To ask for help on how to reply to this customer?

[Squidpinky]

I need your help on how to reply to this customer.

I make cakes for living, home based but all on the books. Never had a complaint apart from today....

Quoted a lady for a 21st birthday cake for her daughter. Quite an elaborate design but she was very vague in what she wanted - I.e didn't specify colour etc just sort of said what she wanted and said "make it look pretty"

Her daughter's party is tomorrow, the cake is finished and she asked me to send a picture. I did and she was horrified - said it's not what she wanted, I was going to ruin her daughters birthday, the colour was wrong (even though she hadn't specified a colour. I offered to change details on it, obviously couldn't change the colour. She wanted extras adding to it which would have taken 6 hours atleast to make - that would have meant I made zero profit.

I made some changes to the cake which took me 3 hours and I sent her a pic and she was grateful saying it was much better and Thankyou.

I then get a message saying she wants it delivered now as I caused her so much stress and upset. The venue is an hours drive from my house. The original agreement was she was to pick up the cake. I explained this wasn't possible for me to deliver and she said that she has no free time tomorrow and can't collect it.

How do I respond to this? She's the type that will leave a bad review everywhere and anywhere so I have to tread carefully! Help!!!

You should always take a deposit large enough to cover ingredients. I would put the no doubt beautiful cake on your local Facebook page and offer it for sale due to non collection, or raffle it. People will happily give you a pound via PayPal to have a chance of winning a cake. I suspect she's planning to bail on you. If she wants the cake she needs to a, collect it and b, pay extra for the changes.

Really sorry OP, don't let it put you off, put in place the fab suggestions further up thread re order forms/deposits

If she wants the cake she needs to a, collect it

Did you cancel the cheque????

What jennifer2b1 said. Also you can counter bad reviews online. We read a great one for a hotel in Cambodia where the guy said he'd been 'thrown out for no reason'. Hotel responded to note their very obvious opposition to the sex trade...

I want to see the cake...

What did the review she left say?

Please can we see the cake?

We do really need a cake photo.

What a bitch. Please don't feel deflated, you have the power of everyone on this thread on your side. Please respond to the Facebook review with the facts and photos. I really hope previous customers then jump to your defence on there. So shit of her. I hate her for you

I don't think a bad review puts people off, you can't please everyone and people know that. Just leave a calm and professional response, no agressive comments and don't engage into a long drawn out argument. It will show you deal with bad reviews well.

The other reviews will be obviously from friends and family. That will make her review look even less plausible not more!

You SHOULD say - come and get it, you did not specify colour, don't be so precious- it will not ruin birthday

BUT

For the sake of your business and sanity, I would be super polite and (if you can) drop it off.

cherish the cake has been collected already and eaten. Unless the person carrying it to the party slipped on a banana skin here's hoping

Hi there,
I second others - I think she is going to try and back out of paying for the cake and I also think she will leave a bad review.
But if it makes you feel better - whenever I see one bad review amongst lots of good ones it always makes me assume that it's probably an unreasonable customer.
Also - can I make a suggestion ? If the cake is unpaid for - make sure you do a 'photoshoot' using it so you can use the images for your website so you don't feel that it has been wasted. Then donate to women's refuge if you can't sell it. That's what I'd do. Sorry this has happened to you.

Have you read the thread?

Oops,
Have read WHOLE thread now.
Apols

This is worse than "cancel the cheque"!

I'm happy like others to leave a review for you if you pm me your page details - I'd wait a week or two though as a hundred on same day will look a bit suspect!

I would respond calmly to her review on Facebook. I'll use a business who explains their side calmly and reasonably.

You can't review a service you haven't had!

If the OP comes back and lets us know whereabouts she is, we could all order cakes and then review her business .

Ps, fwiw I got scammed this way on eBay. I sold a worm once £90 dress on eBay - ideal for weddings. For £20 in it's dry clean bag as just been cleaned. 2 weeks later buyer demanded £15 refund as she said it had a mark and she had to get it cleaned - which I refused and offered full refund instead if she returned it. She did so and plainly had worn it - wear creases and dry clean label removed). But no marks contrary to her claims. I refunded in full inc both lots of postage - she still left a dreadful review saying I sent filthy dress. Checked out other reviews she'd left and she left loads like this. Sometimes you just can't avoid these scammers. Horrible horrible people. I sold dress locally for £30 but still had the bad review to live with.

I think @Squidpinky has gone, now.

I want that cake! I am preggo and craving EVERYTHING
I'll collect it and pay and eat it all by myself and give great review

'The cake has gone' is the new 'cancel the cheque' people.

Mummy that's just shocking.

I bet the cake is amazing and she's just a grabby twat after a discount and banking on you not wanting a bad review. I'd put a picture of the cake next to the scathing reviews. People can then see that it's perfectly fine.

" LO