos think but I didn’t know that way back…
MM, I respect you and your ideas always make sense. I’ve been reading your blog just lately(I’ve even bought a turbo cooker because of what I’ve read!^ ^) I’d say that your writing style really reflects you and as a person in the blog you do shine no wonder you’re popular.^ ^
I saw the comments so I couldn’t resist telling “HIM” my opinion. I just hope that bloggers would respect each writer’s individuality – tastes, preferences, even temper and so on- and that they are free to write and we as readers are free to read or comment, of course how a comment is taken is another thing. I think comments are good anyway it can make ideas better but somehow taking it personally is unnecessary.
this seems to be the same across all service centers…
my cousin is currently having issues with the Sony Ericsson service center in Shaw blvd. His issue is running for three weeks already. He came there to have the housing of his phone changed. the technician took his phone and said that they will be waiting for the part as it will be coming from abroad. They returned a couple of times but still the same answer. yesterday, he came back for his phone deciding to bring it to another servie center. the current technician said na ” sorry po, wala po dito yung phone nyo…nsa technician po..” which we think is highly irregular. technicians are not supposed to bring out customer’s items other than sending it to another office.
Unfortunately Power Mac center has a history of unsatisfied customes, they even have a separate thread in Philmug.org
I wonder how would Power Mac reacted if the one complaining was not the owner of the of the more popular and well visited blogs in the Philippines?
Marco, actually, Apple and Power Mac did offer free batteries BEFORE I wrote the original post. In other words, they had no idea I was a blogger though when I insisted on documentary proof of the escalation to Apple and a copy of the response, I did say I needed it as proof for a possible article I might write about the service incident.
Once I wrote the post, a few readers forwarded a link to the owners and I was contacted by their Technical Services Director at that point.
MM,
I’m glad to hear that this was resolved. The apology was a little watered down. And, sayang, sounds like “Fabulous” still has a job. As a manager, lying to my customers was grounds for immediate termination.
Normally I try to maintain very high ethical standards. Of course, I’m human and sometimes slip … so then I try to rectify what I’ve done.
I don’t see how accepting the replacement batteries would have been wrong. They were offered as an apology for the lie (fib is SUCH a weak word). And, if they were offered before they knew that you had a serious readership, then they treated you as an average customer.
Perhaps there is an angle here that I’m missing.
James, as a matter of blog policy, I have almost always (there are very rare exceptions) refused any freebies, gifts, etc. to be consistent across all of my dealings. Never did I want there to be even a hint that the freebie was as a result of having the blog. It is a strong policy by any standard, but something I prefer to do. The “rare exception” usually has something to do with a market suki or someone who I have purchased a lot from, and they occasionally will give me a free taste of a new product, or a bottle of homemade vinegar, a baked good, etc. And rarely will that ever result in it being a quid pro quo for being written up in the blog and they all understand that. This is the same reason that I always turn down near daily offers from home bakers, restaurant or catering owners, food maufacturers, etc. to send me free samples, products, etc. Nor do I attend PR events, product launches, brand lunches, etc. What you see on this blog is what I come across naturally in the course of my day/business, it is the stuff I have purchased and paid for with my own money, and they are about things that interest me and my immediate family. And I am justifiably proud of that. And hopefully, many readers appreciate that aspect of the blog. :)
This old post on “Why I don’t write for the newspapers and I don’t accept freebies” might be worth a read if you are interested…
I absolutely appreciate that your blog isn’t a mouthpiece for some organization pushing the New and Improved Kiwi Cinnamon Mango Extreme Jelly Yogurt Juice Cocktail (or some other piece of garbage industrial food).
It just didn’t occur to me that your rule applied to tech stuff, too. Good for you!
Hi, i frequently go have my macbook fixed at the san juan powermac center and i have to just say that i have had numerous incidents with my computer that they managed to fix just fine. I’m not sure who you spoke to at the power mac center in san juan, but whenever i want to have anything replaced in or out of warranty, they suggest that I call the apple hotline directly. They already type out the requisition form for you so when they get an ok from singapore they order the part. At best it will take 40 minutes to talk to the product representative (i find having supporting details, like if there are known cases of a certain flaw online speeds the process). Afterwards all I do is drop off my computer and pick it up as good as new the following week.
I guess my advice is, if you really want something done properly, it doesn’t hurt to do it yourself. I think it is unfair that the comments so far have been mostly one sided.
and as for unknown, i am pretty much as unknown as they get. I made my first call to the apple hotline when i was 16. :)
I believe you are entitled to a replacement battery because the battery did not die in a usual manner. The expanding / exploding battery issue has been well documented and although your particular battery serial number might not be part of the recall, special treatment is given to customers who experience it. It is not a light matter to Apple, and other major computer / electronics companies, to have batteries that could cause injury to their customers. Please do accept the replacement battery, even if you can afford to buy a new one. The more cases they receive, the more likely they will officially recall batteries from the same batch. At least accept the replacement for the sake of others who might have batteries from the same batch.
By the way, if your machine is a Powerbook, here’s some info in case you haven’t seen them:
https://www.apple.com/support/exchange_repair/powerbook.html
Just so you know, I had a 15″ Macbook Pro bought in the US. I had some problems with the battery… not even as bad as yours, and LMK Commercial was able to have it replaced. Also, they have much better prices there.
Oh, I don’t work there or have any ties with them. I just love the way they handle support and service even if the machine is not purchased through them.
@Hannah, do you also have good luck with Cebu Pacific airlines?
I think it is a symptom of poor service in the Philippines. I just got back from vacation in PI and found out that there is no internet connection (dial-up through Globe Tel.). I called customer service and spoke to about 4 different technical reps who gave me varying solutions, the last one being to replace the modem of our computer which I gladly did but problem not solved. In the meantime, we get about 2-3 calls each day from Globe rep offering DSL connections. Because of frustration of our “dial-up†went to SM Megamall counter of Globe (per advice of tech rep offering DSL) but found out two things. One, that dial-up was long been cut by Globe and two, there is no DSL connection available. I complained and rant at the counter why they have not advised customers about the cutting of dial-up service and why their tech reps keep on giving advises to customers when dial-up is no longer available. And why their DSL reps keep on calling offering DSL when there are no available connections in Mandaluyong? The reply to both basically is “Hindi siguro nila alam Sir.†Technical reps and DSL reps does not know what’s going on in their company, pathetic to say the least. So now you know, can you tell your management to inform customers and inform your reps about the dial-up and DSL issues? To which the counter guy responded “Sir kayo na lang po and sumulat sa management naming, kasi alam naman nila and problema ehâ€. After I came home from Megamall and also before I left Manila, their tech reps are still giving sorry-ass answers to the dial-up misery, they still don’t have any idea that Globe dial-up is gone. The DSL rep called to which I gave a sarcastic answer. Sorry for hijacking your blog MM.
I dropped Globe 20 months ago when they consistently lied to me about when service would resume. Finally, I yelled at one girl on the phone and demanded that she tell me the truth. She was the only one who told me that they didn’t know.
Do yourself a favor. Dump Globe.
I somewhat have the same problem as what you had. I sent my MacBook Pro with a distorted speaker to San Juan for repairs. I waited for 2 weeks and counting for the part! I know I can order and get a whole laptop in just 3-5 days. Why does it take them 2 weeks to order a single part from China/Singapore(I believe these are the places they where they manufacture their products).
That is good news. I’m glad that management got involved and sorted things out. I used to deal with PMC when it was still a small outfit and their service used to be very good and personal. Now it seems that the management needs to readjust in handling a larger company. If I was the owner I would personally make sure that people like Ms. Fabulous fired and replaced by people with more integrity and honesty.
Hi MM. Next time, why don’t you try getting your Mac products and having them serviced at Mobile 1. They’re an accredited reseller and the after sales service is more personal. They are probably not as big as Power Mac, so they try harder. You can get in touch with Malu del Rosario 0920 9120154 if interested. They have outlets in Rockwell, Ayala Center, Cebu, etc.
Hi. I was just browsing the net for reviews and stuff about mac products when I came across this blog entry, and it sure did get my attention. I will be converting my entire recording studio from PC to Mac in a few days (due to tech concerns). I already bought two Nehalem MacPro’s and am planning to buy a Macbook Pro in a local authorized reseller next. I’m just hoping the local reseller that I chose is reliable. Anyway, I wanna thank you for this eye-opening blog. It surely made me cautious and vigilant about dealing with local resellers. It made me have second thoughts about the authenticity of their “you are my best friend” treatment when I bought my MacPro’s. I can’t help but wonder what if something goes wrong in the near future and that I have to deal with them about it. I sure hope that they will be as competent in fixing problems as they were as competent when closing a sale. At any rate, I will be more vigilant, thanks to you. More power!
Hi, I just want to share my own recent experience a similar “lying” experience as well though this time is buying a macbook for my daughter …. I was a walk in client at Power Mac Center in SM Annex looking for a laptop. I was offered the best school deals and the sales assistant handed me a flyer about it. The requirement is to present the flyer together with a xerox copy of a valid school ID and the promo also includes a 6-month 0% deferred payment. At that time however, the new ID of my daughter has not yet been released by the school. I was told me that the registration card is acceptable. When I informed them that I have the registration card, only to find out that the requirement has been changed and the registration card is no longer acceptable. I asked when the promo will end and the reply was August 20, 2010 so I told them we would then wait for the ID to be able avail of the promo. At this point he gave me a logbook/reservation list where I wrote down my name and contact number. Yesterday (August 8, Sunday), my daughter and I brought the original school ID (which was received last Friday only, August 6) and a xerox copy with the flyer, only to find out that the terms and conditions on the price and payment term again have been changed. My daughter and I was very upset. I asked the people in the store why I was not properly informed about these changes considering that I have submitted/written down my contact number in the reservation list. Their alibis were: there are 2 persons with same name in SM Annex and that I could have talked to the new one, blah, blah, blah; and the most “disappointing lie” was that my name was not in the reservation list. “WAS LYING REALLY NECESSARY?” for such a shortcoming and inefficiency. I asked and looked for the store manager but was told that he/she was on a rest day. Mac is a prestigious company and should train their people well to be able maintain its prestige. Hope this info help both the consumer and the seller.
nimfamanapat, another example of poor customer service. Frankly, if I were you, you might consider calling the owners or at least the managers of the company. Otherwise, a call to MAC and a complaint to their regional headquarters should result in some positive results both to service and perhaps the particular situation you are in. When things like that happen to me, I don’t slink away… best of luck with the effort.
Hi MM! “Lucky” for you your issue was resolved at a much quicker pace. My Macbook’s been with them for more than a month now and we’d even have to remind them to give us an update, which they sometimes give, but more often don’t. Their initial diagnosis was a broken hard drive, which had to be replaced. How could that even happen when we took out the hard drive? It appears they do not even bother reading the job orders before giving out lies to their customers. It was written on the request that my macbook had no hard drive. This is infuriating!
Anyway, welcome back! :)