This is the letter I am about to send to two of the Directors of the NFLSHOP.com:
Attn: Director of Online Business Management
Attn: Director of Online Sales and Services
RE: Order#xxxxx
Dear Directors:
I was unsure of whom to send this letter and information to, so I am sending it to both of you.
As you can see from the enclosed emails I placed an online order the morning of November 30th. Before confirming the order I called customer service and asked them to explain the advance sale a bit more to me. The gentleman I spoke with said that your company was out of the item I was ordering but they were expecting more in the near future. He put me on hold, came back on the phone and said that you were expecting more of the jersey I wanted the following Tuesday (December 8). I asked him if he thought my order would arrive by Christmas and he assured me it would. At that, I placed my order.
I immediately received an email confirmation stating my order had been received and was being processed. About 5 hours later I received another email explaining the item was an advance sale item and not available for immediate shipment. I understood that when I placed the order and had no problem with that.
December 10th (11 days after my order was placed) I received another email giving me a link to view my most recent order status.in this email, it also showed my detailed order information (item#, description, the name I chose for the back of the jersey, quantity, etc). At the bottom of the email it says You can expect to receive your item (s) between 12/23/09 and 01/04/10. I decided to not call about this email, as I was sure nothing could be done about the fact that a customer service representative had originally told me my order would be in by Christmas.
I was woken up from an email I got at 6am on Monday, December 20th from the NFLSHOP.com that said to please accept your apologies but that at this time we do not have a ship date for the item. I called customer service and spoke with a manager; whose name I believe was Curt (possibly Cree). I told him about the email and gave him my order number. He pulled up my account, looked over the order and told me he didnt see any reason why my order wouldnt get to me by, at very least, the end of that week. He said I had placed my order weeks ago and that emails like this were going out to several customers but it should not apply to me. He placed me on hold and came back saying that he further investigated the situation and my order was indeed being processed at that very moment. He told me he would push it through to be rushed in order to get it to me by Christmas. [Note: the jersey was a Christmas present for my boyfriend, whose last name is Hoef. He has played football since he was 6 years old and his nickname for the past 22 years has been The Train or The Hoe Train because of his last name and his abilities on the fieldit is by no means a sexual innuendo]
I specifically asked Curt if the name on the back of the jersey was going to be a problem. He looked at my order and assured me it would be fine. I offered to change it to DBLOCK and he said that would not be necessary, it was an acceptable name. Very satisfied with Curt, I got off the phone feeling confident about my order. That night on TV I saw the same NFLSHOP.com commercial at least 3 timeseach stating Order now, guaranteed shipping by ChristmasFREE SHIPPING.
December 22nd (two days after my previous email and conversation with the manager Curt) I receive another email from NFLSHOP.com stating that my order had been cancelled and your company was unable to complete the order.
I immediately called customer service and asked to speak with a manager. After being on hold for well over 20 minutes a woman comes on the phone whose name I could never quite get. It was Alexis, Alexia, or Lexus. She told me she was a manager and asked how she could help me. I told her the entire situation, explained that 23 days after placing my order it had been cancelled and I found that completely unacceptable and hoped it was another error in the emails. She pulls my account up and proceeds to tell me that my order was cancelled because the name on the back of the jersey was deemed inappropriate. I told her that another manager, someone in the same position as herself, had told me only two days before that the name on the jersey was acceptable. I told her I had even offered to change it and he had assured me it would be fine. I asked her if I could just change the name to DBLOCK and have that made instead. She told me that my order had already been cancelled and that if I wanted to change the name that I would have to place an entirely new order. I told her I found it hard to believe that there was nothing she could do to help me at this point, as I had been waiting over 3 weeks for my order and now its cancelled with no other options? I am told 3 days before Christmas that an item I have been expecting for almost a month, all of a sudden, cannot be sent to me? She inhospitably told me there was nothing she could do but place a new order for me. I told her I wanted to file a complaint with the company and she gave me the PO Box in Melbourne, FL.
I have been off work since December 18th and am just now getting a chance to write this letter. Obviously I am beyond the point of frustration due to what took place with my order. This is unacceptable customer service. I was on hold for 20 minutes every time I called, it is more than apparent there was false advertising when it comes to the time frame in which you claim customers will receive their orders, and I am not the only one who feels this way. I Googled NFLSHOP.com complaints and there are an overwhelming number of complaints against your company, most of which are similar, if not identical, to mine. I understand every company has complaints and the most reputable businesses in the world will have someone not happy with their service or what theyre offering. Working in customer service my entire life, I completely understand that you cannot make everyone happy. But this situation is insulting and asinine to say the least. Every time I got an email or spoke to someone in your company, another email or another person followed it with completely contradicting information.
I thought I would look into this cancelled due to inappropriateness a bit more. I got on your website and clicked on the See complete customization rules link. I have copied and pasted the information below directly from your website (in order to print it I had to view the source and print from there I have included a copy of this along with my emails):
Guidelines for Customization
League
Player names must match current team rosters and the team for which they
Currently play
Retired
Player names cannot be printed on the team's jersey from which they
Retired
Both
Adult and youth jerseys hold up to 10 characters
Characters
Accepted: capital A-Z (name field only); 0-9 (number field only); spaces
Each
Space counts as one (1) character
Language
Deemed inappropriate, derogatory, or profane will not be accepted
If
Your selection does not meet all of the above criteria you will be
Prompted to start over
I find it interesting that your guidelines say that if ANY of the above listed items are placed on an order that you will be prompted to start over on your order. So why is it that I was able to even place my order if it was Language deemed inappropriate, derogatory, or profane? Further proof of the contradictions and inconsistency within your company and the horrendous service I experienced and received.
I had very high expectations when it came to this particular gift I intended to give my boyfriend. Not only would it have meant the world to him, but I was testing the waters, if you will, with his order. I wanted to make sure the quality of the jersey was sufficient with the cost. After receiving this jersey I intended to order one for myself with my last name on it, and customized ones for my sister, my Father, my Uncle, my boyfriends 2 nephews, his parents, and about 10 of our friends we always watch the Dallas games with. THAT is what disappoints me the most. The fact that I was looking forward to sharing this unique and customizable product you offer with our football friends and family as a meaningful gift. Now I wont get to do that due to your companys lack in true customer service and responsibility.
I placed the order on Cyber Monday [the Monday after Thanksgiving and Black Friday] and found an online coupon to go with it.instead of the $99 tax shipping I was supposed to be able to get it for a total of $90.
Im not sure what could be done to amend this situation. From the complaints I have read online it sounds like nothing will be done. This letter might not even be read by your company. It will, however, be read by the Better Business Bureau as I am sending them a copy of all this information as well. False advertising, outright lying to customers, misrepresentation, false and inaccurate policies, and no compassion for screwing over a customer days before Christmas.
This jersey meant something. Or at least it was supposed to. I had to scramble in the holiday madness to find something else due to your corrupt company.
Anyone in customer service or sales knows that word of mouth is imperative to businesses.
While it may be true that the best advertising is word-of-mouth, never lose sight of the fact it also can be the worst advertising.
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