Feedback on Whiteflash you may be interested in

[CharmyPoo]

My take is that so many vendors do nothing unless PS gets involved. Why does it have to resort to taking it "public" before the right thing is done.

 

[TimMD]

Ok, obviously I lied and I can't resist but to answer your question and I am an insomniac. I DEFINITELY WITHOUT A DOUBT told Traci I was uploading it to FB because initially I asked her opinion (again we chatted nearly daily most weeks so I thought we were friends), in addition to asking both my sisters, her parents, and her best friend because I honestly felt tacky doing it BUT in the situation and knowing I wanted to share it with all her friends/family back in FL, I thought it would be special to her. I then emailed Traci the video slideshow so she could see it herself and after viewing it, she thought it was a lovely idea. I also multiple times voiced to her my concern of being able to upload it on facebook with the internet connection being so sketchy, actually took me about 1 day of trying to get the email file to go through when I tried to send it to Traci. She knew her mom was flying from FL (important because of buying flight and timing of delivery of ring), she knew the date, the time, she knew dinner at my house with family and friends, she knew I was going to UPLOAD TO FACEBOOK and text my girlfriend after dinner I had uploaded pics for from Iraq for her mom to see. Anyways, the point is, she without a doubt, 100% knew. And as you can likely imagine if you ever read my posts here or my other posts, I am EXTREMELY detail oriented (that is the physician in me) so I spared no detail. But thank god, this type A personality is why I had 3 backup plans in case of limitations I couldn't predict and so it was an easy fix. It was just the betrayal I felt, especially when I couldn't get an email response (I think I started at 11am). I did know that Friday afternoons were not ideal for responses and understand that, definitely did not hold that against anyone. Actually I did email Mr Eber also (I didn't have Ms. Wexler's email directly but thought about trying to guess it) but I sent that later in the day because again, I had a backup plan and didnt want to just run to the bosses, I was actually confident someone would try to take care of it, or like had happened before with a miscommunication, they would forward my email to Mr Eber and he would handle it (he handled the other issue VERY easily). In his defense, he did email me back at 11pm States time at Sat night apologizing for not getting back to me sooner (emailed me 3-4 times I believe) and actually gave me his personal cell to call if I needed to speak with him. THAT was the response I wanted to see and I was grateful for it, grateful enough to say "I am sorry for emotional response, I hope we can remedy this situation. I have all the confidence in the world you will try to make this better, it is late saturday night, go enjoy your weekend and we will discuss how to fix things on Monday". In that email, I attached the link to this post so he could read EXACTLY what happened (I had a feeling he was out of the loop with the decisions Renee made and her and Traci's decision to ignore me frustration and response) and NOT to see everyone elses response, but to see my posts to understand how this affected me. Not to mention, total disclosure because I am not on this forum to bash WF but more so share my experience, share reactions, and try to ease my frustrations while I waited all weekend to hear back from them. As crazy as it sounds, the feedback and writing has been great and PS'ers helped ease my mind, that is all I wanted Whiteflash to do on Friday. CEO's and COO's and supervisors hire great staff so they CAN leave early and still have faith things will be addressed and I just want someone to know it wasn't and maybe they need to rethink who they trust to handle things when they are out. We can debate the ridiculous blog all we want but I think someone described it very well earlier when they recognized they are obviously on that forum (facebook) as avenue to reach customers in this age of social networking, why would the actual employees of WF then turn and bash prospective clients for using that avenue. So they are using that avenue to bash someone for using that avenue? Quite an irony, likely both not the best ideas but again, mine situation was of circumstances. As said 10 times already the point wasn't the blog, hey post what you want, but my fiance was a follower of their page and so she reads this discussion with a handful of employees negative response and then later her boyfriend does EXACTLY what they just bashed, how would she feel?

Ok Ok, I am overly redundant now and NOT posting again on this particular post!! hahahaha See what I mean? I couldnt just answer your easy question, I had to tell you EVERY detail involved, so yes, I KNOW Traci was well aware. See you guys in the happy posts

 

[iheartscience]

I'm sure I'm the minority here, but I think you're overreacting a bit. I do agree that the topic isn't an appropriate topic regardless of whether or not the WF marketing person knew you were proposing via Facebook, and it is unfortunate given your circumstances. But I think in a year or two you won't even remember this as an issue. And I'm sure your fiance loved the proposal and ring, and that's really all that matters.

Every company makes mistakes, and this doesn't even seem like that large of one.

 

[TimMD]

Wow. What a ridiculous subject for WF to post on their page at all! And the behaviour of the SA sounds a bit lame to say the least. Fortunately it sounds like the COO and Alison at least understand your unhappiness and are working to rectify it. I do think that it says a lot (of good things!) about you that you are willing to continue to work with them.

Someone mentioned that a sales relationship requires trust on both sides. Actually, in terms of customer service? No. You have to be willing to take whatever customers dish out, with a smile no less- and if you've made a mistake, doubly so. There is no reason that Tim shouldn't expect *amazing* service after this from WF. Frankly if I were him? And was happy with the product but not so happy with the behaviour of one or two people in the company? I'd stick with them at least for one more chance. Because I would bet that WF is likely to bend over backwards to make some amazing jewelry for him from here on out.

Absolutely!!! This is my kind of post! LGK, maybe me and you are just too optimistic but this is the way I see it also. Let me take this opportunity to again praise someone that WAS directly responsible for bending over backwards to make me an amazing piece and that was Joseph Druhot, their CAD guy. He was so great I had to interrupt the conversation to get off the phone with him (isn't usually the other way around?) because of the phone limitations out here. What a beautiful design me and him came up with!

 

[TimMD]

I'm sure I'm the minority here, but I think you're overreacting a bit. I do agree that the topic isn't an appropriate topic regardless of whether or not the WF marketing person knew you were proposing via Facebook, and it is unfortunate given your circumstances. But I think in a year or two you won't even remember this as an issue. And I'm sure your fiance loved the proposal and ring, and that's really all that matters.

Every company makes mistakes, and this doesn't even seem like that large of one.

I think I have said this myself times. Definitely not a big deal to undermine a moment I worked 4 months on from 8000 miles away, which is usually one of the biggest moments in most people's lives. Honestly though, I don't disagree with you and the greatest thing about these forums, is we all have rights to freely express our opinion, that is one of the reasons I am out here I think? Shouldnt we be watching football instead? Wait, I dont have a TV!!

 

[iugurl]

But I think in a year or two you won't even remember this as an issue.

I disagree. I think that in a year or two, when if someone asks, how did you propose? I think he will tell the proposal story and leave out the WF post issue, but it will be in the back of his mind. Just my opinion though...

 

[iheartscience]

I'm sure I'm the minority here, but I think you're overreacting a bit. I do agree that the topic isn't an appropriate topic regardless of whether or not the WF marketing person knew you were proposing via Facebook, and it is unfortunate given your circumstances. But I think in a year or two you won't even remember this as an issue. And I'm sure your fiance loved the proposal and ring, and that's really all that matters.

Every company makes mistakes, and this doesn't even seem like that large of one.

I think I have said this myself times. Definitely not a big deal to undermine a moment I worked 4 months on from 8000 miles away, which is usually one of the biggest moments in most people's lives. Honestly though, I don't disagree with you and the greatest thing about these forums, is we all have rights to freely express our opinion, that is one of the reasons I am out here I think? Shouldnt we be watching football instead? Wait, I dont have a TV!!

I can't tell if you do agree with me from this post, but I do enjoy your flair for the dramatic! Either way, I'm glad you seem to realize that a silly, ill-advised thread by WF won't taint your engagement in any way in the future. And really, the engagement is nothing compared to the wedding, I promise. Just don't let WF know about any of your wedding details...

 

[iheartscience]

But I think in a year or two you won't even remember this as an issue.

I disagree. I think that in a year or two, when if someone asks, how did you propose? I think he will tell the proposal story and leave out the WF post issue, but it will be in the back of his mind. Just my opinion though...

Well I guess none of us will ever know since we're not TimMD, so we'll have to agree to disagree on this one!

 

[diva rose]

Lauren you make great points, as always. MY reaction is that WF shouldn't be posting a topic like this on their FB page. Period!!!


He's half way around the world and said he was proposing via FB... If I read that correctly??

BUT the biggest thing was that it wasn't taken off FB until yesterday early afternoon my time...

ALL vendors make mistakes...


BUT this story seems to have many layers. I am trying to go through each layer to figure out what happened. That's just me, because there are always 2 sides. I was in the business ages ago. NO internet, so no FB. BUT I would never have made a comment on this topic even if there was this social media back in the day. Because I really cared about my clients, cutomers and shared in their joy.....
I helped many plan proposals.

Tim is correct, the only people that made comments were WF employees. I hit ( like) when Tim made his comment to WF on FB.

And for the record, I hate being called a little blinger... Sorry had to throw that in here....

I hope all works out, it usually does....

Great post Kaleigh - WF should NOT be posting threads like that - period. It is inappropriate because they are vendors targeting that market. Anyone in marketing/sales - business or service related knows this. It is a huge mistake to insult a group of your customers. I am pretty positive there are a lot of men who propose over social media networks - facebook, twitter, youtube etc. Clearly some staff from WF are lacking the basics of sales/marketing.

Additionally - only the WF employees made comments on that thread?? Epic fail from WF.

Personally - I'd be more forgiving and willing to work with a company who had delays in productivity rather than a company who pokes fun at customer choices. Talk about lack of respect.

 

[Cehrabehra]

The WF sales people totally chum you up - it's their style. But you're a customer, not a friend. And you're not their only customer. My guess is Traci has dozens of customers at various points in their buying cycles. Also, I doubt that Traci is in any way a part of the FB face other than in replies. Because it was just something that was flagged for her to comment on through work and because you happen to be one of dozens of her customers doesn't mean she put two and two together and thought anything about you no matter if she knew it or not. I believe it was a coincidence, however disappointing that is to you, and I suspect that her response maybe stung more than anything as it would to me as well.

All of that said, I really can't STAND whomever the heck does those whiteflash updates. They're trite and annoying and immature and I don't know *anyone* who likes being called a "little blinger". It's condescending and childish, not cute and fun. The whole thing seems to be built on "who can we step on to make ourselves look good" and in the case of the op in this thread the answer was internet proposers... in another thread maybe you aren't getting the *right* thing for valentine's day or you don't have good taste in jewelry etc. I think the whole tone of their online voice needs to change.

 

[TimMD]

The WF sales people totally chum you up - it's their style. But you're a customer, not a friend. And you're not their only customer. My guess is Traci has dozens of customers at various points in their buying cycles. Also, I doubt that Traci is in any way a part of the FB face other than in replies. Because it was just something that was flagged for her to comment on through work and because you happen to be one of dozens of her customers doesn't mean she put two and two together and thought anything about you no matter if she knew it or not. I believe it was a coincidence, however disappointing that is to you, and I suspect that her response maybe stung more than anything as it would to me as well.

All of that said, I really can't STAND whomever the heck does those whiteflash updates. They're trite and annoying and immature and I don't know *anyone* who likes being called a "little blinger". It's condescending and childish, not cute and fun. The whole thing seems to be built on "who can we step on to make ourselves look good" and in the case of the op in this thread the answer was internet proposers... in another thread maybe you aren't getting the *right* thing for valentine's day or you don't have good taste in jewelry etc. I think the whole tone of their online voice needs to change.

Great post Cehra and thank you for the comments. I agree 100% about the facebook posts and 100% about the friend comment. I guess sometimes as excited customers we want to share details with EVERYONE to include the person helping to make it happen. The last time I made a jewelry purchase this big, I took the sale associate (a guy) out to dinner and drinks the night I picked up the ring to show my appreciation, but then again it was a B&M place so the dynamics are always a little different. As I have stated so many times, I may have thought the timing was cruddy but it "stung" the most that no one wanted to respond to my feedback on crappy timing and selection of posts for the day. I think the blog sites at places like BGD and WF have discussing ring styles and sharing emails/stories is VERY nice but I couldn't agree more with the attempts to be trendy that more comes off as immaturity on the facebook posts for WF Thanks again and Happy Monday to everyone.

 

[rosetta]

Urgh I hate mondays.

Yeah WF were crass and the timing was spectacularly poor.

But I'm the kind of person who would totally laugh this off and forget about it in about three minutes.

I wouldn't forget crappy customer service though.

Sorry you took it so personally TimMD, but don't let it taint your engagement. You can't change what happened but you can control your reaction to it, and how much time you dwell on it.

Get started on the wedding planning, that'll distract ya!

 

[TimMD]

Urgh I hate mondays.

Yeah WF were crass and the timing was spectacularly poor.

But I'm the kind of person who would totally laugh this off and forget about it in about three minutes.

I wouldn't forget crappy customer service though.

Sorry you took it so personally TimMD, but don't let it taint your engagement. You can't change what happened but you can control your reaction to it, and how much time you dwell on it.

Get started on the wedding planning, that'll distract ya!

Agreed Rosetta, problem is while I am deployed, there is really nothing left to do besides dwell over everything!! hahaha Just teasing, I will be in the States in 5 weeks and things will be great again, but being away and out of control of your life (so to speak) for so long magnifies any hiccup in life, that is just a fact of deployment. Happy Monday!

 

[hoofbeats95]

I'm admittedly confused by this story. Tim - it seems there are things to the story that you don't want to share. You've implied it multiple times. I'm not sure if ultimately you shared everything or not.

I'm an emotional person as well. I've reacted to things with vendors in ways that I wished I hadn't later. I will say that I don't think you will "forget" about this as some people suggest. I know how I am, and I wouldn't. I had a surprise engagement and went through a lot of emotional stress over the ring as it wasn't what I wanted. My story is still on here I imagine, but that happened in Nov 08. It's what led me to PS. I have never been 100% happy with the ring I finally ended up with. As a result, just 2 months before the wedding, I'm wokring with BGD on an upgrade, new engagement ring and matching band. The story of my engagement sounds so romantic, but whenever I tell someone the story, the thoughts going around in my head are all concerning the ring and the hurt feelings surrounding it. It will forever be tainted. I wish that wasn't the case, but there's nothing I can do about it. Maybe 20 years from now I won't feel that way, but I suspect that won't be the case. I just hope I finally end up with my dream ring this time! lol That may only be possible if I never return to PS. Too many photos of gorgeous stuff and large rocks on small fingers. . . makes me always want to change things up!

I wish you the best of luck. I hope you can work this out with WF. I know the comfort in having one jeweler and maintaining that relationship. I was lucky as for this one case, I had the choice of two places to upgrade my stone. That rarely happens. I hope you can work through this so you have the security you want with the purchases that you have made.

I hope the last part of your duty is safe and you have safe travels home.

 

[atroop711]

The WF sales people totally chum you up - it's their style. But you're a customer, not a friend. And you're not their only customer. My guess is Traci has dozens of customers at various points in their buying cycles. Also, I doubt that Traci is in any way a part of the FB face other than in replies. Because it was just something that was flagged for her to comment on through work and because you happen to be one of dozens of her customers doesn't mean she put two and two together and thought anything about you no matter if she knew it or not. I believe it was a coincidence, however disappointing that is to you, and I suspect that her response maybe stung more than anything as it would to me as well.

All of that said, I really can't STAND whomever the heck does those whiteflash updates. They're trite and annoying and immature and I don't know *anyone* who likes being called a "little blinger". It's condescending and childish, not cute and fun. The whole thing seems to be built on "who can we step on to make ourselves look good" and in the case of the op in this thread the answer was internet proposers... in another thread maybe you aren't getting the *right* thing for valentine's day or you don't have good taste in jewelry etc. I think the whole tone of their online voice needs to change.

I have to chime and say I respectfully disagree with what is in bold. Never once have I found any of the WF updates trite, annoying or immature. Neither do I take to heart that someone is calling me little blinger and I don't find it condescending or childish. What I do disagree the most is when you say "that the whole thing seems to be built on "who can we step on to make ourselves look good" . I've never seen any sort of post on their updates to warrant that kind of response. I'm on FB daily and while I think what happened to Tim on his proposal day was unfortunate, I don't think it was done out of malice or ever intentional. I don't work for WF but I am a customer. Vendors are not perfect. As for updates on FB by any vendor, I just assume these updates are meant to be light hearted and not cold and boring. They should attract attention which is why so many have contest, questions,ect. The great thing about these updates is that if one finds them annoying or childish the power is in ones hands to not be updated any longer.

 

[hoofbeats95]

The WF sales people totally chum you up - it's their style. But you're a customer, not a friend. And you're not their only customer. My guess is Traci has dozens of customers at various points in their buying cycles. Also, I doubt that Traci is in any way a part of the FB face other than in replies. Because it was just something that was flagged for her to comment on through work and because you happen to be one of dozens of her customers doesn't mean she put two and two together and thought anything about you no matter if she knew it or not. I believe it was a coincidence, however disappointing that is to you, and I suspect that her response maybe stung more than anything as it would to me as well.

All of that said, I really can't STAND whomever the heck does those whiteflash updates. They're trite and annoying and immature and I don't know *anyone* who likes being called a "little blinger". It's condescending and childish, not cute and fun. The whole thing seems to be built on "who can we step on to make ourselves look good" and in the case of the op in this thread the answer was internet proposers... in another thread maybe you aren't getting the *right* thing for valentine's day or you don't have good taste in jewelry etc. I think the whole tone of their online voice needs to change.

I have to chime and say I respectfully disagree with what is in bold. Never once have I found any of the WF updates trite, annoying or immature. Neither do I take to heart that someone is calling me little blinger and I don't find it condescending or childish. What I do disagree the most is when you say "that the whole thing seems to be built on "who can we step on to make ourselves look good" . I've never seen any sort of post on their updates to warrant that kind of response. I'm on FB daily and while I think what happened to Tim on his proposal day was unfortunate, I don't think it was done out of malice or ever intentional. I don't work for WF but I am a customer. Vendors are not perfect. As for updates on FB by any vendor, I just assume these updates are meant to be light hearted and not cold and boring. They should attract attention which is why so many have contest, questions,ect. The great thing about these updates is that if one finds them annoying or childish the power is in ones hands to not be updated any longer.

I want to second this actually. I laughed so hard the first time I saw "Little Blinger". I think it's quite amusing. I am not insulted in the least. I even posted a comment that I thought it was hilarious! I've never thought twice about anything they posted until I saw the FB Proposal post. I thought that was an odd topic. Didn't flow with what I was use to seeing from their FB. I also thought the "who can we step on" comment was rather weird. I don't get that feeling in the least. And again - if you don't like what you see on FB, unlike the page or block it from your feed. Easy!

 

[Richard_Ross]

Tim – buddy – seriously – suck it up. I read the WF post and I don’t see how this attacks you personally. You didn’t actually state whether your fiancée saw the WF post, so I’m guessing she didn’t. I agree it probably wasn’t the smartest post WF ever made on their blog, but in these days of online everything, on a Facebook page, it was only a matter of time till they raised the question as a light-hearted discussion topic. And it was only a question. I’m assuming your girlfriend didn’t know the names of the people you worked with at the company, and surely, even if she did, she would have realized WF wasn’t blogging about a situation like yours where there was no other option. The posts made by commenters all talked in terms of doing it some other way – meaning they’re assuming there WAS some other way. This doesn’t apply to your situation, so where’s the drama? Clearly their post didn’t refer to you. Just out of curiosity – has WF apologized? They obviously took down their post to accommodate you. You sure you’re not being just a tad vindictive here?

As for the whole ‘Blinger’ thing – so what? It’s a catchy phrase. If you like it – great – if you don’t – no need to get your panties in a wad – leave the site. I’ve only recently been on PS looking for ideas for a ring for my fiancée-to-be, but I’ve contacted a number of vendors. Everything I’ve seen from ALL the PS vendors has been top notch, and WF also has been extraordinarily helpful. They haven’t tried to trick me into thinking they were my friends – they’ve just tried to be friendly professionals – a big difference. One thing I don’t believe is that they’re out to get you in particular. This seems like an unfortunate mistake at the very worst. And as you say – to err is human, to forgive is to give it a rest.

 

[TimMD]

Tim – buddy – seriously – suck it up. I read the WF post and I don’t see how this attacks you personally. You didn’t actually state whether your fiancée saw the WF post, so I’m guessing she didn’t. I agree it probably wasn’t the smartest post WF ever made on their blog, but in these days of online everything, on a Facebook page, it was only a matter of time till they raised the question as a light-hearted discussion topic. And it was only a question. I’m assuming your girlfriend didn’t know the names of the people you worked with at the company, and surely, even if she did, she would have realized WF wasn’t blogging about a situation like yours where there was no other option. The posts made by commenters all talked in terms of doing it some other way – meaning they’re assuming there WAS some other way. This doesn’t apply to your situation, so where’s the drama? Clearly their post didn’t refer to you. Just out of curiosity – has WF apologized? They obviously took down their post to accommodate you. You sure you’re not being just a tad vindictive here?

As for the whole ‘Blinger’ thing – so what? It’s a catchy phrase. If you like it – great – if you don’t – no need to get your panties in a wad – leave the site. I’ve only recently been on PS looking for ideas for a ring for my fiancée-to-be, but I’ve contacted a number of vendors. Everything I’ve seen from ALL the PS vendors has been top notch, and WF also has been extraordinarily helpful. They haven’t tried to trick me into thinking they were my friends – they’ve just tried to be friendly professionals – a big difference. One thing I don’t believe is that they’re out to get you in particular. This seems like an unfortunate mistake at the very worst. And as you say – to err is human, to forgive is to give it a rest.

Vindictive? For what gain? They obviously took down the post 30 hours later because many others disagreed with what they wrote, they actually left the post after I contacted them 30 minutes after it was written.

Yes my girlfriend saw the post and yes, she knew who was helping me. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure out all the posts were from employees, all you had to do was click their name and whiteflash was listed in their companies.

This forum is for opinions and I appreciate everyone's. Assumptions however...are, hmmmm ASSumptions. When I see you sitting next to me in a MRAP in the middle of Iraq, you can tell me to suck it up....but even then, I have a GOOD feeling you likely wouldn't.

 

[iheartscience]

Serving in Iraq doesn't negate the need for common decency, TimMD. Your post to Richard_Ross was rude and uncalled for. And for the record, my brother just got back from Iraq but he doesn't mention it every time someone doesn't agree with him or he doesn't get his way.

 

[gemgirl]

I for one, enjoyed Richard's addition to this thread and I applaud him for having the nerve to post it. Having read through this entire thing, I also suspected that there's some vindictive need for revenge here. Tim, you said you were very happy with the stone and the ring and so was your girlfriend. Primary mission accomplished! You said that you've cancelled your two future planned orders with Whiteflash and they've obliged by accepting the cancellation. You said that fees for the appraisal you were unhappy with were offered to be reimbursed to you, which I am sure you will accept. Really, what more do you want? I've always wondered why some people feel the need to play out a saga of extreme life altering dissatisfaction on our pages when everything that could be done to help in a particular situation has already been done.

There's one thing that we seasoned PSers accept when we are working remotely with one of our vendors, and that's that sometimes, occasionally, some little detail goes awry or some email could be lost or not answered in the most timely of fashions, or that some tiny detail of our personal creation might be misinterpreted, but we also *know* that ALL of the very reputable people working at all of our preferred vendors want to make us, as picky Pricescopers- happy. I've used three of our vendors myself and have beautiful jewelry pieces to prove it. Did everything go swimmingly all three times? No, but was my voice heard and were my concerns honored? A resounding yes. Each order/creation was to my satisfaction because we worked it out together. I felt no need to play out my temporary dissatisfaction on our pages. Exactly what more do you want and expect of Whiteflash?

 

[risingsun]

I for one, enjoyed Richard's addition to this thread and I applaud him for having the nerve to post it. Having read through this entire thing, I also suspected that there's some vindictive need for revenge here. Tim, you said you were very happy with the stone and the ring and so was your girlfriend. Primary mission accomplished! You said that you've cancelled your two future planned orders with Whiteflash and they've obliged by accepting the cancellation. You said that fees for the appraisal you were unhappy with were offered to be reimbursed to you, which I am sure you will accept. Really, what more do you want? I've always wondered why some people feel the need to play out a saga of extreme life altering dissatisfaction on our pages when everything that could be done to help in a particular situation has already been done.

There's one thing that we seasoned PSers accept when we are working remotely with one of our vendors, and that's that sometimes, occasionally, some little detail goes awry or some email could be lost or not answered in the most timely of fashions, or that some tiny detail of our personal creation might be misinterpreted, but we also *know* that ALL of the very reputable people working at all of our preferred vendors want to make us, as picky Pricescopers- happy. I've used three of our vendors myself and have beautiful jewelry pieces to prove it. Did everything go swimmingly all three times? No, but was my voice heard and were my concerns honored? A resounding yes. Each order/creation was to my satisfaction because we worked it out together. I felt no need to play out my temporary dissatisfaction on our pages. Exactly what more do you want and expect of Whiteflash?

I had not planned to enter this discussion, but after seeing gemgirl's post, I changed my mind. I am in agreement with gemgirl. I realize that your proposal felt "flawed" due to the subject matter on the WF FB page. I cannot imagine that it was done purposely as a slight to you. Proposals don't always go as planned. Weddings don't always go as planned, either. Things happen that are out of our control. If you knew Allison, as well as some of us do, you would accept the sincerity of her apology. You can choose to think of this as a terrible event or you can look at it as a mistake, albeit an unpleasant one. As Robert Burns said, "The best laid plans of mice and men go oft awry." According to the information posted in this thread, I don't see what else WF can do to make things right with you, other than what they have already done. The next step is up to you.

 

[LALove]

I actually appreciated this thread; I appreciate hearing the good, the bad, and the ugly with vendors- not just rave reviews. With negative reviews or stories I like to hear how the vendor handled it (or didn't). In this case- without both sides (so without the whole story) I have to give WF the benefit of the doubt and think this mess up (FB post) was unintentional and the OPs SA didn't connect 2 and 2. I find it hard to believe that the SA would bash a client's proposal idea intentionally on a public forum- that'd be a pretty bad business move. I'm sure WF will take measures to correct this from happening again. I also think WF handled the mess up pretty well as of today- sure the post should have been deleted (actually never written) sooner but for whatever reason it wasn't. And if it was removed "only" because of the backlash from PSers- well that's why I buy only from vendors who rely to some degree on PS- it offers a means of security/buyer protection.

I do feel bad that you had to go through this but that's life unfortunately- the best people can sometimes be jerks and people can make mistakes. At least the error was on manners and not a faulty end product. I personally would get a new SA and give them one more chance since, in the end, you are happy with the product and the poor taste FB post was (eventually) handled pretty well.

Also-- I think your proposal was totally AWESOME! It is so evident that you put so much heart into it- really it's one of the sweetest I've ever heard!!!

 

[raider80]

That is an unfortunate situation but your reaction seems a little over the top. Sure mistakes may have been made and there may have been a disconnect at some point resulting in the untimely coincidence but I'm certain there was no intentional personal bashing here. Speaking of which, mentioning certain employees’ names on a post lacks tact and is best to be handled offline.

Sorry for your dilemma. You mentioned that you were back in the US in five weeks...any reason the proposal could have waited and this whole mess avoided?

 

[TimMD]

Am I the only one that finds it peculiar that now the weekend if over and back to business for the week 2 people that just joined this forum, joined to comment on my post only? I take that as a compliment, I guess I am bringing the lurkers to light

Anyways, I do appreciate everyone's comment, both supportive and critiquing. Just wanted to share my experience and definitely have nothing to gain from doing such. As at this point we are beating a dead horse and as the recent posters aren't even bothering to read all the comments, I think I am done following although I think it will be interesting to see how many "new members" appear to comment. Everyone have a great week, see you in the other posts.

 

[monarch64]

I for one, enjoyed Richard's addition to this thread and I applaud him for having the nerve to post it. Having read through this entire thing, I also suspected that there's some vindictive need for revenge here. Tim, you said you were very happy with the stone and the ring and so was your girlfriend. Primary mission accomplished! You said that you've cancelled your two future planned orders with Whiteflash and they've obliged by accepting the cancellation. You said that fees for the appraisal you were unhappy with were offered to be reimbursed to you, which I am sure you will accept. Really, what more do you want? I've always wondered why some people feel the need to play out a saga of extreme life altering dissatisfaction on our pages when everything that could be done to help in a particular situation has already been done.

There's one thing that we seasoned PSers accept when we are working remotely with one of our vendors, and that's that sometimes, occasionally, some little detail goes awry or some email could be lost or not answered in the most timely of fashions, or that some tiny detail of our personal creation might be misinterpreted, but we also *know* that ALL of the very reputable people working at all of our preferred vendors want to make us, as picky Pricescopers- happy. I've used three of our vendors myself and have beautiful jewelry pieces to prove it. Did everything go swimmingly all three times? No, but was my voice heard and were my concerns honored? A resounding yes. Each order/creation was to my satisfaction because we worked it out together. I felt no need to play out my temporary dissatisfaction on our pages. Exactly what more do you want and expect of Whiteflash?

I had not planned to enter this discussion, but after seeing gemgirl's post, I changed my mind. I am in agreement with gemgirl. I realize that your proposal felt "flawed" due to the subject matter on the WF FB page. I cannot imagine that it was done purposely as a slight to you. Proposals don't always go as planned. Weddings don't always go as planned, either. Things happen that are out of our control. If you knew Allison, as well as some of us do, you would accept the sincerity of her apology. You can choose to think of this as a terrible event or you can look at it as a mistake, albeit an unpleasant one. As Robert Burns said, "The best laid plans of mice and men go oft awry." According to the information posted in this thread, I don't see what else WF can do to make things right with you, other than what they have already done. The next step is up to you.

Plus one here to all of this. I was also not going to touch this thread...

Tim, you had the patience to plan and execute a proposal as you said, for four months. I think I get why you couldn't wait another five weeks to propose, and see nothing inherently wrong with the proposal strategy you implemented. But WHY could you not wait to post feedback here about this proposal story and experience with WF until all was said and done...the issue, the misunderstanding, the resolution? Why work it out here in public and go so far as to name names of WF employees? Methinks you were definitely after a bit of sweet revenge, and normally that wouldn't be anyone's business but your own and WF's except that you chose to post it all here and let the drama unfold and resolve publicly. I've never used WF but I won't be using your feedback to determine whether I do so in the future. If everything in this thread was all fact and totally constructive, I would consider using it, but from what I glean from reading everything here a lot of what went down was based on your emotional responses. If what you had posted was more "this was my experience" including (from the beginning) background, incident, and resolution, I would be much more inclined to find your feedback factual and credible.

Life isn't perfect and neither are vendors. What will you and your fiancee do when (not if, but when) one of your wedding vendors makes a mistake? Will it ruin your wedding? Will it taint the day so much that your marriage will be ruined? You of all consumers, being enlisted and dealing with what you do on an everyday basis, (I would think) should have some perspective on what is truly important in life. Best of luck to you and your fiancee, and I hope everything works out to your liking.

 

[risingsun]

I don't mind that two posters joined PS to comment on your thread and I believe that they did join for this purpose. They had something valid to say and it also triggered some long time posters to become involved in this discussion. I hope you will consider what thing2of2, gemgirl, monarch and I have had to say regarding your reaction to this incident. This thread involved more than just posting the facts of the situation. It was, IMO, an effort to punish WF and the two named employees in a public way. I think we have all agreed that WF could have done better, but so could you. You and your fiancee will be facing far more difficult challenges in your future. If they are resolved as quickly as this one, you will be a fortunate man.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Did all of you see the FB posts? Those of us who did were pretty much in agreement with Tim that it was in very poor judgment and not a good business move regardless of Tim's situation. I do think he had every right to mention the sales associate. This is what the forum is for..to give feedback on our experiences with vendors, good and bad. The thing is, only a few people at WF were the cause of the problem. Allison addressed it as well as she possibly could and Mr. Eber replied late on a Saturday night to try and resolve the situation. It seems like when I was on the WF FB page I saw a blog that said Debi Wexler is out of the country, so that may be why she hasn't been involved. WF needs to talk to employees about building good business relationships with customers, and the WF FB page definitely needs some oversight. And I think we are the ones dragging this out because Tim isn't the one who is keeping this going!

(And Tim, I do find it rather interesting that 2 people's first posts just happened to be on this thread.)

 

[coda72]

Tim, Sorry about your experience with WF. I have been purchasing jewelry from them for over five years, and I think their customer service has not been as good in the past year or so. I will most likely not be making another purchase from them. There are too many other vendors out there that will appreciate our business!

 

[risingsun]

Did all of you see the FB posts? Those of us who did were pretty much in agreement with Tim that it was in very poor judgment and not a good business move regardless of Tim's situation. I do think he had every right to mention the sales associate. This is what the forum is for..to give feedback on our experiences with vendors, good and bad. The thing is, only a few people at WF were the cause of the problem. Allison addressed it as well as she possibly could and Mr. Eber replied late on a Saturday night to try and resolve the situation. It seems like when I was on the WF FB page I saw a blog that said Debi Wexler is out of the country, so that may be why she hasn't been involved. WF needs to talk to employees about building good business relationships with customers, and the WF FB page definitely needs some oversight. And I think we are the ones dragging this out because Tim isn't the one who is keeping this going!

(And Tim, I do find it rather interesting that 2 people's first posts just happened to be on this thread.)

I always respect your opinions, diamondseeker. I didn't see the posts on the WF FB site. I do believe that the OP has been getting a secondary gain from his comments in this thread. I continue to believe this. There is something in Tim's comments that do not sit well with me and I decided to speak to this.

 

[diva rose]

Did all of you see the FB posts? Those of us who did were pretty much in agreement with Tim that it was in very poor judgment and not a good business move regardless of Tim's situation. I do think he had every right to mention the sales associate. This is what the forum is for..to give feedback on our experiences with vendors, good and bad. The thing is, only a few people at WF were the cause of the problem. Allison addressed it as well as she possibly could and Mr. Eber replied late on a Saturday night to try and resolve the situation. It seems like when I was on the WF FB page I saw a blog that said Debi Wexler is out of the country, so that may be why she hasn't been involved. WF needs to talk to employees about building good business relationships with customers, and the WF FB page definitely needs some oversight. And I think we are the ones dragging this out because Tim isn't the one who is keeping this going!

(And Tim, I do find it rather interesting that 2 people's first posts just happened to be on this thread.)

I totally agree with Diamond seeker. Additionally, we are the ones dragging this out not Tim.

This forum is to give feedback. I've seen numerous posts against vendors where people are critized and named. Might I add also by long time posters. So how is this different?

And again - I state - the WF post topic was very inappropriate not just for Tim's situation but for other couples who use facebook/twitter etc to propose. Commenting on someone's proposal as epic fail is not something to be taken lightly. I am pretty sure majority of us would be upset if our proposal style was described as an epic fail by our own salesperson who sold us the ring. It's rude and unprofessional.

If anyone needs to 'suck it up' - it's the WF staff who were involved. They screwed up - well deal with the consequences.
His sales person didn't even email him to apologize. At least she should have had the decency to do so. I feel sorry for the WF staff who are not involved that has to deal with the situation.

Is Tim posting here for secondary gain? Who knows - we're not Tim.