Free advertising

is not something I want to be expected to give.

I avoid all clothing with labels that can be read by others as they walk past me. I have done that for as long as I can remember. It was easy when I was a mere kitten. Our clothes were made at home. The clothes of most kittens were made at home. There were no big chains with cheap imports from Asia. 

Some labelled items of clothing appeared when I was in my early teens. There was no way Mum was going to buy any of us something like that. It always cost more. The same quality could be had for less without the label.

Now of course it is more difficult to buy some things without a label. Ms W, who buys clothes in the local charity shop, has grumbled "even those have labels". I have told her to learn to make her own if she doesn't want to be labelled.

But it is the other aspect of free advertising which really irritates me. If you buy something on line - and this is now inevitable from time to time - you get a "please give five stars" or "how did we do?" or (even worse) "we value your feedback"and "would you recommend" within that.  Sometimes you get your name tacked to the end in their vain attempt to make it sound personal. You can sometimes give feedback as "anonymous" of course but they like your name up there on their page to tell all the world how wonderful they are.

Well, I don't like it. This is a form of free advertising. If a company is doing a good job then word is going to get around anyway. People will tell people, "I bought X from.... The service was very good."

If I buy something then I expect to get what I have asked for. I expect to pay for it promptly and for the business concerned to deal with my request as promptly as possible. If there is a problem then I expect to be informed as soon as the business is aware of it.  It is only right and proper that I treat people with respect, even when dealing with them at a distance. Typing "please" and "thank you" only takes a moment extra. In short I need to do what I would do if I was in a bricks and mortar store.

But  - I do not go out and advertise the bricks and mortar store. I am not expected to go out and talk to people about it.  Why should I be expected to do this for an on-line store. This is simply asking for a form of free advertising. 

Yes, it is said that this is a way of people checking on a business they may not be able to visit. But is it really? The owners of such businesses can easily remove negative comments. Few people will write what they actually think. It isn't an accurate guide at all.

I bought something for the Senior Cat recently. I went on line to do it. There were three places I could have bought the item from. It wasn't expensive but I checked all three. The first place had a glittering website full of  glowing "testimonials", another was a little quieter with some fairly standard testimonials. The third place simply advertised the item, the street address of their warehouse and gave a phone number for inquiries. They used Paypal for payments. It had a quiet, clean and efficient feel about it. 

I used the third place. I ordered via email. I had a response an hour later. It would be in the post that afternoon but please be aware that the Covid19 restrictions meant I might not get it until the following Monday.  It actually arrived on the Friday. They must have got it in the mail before noon. It was packed properly and exactly what I had ordered. 

There was a business card in there, nothing else apart from the sales docket.  I sent them an email saying it had arrived and saying thank you. I had a swift response, "Thanks for letting us know. "

I have put the business card with the other business cards the Senior Cat has kept. If we ever need anything else like that I will do business with them again - I might even pass their name on to someone else.