A lady called Tuesday am for a cake for Thursday.My usual cut off is 72 hours I had Thursday off so I said I could do it. She said she had a ideal in mind and could e-mail them. I gave her my e-mail as well as have it listed on web site. She had to check with someone and I said i was on my way out the door to go to work and she could call to confirm that night. No call no e-mail! Called her at her # wednesday am and said I need to know if she still wanted to order as I had to go get supplies that am. NO CALL! I am out shopping on Thursday, my DD calls from home and said some lady wanted to know when she could pick up her cake! I told he to give her my cell # to talk to me. When she called I said she didn't call to confirm and she said she sent me an e-mail which I never got. "So I don't have a cake then?? " Sorry no I am sick to my stomach but did not now have the time to do a large fondant cake with special filling and fondant flowers an gold accent piping. I never had this happen and not sure how to deal except " Your lack of planning does not count as a emergency on my part"

That's just plain strange. She never even told you what she wanted or confirmed to make sure you received the email. Don't stress over it.

I would tell her that you are sorry but you were unable to get a hold of her and therefore, were unable to confirm her order. You could not in good conscience create a cake for her, expecting her to pay, without her approval.

I would politely remind her that you left her your number and email, as well as made every attempt to contact her but that you could not complete her order without knowing what she even wanted.

Too bad, so sad. If she showed as much interest in taking care of her last minute order as you did, well she'd have a cake now, wouldn't she? Don't bother worrying about it for one more millisecond.

I agree! Don't worry about it for another second. Some people are not 'planners', or they procrastinate, or they're just plain unorganized and you can't let that ruin your business or stress you out. If you were never able to confirm with her and get a solid "yes", she should have known she wasn't getting a cake. I'm an insurance agent during the day and I can't issue an insurance policy without a "yes" and a signed contract. That's just the way it is.

That reminds me of a car insurance commercial I saw the other day where the guy drives up a pole. He calls his insurance agent but she has to remind him that he dropped her for the cheaper guys, and yeah, you're screwed now buddy! I loved it!

One way to--sometimes---avoid this type of run around phone/e-mail tag is to tell someone wanting to make such a short notice order is that payment in full is required ---very, very quickly--and that until that payment is made, the cake will not be started.

On this short notice--72hrs.--she'd have had to bring the payment, in cash, within a few hours and at a reasonable time of day. I'd have made it very clear that there'd be no grace period and that if she didn't arrive by that time, I would not be making the cake under any circumstances.

Rae

Thanks all!! I am not feeling guilty now! And if she had actually placed an order she would have had to pay thru paypal.