Customer Complaint - How would you handle this one?

Don't give in, try and stay polite. That's about it I think.

Unless you especially need the business, I wouldn't be offering a discount on a second order - would you actually want her as a customer any more? Any kind of giving in is likely to make her worse in future.

As you said, the vast majority of bamboo is thin. Some shirts are unusually thin (e.g. a lot of Alternative's new shirts are semi-sheer), but 1) That doesn't make them unsellable, 2) It's her responsibility to order samples. Since bamboo is so much more expensive, all the more reason to order a sample blank.

The totes were listed as "promo quality", which implies crap - so again, no cause for complaint if the crap tote turns out to be crap

It sounds like she wanted bamboo because she'd read about it, not because she knew what she was talking about. Her ignorance is her problem.

In an ideal world she would have known what she was doing, and right now everybody would be happy. Unfortunately she didn't know what she was doing, and someone is going to end up unhappy. That's sad, but don't let it be the person who did everything right (i.e. you).

And somehow be nice about it. Firm and nice. It's difficult, because nice easily leads to giving in, and firm easily leads to snapping. I guess just keep reminding yourself that there's no reason you should pay for her mistake, and for the other side that there's no reason that she needs you to make her experience any worse. She's angry because she made a mistake and it's going to cost her money, but first she'll blame everybody else to try and get out of it - don't take it personally.

(Pre-script: My first real post Yipee)

Hello, All my customer complaint experience comes from the delivery pizza business, so take with a grain of salt.
It costs upwards of 10 times as much to gain a new customer as to retain an old one. If this is your first dealing with the woman, Id say keep her around if you don't have to give away your shop in the process. I would not give her anything like a refund, but I would offer a future discount, and I would try and help her sell her shirts.

Make her YOUR CUSTOMER and not just A customer.

If she takes your help and your discount and orders again (which you will do everything in your power to make the best transaction of your life) and she comes back saying "You didnt tell me the box was going to be brown! I want more stuff!" be done with her. If she apprectiates your effort and gets what she wants and you retain a good customer it will be worth it in the long run.

Thats my 2 scents worth, Good luck with that one. I can guarentee I've dealt with worse. --Derrick

For a moment, I was thinking this was a client I dealt with. My client gave me a yr of hell before printing her fam reunion tshirts. She wanted it all but didnt want to pay for it. Bottom line, I told her look if you want these tees to look good then you have to pay an extra $1 each. Now she was getting a steal on what I was providing to her. We went around and around, me providing silkscreen samples to her, etc. It boiled down that I provided XL-4x silkscreened and photo heat press print. The smaller tshirts, I heat pressed the wording and the photo. After everything was said and done, she tipped ME $100.00. She went on the Price is Right with her family all wearing the tees and won a car....car should be mine...lol

I do think your customer is going overboard. You did give her what she wanted. The totes well she can sew some material in the bottom. The bamboo tshirts, maybe you could have put more into it with an explanation. I try to guide hands of those that do not know.

I might agree if this was going to be a repeat customer, but there is no way of knowing if she ever intended to buy another thing. I believe in trying to keep a customer happy but sometimes it is not possible. I know this is about shirts and I think you did your job and she can't ask for more. I will say I had a customer recently (cabins) she booked for 3 nights 16 people then I ran her card (she booked in April) she emailed and asked why I charged for 3 nights 16 people and I said because that is what you requested now we are going back and forth because she says she booked 2 nights 10 people which is totally incorrect. Then this same week I had 2 people call saying they meant to book Fri-Sat not Sat-Sun. How am I supposed to read minds and know what dates they want. I can only go by what they tell me, but now she wants the money refunded which I am going to fight because I have now lost the income for the cabin stay and another customer that wanted a full week with 20 people but she had reserved for 3 nights so I told them it was booked on the one night they wanted, so a whole week lost there too. Mind you I have been telling people since April it was booked and she just now mentions whe didn't want 3 nights. I have all the emails but my cleaning girl lost the signed contract that I told her to scan and email to this person because I was out of town

I say you did what she asked and to tell her that in a nice way. It is hard to talk to people that complain but when you are right your right. I have had it with people (cabins in general) and ready to crawl under a rock.

Keep chin up and find better customers but you could offer the discount like the others have said, but like I said she may never need anything printed again. JMO