Many people in Nigeria rely on online vendors to buy things because it is convenient and sometimes cheaper. However, it is very disappointed when trust is broken. I recently had an experience that made me question why some online vendors behave this way.
There is a lady, I do not personally know her, but my sister does and introduce me to her through WhatsApp. My sister wanted to buy hair from her but preferred that I handle the transaction. The process has always been simple, my sister sees the hair she likes in the group, forward it to me, I negotiate the price with the vendor, posing to be the buyer, my sister sends money to me so I can complete the purchase. We have been doing business like this with the same lady for years, and she always delivered exactly the quality that we paid for.
Recently, we decided to buy another hair from her, and this one was even more expensive than any one we had purchased before. Because of the high price, I specifically showed her the exact hair we wanted and even pleaded with her to make sure she sent exactly what we ordered. Somehow, I had this strange feeling that something might go wrong. She responded by asking if she had not always delivered the exact quality before. I was reassured by that response and trusted that she would keep her usual standard.
To my greatest surprise, when the hair had finally arrived, it was not what we ordered at all. It was completely different from what we paid for. I immediately message her to complain and explain the situation, but she has not responded. What makes it even more painful is that she was online when I sent the messages, before I knew what was happening, she went offline and has not replied till today.
Now, I am confused and disappointed. I keep asking myself why some online vendors behave like this, expecially after building trust with their customers over a long period of time. I honestly wish she would at least call or send a message to explain what happened or reassure me that something could be done about the situation. Even if it was a mistake, communication would make a big difference. But ignoring the complaint completely only makes the situation more frustrating and painful.
My sister is shocked and speechless, because we never expected this from someone we had been buying from for years. I keep wondering why it is so difficult for some people to simply be honest in business. They forgot that trust is very important in online transactions, once that trust is broken, it becomes very difficult for customers to trust them again. 😭😭😭😭😭😭😭
