Month: July 2001

I linked this when I first started playing it, but I have to say that, in spite of really finding football very boring indeed on the whole, itsagoal.com is completely addicitve. My team have scored three wins in a row, and moved from 20th in division 17 to 11th. You do need to spend about five minutes a day managing your team and making sure your squad is in top form, but it’s easy to use, and best of all, is free. Not sure where the business model is for this – maybe it’s just been built for kicks (ask Mo, who has his finger on the pulse) – either way, I like it.

Debauchery? In Chichester?? Whatever next? [I’d be interested to know where Paul’s friend went].
People do come down here to die, but if you want to see a lot of old people, Worthing is the place to go to. They have even more old people (as a percentage of population) than we do here.
But life isn’t exactly wild here, it has to be said – although it can be. You just have to know where to look. And I like it that way.
As for being Chichester’s Love Machine – hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.

You remember the dancing crabs? Well, meet Hitler crab.

Let me tell you a story of bad customer service:
Last night, I used Novatech‘s website to check availability of a memory upgrade I need for my PC. It showed the item to be in stock. So, today, I drove 25 miles to their shop, which they encourage people to do, in order to purchase said item, rather than going through the rigmarole of setting up a corporate account and waiting for it to be sent – I wanted to do this, even though they offer free delivery, because I didn’t want to be delayed. No problems so far.
On arrival, after queuing for five minutes or so (queue of about 7 or 8 people, one person serving, two others chatting in full view of waiting customers – not good), I explained what I was looking for, only to be told that it was out of stock. Thinks I: fair enough, these things happen. So I asked if I could pay for the item, and have it sent on when it was available again.
Novatech: No.
Graybo: What?? No??
N: Well, you can, but there is a delivery charge of £4.95.
G: But your website says you deliver things for free.
N: Yes we do, but only if you order it online.
G: So, even though I’m prepared to pay you now, in cash, and even though you offer free delivery if I order online, AND even though your website told me the item was in stock in spite of the fact that it isn’t ….. you won’t send my DIMM for free?
N: That’s right.
G: That’s ridiculous.

There are little puffs of steam coming out my ears at the moment. I’ve just fired off a terse missive to their customer service department (how strange – their website seems to have no place where you can make complaints or offer feedback). For a business that claims to be so very customer oriented, they really are not. Maybe I should offer some consultancy services?

UPDATE: I’ve just had a telephone call from Novatech. They are going to send me the memory upgrade, carriage free, and are happy for me to send a cheque to them rather than set up a full corporate account. I’m appeased.

Looks like I should expect a knock at the door from the police any day soon. They are taking DNA samples from all men aged 25 to 35 living in the centre of Chichester, particularly those with stubbly beards – that’ll be me then. It’s all part of the hunt for the “Thursday rapist” who has carried out several attacks in the Chichester and Bognor Regis area over the last couple of years.

Well, there is a first for everything. I’ve seen warnings about products containing nuts. I’ve seen warnings about products that contain sesame. But tonight was the first time I opened a pack bearing this legend:
WARNING: This product contains cinnamon sticks
Whoa! Have the authorities been keeping the dangers of cinnamon sticks hidden from the public? Consumers of Waitrose chicken pasanda demand to know!

Just as the late afternoon and early evening were seeing me descend into a state of utter despondency, a single word and an “x” have lifted my mood considerably. Whilst there is no cause for celebration yet, hope is far from lost. But then, hope tends to spring eternal around here – it has to.

Actually, Waitrose does have a good record on social and environmental issues, having won Organic Supermarket Of The Year for several years running, producing a huge amount of produce on British farms (including a huge swathe of Hampshire that is owned by the John Lewis Group) as well as “fair trade” goods, having an excellent record on staff relations and welfare and largely shunning out-of-town car-dependent Tesco-style locations for central stores that form a part of the community – take a look at the branches in Chichester, Burgess Hill and Romsey as examples.
Yes, I’ll admit to being a fan of Waitrose. Yes, they are a supermarket, and not a small independent (and yes, I use independents where I can and where they offer something I want to buy with a service that meets my needs), but, in my experience, they offer a far better product and service than their competitors, and I am prepared to pay for that.
And yes, beans is beans is beans. That was actually the point of my post – I was trying to highlight the importance of brand to differentiate one offering from another (very similar) offering.

when bloggers get bored

Beer tonight with Aris, Paul S (and friends), Paul F (alive and well – good) and Simone. Also seen were Trev and Anne, as well as Hayley, Terry, Leah, Tina, Ginny and Kristian.