It Shrunk!
What is happening to our product sizes? We pay more but get less. What used to be a pound can of coffee is now 13 ounces. A half gallon of ice cream became 1.75 quarts and now is shrinking again...to 1.5 quarts. Potato chips went from 16 ounces to 12 ounces and now some have even went to 10 ounces! Down from 16 ounces, bacon and hot dogs now come in 12 ounce packages. These are just a few of the items that have gotten smaller. Don't even get me started on chocolate candy bars!
What really peeves me is that some of the manufacturers use deceptive packaging. Open a bag of chips and the package is barely 1/4 full. Cereal is almost as bad with the big box but product only filling 2/3 to 3/4 of the box. The explanation we get? The product shifted during transportation. I guess they need a bigger package so the product can shift.
The only thing that doesn't seem to be shrinking is the price. In fact, most of the prices have gotten higher. At the rate it's going, we'll soon be paying more for only 1/10th of the product.
Shipping and Processing
Have you ever noticed that the actual cost of shipping and processing/handling is never mentioned or printed in most of the TV ads for items? If you've ever ordered any item from those ads, I'm sure you now know why! If you haven't, let me give you my experience with one item. As I don't want to be potentially sued, I won't use the item's real name but only call it Product X.
I had decided to order Product X online for the price of $14.95 plus S&P. I figured that if I didn't like the shipping and processing cost, I wouldn't order it. Looking at the ad online, it didn't mention the actual cost of S&P either. Okay. It has to be listed somewhere, right? I filled out the order form with the expectation of finding out at check out and being able to cancel the order if I didn't like the cost. That is where the nightmare begins!
Going on, it gives me the option of a "free" second Product X, just for paying the S&P on it. Still no mention of the actual cost. There's also no other option than continue so I can't say I don't want a second one. Continuing on, I am now at check out. Finally I get to see the S&P. $17.90 !!! $8.95 each for S&H? Whoa! Oh, and there's a state tax of $1.45 that must be paid as well. $34.30 is just way too much! That means that the S&P plus tax comes to $4.40 MORE than the actual cost of Product X!
I look for the cancel, delete, or empty cart icon. What? No icon??? As I'm searching, a pop up appears and tells me that my order has been processed. HUH???? I didn't authorize any processing of my order! I was looking to cancel it!
The only thing I could think to do was call and cancel the order. I call the number listed and was informed that it was for ordering only. When I asked for the number to cancel an order, I was told that I could find it under FAQ online. Off to FAQ I went. My high hopes were dashed when after reading everything there, there was no number!
Ever the optimist, I look for Contact Us or Customer Service. Aha! A phone number at last! I call the number, only to encounter a computer. After 15 frustrating minutes of pushing buttons to make the choices closest to what I wanted (there was no Cancel selection), I was on hold for the "first available representative." 30 minutes pass and I'm still on hold. Now, anyone that knows me will tell you that I'm not going to hang up until I get a person! They would also tell you that the more I'm on hold the more irritated I get.
I guess the representative finally got done with her manicure or decided that I wasn't going to give up because 63 more minutes, I get to speak with her. An hour and 48 minutes after initiating the call and what do I get told? The only way to cancel an order is to send a letter to the address she gives me. But what about the order? "You'll have to return it at your expense," she says. WHAT? No way!
Then I did what I should have done in the first place. I called my credit card company, explained the circumstances and cancelled the payment. The lady there was not only super nice but informed me that I was not the first to do so! She said I should mark "Refused" on the package if it came and it wouldn't cost me anything to return.
The package never arrived, the Product X company didn't dispute the charge back, and I found the very same product for $9.99 each at a local store. The next time I see a TV ad, you can bet I'll look around at the stores first. If they don't have it, I don't need it!
As Seen on TV Reps
The Stone Dine Rep
Maybe it's just me, but his accent irritates me. It sounds phony; like a mixture of several accents. From which country is he supposed to come? Australia? England? The United States? New Zealand? Or? With the mixture of his accent, he's trying to be from all of them!
What's with the foreign accents anyway? Isn't the American accent good enough to make sales? I think it is.
I had decided to order Product X online for the price of $14.95 plus S&P. I figured that if I didn't like the shipping and processing cost, I wouldn't order it. Looking at the ad online, it didn't mention the actual cost of S&P either. Okay. It has to be listed somewhere, right? I filled out the order form with the expectation of finding out at check out and being able to cancel the order if I didn't like the cost. That is where the nightmare begins!
Going on, it gives me the option of a "free" second Product X, just for paying the S&P on it. Still no mention of the actual cost. There's also no other option than continue so I can't say I don't want a second one. Continuing on, I am now at check out. Finally I get to see the S&P. $17.90 !!! $8.95 each for S&H? Whoa! Oh, and there's a state tax of $1.45 that must be paid as well. $34.30 is just way too much! That means that the S&P plus tax comes to $4.40 MORE than the actual cost of Product X!
I look for the cancel, delete, or empty cart icon. What? No icon??? As I'm searching, a pop up appears and tells me that my order has been processed. HUH???? I didn't authorize any processing of my order! I was looking to cancel it!
The only thing I could think to do was call and cancel the order. I call the number listed and was informed that it was for ordering only. When I asked for the number to cancel an order, I was told that I could find it under FAQ online. Off to FAQ I went. My high hopes were dashed when after reading everything there, there was no number!
Ever the optimist, I look for Contact Us or Customer Service. Aha! A phone number at last! I call the number, only to encounter a computer. After 15 frustrating minutes of pushing buttons to make the choices closest to what I wanted (there was no Cancel selection), I was on hold for the "first available representative." 30 minutes pass and I'm still on hold. Now, anyone that knows me will tell you that I'm not going to hang up until I get a person! They would also tell you that the more I'm on hold the more irritated I get.
I guess the representative finally got done with her manicure or decided that I wasn't going to give up because 63 more minutes, I get to speak with her. An hour and 48 minutes after initiating the call and what do I get told? The only way to cancel an order is to send a letter to the address she gives me. But what about the order? "You'll have to return it at your expense," she says. WHAT? No way!
Then I did what I should have done in the first place. I called my credit card company, explained the circumstances and cancelled the payment. The lady there was not only super nice but informed me that I was not the first to do so! She said I should mark "Refused" on the package if it came and it wouldn't cost me anything to return.
The package never arrived, the Product X company didn't dispute the charge back, and I found the very same product for $9.99 each at a local store. The next time I see a TV ad, you can bet I'll look around at the stores first. If they don't have it, I don't need it!
As Seen on TV Reps
The Stone Dine Rep
Maybe it's just me, but his accent irritates me. It sounds phony; like a mixture of several accents. From which country is he supposed to come? Australia? England? The United States? New Zealand? Or? With the mixture of his accent, he's trying to be from all of them!
What's with the foreign accents anyway? Isn't the American accent good enough to make sales? I think it is.