I live in a small town. Even though it is the county seat, when it comes to options for grocery shopping it is somewhat of a bust.
We have a Walmart Supercenter, a small town IGA, and an Aldi. Of the three, Wally is the go-to.
If I want to diversify my shopping experience, I need to travel thirty minutes to a Kroger or Meijer. This is not always an option, especially with the price of gas; therefore, Wally it is.
Three weeks ago I ordered a special floral accessory. This morning I received an email notifying me that the order was delivered yesterday. I went to the mailbox and checked all of the usual drop-off locations around the house. No package. I checked the email again for a delivery confirmation photo. There was none. I checked the tracking app and found it was indeed delivered yesterday in Kettering, Ohio. Definitely not where I live. Not even close.
I clicked on the “chat with us” box. An AI bot informed me that I needed to speak with a “live” customer representative. The bot connects me to Muhammed. After typing my confusion on where my package was delivered, the length of time it took for the so-called delivery, he assured me a refund to my original form of payment was in the works. Great, a refund of $17.58 will appear within ten days. Problem solved, sort of, because I really needed that accessory.
Later that morning the boys were hinting that our food supply was running dangerously low. I had other plans and going into town for grocery shopping was not one of those. So, I did the next best thing. I placed an online Wally order.
At 3:00 pm, my food haul was ready for pickup. Once home and unpacked, I realized they forgot my pumpkin pie. I got on my phone and checked my receipt. Yes, I was charged for the pie, but no physical pie was in my kitchen. I thought, maybe, it is in Kettering with my floral accessory!
Déjà vu and here I was once again clicking the “chat with us” box. This time no bot appeared, but instead, a message telling me to call the store.
I placed the call to my local Wally and immediately a woman’s voice says, “Hi, I am an AI-generated customer service representative here to help you”. Oh boy!
I state that I am missing an item from my online pickup order. I am told she will connect me to a “live” representative. Within a few minutes, Max asks me how my day is going. Seriously, Max? This is my second time calling Wally with an issue. How do YOU think I am?
Max locates the pumpkin pie on my order and reassures me this will be refunded to my original form of payment. Great, a refund of $7.47 will appear within ten days.
Another refund. Another ten days. And still no pumpkin pie.
So, what have I learned today? Not to shop at WalMart? Spend the money on gas and drive to Kroger? “Live” customer service representatives are becoming a second choice to AI? Forget trying to create your own floral arrangement? Move to Kettering? Bake your own pumpkin pie?
The lessons are endless, but at the end of the day, when the boys tell me they have eaten us out of house and home yet again, I will probably head into Wally to fill the never-ending empty trough. There is a price to pay for convenience when living in a small town.
I wonder how many times tomorrow I’ll be calling Wally to report another missing item, only to be told I’ll receive a refund to my original form of payment within ten days.
Until next time,
—Molly