love2read Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 Two weeks ago I was notified that this was delayed because of a cover mix-up. Has anyone received their copies? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JulieH Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 I wrote to them yesterday to inquire because I was told Wednesday that they were starting to ship on Thursday and I'd get a shipping email, but did not. This was the exact response, cut and pasted from my email: shipping of the literature set was to begin on Thursday but was delayed by 100 degree heat; we will begin shipping on Monday. By Wednesday, all of them will be shipped. I am probably being terribly impatient, but we live in New England where the 100 degree heat was and I still had to work, as did my husband. This is my first dealing with this company and thus far am not impressed. I'm even a little annoyed that I spent $242 for this stellar grammar program and my email has no greeting and doesn't start with a capital letter. LOL Must be this heat! I am very understanding that things happen. I am a business owner myself and know what it feels like to be overwhelmed with orders when something goes wrong. However, customer service makes all the difference in situations such as these. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Satori Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 I got my order last week, as did several others. However many have not received even their shipping notification. I agree, that's definitely not a professional response, especially from a grammar company! I had an online business and it was our utmost priority to ship things out same-day and have excellent communication. If we couldn't ship out within 24 hours, we'd notify the customer immediately. I had emailed MCT a few weeks ago to see if it has shipped yet, but they did not respond in a prompt manner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tammyw Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 That response is pretty laughable, even aside from the lack of capitals, etc. Where's the apology for the lack of communication, and lateness? It feels so abrupt and "stop bothering us". I didn't realize 100 degree heat meant things didn't happen. Such a weird excuse. Angela - have you looked through the books yet? What did you think? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Satori Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 I could do a better job responding to someone on my iPhone! I haven't had a chance to look at the program much yet, but the three books themselves have MCT-ish little tidbits spattered throughout. Unfamiliar vocabulary notes on the bottom of the page. I love it. It makes me want to stop slacking and finish MCT Island already. The program itself is relatively slim book that I'm unsure how to schedule... I'll be looking at the whole program more next month. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JulieH Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 That response is pretty laughable, even aside from the lack of capitals, etc. Where's the apology for the lack of communication, and lateness? It feels so abrupt and "stop bothering us". I didn't realize 100 degree heat meant things didn't happen. Such a weird excuse. Angela - have you looked through the books yet? What did you think? It did feel very abrupt and IMHO, bordering on a rude response. I only ordered a week ago and I *totally* understand that my literature portion will be delayed as others have been waiting much longer than me. I told them that in my email. I just asked to please give me the status of the rest of my order. They did not even acknowledge my real concern of my email. When I called Wednesday the lady was very abrupt and would not even look me up. Mind you, I ordered Right Start Math, Sonlight, All About Spelling and We Choose Virtues and have received my Right Start and Sonlight, and shipping email for All About Spelling (will be here tomorrow) and despite some errors in my We Choose Virtues order, a few very kind and apologetic communications from Heather, initiated by her. The 100 degree heat excuse is ridiculous. I would have been ecstatic if the only thing I had to do during this heat wave is pack boxes all day and call Fedex or UPS to pick them up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tammyw Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 Yes, definitely rude. If it didn't look like a good product, I would absolutely be canceling. They've shown a complete lack of professionalism from the start of this product, so I'm not impressed. And besides, you'd think they would have made 100% certain it was ready to sell before actually offering it for sale. They've had most of our money for almost a month now, without any communication. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JulieH Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 Yes, definitely rude. If it didn't look like a good product, I would absolutely be canceling. They've shown a complete lack of professionalism from the start of this product, so I'm not impressed. And besides, you'd think they would have made 100% certain it was ready to sell before actually offering it for sale. They've had most of our money for almost a month now, without any communication. This, in my opinion, is the most outrageous part. It's just plain wrong that it wasn't ready PRIOR to being for sale. I never release a product on my website until it's completely ready. Ever. Had I known any of this was going on, I wouldn't have placed an order. I have many other ways to spend $240. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8filltheheart Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 Yes, definitely rude. If it didn't look like a good product, I would absolutely be canceling. They've shown a complete lack of professionalism from the start of this product, so I'm not impressed. And besides, you'd think they would have made 100% certain it was ready to sell before actually offering it for sale. They've had most of our money for almost a month now, without any communication. The products I own do not appear to have been professionally edited and there are errors. (for example, oblique is defined with the definition of obtuse. There are examples with punctuation mistakes.) I equate the editing with self-published materials. The content for the most part is great........but some of the errors are too much for me to overlook (if you think the email is unprofessional, the lack of standard, acceptable paragraph construction in the AAW program will make you cringe.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tammyw Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 The products I own do not appear to have been professionally edited and there are errors. (for example, oblique is defined with the definition of obtuse. There are examples with punctuation mistakes.) I equate the editing with self-published materials. The content for the most part is great........but some of the errors are too much for me to overlook (if you think the email is unprofessional, the lack of standard, acceptable paragraph construction in the AAW program will make you cringe.) Wait, do you have a copy of this product? And it is the version that was supposedly updated, yet still has errors? I'm just trying to clarify before I send my email to cancel. That is beyond unacceptable. WOW. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa B Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 I don't know anything about the RFWP set-up, but I will say that my father owns a small business with a warehouse attached. The warehouse is not air conditioned and has no windows other than the bay doors. It is hot in there in the winter (and he lives in the north.) If it is a similar warehouse, and most are, it is like in the 120's or so inside the building. Also, the only person other than my father that would be working on a Saturday would be the warehouse foreman. And wonderful man that he is, he would likely send a similar response. :D It could be a completely different situation with RFWP, but I thought I would throw it out there as a possible situation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EKS Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 The products I own do not appear to have been professionally edited and there are errors. (for example, oblique is defined with the definition of obtuse. There are examples with punctuation mistakes.) I equate the editing with self-published materials. The content for the most part is great........but some of the errors are too much for me to overlook (if you think the email is unprofessional, the lack of standard, acceptable paragraph construction in the AAW program will make you cringe.) I totally agree. The other thing that bothers me about the MCT materials is that they look like they were printed using 80s technology. There is no reason for images to be pixelated these days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penelope Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 I don't know anything about the RFWP set-up, but I will say that my father owns a small business with a warehouse attached. The warehouse is not air conditioned and has no windows other than the bay doors. It is hot in there in the winter (and he lives in the north.) If it is a similar warehouse, and most are, it is like in the 120's or so inside the building. Also, the only person other than my father that would be working on a Saturday would be the warehouse foreman. And wonderful man that he is, he would likely send a similar response. :D It could be a completely different situation with RFWP, but I thought I would throw it out there as a possible situation. I figured it was something like that. It isn't the delay that bothers me as much as the lack of communication. The communication they did send was late, and indicated something was going to happen which then did not happen-- but without any further update. I give them the benefit of the doubt because I have had positive interactions in the past. But I don't understand it when companies don't send a quick email for updates. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JulieH Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 I figured it was something like that. It isn't the delay that bothers me as much as the lack of communication. The communication they did send was late, and indicated something was going to happen which then did not happen-- but without any further update. I give them the benefit of the doubt because I have had positive interactions in the past. But I don't understand it when companies don't send a quick email for updates. :iagree: I did send an email this morning (never expecting a response on a Sunday) thanking him for the reply and asking to clarify if the rest of my order would be shipped with the literature portion. I got a very prompt, very quick, affirmative response: yes Nothing more, nothing less. LOL I mean, that's all I needed to know, but I did laugh out loud when I received the email.:lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
8filltheheart Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 Wait, do you have a copy of this product? And it is the version that was supposedly updated, yet still has errors? I'm just trying to clarify before I send my email to cancel. That is beyond unacceptable. WOW. I own all of the materials for the Essay Voyage level (grammar, writing, vocab, and poetry.....if there is a lit portion, I don't own that.) I also own AAW levels 1 and 2. I have written about the writing errors at length. In all of his MLA documented essay examples, he does not write in complete standard form paragraphs when he includes a long quote. For some unexplicable reason, he always follows a long quote with a new paragraph. Always. As I explained to someone in a PM, if you remove your quotes from your paragraph, the paragraph's main pt and follow through discussion should still be present. Quotes support the writer's contention. They are not the contention. If you have a single sentence followed by a long quote, you do not have properly formed argument with supporting evidence. Look at his example that he has posted on the web b/c all of the examples are essentially going to be variations of this essay: http://www.rfwp.com/samples/3-pages-one-glance.pdf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EKS Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 :iagree: I did send an email this morning (never expecting a response on a Sunday) thanking him for the reply and asking to clarify if the rest of my order would be shipped with the literature portion. I got a very prompt, very quick, affirmative response: yes Nothing more, nothing less. LOL I mean, that's all I needed to know, but I did laugh out loud when I received the email.:lol: Who is this person who is sending the emails? The shipping guy? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JulieH Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 Who is this person who is sending the emails? The shipping guy? No clue. "Tom" and under that it says in both emails: Dr T M Kemnitz Royal Fireworks Press Along with the address and phone number. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JulieH Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 No clue. "Tom" and under that it says in both emails: Dr T M Kemnitz Royal Fireworks Press Along with the address and phone number. That would be the president of Royal Fireworks Press. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tammyw Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 I'd be less bothered if I didn't already pay for it. To me we should not have been charged immediately for a product that wasn't even available to ship. :iagree: Isn't there some kind of law prohibiting companies to charge before they are ready to ship? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zoo_keeper Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 :Isn't there some kind of law prohibiting companies to charge before they are ready to ship? According to the Fair Credit Billing Act, "Ship Dates: By law, a merchant should ship your order within the time stated in its ads or over the phone. If the merchant doesn't promise a time, you can expect it to ship your order within 30 days" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EKS Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 That would be the president of Royal Fireworks Press. Does this mean that the president=the shipping guy? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JulieH Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 Does this mean that the president=the shipping guy? Oh goodness I hope not! No, you asked who was sending the emails and all I knew was that was the signature in the email, and he is the president of the company. I have no idea if he's the shipping guy. :) They have a lot of products they offer. (900+ as mentioned on their website) I can't imagine how one person could do all of that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enviromommy Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 Two weeks ago I was notified that this was delayed because of a cover mix-up. Has anyone received their copies? FYI, for those who did not have the pleasure of meeting Tom at Valley Forge, RFWP is run by an elderly couple and they are the whole company. They are lovely and kind and very honest, and if they couldn't handle shipping in the heat I would recommend waiting patiently. Just my two cents. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tammyw Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 FYI, for those who did not have the pleasure of meeting Tom at Valley Forge, RFWP is run by an elderly couple and they are the whole company. They are lovely and kind and very honest, and if they couldn't handle shipping in the heat I would recommend waiting patiently. Just my two cents. I do have to admit, hearing this does soften my feelings about the matter, so thank you. I think we've become used to dealing with big face-less companies, that we expect all businesses to be run like a tight ship. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beth in SW WA Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 I'm patient. We run a company also. I have not been charged yet. I will 'spread grace thick' in this matter.:001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheAutumnOak Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 FYI, for those who did not have the pleasure of meeting Tom at Valley Forge, RFWP is run by an elderly couple and they are the whole company. They are lovely and kind and very honest, and if they couldn't handle shipping in the heat I would recommend waiting patiently. Just my two cents. :iagree: Having met them personally and seeing how kind they are, it would be very hard for me to be angry with them... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capt_Uhura Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 yes RFWP is run by I think 3-4 people!!! It's Dr. K's passion to print these books. He is not the best w/ emails. :001_huh: Yes, Dr. K and his wife were side-swiped by a tractor-trailer who kept going! They had to run him down in a vehicle w/ a door nearly ripped off and shattered glass all over their skin! He had to leave half the inventory in storage in NJ which included the credit card machine, schedules for the conference, and other books for sale. He also checks for everyone, for about $5, who was charged tax on the rooms! I had forgotten all about that and would never have thought twice. I know as HSers, we stew on purchases and then we decide to buy it, we want it NOW! LOL. But in this case, let's give them the benefit of our patience and I'm sure all the shipping snafu will be taken care of shortly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capt_Uhura Posted July 24, 2011 Share Posted July 24, 2011 (edited) Here's a post by Dr. K. from Sunday, July 24 on the RFWP facebook page. "Many of the literature orders have shipped, but we suspended shipments on Thursday when the temperature in our plant rose above 95 degrees after we lost power and air conditioning. Shipments will resume on Mon, and every order will be shipped by Tues or Wed." Edited July 24, 2011 by Capt_Uhura Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
love2read Posted July 24, 2011 Author Share Posted July 24, 2011 Thanks for the information. I love MCT and the last note I received from Tom was funny. I was just looking for info and not trying to stir up trouble, so hopefully the few who were angry will lighten up a bit. HSing as long as I have it's worth waiting and supporting a good product and good people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JulieH Posted July 25, 2011 Share Posted July 25, 2011 (edited) Thanks for the information. I love MCT and the last note I received from Tom was funny. I was just looking for info and not trying to stir up trouble, so hopefully the few who were angry will lighten up a bit. HSing as long as I have it's worth waiting and supporting a good product and good people. I'm glad to read the positive feedback about the company. I'm sure they are wonderful people. First impressions are important. I do not think it is unreasonable for people to be concerned, and even annoyed, when they've spent a lot of money with a company they've never heard of before and then don't receive communication about their order. Most people haven't had the opportunity to meet them in person. I feel bad now. I didn't know they were that small of a company, and an elderly couple at that. Heck, my mom is only 65 and isn't the greatest with email! LOL In this automated, digital, age of instant gratification, I guess we REALLY need to practice the virtue of patience! Edited July 25, 2011 by JulieH typo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Osmosis Mom Posted July 25, 2011 Share Posted July 25, 2011 They are seriously some of the loveliest people I have met. I do't even know how they made it to the conference after all that scare and trouble. They were pretty old to me, buy so vibrant and energetic that I want to know what they eat for breakfast! Just great, great people with a passion for serving. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Penelope Posted July 25, 2011 Share Posted July 25, 2011 Thanks for the info about RFWP and the update. I can't speak for anyone else but I wasn't angry about the delay and did not doubt the order would be filled. But knowing others have their books and I haven't heard anything new, I don't think there is anything wrong with a thread to see if anyone else is in the same boat. :) I'm excited about the books. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Capt_Uhura Posted July 25, 2011 Share Posted July 25, 2011 Nope, nothing wrong with that! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.