Overstock.com - When bad reviewing systems happen to good people

I have had great experiences ordering products from Overstock. In terms of new books, their prices are extremely competitive. Their shipments always arrive on time, and the books are in pristine condition. My experience with their reviewing system and seemingly non-existant customer service, however, has been disastrous. Here is an exchange (well, if a one-sided attempt at conversation with automated e-mail robots can even be called an "exchange") that has taken place over the past couple months.



Jan 16

From: customerinfo@overstock.com
To: me

Dear [my name],

Thanks for your purchase of Kenny Vs. Spenny (DVD) on 12/19/2005.

Please take a moment to rate this product. Product feedback allows our customers to benefit from your expertise and helps Overstock.com continually improve the customer experience.

Thank You,

The Overstock.com Team

Following this email, I took the time out of my busy day to write a glowing review for this product on Overstock.com. Even though I could have been doing something else, it was my way of saying "thank you" for a smooth and hassle-free transaction. I regret that I do not have a copy of the 5-star review to display here.




Feb 16

From: customerinfo@overstock.com
To: me

Dear [my name],


Thanks for your purchase of The Game: Penetrating the Secret Society of Pickup Artists on 01/19/2006.

Please take a moment to rate this product. Product feedback allows our customers to benefit from your expertise and helps Overstock.com continually improve the customer experience.


Thank You,

The Overstock.com Team




Jan 16

From: me
To: info@overstock.com

Last time I bought a product on Overstock, I received a link asking me to "leave feedback" on my order. As it happened, this product was a Kenny vs. Spenny DVD. I did leave feedback. I was happy with my Overstock buying experience so I figured I'd do something nice in return. I took the time out of my day and I wrote a review for the product.

Upon submitting the review I was told that it would take up to 7 business days for the review to be approved. No problem, I thought. I checked back every day, excited to see my review. Now, about a month later, the review is still not there. I did not use profanities and I followed the guidelines in every other way. It was a 5-star review in which I praised the product.

Now I am being asked to review yet another product that I bought and that I also would have praised. I can't help but think, if my review is not going to get posted, why should I bother? There are many of us who enjoy writing reviews, and do so for free, but if our efforts are going to go wasted, why should we bother when there are other reviewer-friendly sites like Amazon?

Don't get me wrong, I have loved the service so far, but is there any explanation as to why my review was not posted?

Thanks, and I hope you take my concern seriously.

Feb 16

From: acknowledgements@overstock.com
To: me

Thank you for contacting Overstock.com Customer Service. We are in receipt of your e-mail and will respond to your inquiry within 24 hours.

Thank you for shopping Overstock.com.

Forget 24 hours. Overstock never got back to me about my concern. But, they did send me this:




Feb 25

From: customerinfo@overstock.com
To: me

Dear [my name],

Thanks for your purchase of Dare Truth or Promise on 01/28/2006.

Please take a moment to rate this product. Product feedback allows our customers to benefit from your expertise and helps Overstock.com continually improve the customer experience.


Thank You,

The Overstock.com Team

Mar 15

To: customerinfo@overstock.com
From: me

Can you please tell me why customers should bother leaving reviews if they are not posted? A few months ago, I took the time out to review one of the products that I bought from you. It was a very positive review, and it complied with all of your guidelines. Now, months later, I feel like I've been had. The review still has not been posted, and you keep sending me emails asking me to review other products that I have bought. Can you please tell me why I should take my time to write a review for your products if you do not post them?

Thanks.

Mar 15

From: postmaster@overstock.com
To: me

This is an automatically generated Delivery Status Notification.

Delivery to the following recipients failed.

customerinfo@overstock.com

Final-Recipient: rfc822;customerinfo@overstock.com
Action: failed
Status: 5.1.1

Well there you have it. A review that I wrote for them is missing-in-action, and getting them to tell me what happened is apparently more difficult than pulling teeth. For mere amusement, I think I may try a couple more times. (I just love playing the anal-retentive, "Good-god-what-happened-to-my-precious-little-review!" internet reviewer.) I will keep everyone posted on any developments.

Google Ads in Emails

I know I just posted, but I was just checking my e-mail, and it reminded me of a rant that I really want to get out of the way.

I have a big beef with About.com. I have been using their site for years, and over the years their site has gotten progressively worse in terms of ads. Now, it's as if they base their content around their ads rather than the other way around. On some pages, the content actually serpentines around the ads, so that you have to read the content around ad boxes. This makes it beyond uncomfortable to read. Not only that, but they have designed their pages in such a way that it makes it difficult to tell what are links to actual articles on their page, and what are ads. To wit:


This is only a portion of their site (the ads continue if you scroll down), but see how the content wraps around the ads? It gives readers (at least this reader) a very claustrophobic feel.

So that is bad enough, but that is not my beef. Many of us who use Google ads know that it is against their policy rules to place Google ads in emails. The other day I signed up for a course on About.com, and this is what I got in my mailbox:



This is my e-mail. The big red circle is a cluster of Google ads. Mind you that this is not the bottom of the e-mail; this is a portion in the middle--so again, the content is interrupted by ads.

The surprising thing is that About.com is apparently not breaking any rules (at least not that I know of); some sites, I've read, have special privileges with Google when it comes to putting ads in emails. We regular people can't do it, but About.com--a site whose purpose is already dead clear when you notice the insane amount of ads on their pages--is allowed to further annoy us by placing ads in emails.

Blogger Locking Blogs

UPDATE: The problem is fixed. I think I owe it to Blogger to let people know that, seeing as they did resolve the problem promptly.

I have four informative blogs--serious blogs regarding the treatment of various health issues--that Blogger has chosen to lock. Apparently, their spam software has determined my blogs to have "spam blog" tendencies. Let's look at this for a moment: I am a real person posting things; I never post at the same time every day (and even if I did, that doesn't mean I'm spamming); I post informative articles and occasionally links to items in the news, not 20 links to the same site.

These blogs are meant to be informative and to help people out--how in the world are these regarded as spam? Is there a rule that if your blog isn't of a truly personal nature, then it is a spam blog? Are blogs not allowed to be helpful and informative? Are blogs not allowed to teach people things, to help them? I don't get it.

As for posting articles on your blogs--about.com, yahoo news, new york times online...these sites do it all the time. I have never posted an article that I didn't have the rights to post--I always include an author byline (as requested). Basically, I have four blogs that are blog versions of sites where you go to read articles and become informed about a subject. The only difference is that they are in blog form (which makes them easier to read). I thought the idea was ingenious (who cares to read about what I had for dinner or what party I went to last Friday?): a blog that has information to actually help people. I guess that's spam now.