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Thread: What's Wrong with Amazon?

  1. #1
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    What's Wrong with Amazon?

    Are they starting to really slip, or is it just our household?

    In the last 10 months, my SO and I have experienced:
    1) Two refrigerators delivered separately, both damaged;
    2) Ordered some garden fencing and received a rug instead;
    3) Garden fencing received, but box was damaged on end and vinyl wrap inside had large rips in 2 places.
    4) Another order was not delivered because "home address not found" despite the fact that Amazon had just delivered here to the exact same address earlier in the week. There was no arguing with them, and they declared the package to be un-deliverable so the merchandise was never received, although credit was given.

    Anyone else having issues like this? Would not be buying any Amazon stock right now.

  2. #2
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    Yep. Not renewing Prime when it comes due. It feels like they are more beholden to their vendors than to their customers.

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by Lainey View Post
    Are they starting to really slip, or is it just our household?

    In the last 10 months, my SO and I have experienced:
    1) Two refrigerators delivered separately, both damaged;
    2) Ordered some garden fencing and received a rug instead;
    3) Garden fencing received, but box was damaged on end and vinyl wrap inside had large rips in 2 places.
    4) Another order was not delivered because "home address not found" despite the fact that Amazon had just delivered here to the exact same address earlier in the week. There was no arguing with them, and they declared the package to be un-deliverable so the merchandise was never received, although credit was given.

    Anyone else having issues like this? Would not be buying any Amazon stock right now.

    I would certainly be interested to see how they deliver refrigerators in the future. (it is my understanding, from our local carrier, that Amazon, signed an exclusive deal with the USPS to handle all its deliveries)
    2. Seen that kind of thing before and it is normally caused by someone putting a sticker with the wrong bar code somewhere (people scan stuff without looking, and just pull things out of where they are stored). Not a frequent thing IMHE so I can deal with that.
    3 and 4 sound like your typical carrier issues. Between how rough the carriers treat packages in normal handling, and how rough unhappy drivers treat stuff, not surprising. Number four, in my experience with a local letter carrier, he sent back things like tax stuff, utility bills, etc. because he didn't want to figure out which box was ours (not our regular carrier, but a fill in). He just sent it all back (and ended up getting promoted).

    On top of all that, in my view, Prime is a gimmick. I don't have a Kindle. My OS preference isn't supported for things like Prime video's (or music as far as I know), and since we have a warehouse in the metro area, they delay shipping unless you have prime, because without it, you would get it in two days. (a way around that is for me to have it shipped to the business address, which they ship quicker)

  4. #4
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    I am sorry.

    I love Amazon, it has replaced as much of my pain of ever going into a brick and mortar store as possible. I love Pantry and am waiting for Fresh to happen in my area, doubt it will. I knock on the cardboard box have not had any issues.

    I feel bad hardly ever visiting eBay now my old go to.

  5. #5
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    Quote Originally Posted by BikingLady View Post
    I feel bad hardly ever visiting eBay now my old go to.
    Semi threadjack....
    Can I ask why?
    I am wondering if you found the same as me? I found that Ebay has done what it wanted, and effectively become a retail/storefront model in so many cases. There are less actual "auctions" and sellers on there and then also fewer buyers/bidders in those remaining auctions. (can still get good deals, but much rarer now)

  6. #6
    Senior Member iris lilies's Avatar
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    I look at wares on ebay almost dailey, but I very seldom use the site for new stuff. I use it to find used items. I buy clohing, items for floral art projects. I used to buy antiques there but have brought my collecting to an end.

  7. #7
    Senior Member SteveinMN's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by ToomuchStuff View Post
    I am wondering if you found the same as me? I found that Ebay has done what it wanted, and effectively become a retail/storefront model in so many cases. There are less actual "auctions" and sellers on there and then also fewer buyers/bidders in those remaining auctions. (can still get good deals, but much rarer now)
    That was a conscious decision made by ebay management several years ago. There's a lot of overhead associated with handling onesy-twoesy "amateurs" trying to auction grandma's china or their old smartphone. With higher-volume sellers, the people placing the listings know what they're doing (or learn quickly) and ebay can just sit back and collect its fees.

    I believe people also are more comfortable buying expensive items from a seller (company) which actually could be harmed by negative feedback. It's one thing for John Doe to send back your money when the item you won arrives broken; it's another when Dell ships you a laptop with a cracked screen. John Doe may not list another item for months or years; Dell is in business every day.

    It's also a route to more immediate gratification -- sometimes I can't or don't want to wait up to a week for an auction to end -- only to be outbid at the very end and have to start again finding a similar item, bidding, and waiting. Buy It Now prices IMHO are always a fantasy so I've largely been okay with the move toward fixed pricing.

    For my buying habits, I consider ebay and Amazon competitors. I've had an ID on ebay since it was AuctionWeb. My bidding tactics have never changed: I bid what I want to pay for the item and I walk away. I get it or I don't (though sometimes not getting it was a problem). No "sniping", no going back to add to the bid, no anxiety. Amazon (especially the part where Amazon coordinates logistics for private sellers) is like fixed-price ebay.

    I do wonder about Amazon's most recent announcement regarding creation of a second headquarters. Seems a little pie-in-the-sky to suggest that they'll be hiring thousands of new employees at an average salary just into six figures and that doing this siphons nothing from the Seattle headquarters. On the other hand, Amazon has become what it is after years of effort and only a couple of years of making a profit, so I guess they know how to sell the dream.

    I'm pleased to see there are voices out there urging local governments to not give away the farm(land) to Amazon in the form of tax incentives and the like. There's plenty of soon-to-be-fallow retail land in most cities and a need to move past the giveaway behavior that lands businesses which rarely end up paying back: pro sports stadiums/arenas, massive retail complexes, factories (Foxconn in Wisconsin comes to mind; that factory, if it is built, won't pay off for decades based on the money supposedly-fiscally-conservative Wisconsin government threw at them). All so some politicians can swell their chests at once again being better than "a cold Omaha". Feh.
    Success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has overcome. - Booker T. Washington

  8. #8
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    Quote Originally Posted by pinkytoe View Post
    Yep. Not renewing Prime when it comes due. It feels like they are more beholden to their vendors than to their customers.
    I work for a company that sells on several marketplaces, including Amazon and I can assure you that Amazon is NOT beholden to their vendors! Actually, Amazon is beholden to Amazon. Everything they do eventually benefits themselves more than their customers or vendors.
    To give pleasure to a single heart by a single act is better than a thousand heads bowing in prayer." Mahatma Gandhi
    Be nice whenever possible. It's always possible. HH Dalai Lama
    In a world where you can be anything - be kind. Unknown

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by ToomuchStuff View Post
    Semi threadjack....
    Can I ask why?
    I am wondering if you found the same as me? I found that Ebay has done what it wanted, and effectively become a retail/storefront model in so many cases. There are less actual "auctions" and sellers on there and then also fewer buyers/bidders in those remaining auctions. (can still get good deals, but much rarer now)
    As a shopper, I've switch more to ebay from Amazon. One reason is that I do not have Amazon Prime and I can usually get free shipping off ebay. The other reason is that - more often than not - I can find the same item on ebay for cheaper than Amazon - especially when shipping is factored in. Case in point... needed the choir score for our upcoming winter performance. Found several copies on Amazon, but cheapest was on ebay with free shipping.

    I haven't totally quit Amazon, but I rarely shop at all to begin with anyway.
    To give pleasure to a single heart by a single act is better than a thousand heads bowing in prayer." Mahatma Gandhi
    Be nice whenever possible. It's always possible. HH Dalai Lama
    In a world where you can be anything - be kind. Unknown

  10. #10
    Senior Member Simplemind's Avatar
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    I still love Amazon (because I hate shopping in stores) but have noticed things are taking longer and longer to arrive. One item I waited months for and finally told them to forget it. I most often have somebody drive up in their private car to deliver it. One night at 8p! I think they have grown so fast that they can't keep up with demand.

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