My GF Order and Customer Service

I did not want to post this on the Problems and Support page because it would create duplicate tickets. I already chatted with someone via the chat feature. Took forever, but I did chat with someone. Long story short, I originally had a ship date of May 15. However, I’m a teacher and I had them postpone the shipment until the start of my summer break starting June 1st. It was ready to ship back in the middle of May. Why would they not just ship the machine that was already ready to ship back in May? Customer service was pretty much worthless. Is this going to be the norm with Glowforge? I’m really worried about customer service. I should have done more research on that piece before ordering. I hope I didn’t make a $4,000 mistake! Maybe I’m wrong, but it seems like good customer service should be the backbone of any successful business. I hope there are people out there who can say it’s not as bad as it seems.

It probably has to do with the fact the machines are produced as they are ordered, not warehoused ahead of time to ship out later. Customer service doesn’t have direct access to production information, so it’s hard for them to give exact answers on that sort of thing during a live chat.

6 Likes

Yeah, I’m sure you are correct. I’m just frustrated because it was ready to ship in the middle of May. Maybe I shouldn’t have asked for a later ship date. Just seems like if it was ready in the middle of May it should be ready now. I wonder if they sold the one that was supposed to be shipped to me to someone else. I hope that now I don’t have to wait another month! I was so excited about getting the machine at the beginning of my summer break! Now, the excitement is being replaced with frustration.

1 Like

Well, sort of. When a GF rolls off the production line, it is immediately shipped off to the next person in line – they do not “hold” a specific unit for anyone. By refusing shipment on May 15th, you took yourself out of the queue until June 1st. The unknowable part is how many orders they received in the meantime and what the current backlog is. Regardless, it’s hard to see how this is a customer service issue – from the info you shared, it would appear that they did exactly what you asked them to.

Good luck – you will love your GF when it arrives!

11 Likes

You didn’t make a $4000 mistake and this was a complex situation because of your parameters & the way GF fulfils orders. I hear your frustration because you’re so excited! And that’s really really cool. I was GIDDY when mine was ordered and knew I wouldn’t get it for months. When I finally got the shipping notice I thought I’d won the lottery.

No customer service is perfect - that’s a tough thing to get right in every case. But I’ve been on here a long time and have seen GF make it right many many times. They’re a great company that does it’s best and is customer focused. They want to make it right and will.

Can’t wait to see what you make once it arrives!

4 Likes

I’m not really blaming customer service for the delay in shipping. I’m certainly not blaming the person I spoke with. I’m sure if they had more information they would have told me. I just hope they didn’t put me at the end of the line as if my order was placed on June 1. It was supposed to ship on June 1, not start all over from the beginning on June 1. I guess I just would like better communication. I totally understand that the people working the chat are not able to access a lot of this information. But, the company in general could use a help in the communication department. We’ll see. Maybe it will ship today.

1 Like

This forum is a very supportive and helpful community. There is nothing we can do, however, to be helpful in this situation. You have chatted with Support. You are communicating with Glowforge personnel, but you want the forum community to know you are unhappy and cannot understand why your plan to have the company hold your Glowforge for your convenience is now inconveniencing you.

Your anxiety is normal. Your impatience is understandable. This community will be here to offer assistance when you have questions about material, settings, designs and all the other things we have to share because of our experience. Until your Glowforge arrives, however, we can only share a little empathy.

6 Likes

Yeah, true. I guess I was just wondering if anyone else experienced anything similar to this.

1 Like

I think the Facebook crowd already answered you on this.

3 Likes

Everything GF related seems to be +/- a week in 2020/2021, so this is not unusual. Sometimes things show up without anyone knowing it was in transit. Sometimes things are a little late. I have never seen the dates from GF as anything other than best guesstimates.

No clue as to whether such inefficiencies are internal or external. But honestly I no longer believe any company has a handle on firm ship dates. Even Amazon which was once a leader in efficiency is less than predictable.

5 Likes

Huh? I never posted anything on the Facebook pages.

1 Like

Thanks everyone! I guess I will just need to learn to be more patient.

2 Likes

It’s sad when I see Amazon prime shipping and then the item says it’s like 3 or 4 days not 2.

3 Likes

I remember when anything we ordered came with “please allow 6-8 weeks…” Now we’re upset if it takes 1 week. Delayed gratification no longer exists! :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

12 Likes

Except it’s been since April 12. Yes, I had them postpone shipment. So, ultimately this is all probably my fault. Oh well. I guess I’ll find other things to do in the meantime. It’s just that have so many ideas for projects and I need to get them out of my head!

3 Likes

I feel you. Some of us waited >2 years for ours. It will be worth the wait! :slight_smile:

5 Likes

Write them down. Start keeping a list of ideas, or new ones will push them right out of your head! :slight_smile:

8 Likes

UPDATE
Looks like there was some kind of power outage early in the week and they are trying to get caught up with some things because of that. Should ship today. Patience really is something I need to work on! I always accuse my middle school students of wanting things immediately, but I guess I’m no different. I think it’s the world we live in now. Immediate gratification or we get all upset. Really need to fix that for my own health.

5 Likes

While I agree with the sentiment….those were advertised as 6-8 weeks. Amazon was advertised 2 day when I got prime so….

2 Likes

When I ordered in April it was 8 weeks for the estimated delivery on the Plus. It’s now 4 weeks for the Plus and the Pro.

1 Like