Cuisinart Customer Service Rocks!

I was pleasantly surprised by the results of my customer service claim with Cuisinart (a Conair company).

My two year old Cuisinart Coffee Maker recently started to leak.  It was a slow leak but became apparent when there was a puddle of water accumulating on the counter.  While looking for troubleshooting advice in the user manual I was reminded that there was a three year warranty on the product.  I called the Cuisinart customer service phone number listed in the manual, and after describing the situation, and concluding that the leak was inside the main unit itself and not the replaceable water reservoir, they agreed to replace the entire thing.  I was told that I would have the replacement unit within 70-10 business days.  I received it in only three days.  

 Kudos to Cuisinart on the great customer service!

 

Rave: Ask A Ninja

When I was kid, I dreamed of being a ninja. It was a vocational interest that many young boys have had. I practiced stealthiness, trained at throwing stars (shuriken) and read many books on the practical aspects of being an elite assassin. Alas, as an adult I gave up on my childhood dream and settled for a desk job.

My hat is off to the guys at Ask a Ninja. They figured out a way to make a living as a Ninja. The Ask a Ninja videos are some of the funniest clips I've ever seen. Their answer to the question "Why Ninja's, Why Now?" summarizes it all.. "because ninjas are cool."

"I look forward to killing you soon."

Rave: Predictably Irrational

Predictably Irrational, by Dan Ariely, is an excellent book to read to learn about "behavioral economics". Many of our rants on this blog deal with similar issues discussed in this book, especially regarding what we have tagged as consumer apathy, marketing and pricing. It turns out that, as consumers, we really do make bad decisions... and businesses KNOW how to MANIPULATE us. Unfortunately, the author suggests that we will make the same mistakes even if we are shown the truth. He uses the example of optical illusions, which still baffle us even when know they are illusions.

I strive to prove the author wrong. I try to make informed and smart purchasing decisions. And this blog will continue to rant about these subjects and point out the illusions as we see them.

One example of how this book helped me to better understand these matters concerns a living room furniture set I purchased a few years ago. I found the process of shopping for furniture to be very frustrating (though ultimately, I only ranted about the delivery service). It was frustrating because, I had no idea what the furniture "should" cost. Why does one sofa cost $1000 more than another? Which will last longer? Which has better quality? Why does the salesperson remind me of a used car salesman?

The book explains that consumers are often very bad at determining what things "should" cost, and are much better at making relative comparisons. I believe the furniture industry makes every attempt to eliminate our ability to make relative comparisons. How? I looked at many sofas at many different stores and I couldn't find the same sofa at two different furniture stores (disregarding chain stores, of course). If you can't find the same model at two different stores, you can't compare costs. And it is practically impossible to identify quality features to compare. In the end I picked the one that felt the most comfortable to sit in. I sure glad it didn't fall apart after 6 months.

Rave: Driving Ranges (counterpoint)

This post is a counterpoint to the rant about driving ranges (read MikeB's rant first).

I love going to the driving range! I believe that the increased interest in golf from beginners and social players is a positive thing. In fact, the increased popularity has spurred many new driving ranges to open making them much more accessible.

Access to Driving Ranges - Where I live, there are several driving ranges within a short drive (unintentional pun). Most of these ranges have lights so you can practice at night. Some are even heated for the winter. MikeB complains about walking up a flight of stairs to the second level, but having a second level means more people can enjoy driving. And, my drives go a few extra yards from the upper deck.

Feedback/Putting Green - There have been great advances in feedback. Check out Woody's Golf Range, one of my favorite places to go. They have flags that light up when your ball lands on the green. They also have pitching, chipping and sand trap areas. How cool is that? I don't think Woody's is unique, though. There are many driving ranges around the country with these features.

OK, I will agree that prices have gone up and you sometimes have to deal with crowds. But this only goes to show that there is a high level in interest in driving. I also bet it costs a lot more to run a driving range with lighted/heated tees and electronic greens.

One last note, using Bowling as a counter-example to driving ranges is ridiculous. If bowling has seen remarkable advances, then why do I still need to wear those stupid ugly shoes?

Rave: Online Photo Sharing

Lately I've been spending a lot of time browsing photos on Flickr. I started with the idea that you can easily find photos of rare things by using simple search tags (try green flash, for example). But over time I have come to realize what an amazing thing it really is to be able to peruse other people's personal photo albums. It almost feels like you are sharing EVERYBODY's experiences.

For example...

Last weekend I went hiking at Whiteoak Canyon in Shenandoah National Park with Hallie and Theresa. The waterfalls were so beautiful.




Then, I had dinner with the girls at Jalelo's in downtown DC.



Then I just hung out and watched TV with the regular gang.



OK, I don't really know any of those people.

But I've even been able to find pictures that hit closer to home.
Search for pics from your high school, favorite diner, whatever. You may be surprised.

That really clicks with me.

Rave: LaLa.com

Just a quick rave about LaLa.com. It is basically a website for exchanging CDs with other people. Each CD you get costs you a total of $1.75, including shipping. I have already received 3 relatively obscure CDs that I had wanted for several years. As a contrast, buying a particular used CD on eBay typically takes months to get the item I want for around $5.

The best thing about LaLa is the website. It is a great user interface where everything works exactly the way it should, even though it is a Beta product that has only been out for about a month. Lala is not perfect, but it is a strong example of how to make positive use of the web.

Rave: Enjoy the Buffet

I just got the phone call, Warren Buffet has decided to give me $10 million dollars. I think it was a clerical error on his part, but I won't argue. Somehow this happened while he was donating $37 billion to Bill Gate's charitable foundation. He doesn't want to give the money to his children because he believes that too much money is a burden, not a gift. Warren, I am willing to take on that burden.

To put this in perspective, it is a mere pittance (0.02%) compared to the $37 billion he has set aside for the foundation. And combined with Bill Gate's wealth, the foundation will have over $60 billion at it's disposal. If this doesn't make your head spin, consider that the ENTIRE budget of the Red Cross is only $3.4 billion.

Bill...Warren, I'm so glad that we will be feeding starving children around the world. Um, is it selfish of me to ask that the next version of Windows be built solidly enough that I don't have to download a critical patch every week?

Rave: Opus Dei

With the impending release of the Da Vinci Code movie (based on the bestselling novel), it is not surprising that there would be some stir over the controversial religious themes in the (fictitious) story. The conservative religious group Opus Dei, who is depicted as the villain in the novel, has asked Sony Pictures for a disclaimer to accompany the movie . It is a rare thing for me to praise a religious group for their response to a controversial situation, but in this case I am inclined to praise Opus Dei for their stance. They are not shouting outrage or asking people not to see the movie. They simply want to be treated with respect and not judged by a work of fiction. I, for one, tip my hat to them for not going off the deep end, as many religious groups seem inclined to do.

That really makes my (Opus) Dei!