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Any Comment?
By: Staff
Issue: 2009oct

A Supplier Asks:
I did everything I could to resolve an issue a distributor had with an order, but the distributor still posted a negative comment about my company on an industry website. What is best in the long run, responding to the comments on the site or leaving the matter alone?

Chuck Pecher
President
Skinner & Kennedy Co.
UPIC: SKINNER
This has happened to us only once since this type of reporting started. We currently have a five-star rating with ASI and work hard to keep that status, but sometimes stuff happens.

On this particular order, we apologized and made a substantial monetary concession to the distributor but still it reported the incident. I might add that the distributor did not mention the financial settlement in its comments.

We responded and told the truth, acknowledged our mistake, apologized and mentioned how we made the distributor financially whole. This is all you can do. Most distributors appreciate and understand and will work with a supplier who handles problems this way.

The one thing you don’t want to do is not respond to those comments.

Nick Wright
Vice President
Ogio International
UPIC: OGIO0001
Responding to the negative comment on a website will accomplish nothing; in fact, it will come across as unprofessional. Most rational people realize that one negative comment does not represent the company. I would, however, contact the distributor that made the negative comment and inquire why it decided to post the negative comment when the matter was supposedly resolved.

Charles G. Duggan II, MAS
Director Of Sales
Magna-Tel
UPIC: MAGNATEL
Yes, I feel that the supplier should post its side of the story. There are always two sides to every situation, and if the supplier did everything in its power then post it and move on.

Marty McGee
Owner
Impressions Marketing
UPIC: IMPR0004
This makes me wonder which came first: the negative posting or the resolution of the problem. The supplier says it did everything it could to resolve an issue with a distributor, but the distributor still posted a negative comment. As a distributor, we have found that it is often not until a negative comment is posted that the supplier really works to resolve an issue.

A supplier we used for many years charged our credit card, not once but twice, without authorization. After the first time, we were told they would make a note in the file and contact us before any charge was made. When it happened a second time, we were told that as long as they had the credit card information they would continue to charge to that card without any further contact—too bad, so sad, company policy.

Within hours of posting a warning to other distributors about this practice, the president of the company called begging us to withdraw the comment, reminding us of the years of business we’d done together and promising never to use the card without authorization again. (No, we won’t trust them a third time.)

In another situation, we placed an order with a company and were surprised to see international charges tacked onto the invoice. We contacted the company about it and were told that even though the phone numbers and mailing address were in New York they processed the payments in Canada, so we were stuck paying more than expected. Once again, within hours of posting the warning to other distributors to beware of this practice, the president of the supplier company was on the phone wanting to ‘make it right’ and refund the extra charges. Despite the fact that it was the president’s husband who rudely informed us we’d just have to deal with being charged more for the merchandise, she claimed it was surely a misunderstanding. Please, please take the comment off the report.

We always check the comments of other distributors before placing an order with a supplier we’re not familiar with. We appreciate getting a heads up if there is a problem with a supplier’s policies, products, etc. The ability to access this type of information makes it safer to use a variety of suppliers.

Maybe suppliers should consider the potential impact of having their actions scrutinized in a public forum when they develop policies that cause issues with their customers.

Answer Our Question
A Distributor Asks:
A client has asked me to warehouse his imprinted products for several months. I don’t usually do this, but I don’t want to lose the order or any future business. What terms should I use and what do I need to know?

What’s your answer? E-mail answers along with your name, title and company name to Question@ppai.org by October 31 for possible inclusion in an upcoming issue of PPB magazine.

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