Alienware Aurora-R4 order issues-Nightmare

Graygan

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Dell should get back to you within 3 business days.

Z..............

I've already contacted Dell.  I've already received the run-around.  I've already got the return papers printed.  I'll be sending back the monitor and the sound bar for the computer they couldn't build.

I expect I'll get my money back within 30 days, as they've said.

Regarding the digital download which I couldn't download until my new computer arrived... which it didn't, obviously... I have to pursue another avenue.  However, that's not something I'm allowed to discuss here based upon the forum rules.

I appreciate the reply Z, but at this point, what you're offering and suggesting is worse than useless.  If you truly want to help, you can point someone at dell who has actual decision making powers towards this post.

My contact email is attached to this account, so it shouldn't take any effort to look up the details of my order and find out just how right I am.

Perhaps someone will care enough about the company profit margin or about keeping long-term customers happy.  Then again, given the treatment I've received, I'm not so sure anymore.

I'm more disappointed than angry.  Let down, disappointed, not happy.  

My job and business is dependent on my clients.  If I treated any one of them as poorly as I was treated, I'd expect them to go elsewhere.  I am not the only person who does what I do.  Dell is not the only company that builds computers.  Keeping ones clients and/or customers satisfied (note... I did not say happy) is the key to keeping those clients and/or customers.  If this keeps up, Dell will lose more and more of their long-term loyal customers.  

I used to suggest to everyone I knew that they should go to Dell for their computer needs.  Now, unless I can get this issue resolved satisfactorily, I will not be doing so.  It's a shame, really.  Word of mouth advertising is still a powerful force.  Just look at any of the statistics on advertising and that will be self-evident.

I fail to see how this whole issue doesn't bother anyone at the company with any kind of real decision making power.  I've looked through these forums and I'm far from the only person with customer service issues...  real customer service issues...

But then... I'm not them.  I don't know what's going through their minds.

Well.  It's now Tuesday.  Two full business days after my original post and problem.

Still no real response from anyone with any ability to do anything.  

I notice that there are a lot of other issues with customer service too.  

I am amazed.  Truly amazed at the lack of official response to customer care issues.  

What is going on in the company that is allowing such a decrease in customer care?  Something serious has to be happening for any company to alienate this many customers, especially the long-time loyal ones.

Update...

It's now Thursday, at approximately 4:35 pm EST.  Nearly 4 full business days after my original post.

No one official has contacted me to attempt to resolve the issue and keep a long-term customer.

No one has been able to explain why Dell cannot build a desktop computer with a sound card, video card, and wireless.  No one has been able, or even attempted, to explain how that's possible.  I have three computers in this household at the moment that have all those components installed.

No one has explained why I was not notified when my order was cancelled.

No one has explained how I can go about getting my money back for the digital download except to say that I cannot.  It was not downloaded because I had not received my new computer.  Apparently if it's not downloaded within 30 days, you lose the right to return it and get your money back.  If I had been notified that my order was cancelled, I would have returned it.  I wasn't notified of the cancelled order and now I'm being told Dell is going to keep my $100 for a product I am unable to download and am unable to use.

No one has shown any kind of willingness to help in any way, shape, or form.  

No one has explained how it is ok for Dell customer service to be this frustrating, rude, and non-helpful.

The only person to respond so far has been a non-employee of Dell.  Someone who cannot help and cannot provide any actual answers.

As I've said before, I am a long term customer.  As in almost 15 years and $50,000  long term.  Dell won me away from Gateway a long time ago with their responsiveness, competence, and customer service.

Now I'm getting treated worse than I ever did before.  At least I wasn't completely ignored then.

This is my last appeal for some kind of satisfactory solution and attempt to keep my business.

I'm more than willing to order a new system all over again, so long as my issues are dealt with first.  I have to get a new computer from somewhere and I needed one a month ago.

So...

If anyone at Dell actually cares, please feel free to contact me.  My contact information should be easily found with the account attached to this forum name.  It that doesn't work, a PM should work.  I do check back to this forum.

Final update.

I was contacted by one of the reps here.  There was a reason that the Alienware cannot support a wifi unit as well as a video card and a sound card.  It's the wrong reason in this case, but at least someone finally posited a possible reason.

I was also told to contact, yet again, the returns department and make my case for getting my money back on the downloadable program that was never downloaded.

I contacted them.  Yet again.  

Yet again, I got the same song and dance for over an hour before I got the message.  Dell cannot, and will not, refund a downloadable program that's not downloaded within 30 days of it being made available.  There is no way for them with the way the system is coded to make any kind of exception.  Nor will they do a paper process.

So...

I'm out the $100 for the downloadable program I didn't download because I didn't get my computer.  I didn't get the computer I ordered.  I had to go through the hassle of transporting Dells equipment (The monitor and the sound bar for the computer that never arrived) back to the UPS store so it could be shipped back, so I'm out the gas, wear & tear on my vehicle, and my time.

I find this level of service unconscionable.  If I acted this way towards my own clients, I would expect to get fired.  I would expect to lose income.  I would expect to be out of business.

One person.  Only one.  Made a rather feeble attempt with one email to me to try to help.  There was no actual help, just a suggestion on who to call and why there might have been an issue.

It's very apparent to me that Dell does not want my $5000 for this new computer.  It's very apparent that Dell does not want my future business either.  It boggles my mind that any company, big or small, would actively work to disenfranchise a long-term customer who's averaged approximately $3,500 a year for the last 15 years.  

I guess I'm just not a big enough customer.

So... I've given Dell and you people here on the customer support forums a chance to help and to get my business back.  You and Dell have failed.

I will no longer recommend Dell to my clients, family, friends, and acquaintances.  I will no longer purchase Dell equipment.  I will no longer be a customer of Dell.

I will take my money elsewhere.  I hope I can find a level of service somewhere else that will at least provide me with a computer.  If not, perhaps they can give me a reason why they cannot.

Good luck retaining your customers.

Thank you Chris, for unlocking the thread.  

As you can see, I had thought the issue was over and I could let it lie and try to get over it.   However, the call the other day and this followup email/review thing brought it all back, so I came back here.

I apologize for the tone of the rant.

Normally I try very hard to be as unemotional as possible when explaining issues.  I've found that strong emotions are generally not helpful in communicating problems or getting them resolved.

I wish all the employees of Dell the best.  I know that most of you are hard working and doing your best to feed yourselves and your families.  I can only hope that you, as a group, can effect some change within the company to get your customer service back to where it belongs.  Back to where it used to be some time ago.

I wish you all the best of luck in your futures.

Should I be contacted by that supervisor, or anyone else, regarding this issue, I'll report back here.

So... another update... just when I thought I could start to put this nightmare behind me. Actually... Let me sum up first.

1) Ordered new $5000 desktop computer.

2) Monitor and sound bar arrived a couple days later.  Digital download for program for new computer is sitting in my email box waiting for new computer to arrive.

3) 1 week(ish) later, email that order is being delayed is sent.  I agree to the waiver of notice for future delays.

4) Some time later, I wonder where my computer is.  I go online to check.  Order is cancelled.  I didn't receive notice of order cancellation.

5) I proceed to call customer support.  I spend hours getting bounced around from one person to another, one department to another.  About half the CSRs (customer service reps) speak/understand American English so poorly that we both have a hard time understanding each other. 

6)After several people, finally someone tells me that my order was cancelled because they couldn't build the computer with wifi, sound card, and video card in the same tower.  If I want the computer I'll have to reorder and choose to live without one of those. 

7)I am baffled.  Every computer I've had for more than the last decade has had all three of those options and now it can't be built.  Noone can explain why.  Noone can tell me anything.

8)Finally frustrated beyond belief, I decide to send back hardware and get a refund for all money spent.

9)Issued return papers that I have print out.  Told I have to spend my own time and fuel to haul items to local UPS store so they can be returned.  Told I'd get my money back for them.

10)Tried to get my money back for the digital download.  Told that's not possible because if it's not downloaded within 30 days, return policy says no.  Told that Dell is going to keep my $100.

11)Told by others to try again by contacting different department.  They can't help me, get transferred back to returns.  Finally get in touch with supervisor who tells me that the return programming for downloadable programs is not changeable.  I didn't return it within 30 days, I don't get my money back.

12)Basically, I spent over a month purchasing, waiting, and getting denied.  I paid $100 for the privilege of getting messed with.

Now, several days ago, I get a call from some Dell representative, obviously from India (I'm sorry, but the accent and speech patterns are really easy to spot).  He asks if there's anything else he can help me with now that my issues have been resolved.

I feel kind of bad now, but I laid into the poor man.  I did not use profanity or abuse him, but I did give him a very long ear full on the subject of what happened and the fact that there never was any kind of resolution on my part, just a realization that Dell is going to keep my money and I'm going to have nothing to show for it but anger, frustration, and lost time.

He was extremely good at listening.  Not helpful in any way, but a good listener.  He said something along the lines of "Oh, that is horrible.  I cannot help with that as it's not within my purview.  However, with your permission, I would like to forward this issue to my supervisor and have him call you."

I, of course, gave my permission.  It's now been some time and I received no call.  Of course.  Why I expected anyone to call me just because they said they would, I don't know.

Now... Today...

I get an email from TNS on behalf of Dell, Inc. 

Surprise surprise, it's a Dell Customer Experience Survey.

I did fill it out.  I did rate everything low, of course.  I then proceeded to be as specific as I could in my customer recommendations.

Frankly, I doubt anyone actually bothers to read those things.  If they did, Dell might actually bother to work to keep their individual private customers.

It's become glaringly obvious to me that Dell cares very little about their individual customers any more.  They care about their corporate customers.

That, in and of itself, wouldn't bother me normally.  If Dell wants to focus on the corporate customers, they should stop offering to provide individuals with service or products of any kind.  Frankly, the bad reviews and ever increasing list of former customers is going to really bite Dell in the rear-end one of these days.  The best way to head that off is to just stop offering products and services to individuals.  Or go back to their original level of service... that would likely work as well.

I hope someone who has some sort of power within the corporation actually bothers to read these posts on this board.

I posted the question here for other R4 owners. 86 views. No replies?

For everyone else on this forum, I think if you gave more details about what you specifically mean  when you say " can't build a computer with a wireless, a video card, and a sound card"...that would spark a bit more discussion.

I'm curious what options you selected for those...maybe other customers have experienced similar issues with the same combination etc but without knowing it doesn't help.

Update....

First, Jonas...

I cannot be more specific as that is what I was told by the customer service rep when I finally found someone willing to tell me the problem.  He said the note from the factory floor indicated that the computer could not be built as requested.  I had to choose to give up one of the three options so they could install the other two.  There was no more information that anyone was wiling to give me.  

As for the specifics I ordered.  I don't recall this far down the road.  

What I find most disturbing now, though, is the call I just received a few minutes ago.  A gentleman with heavily accented English ( I believe he was one of the Indian support staff) said he was from Dell and asked me how the computer I purchased a few months ago was performing.  When I asked "what computer?", he said I had purchased one in April and this was just a routine service call to find out if there were any problems.  I told him that there were, indeed, some problems.  He asked what they were, I proceeded to list them as above.  He hung up on me.   I was not irate.  I was not abusive.  I was curious.  I was interested in trying to find out how a company like Dell could have such horrid programming and database management that at least one department still thinks I purchased a computer.

If this was not a Dell rep, you guys should be aware that someone has access to your customer information files which are supposed to be secure.  I'm glad I have moved, changed my bank information, and changed my passwords recently.  

Good luck to your future customers.