Tuggle people beware

[ezzyam]

There have been lots of postings here about Tuggle. I have shared my views in an honest and open way. This however has not been taken well by Jasmyne who has at long last managed to get an e mail through to me to tell me that she has closed my shop as she doesn't like me posting on open forums.
I was under the impression that we had freedom of speech in this country, however it would appear not!
Please be careful as I would hate it if any of you suffered the same fate and lost money through it.
I have pondered for the last couple of days whether I should just stop using the forum but have decided that I have too many friends here to pull out and I don't see why she has the right to stop anyone from having a personal opinion.
Please take care all of you.

[goldy1]

I'm sorry but from what I've heard about the site I think your better off out of it. If there was no truth to what you have said in your postings, why hasn't she been here and defended herself instead of closing your shop.
I have heard a lot about e-mails not anserwd and slow web site I think for what was being paid more should have been done. IMO :)

[Focus on Life]

Wow, I'm quite shocked at such a reaction. I dont have anything on Tuggle or anywhere else for that matter so know nothing about any of it but, if any negative opinions are ever expressed by anybody about anything, there's bound to be something at the heart of them. Irrespective of whether it was a problem faced just by that person or not

You'd imagine grown ups run such things? Cant imagine that young Etsy dude we watched on Martha Stewart reacting the same way?

But hey, she either keeps customers or loses them, there'll always be other places

Shaz x

[nattynetty]

I've just had a quick look at your previous posts ezzyam and as far as I can see you've simply posted your opinion based on your experiences - nowt wrong with that imho. Maybe your emails don't get answered because they are too busy trawling forums to see if anyone has posted anything negative about them ;)

[Focus on Life]

Felt compelled to do a thread search on Tuggle, seems to me that more than one critical opinion should warrant an apology from them and assurances to do better in the future, not booting certain customers out?...

Funny

Shaz x

[Peter]

The superior man understands what is right; the inferior man understands what will sell.
Confucius

[icecreamgirl]

'The Tuggle people should really spend more time sorting out their communication with the people who pay their wages and less time looking for innocent people who they can take it out on'
Icecreamgirl.

PS I can say what i like.... i'm one of those strange beings who have no Children so i'm not even on their radar!!:D

[incywincy]

You know how I feel hun. And it seems that others agree -
So unfair :mad:

[sweet]

How great are they at promoting their site? well, i sure as hell wont be using the mighty tuggle!!!!!!

And lets be honest, if the site was that great there would be no need for complaints!

your better off without

[creativeclare]

I`m glad you decided not to leave the forum, Penny. That would have been very sad, indeed.

Take Care

Clare

[Neesey]

Well they never even answered my e-mail that I sent with pic's of my work.I have mailed them 3 times asking for a answer of if they wanted to carry my work or not.Now I wouldn't put my work on there site if it was the only selling site online. I had reservations anyway when I read about how they treated there sellers.Let me say it's not just this forum I have heard bad thing about Tuggle. Other forms also have bad fills about them. If they would spend more time answering there e-mails and less time reading the forms they wouldn't have anything to worry about. Also if the things that were said were not true why didn't they come out of the shadows and take up for themselves.

[Roseberry Crafts]

Well I have finally made up MY mind about selling on Tuggle! I aint gonna!:mad:
I can't believe their mentality. They come across as something exlusive and special, upmarket even, but if they want to keep their reputation they need to listen to criticism and act on it positively.

So glad you didn't leave the forum Penny. I reckon you will gain more from being a forum member than being a "Tuggler"! :)

[0103media]

So tuggle guys read this forum then ? ??

I've invited them to the forum to answer the concerns you guys have but no got a anwser back..

I've also emailed them about their web issuses, trying to help but nothing back.. Ah well..

Tuggle do advertise on google for my brand "ukcraftwebsites" LOL.. ah well..


Giving up the forum ?

[wyattbean]

Well it seams to me (and I don't have anything to do with tuggle!) that it is a sorry day when people are bullied for expressing an opinion in an open forum. Surely thats what a forum is for?
Sue:)

[Littlegems_cm]

Crafting is something we put our heart and soul into. It's based around the HONEST hard work and creativity. You're better off out penny! I'm glad you chose the forum!

Cx

[Sprinkles]

I'm sorry, but i find this utterly disgusting.

Everybody has the free right of speech, even if its positive of negative feedback towards a company.

I don't have an account with Tuggle, and i don't really know much about them, but it's obvious to me that Tuggle is spending more time trawling forums, or googling themselves, then they are reading and emailing back their clients, and keeping their site running quickly and smoothly.

This is bulling in my opinion.

Im very sorry for the upset they have given you.
But i think that giving them up and not the forum was a good step. :D

Im sure there are many other sites out there for you to sell your crafty items on that have a positive attitude towards the way they run their site.

[Focus on Life]

...it sounds like Miss Jasmyne with a Y is a bit stressed out

...perhaps I should go and offer her some therapy! :mf::mf:


But no, I guess if she isnt interested in accepting the very kind offer of help Mr M has made, she certainly wont be interested in exorcising her inner demons LOL

Shaz x

[Bea]

he he Google tuggle on the uk google and guess what comes up on the first page! This thread! What a great advert for them!! We know who's winning!! :D

[Bumble Bee]

:o :mad: Cheekie b's. Im with you nat, im not going to join either if this is the way they are going to treat there members. Knowing me, she'll ban me on the first day for my free speaking!

Penny im so glad that you didnt pull out of the forum, though i wouldnt let them get away with it either. So im glad that you have started this thread. I think that the forum is speading the word, for what Bea's just wrote. :D

It sounds that they'll regret it in the end and there's other options anyway.

[Apple Tree Crafts]

...as I am (rightly or wrongly) under the impression that it's more for parents of wee things, and my youngest is 11 on Thursday so I'm a bit out of the toddler scene.

I did contemplate looking at Tuggle with a view to selling my childrens items, but now I guess not....and I know it sounds silly, but my stuff derserves to be sold by nice people! We all spend ages crafting so we want our creations to go to nice sellers or buyers. Yeah, sounds daft but you know what I mean......

......he he he....sounds like the mighty Tuggle have shot themselves in the foot!

Jules

[silversurfer]

I agree with all of you on this, the day you are not allowed to express how you feel is a sad day for us all. Indeed Tuggle will see none of our stuff I dare say. Put me right off for one, but why just the one person, other people must have said negative things as well. I know I asked the forum the question, what they were like just a few weeks ago, so may be the instigator should be punished too.

Anyway I suggest it's their stuff and not ours, they need to deal with their anger and we should let it go at that.

Well done to all for sticking together.


:sleep:

[Tuggle.co.uk]

Following recent reports from customers & sellers of Tuggle.co.uk of this thread, I would like to take this opportunity to address all readers with our open response.

I would like to make this clear from the beginning that in no way am I or the company intending to become involved with public discussions. If people would like to discuss any issues raised please email Tuggle company ltd directly on salesdesk @ tuggle. co .uk

Going through the threads we have found that there are sellers of Tuggle.co.uk that are unhappy with the following points.

Levels of sales
Communication issues
Technical problems particularly the speed of the site.

Tuggle has now been online for nearly two years in that time we have grown vastly with both sellers and customers.

We have many sellers that are very happy with the levels of sales that they have experienced in that time and of course on the other side we have sellers that are unhappy with the levels of sales. On joining Tuggle there is never any guarantee made of any amount of sales that may be achieved. We aim to promote all sellers without prejudice and with balance.

As with any sales venue there are variations in the levels of sales throughout the year. Recently our conversion rate for hits to completed sales has dropped dramatically. From feedback we have established that the speed of the site has been the main issue for customers not completing their orders.

We have recently purchased a new server at great expense to replace the existing one. The transfer of the site to this new server began over 10 days ago. What was expected to be a simple move has transpired to be an extremely costly and time consuming issue that incurred massive database errors. We have a web development project manager and two coders that are committed to completing the transfer as soon as possible. We have been guaranteed that the speed will at least be doubled. We fully appreciate that in these times it is crucial to have a website that works quickly and efficiently and assure both our sellers and customers that all is being done to achieve this. Before the transfer began there has always been work carried out behind the scenes to maintain the coding of the site. There have been many tweaks and changes that we have implemented to consistently improve the site for both seller and the customer.

We are aware that that the technical problems reported are obviously incredibly important, It is not in our interest or wishes to have unhappy sellers and we have always invited people to make suggestions. All feedback is discussed and where necessary acted upon.

As the sellers will know we are having a brand new site developed. For this site we have openly welcomed feedback and ideas many of which have been taken on board and included in the final specification. The new site will be very community driven, customers will be able to create there own profile page, a form of a feedback system will be in place, sellers will have the option to have to payments issued instantly to them at the point of sale. Orders will come directly through to the sellers and importantly an internal message system will be in place to offer sellers and customers to communicate directly with each other.
There are many reasons for the new site, obviously the current technical issues have been a leading decider but we also believe fully in Tuggle and the sellers that contribute. Tuggle believes in promoting unique gifts provided my unusual and new businesses. 90% of the sellers on Tuggle are parents working from home and this is something that we have heavily promoted.
n recent times we have had more press than ever before which has driven many customers to the site. The customers that do support Tuggle, many of which are very regular shoppers enjoy browsing the unusual gifts and are delighted to find somewhere that so many wonderful items are joined together.
As Tuggle is not responsible for shipping any orders to customers this brings me to my point of customer service. It is crucial to the whole site that orders are met efficiently. There have been numerous orders that have not been met within delivery times, incorrect or not available after the point of sale. Whilst we are more than happy to correspond and apologise to the customer it does not reflect well on the site as a whole or specifically the sellers. What Tuggle has felt would help the sellers in this department is to introduce the internal email system. This will allow the sellers to correspond directly with the customer.

As sellers will be aware, when searching for Tuggle.co.uk this thread is displayed on the first page of google. It was in fact first pointed out that this thread existed by a customer, followed by two sellers that were shocked that others felt this way. Clearly it will not be a motivator for a customer to support Tuggle, for very obvious reasons. In no way do object to freedom of speech but as a company and personally I do object to untruths.

Without developing this into a debate or becoming personal an important matter is the reported lack of communication. There is the seller private blog where important issues are announced and this environment is used as an effective method of updating sellers. When updates were sent via email there were sellers that were not receiving them due to either email addresses changing, over zealous spam filters or emails simply not arriving. It was deemed at this time that the blog would be the best medium.

Being accused of not responding to emails is a serious accusation and not one that has been taken lightly. Of course freedom of speech is a given but reporting things that are untrue is unfair and mis-represents the company as whole. The person that was removed from Tuggle was removed for not expressing true versions of the matter.

The accusation that three emails were not responded to by a certain member not warranted. We have a log of five email responses. On the 12th,15th, 19th,26th & 28th February 2008. If the person in question would like forwarded copies of these emails as evidence this can certainly be provided. I can only apologise if you felt that you were not being responded to but assure you that this is not the case.

We do state on the the website that people should adjust their spam filters to accept emails from the email address provided. If this is not done emails can simply not be delivered. We do however take on board that this could be a common mistake and will be looking into ways that we can improve our communication with new contacts.

I find it difficult to understand the reasoning behind mocking the way that my name is spelt, it is both insulting and entirely unconnected and unnecessary.

To the owner of the forum, your input was most welcome and was certainly acted upon. I apologise that I did not personally get back to you that was my personal mistake. You raised a point that a certain part of the site was slowing the loading time, I raised this issue with the developers and following your input it was removed. Again I fully accept that my reply was overlooked, I apologise and assure that I was more than grateful for your advice.

Up until a few weeks ago our newsletters were sent out weekly, with different themes, trends and seasonal marketing. The newsletters have been put on hold until the transfer of the site to the new server is complete as it would not be in the sellers favour to direct customers to the site that is not working quickly and therefore frustrate the customer. Once the transfer is complete the newsletters will re commence and we will also be introducing a second newsletter. This issue will be based on individual sellers. With a similar feel to the interview area it will showcase individuals with not only their products but also provide a platform to directly put across what each individual seller is about.

A recent complaint was that there was no platform for a seller to get across to the customer their ethics and to ‘justify their sale’. To argue this I would like to say that the sellers interview area was in place long before this complaint was received. All sellers have been invited to participate in this interview, by both email and the sellers blog area. If sellers have further ideas to the interview area and the individual newsletters we of course welcome your suggestions.

We also introduced the direct link available for all sellers. For example, tuggle.co.uk / johnsmith. This link can be used as a promotional tool as you wish. If you would like your link created/activated please email the salesdesk confirming your wishes.

(continued in second post as length exceeds maximum text...)

[Tuggle.co.uk]

Tuggle has a tiny percentage of its sellers on a commission basis, nearly all of the sellers receive 100% of the sale value. This is something that we are incredibly proud of. It has always been our intention to promote new businesses in a fair environment and continues to be.

The membership fee that is paid on joining Tuggle has always been reflective of the work that is carried out to maintain and run the business. We make very little money on sales as such a low percentage of sellers are on a commission structure. In fact the money generated from this covers the costs of the transactions and the payment gateways.

The costs involved with running the site are large, and include, technical development & site maintenance, PR, newsletters, a dedicated server, accountants, banking costs, new site creation, wages and more.

Tuggle is managed by myself Jasmyne Sefton with Sophie & Vicki working part time. Tuggle was not created to be nor become a huge profit making machine for the company managers, but to promote new businesses. I began my own business selling handmade items and founded Tuggle believing that united these new and small businesses would generate a far greater audience than individuals working alone.

In consideration that the recent conversion of hits to sales has decreased the joining fee has now been reduced further.

We are 100% behind making Tuggle profitable for the sellers and a delightful place for shoppers to enjoy. As Tuggle is so driven by its sellers in this instance we felt it necessary to respond to the comments and allegations made.

We are very excited about the future of Tuggle and would like to take this opportunity to address all concerns that we are doing everything in our power to make Tuggle the best it can possibly be.

Each seller & customer is very much valued at Tuggle and we hope that this letter addresses this issues raised. I have personally taken on board the criticism of the lack of email responses and will be investigating this further. From reviewing this over the last 24 hours I have found an extremely low amount of emails that have not been replied to. Obviously situations where emails have been sent and not received will take more delving into.

We have always and continue to welcome feedback from sellers and customers, We would like to ask that this be done so through direct email rather than forums as there may be confidential and personal information or company policies to consider.

I personally hope that this does address the concerns raised. As a company we value the input and will act upon everything that has been written.

Yours sincerely,

Jasmyne Sefton
Tuggle company Ltd.

[ezzyam]

I stand by everything I have always said and I am not alone.

[brad]

Hi All , sorry to hear about your troubles anyway have a look at REMOVED - they are offering the a similar market . Sorry I can't post links try google it.

Hopes this helps , you know what they say about one door closing.....

[0103media]

Brad.. I assume your name is Brad MacConnell ?

And you actually own the site your suggesting ,... PLEASE reads the rules !

[Peter]

I go away for a few hours, and it all goes to pot! :D

[creativeclare]

Golly............


It`s all a bit much for a Friday tea time! I have emailed Tuggle with a suggestion and also for some advice so hopefully they will get back to me soon.


C.

[icecreamgirl]

forum = a meeting or opportunity for an exchange of views.:sm: