Customer Service And Partner Support Guide

You can be proud to be part of an organization that focuses on providing great service to its customers and support to its Partners. When something does go wrong, we make every effort to provide a quick and satisfactory resolution.

The following policies and guidelines were developed in 2004 with the input of the Partners. These policies represent an effort to ensure consistent and professional solutions to issues related to balloon delivery operations. They are subject to future reviews and changes, and your input is always welcome.


CUSTOMER SERVICE AND PARTNER SUPPORT GUIDE

A. GENERAL PROCEDURES
B. CUSTOMER SERVICE RESOLUTIONS
C. PARTNER FRAUD SUPPORT


A. GENERAL PROCEDURES

1. CALLING AHEAD

Calling ahead is not necessary for business orders. In fact, unless there are compelling circumstances, we ask that you not. On the other hand, orders destined for all other locations require calling ahead. When these calls are made, please use as much disrection as possible, in an effort not to reveal the sender or the product.

2. HOTELS

Please call to make sure the person receiving the balloons is a registered guest, or will be checking in soon. If you plan to arrive prior to the check-in time for the recipient, make sure the hotel is willing to accept and hold the order. For security reasons we cannot deliver to guest rooms. Orders must be left with the concierge, bell desk, or front desk. Please provide the name of the person who accepted the order, the delivery time, and where in the hotel the balloons were delivered.

3. MIDDLE & HIGH-SCHOOL DELIVERIES

Partners must confirm that the school will permit balloons to be delivered. Such calls should be made prior to inflating the balloons and departing with the order. The web site asks customers to take this step before placing orders to schools, however, they don't always do so.

During delivery, ensure that the school office staff will contact the studentand record the name of the person who accepted the order.

4. COLLEGE & UNIVERSITY DELIVERIES

Unless the balloons are given directly to the student, call the student's cell and leave a message advising that they have a perhisable gift being held in the mail room (or other location).

5. HOSPITAL PATIENT DELIVERIES

Without exception, regardless of information provided by the customer, partners must call the hospital directly and confirm that the patient will be present and able to receive balloons at the estimated time of delivery. To be most effective, such calls should be made within 2 hours of the estimated arrival time. Otherwise, the patient may be discharged before you arrive.

Latex deliveries to patients in hospitals are no longer permitted by Balloon Planet. Partners who receive latex orders for hospitals should contact Seattle for instructions.

Weights used for hospital deliveries should be non-latex, not the standard stress ball weight used for other orders. Please use a suitable weight from your general inventory.

6. RESIDENTIAL DELIVERIES

With residential deliveries, partners must first call the residence to confirm that someone will be available to accept the delivery. During this call the partner should also reconfirm the delivery address.

DO NOT INFLATE BALLOONS FOR AN ORDER UNTIL A DELIVERY TIME HAS BEEN COORDINATED WITH SOMEONE AT THE RESIDENCE.

Partners are welcome to call the customer directly for assistance if unable to reach the sender.

It is acceptable to delay the delivery until contact has been made with someone at the residence, regardless of the requested delivery deadline.

The initial call to a residence should be made within the first two hours of the scheduled delivery time frame, at the latest. Waiting any longer reduces the chances of successfully coordinating a delivery on the day it is scheduled. We recommend calling the day prior if possible. If no one answers, leave a message and request a return call.

Balloon Planet will not charge the customer an additional fee for a residential delivery where the recipient has requested delivery during a tighter than normal time frame. If the partner is unable to coordinate a delivery time with the recipient that is acceptable to both parties, the partner may elect to cancel the order with no penalty. In such cases, Balloon Planet should be advised immediately so that the customer can be contacted and refunded. 

If a delivery has not been made by the end of the day due to complications in making contact with someone at a residence, please advise the Seattle Dispatch Center that day so the customer can be advised.

7. BUSINESS DELIVERIES

Calling ahead for business deliveries is discouraged. Upon arrival, if the recipient is not available, the balloons should be left on the premises.

8. RECORDING DELIVERY DETAILS

Partners are required to record the delivery time of each order and the name of the person accepting the order and retain this information for six months.

This information is helpful in substantiating that a delivery was made should a customer initiate an inquiry several weeks following the delivery date.

The best place to record this information is in the partner's online account, where notes can be attached to individual orders.

If a customer disputes a charge, claiming an order was not delivered, Balloon Planet will pay the partner if these procedures were followed, unless it is proven that the order was mis-delivered.


B. CUSTOMER SERVICE RESOLUTIONS

CASE 1
The balloons were delivered to a residence without calling ahead. No one was home so the balloons were tied to the outside door. The balloons were stolen or damaged before the recipient returned home.

Resolution
Partner redelivers the balloons for no additional charge.

CASE 2
An incorrect delivery address was provided by the customer.

Resolutions
a) If the correct delivery address is close and the delivery can be redirected, deliver the balloons for no additional charge.

b) If the correct address is not close, but the delivery can be redirected, deliver the balloons for an additional charge.

c) If the correct address cannot be learned during the initial delivery effort, redeliver the balloons to the correct address at a later time for an additional charge.

d) Invite the recipient to pick up the balloons at the local branch office.

CASE 3
Within 48 hours following delivery, the recipient or customer complains that the balloons did not float as long as the web site states.

Resolution
Such cases will be handled on a case by case basis. If the customer or recipient contacts BalloonPlanet.com with this complaint, BalloonPlanet.com will contact the Partner to arrange a satisfactory resolution.

CASE 4
Within 12 hours after delivery, the recipient or customer complains that their balloons have popped.

Resolution
Balloon Planet will pay for the redelivery of replacement balloons at the wholesale helium-filled cost, and an additional net delivery charge.

CASE 5
The customer complains that the balloons are not the same as those ordered, and it is verified that the substituted balloons were not acceptable substitutions based on posted guidelines.

Resolution
The customer will be given the choice of a refund or a redelivery, which will be charged to the partner.

CASE 6
The order was not delivered as scheduled due to an oversight by the BalloonPlanet.com partner.

Resolutions
a) In cases where it is too late to make the delivery, BalloonPlanet.com will issue a refund for the original delivery and provide the customer a gift certificate for a future order, not to exceed the cost of the original order. The partner will be charged for the refund and half the cost of the gift certificate.

b) In cases where the delivery can still be made, but it will be late, BalloonPlanet.com will refund the delivery charge and processing fee, and this cost will be charged to the Partner.

CASE 7
A complaint is lodged that the balloons arrived smelling of cigarette smoke, and it is determined that the partner was at fault.

Resolutions
a) In cases where a re-delivery can be made at a time agreeable to the customer, a new delivery will be made by the partner for no additional compensation.

b) In cases where it is too late or not appropriate to execute a re-delivery, a refund will be issued.


C. PARTNER FRAUD SUPPORT

1. CREDIT CARD FRAUD
The banking system does not permit e-commerce businesses to retain revenues collected from stolen or fraudulently used credit cards, even though these revenues may have been collected through an approved authorization process. Unfortunately, no commercial insurance is available to compensate for such losses. BalloonPlanet.com uses a portion of the 6% CIA fee to insure partners against fraudulent charges related to BalloonPlanet.com commerce.

2. CREDIT CARD DISPUTES
In cases where a customer disputes a BalloonPlanet.com credit card charge, we will guarantee payment to the partner if it is determined that the partner followed our posted procedures.