I just delivered a cake and got bad feedback. When I delivered she said she liked it but I could tell by the look on her face that she didnt. Then I just checked my email and this is what I got....

Hey hun I have to be honest with you I'm really bumed about the cake. It doesn't look like our design and I thought the ribbon would have been done in fondandt..I thought that everything would be edible and the two different purples really clash....people are talking about it and not in a good way (((( I hate to even tell you but I'm bumed out.

How do I respond? We didnt have a contract and I will be giving her part of her money back but this just ruined my entire night

Sorry you had that happen. We're you happy with the cake you delivered? Do you think any of the specific complaints the customer made had any merit?

Unfortunately I do! I knew she wouldn't like it but I made the mistake of delivering it anyways because I made it last night and worked at my full time job all day and didn't have time to fix it.

I am so bummed right now, she has ordered quite a few cakes from me but this one was for a big event. I knew I should have gone with my gut!!

Just keep apologizing to her. Try to make it up to her some other way like baking a batch of cupcakes of something. It happens. You will overcome it. Just next time make sure you ask if they want fondant or satin ribbon. Hope u feel better soon we're here to cheer you up! It has happened to me as well but I have learned from it and improved.

I personally would make her next cake FREE . It would have to be close to the same size, etc. as this one, I would even take a few extra steps to make it outstanding. She's unhappy with this one that she paid for, just tell her you are sorry and that you will make it up to her. As, you have said, you weren,t happy with it either. Yes, we learn my our mistakes and go on. Throw this over your shoulder and go forward. Good Luck.

Are you able to give her all of her money back? I think that might be more than is required since she did have a cake, which presumably tasted good, to serve to her guests but it would demonstrate that you are willing to go above and beyond what is needed to address your mistakes - that is what customers really appreciate. You mentioned she has ordered cakes from you in the past so I would want to keep her happy.

Just wanted to add that the full refund should help you, too. After she has her money back do not feel the slightest bit bad for what happened. Yes, she did not get the cake she envisioned but she got a free cake to serve her guests. So no more tears.

Also, I'd probably tell her that you'll knock her socks off on the next cake she orders (assuming that you think you can correct the issues she identified in the future). I would not discount that future order, though since she got a free cake this time.

That said, if you can't afford or don't think a full refund is warranted (don't have pics of the cake maybe the problems were just minor overall), figure out the biggest refund you think she is actually entitled to, then increase that amount by 5 - 10%. Again, we have no pics of the cake, so can't really tell how off the mark the cake was.

I will post pictures soon. I agree with everything that she said with the exception of the ribbon. We had a really hard time getting the correct purple and tried airbrushing it but it made the fondant crumble I emailed her and apologized profusely, I also told her that if she had told me she was not satisfied with the cake when we dropped it off we could have taken it into the kitchen and tried to fix it. I gave her 1/2 of her money back which left me with just enough to cover my ingredients. And when I take her the refund today I am going to take her some cake pops.

She is a friend of mine and has always loved all of the other cakes we made for her so I am not too worried about losing her as a customer because she knows what we are capable of. I just hope that it didn't ruin her night. This one is definitely going to take me a while to get over. I know these things happen and I know I should just brush it off but its going to be hard.

Thank you all for your encouraging words. I knew you guys would understand

If I was not happy with the cake, I would have delivered the refund along with the cake.

OP, I'm so sorry this happened to you. I looked at your photos and your Olivia cake is absolutely adorable! You are clearly very talented!! We all have bad days once in a while. Don't beat yourself up over this; consider it a learning experience and move on.

I think every baker has felt this pain, and I'm sorry for you, BUT it WILL make you a better baker. Take it as a lesson learned and move on with your talents!