Do You Sometimes Find That It's Just Impossible To Be Tactful?

by 32 replies
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I'm not going to go into any detail because I don't want people ragging on me
for revealing personal email info at this forum. Been there, done that, not fun.

So let me just put this generic question to you.

Have you ever gotten emails from prospects with questions that were just
so absurd that you honestly didn't know how to answer them because they
were, well, just that absurd?

I just had a devil of a time trying to answer one such email. I really truly
tried to be nice about it but I have no doubt that some sarcasm probably
spilled into some of my answers.

I sometimes wonder if people sending these emails just do it to be wise
guys. You know, they'll ask a question, knowing it's ludicrous but do it
anyway just to push your buttons and be a wise guy about it.

Do you think people do that or am I just being paranoid here?

I honestly can't imagine rational people asking some of the things they
ask unless they just want to pull your chain.

Again, I can't go into the details of the questions but if I did, I am 100%
sure that you would agree that they're just ridiculous.

You could equate the questions to something like this.

You're promoting a product that kills fleas on your dog. The sales page
explicitly says what the product will do.

You then get an email that says, "Will this product kill the fleas on my dog?"

Okay, got it? THAT kind of question.

Really makes me wonder if people just love yanking my chain.

What about you? Do you get these too or is it just me?
#main internet marketing discussion forum #find #impossible #tactful
  • I do wish you wouldn't discuss our personal e-mail over the forum, Steve...

    You could've just ignored me

    Peace

    Jay

    p.s. I know exactly the kind of mail you're talkin' bout.... be nice, Waggerz.. they're not all as deep into this thing as some of us are. It may take a little extra strength to be tactful, but you can do it.
  • Banned
    [DELETED]
    • [1] reply
    • That's fine, but can you at least send an email that makes a little sense?

      For example, with the flea killer, how about something like this.

      "I read yours sales page and it says it will kill the fleas on my dog. How
      well does it really work? Please be honest. I've spent a lot of money on
      these products and none of them have performed."

      At least then, I can understand the rationale behind the question and
      return a response that actually addresses what they're asking.

      To just say, "Does this kill fleas?"

      is going to get back a response (on a bad day) something like,

      "no, it grows hair on them and then sends them out to a formal dinner."

      I mean come on, use a little sense.
      • [3] replies
  • I get em too Steve. There are times when youre half way through a colourful response, when you find yourself having to backspace the majority of it, because its a bit gruff.

    Its annoying, but at least via email you have time to grab a coffee, calm down and respond when youre not so heated.
  • Guilty as charged Steven,

    Me "How much is this?" Clerk "$1 sir." Me "How much is this?" Clerk "$1 sir." Me "How much....." Clerk interrupting me. "Sir you are in a dollar store!"

    George Wright
  • I get that all the time, but they tend to be from people I know.

    They ask you things because they just can't be bothered to read the letter no matter how many time you tell them all the info is there.

    As far as I'm concerned I'm not there to beat it into anyone that the product could be exactly what they need or even want.

    I'll give them the info and then, if they can't be bothered to read it, tough, their loss.

    Sorry, that wasn't very tactful, was it?
  • I recall being in a fish and chip shop years ago, when this man walked in and asked the guy behind the counter...

    "How much worth of chips will I get for one dollar..?"

    To which the shop owner replied.....

    "One dollar's worth"
    • [ 1 ] Thanks
  • Steven,

    Your flea story reminded me of my carpet cleaning days, when I was left red faced because of the end outcome of a customers question.

    A customer of mine had a flea infested carpet. He asked me what I could use to kill the fleas. Not knowing what was a safe product to use I asked my local supply store owner and without hesitation he said "Use PineSol."

    So I bought a bottle of PineSol and took it to the job. Well, the customer just couldn't believe that PineSol would kill fleas and kept on insisting that I "find out more about it."

    I used his phone to call my supplier and told him that the customer wanted to have more information on "why" PineSol would kill fleas, before I smelled up his carpet with the strong pine fragrance.

    The owners answer left me red faced and speechless. "George, I've found that if I drop a flea in a bottle of PineSol it eventually dies!"

    I got very tactful.

    George Wright
    • [ 1 ] Thanks
    • [2] replies
    • That's really funny! Wow...
    • My cousin once dropped something on her carpet at home leaving a rather large stain, which she couldnt remove, so she called a "carpenter"

      Im not kidding, true story.

      I have no idea what he said once she had explained the reason for the call.
  • Bill Engvall's stuff is funny because it happens all the time.

    Steve, you can't please everyone. Sometimes you can give the answers and folks still won't be happy.

    Sometimes you have to be prepared to fire your customers. It comes up in a few books, and I've done it myself. 4 hour work week has a good section on it from memory.

    I always try to be as helpful as I can, bending over backwards to customize things for people even. If that doesn't fix the issue /questions, then if they haven't bought, I wish them well. If they have bought, they get a refund and I still wish them well.

    It's not worth my time to try and please everyone.

    Kind Regards,
    Shane

    P.S That being said, always be polite and professional. Help where you can, etc.
  • I tell you, theres nothing worse than receiving an email that contains about 4 words, one line that reads...

    "I cant find my ad"

    OR

    "this page wont load"

    OR

    "your website doesnt work"

    What ad?
    What page wont load?
    What doesnt work?

    To which you respond (in a tactful email)

    "If you could kindly provide further information regarding your enquiry, I may be able to assist you"

    When you really want to write

    "F**K OFF!"
    • [2] replies

    • Those are classic.

      Unfortunately my Mom does this to me all the time. "My computer won't work"... What's wrong mom? "It won't work, no matter what I do" What have you done? "Nothing" ..What do you want to do? "Make it work"

      ARGGGGGGGGGGGg.
      • [1] reply
    • We all come from different walks of life. What may be blatantly obvious to me, will confuse the hell out of another person and vice versa.

      So what may be rational to one person is complete £$%!£$ to another! Let's just call it naive.

      As for, are you being paranoid Steven...Hell No! I can well believe that due to your success and because of your er..(i'm trying to find a diplomatic way to describe your personality, as i perceive it since i have been at this forum)...erm..let's just say you don't suffer fools gladly!

      Anyway, i think you will always be the specific target of people who will want to push your buttons and wind you up! Whatever their reasons, jealousy, envy, etc.

      I guess you should treat every enquiry with the respect it deserves up to the point YOU believe the person no longer deserves your help.

      Just my humble opinion.

      Cheers
      Partha
  • What an awesome thread; great comic relief. Now....what was I doing? Why am I doing it?
    • [1] reply
    • The reason people ask stupid questions is that other people think they are being tactful by not pointing their stupidity out to the questioner.

      This is not tact - it is cowardice and also rather cruel since it fails to educate so that the person goes on asking stupid questions because they don't know any different..
  • Some of the responses here are pretty good. Even made me laugh.

    I occasionally get ridiculous questions. If it's too stupid I just ignore it. If it seems serious I'll reply. I find if they then ask another question (similar to the first question) then they are...

    1. Not going to buy anyway and aren't worth the effort... or...

    2. Are going to be customers you don't want (they end up trying to get a lot of your time and are a huge hassle, and most of the time ask for a refund anyway)

    Many times when they ask the stupid questions to begin with they are dipping in their toes to try and see if you answer your email personally, and if you do many will try to get free "consulting" by acting like they are prospects.
    • [1] reply
    • One of my work colleagues said to me recently- "I've just sent an email by mistake... how do I unsend it?"
  • Banned
    I get them but not from prospects ... from customers who have bought a site and don't really have the first clue about what to do with a site.

    Here's an example. A self-professed n00b buys a site ... a really awesome site.
    She doesn't have the first clue about sites or affiliate marketing, so I go into detail and tell her she has to sign up for these affiliate networks so I can change the ads for her on the site.

    She signs up for them all. She doesn't know how to get the ads. I ask for the logins so I can make the ads for them. (I do this all the time for customers who don't know what to do and I am trusted by them to do this, so don't go into ID theft stuff, because that just ain't happening here).

    She says she just created the accounts but didn't record and doesn't know the logins.
    So now she starts creating them all over again. Week has gone by and still no logins. She says Amazon is trying to resolve her "two" accounts.

    She gets frustrated by the whole process and says she should have bought a new site instead of an old site with used ads, so she could start making money right away (she's under the impression that a new site would automatically come supplied with her very own ads).

    And it goes on and on like this. By now I'm getting really cranky. Trying desperately to remain helpful to what I perceive to be a completely hopeless case and a big waster of my time.

    Such is customer service. It's something that probably everyone who deals with customers encounters.
  • When I get those kind of emails I figure that it's from people
    who want to know if there is a REAL PERSON behind the website
    and if they will find you when they need you (like when it's time
    to ask for a refund).

    They are simply testing out your customer service response level.

    -Ray Edwards
    • [1] reply
    • It gets really fun when one of them finds a lawyer willing to sue you for something like "He said his flea killer would kill the fleas on my dog but it didn't. The fleas came back a month after using the product."
    • [DELETED]
      • [ 1 ] Thanks
  • It happens ALL the time.

    You have a website where you sell flea collars. You'll get eMails from people asking if you sell flea collars.

    You have a website where you sell flea collars. You'll get eMails from people asking if you sell ant farms.

    On one site, I got so many requests for a product I didn't sell, that wasn't really related to what I sold, that I put up an affiliate product for it. No sales, but it did stop those eMails.

    You'll never win. I had an order form on a site where I continually changed the thing to try to make it easier for people to figure out. For example, I think I started out with "Name on Card" and there would be people that would put "VISA." Tried "Card Holder Name." "VISA." "Account Holder Name." "VISA." "Billing Name." "VISA." "Name as it appears on Credit Card." "VISA."

    And, yes, there was a separate field where they select credit card type.

    You can't win.
  • Stupid or not, that's a potential customer. That's an OPPORTUNITY to secure a sale.

    Why not simply answer the question and take the opportunity to close the sale?

    I guess we marketers prefer everything to be automated nowadays, so we don't have to have any contact with customers.

    < Display Default Reaction >

    Sheesh.

    < / End Auto Hancox Bot Post >
    • [1] reply

    • And believe me, I always try to do my best, no matter how much I want
      to cry at some of the emails I get.

      And you know what...in 6 plus years of getting these, no matter how nice
      I am, I have yet to get ONE SALE from any of these "I can't believe they
      asked that" emails.

      Maybe I just don't know how to be nice. Great, I'll take all the blame. It's
      my fault that I can't please these people.

      But it isn't from a lack of trying.
  • Fact is a good percentage of people are just socially retarded.
  • I honestly think its genuine. You really do get people out there that are clueless.

    I confess that even when im told something I like to repeat it back to the sales representative

    they will say - you get 500minutes for free. I will have to confirm that indeed I will get 500minutes.

    Why?

    Well first off there is alot of distrust in the world. Some sales agents give the sales industry a bad name with their sneaky tactics. Give you 500minutes free but forget to tell you that they added on $5 bonus downloads which you have to pay for only finding out 4months later you have been duped.

    Therefore people like to really know where they stand.

    The other thing is with the rise of OCD - this sort of thing will be prevalent.
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