I subscribed to IK earlier this year and my first issue, Spring 2006, came about a month late. I didn't complain because I don't like to be a pain in the ass. Then the summer issue was released and there was no sign of it in my mailbox, on my door step, or buried deep in the bushes. It wasn't hanging from any trees either. I checked. Anyway, I did what any sensible knitter would do. I logged onto the Knitty Coffeeshop and complained to my fellow Knittyheads. I stuck my foot in my mouth, I tried to pull it out, and then the good gals of Knitty told me that I need not bother surgically removing anything. They said that I should've gotten it by now. People in Australia got the issue before me! I got on the Interweave Knits website, found the email address for complaining about lost, late, or damaged magazines (If I even got my IK I wouldn't care if it was damaged. Beat it up if you want! Just give it to me!) and emailed whomever deals with these things. Here's my email:---------------------------------------------
Dear sir/madame,
Why are my subscriptions sent so late? I thought that being a subscriber meant that I would get the issue early, not after everyone else has bought the magazine and knit the patterns. I don't normally complain about things like this, but I like your magazine so much and I always look forward to the new patterns and interesting articles. It's just a shame that it takes so long to get here. I know you probably send out billions of magazines a year and it's inevitable that some will get lost or arrive late, but I feel that if you have a subscription service you should make it a point to get the new issues out to the subscribers first, then the shops. Isn't that why you have a subscription service?
Thanking you in advance,
Christina
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How's my complaint? I deduced that being polite would get me much further than screaming my head off. Calm and cool, baby. I'll post their reply here whenever I get it.
Their reply:
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After viewing your account I found that because we did not receive payment until 5/3/06, your magazine was placed on our supplement mailing list because we had already sent out our first shipment of the Summer 06 issue before we received your payment. However, since you have paid now your next issue will go back to our first mailing list and will arrive on time before the stores. Also keep in mind that sometimes the stores do release issues before they are suppose to which they shouldn't be doing but does happen. Hope this has given you some clarification.
Thank you,
Taryn
Interweave Knits
Customer Service
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Hmpf.
7 comments:
I think it sounds like a reasonable letter, personally.
I'm not surprised your first one was late - they usually are, just because you aren't in the regular queue yet, but there is no reason for this one to be so ridiculously late.
Keep us posted on how they respond!
Still waiting for mine too. :o(
Hope it comes soon. It's really annoying that every man and his dog have got theirs first.
I was an IK subscriber for a year, and I never got an issue before Barnes & Noble had it. In fact, I usually got mine in the mail 4-6 weeks after it was on newstands. I have no idea what kind of system they have going on there, but I dropped my subscription and just look through it at the bookstore now. When I talked to a customer service person and asked the same question "Why do you have a subscription service, if I could by the magazine in the store sooner?" she told me that it was about the convenience of having it delivered to my home. Uh huh.
Good letter, very less violent and threatening than it could be :)
I'd be peeved too. I haven't gotten mine either, I wonder if it's due to when they recieved payment for the subscription. That in itself cheeses me off. Any other mag in the world will send you your issues and bug you for payment later. Grrrr.
Burtzai, like Bonsai, only not quite so small and tree-like.
Well, do you like anything in the summer issue? I remember being. . . underwhelmed. But I'm now knitting something from a couple of years ago.
You are probably more aware of your surroundings than I am, however. I have no idea if/when it's out anywhere. So it's a total surprise when it shows up. Whoopie! A knitting magazine!! The joys of being a space cadet. You're just more clued in and should have gotten it sooner. Your letter was perfectly fine.
Also keep in mind that sometimes the stores do release issues before they are suppose to which they shouldn't be doing but does happen.
Okay. It should be supposed to. Shouldn't it? I can't stand when a company's customer service department cannot be professional enough to use proper grammar and word choice.
Your letter, however, sounded perfectly composed. And this makes me not-at-all want to subscribe to IK now.
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