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Domestic and foreign after-sales 'double standard'? The impact of the Unilever laundry
Domestic and foreign after-sales 'double standard'? The impact of the Unilever laundry
cbo.cn
2022-12-16
THE LAUNDRESSD, A HIGH-END LAUNDRY DETERGENT BRAND OWNED BY UNILEVER, HAS FREQUENTLY "OVERTURNED", CAUSING HEATED PUBLIC OPINION.
ON NOVEMBER 18, THE LAUNDRESSD ISSUED A NOTICE OF POTENTIAL SAFETY HAZARDS ON ITS OFFICIAL MICROBLOG IN THE CHINESE MARKET, STATING THAT SOME PRODUCTS HAVE POTENTIAL MICROBIAL CONTAMINATION RISKS. IT IS RECOMMENDED TO DISCONTINUE THE USE OF EXISTING THE LAUNDRESS PRODUCT.
ON NOVEMBER 21, THE LAUNDRESSED FURTHER RELEASED ITS SOLUTION FOR THE CHINESE MARKET. In the announcement, Unilever announced the specific product list and batch information involved, and will provide solutions for consumers who purchase related products through official channels in China.
According to the notice of the Shanghai Market Supervision Bureau on November 24, 2022, Unilever Trading (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. is recalling "THE LAUNDRESS" laundry detergent, softener and household cleaning products manufactured between January 2021 and November 2022, involving 1806409 bottles from November 24, 2022 to May 23, 2023. The reason for the recall is mainly that some products are contaminated during the production process, resulting in high Pseudomonas indicators.
However, the fermentation of the incident has not ended here.
On December 2, Unilever's official account released more news about the product issues involved and product test results. This time, the company will expand the recall plan to recall "THE LAUNDRESS" laundry detergent, softener and household cleaning products manufactured before January 1, 2021, involving 4123591 bottles from December 3, 2022 to June 2, 2023.
It is worth noting that according to official sources, the latest test results show that the product may contain a variety of bacteria, including Burkholderia cepacia complex, Klebsiella gas-producing and many different species of Pseudomonas. In a previous announcement, Unilever stressed that "all products that are not in the published batch do not mean that there is no problem, but the test has not been completed".
As soon as this news came out, more consumers began to fall into worry and began to prepare to apply for returns and refunds. In the announcement, the company also gave a very complete and detailed refund strategy. However, in practice, many consumers find that things are far from simple, and companies, platforms, etc. have set up multiple "checkpoints", resulting in many consumers not being able to successfully complete refunds.
At present, many consumers complain that the return and replacement process is not smooth, including the inability to contact the store, and the inconsistency between domestic and foreign after-sales. This process also exposed the problem of poor after-sales service at Unilever.
In fact, although Unilever's refund method indicated in the announcement is simple, it is actually "hidden secret".
Most of the products purchased in China are in the following channels: Tmall Taobao, Jingdong, Haitao website, Xiaohongshu, and some live broadcast rooms (mainly Li Jiaqi live broadcast room and Weiya live broadcast room), in addition to offline stores.
According to official statements, Tmall and JD.com have opened online after-sales channels. Only consumers need to choose between "exchange" and "return and refund". However, after the actual operation, consumers first found that the after-sales phone number given by Unilever 4008200708 has not been able to get through since November 22. Even if a consumer is lucky enough to get through, it takes 10-20 minutes to get it, and they can't wait for the actual reply, and they are only notified that they need to wait until the 0411 area code.
In addition, simple telephone consultations are "troublesome". Some consumers have found that they have to distinguish different numbers according to the bottle label. The label is Chinese simplified and is handled by Unilever official phone; Some products in Chinese traditional characters are handled by the official number; All English is handled by the e-commerce platform.
For purchases purchased on overseas shopping websites such as Kaola Haigou, Amazon overseas website, etc., you can directly contact customer service to complete the return and refund application. But other than that, the domestic platform is not so powerful.
Many consumers complained, "Tmall's customer service 'pretended to be dead', and a bunch of messages were not read or answered." Later, the platform side has also thrown off the pot, allowing consumers to contact the store by themselves, or need consumers to go directly to 88 customer service. ”
According to the brand's new rules, consumers must apply for a refund by sending back the bottle of the product as a proof. However, many consumers said that many of the products involved in their own cases have been bought for a long time, and the original outer packaging has long been lost, "There is a purchase record order, can't it be returned?" ”
Some consumers realize that they may not have saved empty bottles, so they directly apply for an officially recognized "refund". Then, after some time, they discovered that the platform had privately changed the application to "return and refund" and eventually refused the refund on the grounds that the goods were not returned.
But even if some consumers still keep the bottle, they still can't return it smoothly.
Some consumers pointed out that some express delivery refused on the grounds that "this product has no outer packaging, and logistics cannot send liquid to private individuals", and reminded consumers that many merchants chose to ignore this reason when they knew this. And although the brand promises to look back on the used products, the express delivery does not accept the liquid.
In addition, some people find that some of the products they buy have no batch number at all, and the brand regards this product as not in the batch, and naturally will not send it to after-sales. The Tmall platform's answer to this question is: "These 60ml products without batch numbers are produced in Anhui, so they are not in the batch." ”
In addition, although some consumers successfully sent the product, they found that the product was sent back, but the refund was delayed, even after many days after the brand promise.
The inefficient handling of the platform is one aspect. Many consumers who buy products in the live broadcast room find it even more difficult to complete their rights protection. Some people complained that they bought the product in Li Jiaqi's live broadcast room, "After the accident, no one answered to customer service, and Li Jiaqi himself did not come forward to explain." This kind of disregard is quite chilling. ”
However, what makes domestic consumers feel more unbalanced is that netizens find that Unilever's handling of foreign product problems is more humane. Some consumers pointed out that overseas brands officially refund orders after January 2021 and take the initiative to send emails to consumers. And some overseas shopping websites and overseas shopping websites have indeed given consumers a more positive and positive response.
"If foreign countries can deal with it like this, why make exceptions in the Chinese market and embarrass Chinese consumers?" Many consumers questioned.
According to the official website, the LAUDRESS brand was founded in 2004 by two women, Gwen Whiting and Lindsey Boyd. The two were previously executives at Ralph Lauren and Chanel, respectively. THE LAUDRESS focuses on high-end fabric care products, so the price is much more expensive than ordinary laundry detergent. A bottle of 1000ml of THE LAUNDRESS baby laundry detergent is also worth as much as 207 yuan after discounting.
In 2019, Unilever bought the brand for $100 million.
In China, the brand exploded because of the marketing implantation of "Thirty Only", and was favored by many stars, white-collar workers, and mothers who pursue quality of life.
BUT SINCE THE WHOLE CASE OF THE LAUDRESS RECALL PRODUCT, DOMESTIC CONSUMERS HAVE GRADUALLY DEVELOPED A "BOYCOTT" OF THE BRAND AND THE UNILEVER BEHIND IT.
On Xiaohongshu and Weibo, many netizens' posts about Unilever are accusing companies of this inaction, along with Unilever's introduction and all its brands calling for a "boycott".
In fact, this is not the first time Unilever has had an accident. In 2020, Unilever's brand Qingyang was notified and punished by the relevant authorities for unqualified product ingredients. In October 2022, several Unilever's dry hair sprays were recalled in the US market for the carcinogen benzene, including Dove's professional hair brands Suave and TRESemme.
Unilever's third-quarter earnings report showed that China's business shrank, and sales in China fell 20% year-on-year.
In the context of the decline in China's performance, how Unilever properly handles this public relations crisis is more important. From the after-sales system criticized by consumers as too process-oriented, too complex, inhumane, slow implementation and other problems, to consumer emotional dissatisfaction caused by domestic and foreign or "double standard" treatment, if not handled well, it will greatly damage the image of enterprises painstakingly operating in the minds of consumers.
Disclaimer: ECHEMI reserves the right of final explanation and revision for all the information.
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