topic Re: QVC, please don't say items are new when they aren't! in Customer Care

QVC, please don't say items are new when they aren't!

loriqvc — Sun, 08 Sep 2024 20:28:10 GMT

I am sure this will just be a little venting session for me and no action will be taken, but it is frustrating when an item is presented as "New Today" when it is simply being brought back after being out of stock for awhile or new color options have been added. I'd honestly think it would be better to say something like, "This item was so popular that it sold out quickly (or sold out multiple times or we haven't been able to get more for a long time), but we're bringing it back by customer demand!" This makes it seem like the customer is important, not that QVC is fine with misrepresenting what it is selling just to make a buck.

This practice happens more often than one might think with kitchen items, which is what I buy most from QVC. Today's example is the LocknLock 9x13" cake carrier. I purchased this item less than a year ago—last October—and the version that is supposedly brand new today is identical to the one I own but just has a few new colors to choose from. How can I be so sure? Check out the item descriptions, which are letter-for-letter THE SAME:

2023: https://www.qvc.com/locknlock-9x13-cake-carrier-deviled-egg-%26-cupcake-inserts.product.K85501.html

TODAY: https://www.qvc.com/locknlock-9x13-cake-carrier-w-deviled-egg-%26-cupcake-insert.product.K82177.html?sc=iroa

Why does this matter? If I see something labeled "new" that is similar to something I own and like, I would think improvements may have been made that could make me consider buying another one. And I'm sure that's what QVC wants. So I spend time investigating and comparing before I buy, essentially wasting that time, but I'm guessing that others may not be such skeptical buyers and may end up with more of the same thing simply due to the sales pitch. (And again, that's essentially the consumer's fault, but the seller's misrepresentation certainly factors in.)

All that said, I'll simply reiterate my initial request: Please don't say items are new when they aren't. There are plenty of other sales strategies you can apply to make an item seem appealing and draw buyers in without lying to them. Thank you.

Re: QVC, please don't say items are new when they aren't!

Tori3569 — Sun, 08 Sep 2024 21:09:22 GMT

New colors are technically new items. I've referred to items that way for my whole retail career.

Re: QVC, please don't say items are new when they aren't!

Venezia — Sun, 08 Sep 2024 21:16:18 GMT

Sorry, but I agree with @loriqvc . If it's just new colors, say that.

If they say something is "new", I expect it to have been improved or something they haven't shown on air or sold online before.

I've heard them do this, too, and thought "Wait a minute, that's not new!"

There's nothing wrong with saying "This was very popular, when we sold it before and we have it back in new colors!" At least then, the customer knows it might be something s(he) already has.

Re: QVC, please don't say items are new when they aren't!

loriqvc — Sun, 08 Sep 2024 21:25:11 GMT

@Tori3569 - But they aren't treated that way on this website most of the time. If I stay with my LocknLock example, the big pie carrier they've offered for years has always had the same item number—I've bought two dozen of them since the item debuted. They just update the colors that are available and keep the rest of the description the same.

This is also true for many fashion items; I've bought a few different colors of the same D&Co. tops over the years, all from the same listings shown in my order history. The item numbers have remained the same as inventory fluctuates, even going from regular pricing down to final sale pricing and then back again.

Re: QVC, please don't say items are new when they aren't!

loriqvc — Sun, 08 Sep 2024 21:29:29 GMT

@Venezia - And I think one of the main reasons this practice bothers me is that they're doing it on purpose; obviously, with thousands of items in inventory, someone could make a mistake and think something is new when it isn't. But as shown in my example above (and with several other items I've noticed in the past), they are clearly copying and pasting information between listings, proving that people are aware of the misrepresentation. Even if the tiniest element has changed with the product, I'm fine with it being called "new," but if everything is exactly the same, it just plain isn't new.

Re: QVC, please don't say items are new when they aren't!

Tori3569 — Sun, 08 Sep 2024 21:28:20 GMT

@loriqvc wrote:
@Tori3569 - But they aren't treated that way on this website most of the time. If I stay with my LocknLock example, the big pie carrier they've offered for years has always had the same item number—I've bought two dozen of them since the item debuted. They just update the colors that are available and keep the rest of the description the same.

This is also true for many fashion items; I've bought a few different colors of the same D&Co. tops over the years, all from the same listings shown in my order history. The item numbers have remained the same as inventory fluctuates, even going from regular pricing down to final sale pricing and then back again.

OK. I can see your point with the sku. It's just not my experience.

Re: QVC, please don't say items are new when they aren't!

loriqvc — Sun, 08 Sep 2024 21:30:46 GMT

@Tori3569 - I definitely understand your point of view; I worked in retail for many years.

Re: QVC, please don't say items are new when they aren't!

cindyNC — Mon, 09 Sep 2024 15:17:36 GMT

@loriqvc That drives me crazy. Kipling is always announcing new styles, but it's the same styles over and over ........just in new colors. I rarely purchase the same bag in a different color. I will purchase basic shirts in different colors - but I don't consider them new styles.