After a cake is delivered... is it standard procedure to hear back from your customer? And in what kind of time-frame? I'm curious really, and I realize that this will depend on a case-by-case basis but I'm still curious as to whether people normally give feedback.

As some may know I just delivered my first paid cake Monday... the customer was a girl I knew but only very casually. She asked/I offered to send along the pictures I took of the cake in case she didn't get a shot of it, and I did send those pictures later that night after delivery. I was expecting at least a "thanks for the pictures"-- but nothing. Normal?

I knoooooww I'm overthinking this but what if the cake was no good? Tasted bad? Got dropped on the floor by kitchen staff? Aye-yaye-yaye how nerve-wracking! I'm usually there when the cake is "delivered," presented, and cut, so I'm not used to being separated from my cake and not knowing if everything went well--LOL!

Aye. TIA and thanks if you read through my little freakout/rant.. hehe

Over time, I've learned that no news is good news. Just a couple of weeks ago, I had some bad news. Icing slid off of the top tier of one of my cakes. I'd rather hear nothing and I feel in my heart that all went well. However I do Facebook now, and I get to hear feedback from the people who are also on FB, and that's is very nice, but everyone I cake for isn't on FB. Also, I worry when I don't get a return "customer". Some people, I've been baking for for years and then a couple I've never heard from again. Those gnaw away at me....

As a matter of fact, I do hear back from my customers. Even the ones I don't expect to hear from. I just let them know I'd like feedback if everything was good or if something wasn't quite right. And I've had both responses and didn't take offense to the bad and smiled at the good.

My customer base knows I can improve by their input, so they communicate with me.

Besides, if the cake you delivered was no good they most often will let you know.

Don't worry if you hear nothing, believe all went well.

I definitely get great feedback from the majority of my customers. The other ones, like someone else has said I chalk up to "no news is good news!" If people are upset, you WILL hear about it, but not always when they liked the product. Some people just see us as any ordinary food vendors. Why would you call your local pizza place to tell them just how wonderful that pepperoni extravaganza was?? That would be weird! That being said, I am sure that you did a great job and that your client was pleased. You may not hear back (good news!) OR, perhaps it just takes her awhile to get back to emails. I have a lot of clients like that! You're fine, don't sweat it!

I've received emails back on several cakes, thanking me and telling me they loved thier cake. I'd say for every 5-7 cakes, I get an unsolicited response. Like lynda-bob, no news is good news so I don't think twice if hear nothing.

I do follow up by email with thank yous.

Sometimes I hear back, sometimes not...sometimes I don't hear back about cakes I was really proud of, and other times I get rave reviews about a cake I wasn't thrilled about. Recently I got a thank you card mailed to me from a graduate who was the recipient of a recent cake so...it just all depends!

When I do get those thank you notes in the mail, it's pretty awesome.

But no news is good news, and that's ok with me.

If you pick up a meal-to-go from Olive Garden or McDonald's, you don't call them to tell them it tasted great. When you buy new shoes, you don't call the shoe store to tell them the shoes are comfortable. Even big purchases like new cars (whether they're new or used .... but new to me), I dont' call the car lot or dealership to tell them, "Hey, the car's still running ok!"

It's not unusual for people to NOT contact you.

Indy I was so thinking the same thing.

I do cakes for family and friends mostly. If it is for an event that I don't go to I hardly ever get a "thank you, the cake was great" after the fact. If I do, it is usually when I see them again.

You can really drive yourself crazy if we over think things, so sometimes we just have to let things go. I'd say 9 times out of 10, if something was wrong with the cake you would have heard about it. So I totally agree with the no news is good news thing.

If you really want feed back, why not make up a postcard survey to give them with the cake. You can always word it as a "I'm always looking to improve my product how did you like the .....?" I doubt you may get every one of them back, but it may encourage more responses.

I have a customer comment section on my web site and I tell every customer that if they were pleased I would very much appreciate it if they left a brief comment and that if they were not happy to please let me know immediately so that I can make it right. I also deliver a thank you card with every cake which can be used as a coupon for 20% off of thier next order. That usually gets them to leave a comment for me. I also have a refferal program where they can earn discounts on an order be reffering clients who actually buy from me.

I'm not a needy person, so I don't solicit (I actually think it is tacky to do so).

If they call or e-mail and thank me for the great cake, I'm proud as punch. When I get thank you cards/pics from my newlyweds it makes my day.

If I don't hear anything I'm not worried or stressed.

I do alot of cake for free and I must say I get worried when I don't hear something. Just lately I did a cake for a friend of my son's wedding reception, I couldn't make it, so I was hoping to get a thank you but didn't hear anything. I had baked the cakes in a 3" pan and was worried it was overbaked. My son said it was good, but then I feel like he would say that, but then later we were sitting around with a bunch of his friends and out of the blue they all started saying it was the best cake they had ever had. So you never know, even when you think something is wrong, it really isn't. Some people just don't think to say thank you

LOL indeydebi said EXACTLY what I tell myself all the time, I use pizza though !
I was/am still having the same freak out but I have taught myself that yeah, no news in good news. I rarely hear back from my customers but when I do it is good news. and what confuses me is when I dont hear back and that person never orders from me again. I assume they didnt like it. Then a week later that person's friend calls me to make an order, saying she had my sweets at this persons house and everyone loved it. Well why didnt she call back then? oh well. A lot of my customers do that.
ya never know though, I guess we gotta put ourselves in their shoes. she coulda found something closer or more convinient, cheaper, whatever...we're not to take it personally.
I had this one woman order through FB and never left a comment. I then saw her order from someone else and did leave a comment. I thought maybe she didnt like what she got from me. But then a few months later she did order from me again for her sons birthday, she said he saw my dirt and worms cupcakes and had to have them. And after that she did leave a comment.

Good news!!! I'm so excited and I wanted to share!

The customer emailed me just today. I was actually surprised to recieve correspondance as I had figured at this point that the issue was passed and that I probably wouldn't hear from her.

I was so glad to read that she had nothing but kind words for me and the cake! She sent pictures along of the guests of honor, and the cake cut etc. She even asked if I would be interested in making more cakes for her in the future, should the occassion arise. (!!! squealing like a little girl LOL!!! ) She rounded off the email by saying that the guest of honor had made a picture of the cake her facebook profile picture. How cool!!!

Happy Happy =] ...this was my first paid cake, for someone who I only casually knew so I'm just so happy that it all went well!

Last time I heard back from a customer it wasn't good, her dingy husband left with the cake to take back to the shower and wasn't careful at all, so it fell over and was completely destroyed she had to go to Raley's for a cake. She was pissed off and her husband told her, it wasn't cute anyways. So she then got upset at me for the whole cake situation. Yeah so don't be suprised if they don't call back, just be happy that they come back to order another cake or best yet recommend someone else.