We’ve all heard horror stories about manufacturer’s rebates that never get delivered, or at least are a hassle to deal with.
I wanted to take this opportunity to tell you about my recent experience with Seagate Technologies and an offer for a $50.00 rebate on a 300GB drive that I purchased in November, 2005.
In a nutshell, I felt like I was being put through the ringer trying to get back the money that was owed to me by Seagate. I had made phone calls, sent emails through the rebate website, and maintained my composure for over 3 ½ months. (For those of you who know me personally, you know that isn’t always the easiest feat for me to pull off).
Although you probably would expect me to be ranting about the lousy experience I had with obtaining my rebate, what I really want to do here is talk about the great customer support experience I had in getting this resolved. The key is to stop wasting your time with a rebate clearing house and go directly to the company who has the reputation at stake.
For those of you who are not aware, when you send in a claim for a rebate, you are typically communicating with a clearing house for rebates. These are nothing more than subcontracted businesses whose sole purpose is to enter your claim into a database and issue checks on behalf of the vendors. Writing to complain to these companies about how upset you are with the manufacturer is not only useless (they couldn’t care less, really…) but a waste of your time.
On April 1st, 2006 (no, not as an April Fools Day joke, it was just a coincidence, I assure you) I decided to look on Seagate’s website for contact information for someone to complain to about this situation. Of course, I was looking for someone like the CEO, President, Executive VP, etc., which I did not find. However, what I did find was an email address to the “Investor Relations” Department, so I decided that was a good place to start… and it was.
I documented a letter in as professional of a manner as I could given my disgust as to how the whole scenario was being handled that included details of my submittal, that their website showed that my rebate was received and valid, yet sat unpaid for 3 ½ months, references to phone calls to the 800 number, as well as emails. If you’d be interested in reading the letter in its entirety (minus my home address and phone number, of course), you may view it here.
Much to my surprise, my rebate check of $50.00 was delivered on April 5, 2006. If you suspect that this is purely coincidental, you are wrong. First of all, not only did the check not come via the standard post office, but it came to me via DHL, sent overnight from Texas, with a letter of apology from Seagate. Second of all, not only did Seagate make good on their commitment to pay the $50.00 rebate, I received a telephone message from Rudy Cobb at Seagate apologizing for the incident, and offering to send me a “Pocket Drive” for my troubles.
After receiving Rudy’s message, I attempted to call him but received his voicemail. I left him a message thanking him and left him my cell phone number to call me so I could thank him personally. Much to my surprise, I received a return call within the hour. It not only sounded like Rudy was following up on a phone call, but that he genuinely cared about my situation and apologized for it. He explained that it is only through communications such as mine that companies can be made aware of such problems and take actions to resolve them. Upon asking him if the Pocket Drive that he was sending me would be the 2.5GB unit or the 5.0GB unit, he assured me that they would be sending me the 5.0GB unit. This was a real surprise to me since the drive had a retail value of $99.00. Impressively enough, the drive that was promised to me was shipped UPS 2nd Day Air and arrived at my doorstep on Friday, April 7th, 2006.
Considering that I bought my 300GB Seagate drive on sale for $139.99 and received my $50.00 rebate, the drive only cost me $89.99 (plus the tax on the original purchase price). For Seagate to send me a product that is selling at Fry’s Electronics that same weekend for $79.99, my 300GB drive effectively cost me $10.00 (plus sales tax on the original purchase). Does that make me a happy customer? Absolutely! Will I continue to purchase Seagate’s products and recommend them to my clients and friends? Absolutely! Will I continue to send in for rebates at Seagate? Absolutely… because I now have someone to go to in order to resolve my issues in the event that this type of situation repeats itself.