Now I am one to accept criticism...however...here goes the story:

I just did a 4 tier wedding cake with cascading yellow roses. Bride saw the cake as I was applying the roses and just loved it!! The finished cake was beautiful, it had no flaws and tasted great according to the caterer (my friend) and the bride which she posted on FB.

I sent her an email requesting a review (I'm on wedding wire) and she gave me a 3.5/5 on quality of service and 3/5 on value. She not only commented on how much she loved the cake on wedding wire but also posted it on her FB on how she loved the cake. I just dont understand how she gave me such low ratings on those two categories, especially since she loooooved the cake and had no complaints whatsoever.

I know I will never please everybody, but when you hear nothing but rave reviews from the bride herself, it makes it kind of hard to accept such low ratings. I know I should just forget about it...but it really has been bugging me for the past couple of days. Thanks for letting me vent

Here is the cake:
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=279054422105554&set=a.202374536440210.54750.198333866844277&type=1&theater

Awesome looking cake...maybe she is one of those people who doesn't believe in giving a perfect score? Like maybe 4/5 is the highest she ever goes, so 3.5 was just under?? I don't know really, sorry. But maybe if you have a good rapport with the bride contact her after the honeymoon and question her about 'where you lost those few points' in terms of cake and service, to help you identify any perceived weaknesses.

3.5 ain't bad!

We all think that if we provided the product as promised, it should be a 5-star rating. But some people do not agree and stick to the literal translation of the system. Did you go above and beyond? Did you save the day? Did you do something extraordinary? I can only assume that you promised X and provided X (as contracted), therefore she gave you B-. B- ain't that bad! Same with value - if you did that cake for $200, it would be a 5/5.

Or another explanation is your client was a moron. Your cake is beautiful and perfectly executed.

Honestly, sometimes Brides are never COMPLETELY and TOTALLY , PERFECTLY satisfied.... even if everything turned out amazing! Your cake was GORGEOUS!!!

crazy isn't it? this recently happened to me as well. the bride even wrote a nice comment about me and her cake on FB and WW but didn't give me 5 stars. bugged the heck out of me for a good week but i just chalk it up to the fact that some people just don't believe in perfect scores. your cake is flippin awesome so i wouldn't worry anymore about it

Maybe she thought she paid too much for the cake, some people just can't believe how much cakes cost. Your cake was beautiful.

Thanks guys for the nice comments regarding the cake. I was quite proud of it since it was my first time applying fresh flowers to a cake. I just have to accept that some brides will never be completely satisfied. What just gets me is the low score on the quality of service. I believe I went way and beyond of what was expected. I accommodated our meetings at THEIR house TWICE and primarily at their availability. I guessed it kicked me in the butt!!

As far as price...I charged $4.25 per serving and charged $25 to apply the flowers and $25 for the rental stand. She got quite a deal since bakeries in town charge between $5-6 for fondant.

I guess I should just move on and forget about it...but when I think of everything I did to provide excellent customer service in addition to providing a beautiful, affordable and delicious cake...I just feel robbed

Thanks for letting me vent!

If this still really bothers you, could you ask your customer how you could have made her score you higher. Just say that customer service is a high priority for you, and would like to know what you could have done differently. My sister sells on ebay, and is amazed how you just can't please some people. They will find fault in the tiniest thing, she feels like she goes far and beyond to keep her ebay ratings high, but occassionally someone will give a negitive or neutral review, when she has done nothing wrong, so you just never know.