I disagree with your premise. Tibor et al. had plenty of time to respond to his pre-purchase questions. His after purchase questions could easily be answered in a FAQ though. I still stand by my statement above of detached arrogance and lack of empathy to customers who have prepaid the full amount and just want some reassurance especially if the stated timelines have passed. It is not that hard. You just have to change the wording on the website, add to the FAQs and respond more promptly.
Golfx,
You’re presenting this as a simple matter of “just answer the emails” and framing it as a lack of empathy. That sounds reasonable on the surface, but it ignores how this actually works in reality.
Before placing the order, customers typically exchange a limited number of focused questions. After the order, the nature of communication often changes, instead of a few clear questions, it can easily turn into ongoing back-and-forth, follow-ups to follow-ups, and expanding topics (cables, system matching, logistics, etc.). If we handled every post-order email thread in that same open-ended way, production would slow down significantly for everyone. That said, I still make a genuine effort to help wherever I can, even with questions that go beyond the product itself, cables, system matching, speakers, and so on. At the same time, it has to be understood that my time is limited and I also have a life outside of work, so responses may not always be immediate.
And just to put things into perspective, show me another company in this industry that responds through live chat at 10:45 PM with immediate confirmation, order status, and an offer to help further.
That’s exactly why we have structured support channels.
In this specific case, the customer received:
- Payment confirmation
- Order status (“in production”)
- A live chat response within minutes, at 10:45 PM!
- An open offer from our support team to answer any additional questions
That is not “radio silence,” and it’s not a lack of empathy. It’s a functioning support system doing exactly what it’s designed to do.
What you’re suggesting, that every individual email must be answered immediately and in full detail by the same person, regardless of timing, holidays, or workload, isn’t empathy, it’s an expectation of unlimited availability. No small, high-end manufacturing company operates like that without compromising either product quality or delivery times.
Also, let’s keep perspective here:
The order is 5 business days in. The stated lead time is 30 business days. This is not a missed deadline situation, it’s the very beginning of the production cycle.
You’ve had a negative experience in the past, and that’s already been acknowledged and addressed in detail. But repeatedly using that to label the current operation as “detached,” “arrogant,” or “without empathy”, even in cases where the facts clearly show active support, isn’t constructive criticism anymore. It’s just narrative.
We’re not claiming perfection. But we are very clear about what we are:
- A small, specialized manufacturer
- Build-to-order production
- Structured support channels (live chat for fast response, email for less urgent topics)
Customers who use those channels get fast answers, as shown here.
So let’s stick to facts rather than assumptions.
www.designacable.com
