Customer Service? You Be the Judge

Hi Maurice, good morning

Maurice Hirsch: See the text if a chat that seemed to end nowhere: 

Maria: Welcome to our real-time support chat. How can I help you today?
Maurice Hirsch: Yesterday, you had a closeout MacBook Pro with Retina display with 512GB flash drive for $1,850. Same thing today seems to be $1,994. What happened that the price went up almost $150 in a day? It was a 13" model
Maria: our marketing team determines our prices so there might have been a change that needed for us to do this
Maurice Hirsch: Yesterday was the first day of the "special" closeout prices/models. Should not change price within 24 hours. Not right. Not fair.
Maria: I'm sorry that you feel that way
Maurice Hirsch: Just putting it off on the marketing department is not a real answer. Let me talk to your supervisor.
Maria: but just like what I said we don't determine prices on sales end
Maurice Hirsch: You are not answering my questions. All you are doing is passing the buck on this. Let me discuss this with someone who can respond with answers. Supervisor, please. If you look at the website, the one model that is out of sync with how all the other closeout models are shown is the one I am inquiring about. I am a regular customer of your company. Please, can't I get someone who will respond to my questions?
Time has passed with no response at all from your end. You still there? ( I ended that chat since there was no response from the other end)

Ross: May I have the MacMall part number for that MacBook Pro that you saw a price change in please?

Maurice Hirsch: So, you see, I was going to buy the 13" closeout that was advertised yesterday at $18u50 but is now shown as $1994 and its presentation on your website is at odds with the rest of the page for closeouts on retina display MacBooks. It's the 13" closeout MacBook Pro with Retina display, 8GB RAM, 512 GB flash drive, 2.5 Ghz processor right in the middle of your page of closeouts for MacBook Pros

Ross: May I have the MacMall part number please so I can check with our marketing and purchasing division the price for it yesterday.

Maurice Hirsch: And if you look at that webpage, you will see it's the only model where no savings are shown. How in blazes am I supposed to know a model number? None is shown on any of the computers. Not even when you look at them to buy. Look at your own webpage, please. Perhaps it's Z0N3, if that is a model number.

Ross: A MacMall part number starts with a 9

Maurice Hirsch: Remember that the price posted of $1849 was just put up yesterday. How can it change in a day? Had special email about it yesterday. Thought about it overnight, went back to page to order it, found out that it's now $150 more.

Ross: You can send me the email you received.

Maurice Hirsch: Where is there a MacMall number? Your own webpages don't show anything about a number. This is getting frustrating. Do you work for MacMall? I have deleted the email. And that's not the question. As a regular customer of MacMall, I am getting angry about this exchange with Maria and now you. This isn't rocket science, here. What's the scoop? If you cannot respond to my questions, please hand me over to someone who can. Just look at your own webpage and you can see the problem. And the email itself was a link to your webpages where the prices for all the closeout models were shown. The email didn't have prices other than to say there were savings up to $649, I think.

Ross: The 13" MacBook Pro closeout models each have a different setting for the RAM and Flash pre-installed. Each setting will have a corresponding MacMall part number so we can differentiate them. Not unless you can provide a MacMall part number for the one that has a listed price of $1849 yesterday then I really can't forward anything to our marketing division so we can have it checked.

Maurice Hirsch: Okay, I'll play your game. WHERE CAN I FIND A MODEL NUMBER on your webpages? So far, none seem to be shown. I have an idea: You look at your own webpage and tell me where there is a model number. http://www.macmall.com/n/Macbook-Pro-Retina-Display/macNavLinks-753  Look at the Huge Savings section, and the 13" model that is in the middle of the second row of that section. So far, I have invested over 30 minutes in live chats with Maria and you and have not gained any specific answers to my questions.

As a constant customer of MacMall, I don't think this set of transactions has been helpful. 
Ross: As an example, after you picked out the one you want to place an order for, it will show a detailed description of what it is and then on the middle part of the page you can see the MacMall part number for it

http://www.macmall.com/p/Apple-MacBook-Pro/product~dpno~9418688~pdp.iadfdbh

You can follow that link as an example. We cannot give any specific answers because you do not have a specific part number for what you are referring to.

Maurice Hirsch: Why would I want to place an order when I an asking about the price? And why are you putting the burden on me when I've told you exactly where on your webpage you can find the model I am inquiring about? [I then put the computer into my "basket"] 

Try MacMall Part #: 9418712. You could have done this as easily as I have done without putting me through all this. Hate to sound sarcastic, but the name of the game is customer service. When we are done with all this, I would like you to give me the email address of an upper-level supervisor so I can write this whole exchange up.

Ross: Thank you for the information. I will now forward your question to our Marketing team as I do not have any information of what's the cost of this specific MacMall part number yesterday. I apologize if I need to get the MacMall part number from you directly as it will not really help if I assume that what you are talking about is "this part number" or "that part number"

Maurice Hirsch: You can assume all you want. I was very specific about the model's specs with 13", 512 GB Flash Drive, 2.5GHz processor, 8GB RAM, that it was a MacBook Pro discontinued model shown on your page. Gave you the webpage link. If I had known the model number, I would have given it to you when you first asked. I don't know what more you wanted of me as a customer.

Ross: Our Marketing division is currently closed for the weekend. We will send you an update about your question for the recent/sudden price increase you mentioned about this MacBook Pro. by Tuesday

Maurice Hirsch: Please give me the name of a supervisor where I can register a complaint about this whole set of transactions with Maria and you. Also seems as if you knew that you had to deal with marketing many minutes ago (you are I are up to 36 minutes right now), you could have found out they were closed over the weekend and wouldn't be back until Tuesday. So, what's my contact's name and email?

Ross: We have your email address: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.">This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Maurice Hirsch: Yes? But I want to SEND an email to a supervisor.

Ross: You can send in an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.">This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Maurice Hirsch: Seems pretty general, perhaps low-level. What about a manager, a supervisor? Something direct that doesn't start at the lowest level of the customer service chain?

Ross: You can send your concern to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.">This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Saying that our marketing division is closed for the weekend right off the bat couldn't have helped the situation at all, as you might think I am shunning you away without even asking what the particular product is

If you have a concern with how this is handled, you can send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.">This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Maurice Hirsch: As a customer who just purchased an iMac from you this past week, who buys Mac equipment from you for a company I'm affiliated with, who has bought lots of Macs from you over the years, this has been quite unpleasant and might affect my choice of a vendor.

If you were not going to have an answer for me regardless of what model and were going to have to check with marketing (which is what Maria said earlier), why would knowing the model number have helped? You must think that I'm just a cranky person. Actually, I'm not. Just very frustrated with the time this has taken and the complete lack of information I am leaving with having now invested an hour in this enterprise.