Amazon has Lost it's Mind!

Now I've seen it all.

Automation can be wonderful but there are times it turns clients against us. Growing can be good for a company but too much and in the wrong ways can be harmful for business. Here's a great example.

You've all recognized that Amazon has taken on third party vendors in recent years. That means that when you search and buy from Amazon you may be buying from another vendor that Amazon gives a platform to sell to. This third party vendor will ship to you directly, outside Amazon. Hmmmm. Sounded fine on the surfrace except for when you consider that one of the benefits of Amazon is the free shipping when your order is over a certain dollar amount. Some of the third party vendors do not honor this perk so you had to look closely. And, if you were buying several items, each may be sold by a different vendor thus the shipping charges add up quick.

The other day I wanted to purchase an item that cost $3.60. I wanted 10 of them. So my total was $36.00. Great. I'm okay with paying shipping. But not $160.00+ in shipping charges! Yes, you read that right. My total purchase price came to around $200! Apparently, Amazon wanted me to pay for each item to be shipped separately (they are all the same item mind you, from the same third party vendor). And, to add insult to injury- Amazon does this slimy thing that doesn't always show you the cost of various shipping methods (that may be the third party choice, but Amazon ultimately is in charge of it's site if you ask me). So, it defaulted to 2-day shipping but wouldn't show me the cost associated with that. When I clicked on the more info key it simply told me about the various types of shipping, no costs noted. So, the next screen is the whopper that wanted $200 for $36 worth of product!  Ha. Fat chance Amazon.

You've done lost yourself a client for life. I was turned off already by the third party schenanigans but this is the icing on the cake. My business is going elsewhere. I hope you wise up.

I encourage you to evaluate your automation. Do you clients ever feel the way I have described here? If so, you have to change and change today. Don't let growth and automation turn your business into a snake.