t/p numbers & addresses on shopping sites!

[Elaine]

I've just had a bit of an email row with a site that I affiliate with over my own order - I received a duplicate email confirming that my goods were on their way. Obviously concerned if I was about to get 2 gamecube thingies and (more importantly) 2 debits to my Visa I looked for a telephone number on the site - not there, and couldn't find an address either, just an email.

I was really angry so fired off a 'loud' email and got an immediate angry response.

I know a lot of directory sites don't list t/p and address details - and understand why - but surely shopping sites should. Customers don't expect an immediate response to email - it usually takes a couple of days and when payments are concerned I reckon most customers would want to speak to someone immediately. The site justified their stance by saying that Amazon and Ebay dont list their t/p numbers either - doesn't make them right though.

Is is just me or do you think shopping sites should display their contact details prominently.

[pistol101]

Isn't it a legal requirement to have some contact details? It's great if they don't want to accept telephone orders from the affiliates point of view!

[Mogga]

a lot of the email I get is people looking for companies email addresses - and there are some which don't have any contact details.

Some are just really hard to find...

[SillyJokes]

Yes, there should a telephone number and a proper address to comply with the distance selling act.

Although an angry email from a customer gets your back up it should always be replied to with courtesy and should not be treated better or worse than a polite enquiry.

It's often a molified 'Mr Angry' who turns into a regular customer.

Amazon should have a telephone number but I bet I know why they don't - it would cost a lot of money to set up the required call centre. However they may have to in the end especially as email gets more and more unreliable.

[missey]

I am amazed anyone will order from a website with no contact details.

However, as an affiliate unless telephone orders are tracked (and there are affiliate networks who do!) I hate seeing prominent telephone numbers on the site especially when they are "Call Sales NOW on 0800......"

Clarion Shopping offer a superb affiliate shopping site and each supplier has their own contact number for any customer queries, but these are clearly identified as "customer service helplines" for product or returns queries, not sales lines.

At the end of the day, it costs a merchant a fortune to put in telephone ordering systems (and hence higher selling prices and lower order volumes) and the whole point about the internet is that potentially massive merchants could be run with far fewer staff, not more.

In a business utopia all internet businesses would only have one employee.