John sells remote controlled racing cars.
After doing a ton of research he introduced a new product – drones. His research indicated that drones were becoming very popular.
He ordered a 100 units and they sold right away. Pleased with the response and looking to cut shipping costs, he ordered a container full of the drones direct from the manufacturer.
He also ramped up his Google ad spend to promote his new product.
The container full of drones arrived and again they were selling like hot cakes.
John’s research paid off – he had hit a product goldmine.
The entire container full of drones sold out in a month. He felt confidant he was on his way to becoming a millionaire.
He contacted the manufacturer to order three more containers.
But the manufacturer refused. It was the time of the Chinese new year and all factories in China were shutting down soon. The factory would not take new orders until after the holidays. With manufacturing and shipping lags, his drones would not arrive for another two months.
The problem is that instead of turning down orders he had pre-sold 500 units of the drones – drones that he did not have.
Every day he was getting emails from customers asking for status.
Phones were ringing off the hook.
He had to issue refunds.
His merchant account was under a watchlist because of the volume of refunds. If it was shut down, the business would be crippled.
In addition to his online store, he also sold via Amazon and ebay.
His ebay rankings, which he had spent years building up, were taking a hit after customers began leaving negative ratings.
Amazon was even more ruthless.
They suspended his seller account. Overnight a third of his business disappeared. A lot of his cash was stuck in the Amazon seller account and he could not access it.
He seriously began wondering if his business would survive. He began having nightmares about losing his home.
Nightmares about letting down his family.
News about the delays were spreading through social media.
By the time the shipment arrived, a lot of damage had been done.
He issued hundreds of apologies to customers and handed out coupons.
The only silver lining was that his loyal customers cut him slack. They continued buying from him.
Some of them even moved over from Amazon and ebay and ordered directly from him.
Mistakes and disasters happen but loyal customers and loyal employees will stick with you.
To convert your new buyers into loyal customers, signup for RewardCamp at www.rewardcamp.com