Fitbit is unwilling to take my money

[EODSSG]

This morning has been an extremely frustrating morning to say the least. It started with receiving my $299.00 gift card through email for My Fitbit Ionic that was returned through the Recall effort. As happy as I was to finally replace my old Fitbit device with a new one, my excitement was quickly dashed. You see the new Fitbit Sense 2 is currently selling for $299.95 in the web store. Who would have thought that $0.95 would cause so much trouble? Apparently the marketing folks who set the price point for the Sense 2 and the Website developers who programed the payment site never spoke to each other while simultaneously failing so miserably at their jobs that a 10 year long customer is seriously contemplating an Apple Watch. Wouldn't Fitbit and their marketing department want me to spend the money they just sent me with Fitbit? Did their web developers not foresee the potential need to accept split payments through their website, even after having this largely publicized recall where many customers were being issued credit? 

Enter "Jermaine" the telephone god of the the Fitbit Customer Service call center who self-identifies as the highest level of employee that us lowly customers are allowed to speak with directly. In truth this low-level functionary was no more help than a polished turd and just as rude. After two hours between the phone and the chat room waiting to speak with someone authorized to use common sense, "Jermaine" comes on the line to tell me that Fitbit will gladly take my money in exchange for the desired device, just not in the form of the funds that Fitbit themselves issued as credit for a defective device. 

The primary issue is that price point set for the Sense 2 is $0.95 above the value issued for the Ionic Recall Credit. Couple that with the website's inability to accept split payments and you end up in a situation where long time clients are driven off to contemplate Apple, Garmin, or Samsung, as these products are readily available in brick-and-mortar stores where the issued credit (Fitbit's money) can be combined with another form of payment to satisfy the difference in cost. 

So now here I am venting to Fitbit forum page hoping that someone above "Jermaine's" paygrade will read this and reach out to me before I go purchase an Apple product. I really do not want to have to learn a new system and transfer all my data over.

Side note for those marketing execs out there, multiples of $299 add up much faster than multiples of $0.95. 

[RonaldM]

It's hard if a call center reps frustration not being able to help reflect back on the customer. It's not uncommon to have just one payment option with an online store.

But with small amounts like this it would be so easy to give the customer a 1 or 5,- coupon code to prevent this $0.95 issue. 

Don't know what country you live in, but here in the Netherlands we have a nice € 50,- Black Friday discount in the Fitbit store. Maybe there is something similar on your side of the planet?

 

[EODSSG]

Good Morning RonaldM,

I am in the States. I would imagine that if this were an option the call
center manager would have mentioned it straight away, but now that you
mention it I believe I have seen advertisements recently. I think the most
frustrating part of this whole experience is the fact that no one in their
customer service department seemed to want to help at all. They were more
interested in getting me off the phone and into their email queue.

[EODSSG]

Here is the latest email from Fitbit

;Email #1

Hello --------------,
We will be more than glad to assist you, thanks for selecting Fitbit.

We want to know if your Sense 2 is working in a good way, or which novelties do you have.

It is a pleasure for us to have customers like you. Have an awesome day.

We will be here to help you with all of you need.

Sincerely,

JG and the Fitbit Team

My Response;

JG and the Fitbit Team,

Thank you for getting back to me. Although I am afraid your effort may be too little too late. If any of your customer support staff, including a call center manager named Jermaine, would have applied the slightest modicum of common sense or were enabled with the authority to use it, we would not be in the situation we are in now. All I wanted to do was to use the digital gift card funds, sent to me by Fitbit as part of the Ionic Recall effort, to purchase a Sense 2 to replace the Ionic. I was given $299 for the recalled device. Your website has the Sense 2 listed at $299.95, a $0.95 difference. Your website development is so poor that it does not support split payment methods so I am unable to pay the 95 cent balance with another payment method. Since you are not willing to discount the device by 95 cents I am left, not only without a device, but without the means to purchase a replacement. 

Really bad planning on the part of Fitbit. I can't help but wonder how many others found themselves in the same situation as I have, or how much customer retention/ loyalty Fitbit has lost as a result of bad marketing decisions on price points and poor website development, especially for a company recently bought out by Google. Planning this poor and communication this awful should require remedial training of some sort. A 12 year old could have seen these problems coming from a mile away. I am curious though, which device do you think is better, the new Apple Watch or the Garmin?

Email #2

Hi _________,

Thanks for inquiring on how to purchase the Fitbit Sense 2. We'd be more than happy to assist you with this concern.

In response to your concern, the Ionic Recall refund cannot be combined with any other mode of payment.

We have some suggestions that you may consider.

The first option is to use the gift card for other online purchases because it is a MasterCard, then purchase the Fitbit Sense 2 with a different card. 

As a second option, you may purchase other Fitbit devices that are less than $299.

If you have additional questions about your Fitbit device or services, visit help.fitbit.com.   

Sincerely,

Jona E. and the Fitbit Team

My Response;

Jona,

Thank you for making my point. This is exactly what I am talking about. Not everyone has a spare $300 laying around, I can't pay my mortgage with a gift card. It is amazing that no one in your marketing department had the foresight to foresee this issue. you are owned by Google for crying out loud. Get one of their website designers to teach you how to fix your online payment system to allow for split payment methods. After being a proud brand ambassador, owning a Flex, a Surge, an Ionic, and a Sense, I find myself flabbergasted at the fact that your customer service department is going to let ninety-five cents drive me to seriously consider Apple and Garmin products after a decade of being a loyal customer.

Please make this make sense to me.

I don't want to have to learn a new system,

It is just me or does it seem like they are relying on AI to respond and address this issue. 

[RonaldM]

I'm really flabbergasted about the offers, especially when I'm working at a contact center myself. I know the limitations especially when it's an external party, you can only rely on the faq's offered and depending on agreed targets.

But how hard can it be for Fitbit to communicate to the contact center reps to inform you about the Black Friday discount so you can buy the Fitbit Sense 2 for less ($199.95 and a free wristband!), problem solved. Or in general to make gift cards available? It must be cheaper to offer you a gift card for $5,- then to have two (long) phone calls, two emails and one (at least) disappointed customer. And don't forget this negative thread on a support page... 

I just don't get it.... 

[TractorAdam]

Use the Master Card gift card to buy an Amazon g*ft c*rd, then use the Amazon credit to buy the watch on Amazon.

Your frustration is valid, but there's an easy way to accomplish your goal.