So Fed Up With Customers Not Checking My Location
Lounge By reginaherrin Updated 12 Feb 2014 , 9:08pm by Rosie93095
So my bakeries name is Unique Cakes by Regina. I am located in Texas which is on my contact page and my name is Regina but I get so many Canadians contacting me wanting to order a cake thinking I am in Regina Canada. I have sent tons of quotes and come up with designs and then come to find out they are in Canada and not my location. I can catch then pretty quickly if they fill out the phone number section but if they don't then I don't think about having to ask them there location. I just don't understand how anyone could confuse my name with my location because its Unique Cakes BY Regina as in cakes made by a person named Regina not cakes made close to Regina Canada. If the name was Regina's Unique Cakes or Unique Cakes in Regina then I would total understand but it is by Regina. And as I said my location is on the contacts page. I just got another one yesterday asking for some designs which I sketched out and sent this morning and just got an email back a few minutes ago asking if I was in Canada. Its just really aggravating me since it keeps happening so I just had to come on here and vent a little. So not putting anyone down so don't take it that ways just venting a bit.
Repeat your location on the contact page. IN BOLD LETTERS
IE,,,
I SERVICE DALLAS/ FORT WORTH METROPLEX. Please complete the following information for a quote;
I think I will add it to my home page and maybe try to put in under my bakery name which shows up on every page. I don't think I want to repeat it on my contact page just because I think having it twice on the same page will make me look stupid or rude but I will change the location to bold bigger letters. I don't really think these changes will stop people from thinking I am in Canada though since they are already missing the location now and I guess misreading my company name but I guess anything is worth a try.
I often search in vain for the location of businesses on their pages. I tend to skim a bit on web pages, so it's not that they're being deliberately annoying - they just Google 'cake Regina' and your site comes up, and they see 'Regina' in big letters on the front page and don't register the 'by' as opposed to an 'in'.
I'm sure they don't want to waste their own time looking through your page, just as much as you don't want to waste yours giving quotes. But people often don't even look at the contacts page until they've looked through the rest of your site and are ready to order.
I think having your location on your front page will save everyone some time and effort.
Knowing that this has been a problem in the past, I wouldn't spend ANY TIME, or send ANYTHING, until I knew the client's location or delivery location.
I'd make it a question on the contact form and if it wasn't filled out, the only contact they'd get from me would be:
"Where are you located? I service the XYZ region of TX only."
My bakeries name is in big letters at the top of each page and is actually in two lines where the Unique Cakes is on one line and by Regina on another so I still don't know how someone could not see the by and think it is an in. Also, the name is really visible and super noticeable so everyone can really see it on every page. My contact page is just a form to fill out to get a cake quote and it also has my location right above the send button. Again super visible especially since you have to hit the send and its right above it. I did just change the location to the top of the contact form so hopefully that will help and I will still put it on the front page but it is also on the about us page which most people do check out. When I do searches for things in a specific location I put in what I'm looking for then put in whatever city I want it, i.e. cakes in Dallas Texas since I know there could be other cities out there that could be named Dallas.
I didn't say people thought it was an 'in', just that they probably don't register it in their heads when they're thinking about other things, like what kind of cake they want.
Yes, you think they're all idiots, and maybe they are, but you can't change people from being idiots, you can only change what you do. So you have two choices, I guess, keep being annoyed or change something to make it easier for all the idiots.
I didn't say anyone was idiots and I planned on implementing the suggestions I got and putting the location on the home page. All I was saying is that I really don't think that would work and don't understand how anyone could mistake the by Regina for a bakery in Regina Canada. And since they aren't reading it from my about us page or the contact us page unless I put it in big bold letters across the entire home page (which I won't do) I don't think they will see it. But I will put it on the home page and see what happens. So it will be on 3 pages at that point and if I still keep getting people thinking I am in Canada then there is something wrong with them.
This is a stretch for explaining this behavior by the Canadians who keep contacting you, but do you think they are reading your "by" to mean "near"? I am really just kidding, but if you lived near Regina, you might think that?? Maybe it will happen less once you add your city and state to every page. :)
Liz
Just looked at your website.
Another possible suggestion? On your "contact us" form, add a field "Your location". That way, if you get a request using that form, you'll see right away where they're from. If they ARE from somewhere near Regina, Saskatchewan, then you'll see that and can respond accordingly.
That could also be helpful even for those that are in your area if your quote includes delivery costs or similar.
Spelling out "Texas" on the top of the contact form, instead of "TX" might help as well.
Just some random thoughts. 
I am not sure if I can add a location field on the contacts but I will try. I still think its ridiculous that they don't see the big Arlington TX location right above the area they have to fill out and if spelling out Texas will change that then that would be crazy. I guess I will try it to see if that does any good. I only get one or so every couple of months so hopefully all of the changes will help. I know people can be lazy but if I want to order something I would want to know a lot about them including if they are close to me. Thanks though to all for the input.
Um really? So they would see the Arlington TX 76016 and would think nothing of the Arlington since they don't know what the TX means? Of course I don't know many places in Canada but are there many places called Arlington there for them to think it is in Canada? Also, they would think nothing of my zip code? And as I said it is also on my about us page and it actually is typed as Texas and not just TX. If I went to a website and wanted to order something and I see a location that looks unfamiliar to me I would look it up. Or even email them to see where they are. I would have no problem if people would do that. And my area code is 817 so do they look over that as well? I mean that is a lot of things for them to look over and count as meaningless. I don't know where in Australia you are but if you had a website and just put the city in Australia you where in and not the country and it didn't look familiar I wouldn't just assume you are in my location. I'm sorry, it just doesn't make sense. If I was doing a search or bakeries in Dallas Texas (which is close to my location) and a website popped up that was called Unique Cakes by Dallas, I would not just assume it was located in Dallas, I would check it out first.
I think I will add it to my home page and maybe try to put in under my bakery name which shows up on every page. I don't think I want to repeat it on my contact page just because I think having it twice on the same page will make me look stupid or rude but I will change the location to bold bigger letters. I don't really think these changes will stop people from thinking I am in Canada though since they are already missing the location now and I guess misreading my company name but I guess anything is worth a try.
Far from being rude or stupid, a few changes will make it clear that you realize that people from all over the world might find themselves on your site. In addition to spelling out Texas, I'd suggest adding United States. Especially since this has happened to you a few times already
As many websites as I have gone to, be it either a US based website or overseas website, I have never seen any of them have to go so far as to have to put their city, state spelled out, county, phone number and zip code to make sure everyone is not confused about where they are located. I mean people aren't that stupid. And I don't think the people contacted me are being stupid, I think they are completely lazy and spelling out the state and adding the county will not stop people from being lazy since again the location is on 2 separate pages and is spelled out on one page.
AI think they are stupid, and I think having to spell out Texas is ridiculous, with all the other points as well, such as area code and zip code. It is common sense to make sure they are local to you or if you ship to them. I have gone on cake supply sites and noticed a little spelling difference or uncommon word and that makes me go straight to the info page to see where they are located.
Any human brain will filter out information that seems unimportant. This is one of the reasons why webdesign can be tricky. If people go to your site, already thinking you are located in Regina, Canada, they are not actively looking for info on your location. Then it becomes easy to overlook a sentence like "Arlington, TX", especially if it doesn't make sense. This has nothing to do with being lazy or stupid.
On your contact form, Arlington TX is written with the same color and font as the rest of the information, making it very easy to simply overlook - you could try to make it stand out by changing the color or the font. Preferably the color.
I also suggest you change your page title to "Cakes by Regina, Arlington Texas" - right now it is "Valentines Days Goodies". This would make people aware of your location before they even click your link in a Google search. Put your location in the menu bar or in the logo on every page, and in the footer as well. You want the information to be very easily available.
It may seem excessive, but catering to customers online and in writing can be tricky. What may seem obvious to you, might not be to the customer (and obviously isn't, or you wouldn't have all these people from Canada ordering), who is planning a party, perhaps even a wedding, and already have a gazillion things on their mind. They may never have ordered a custom cake before and are already feeling out of their comfort zone.
Sometimes you really do have to cater to "stupidity" - even though it might seem silly.
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As many websites as I have gone to, be it either a US based website or overseas website, I have never seen any of them have to go so far as to have to put their city, state spelled out, county, phone number and zip code to make sure everyone is not confused about where they are located. I mean people aren't that stupid. And I don't think the people contacted me are being stupid, I think they are completely lazy and spelling out the state and adding the county will not stop people from being lazy since again the location is on 2 separate pages and is spelled out on one page.
Sure they do. Heaps of websites have an address on them so you know exactly where they are.
I see now where it's spelled out on your About Us page, but it's kind-of buried in text in the second paragraph, and I know I don't often read that page when I'm searching quickly. Call that lazy if you like. But spelling it out clearly somewhere might stop this issue which is clearly annoying you.
Whether it's people being lazy or whatever is debatable, but you can't change other people being lazy or stupid. You can, however, change something simple on your end that might solve the problem.
I forgot to mention one of the reasons I suggested putting "United States". Before I posted, I Googled two pretty well known cake joints; one in the US, one in Australia...each of them has their full address spelled out. Thought the suggestion might help ya, but if it doesn't, feel free to discard
Quote:
Any human brain will filter out information that seems unimportant. This is one of the reasons why webdesign can be tricky. If people go to your site, already thinking you are located in Regina, Canada, they are not actively looking for info on your location. Then it becomes easy to overlook a sentence like "Arlington, TX", especially if it doesn't make sense. This has nothing to do with being lazy or stupid.
On your contact form, Arlington TX is written with the same color and font as the rest of the information, making it very easy to simply overlook - you could try to make it stand out by changing the color or the font. Preferably the color.
I also suggest you change your page title to "Cakes by Regina, Arlington Texas" - right now it is "Valentines Days Goodies". This would make people aware of your location before they even click your link in a Google search. Put your location in the menu bar or in the logo on every page, and in the footer as well. You want the information to be very easily available.
It may seem excessive, but catering to customers online and in writing can be tricky. What may seem obvious to you, might not be to the customer (and obviously isn't, or you wouldn't have all these people from Canada ordering), who is planning a party, perhaps even a wedding, and already have a gazillion things on their mind. They may never have ordered a custom cake before and are already feeling out of their comfort zone.
Sometimes you really do have to cater to "stupidity" - even though it might seem silly.
If the location of a business is unnecessary information then there is something wrong with the person looking at it. The location may be the same color on the contact form but the background color is different and it is the very first sentence on the page and is bigger and bolder then everything else on the whole page. The title of the home page is home page not valentines goodies, that is an advertisement on the home page and I certainly will not be changing it to Cakes by Regina since that is not the name of my website and would be confusing in the long run since clearly the name is Unique Cakes. I could add it to the footer and will probably go ahead and do that but again, if they can't find it on the about us page and the contact us page then the footer will be the last place they will be looking. I am sure there are tons of people that have never ordered a custom cake before but they have ordered other things before, unless they are 6 years old. And that surely would not stop them from trying to find out where I am. Do people really just go to random websites and think "I am going to try to order from this store even though I'm not really sure where they are and don't care to find out"?
Sure they do. Heaps of websites have an address on them so you know exactly where they are.
I see now where it's spelled out on your About Us page, but it's kind-of buried in text in the second paragraph, and I know I don't often read that page when I'm searching quickly. Call that lazy if you like. But spelling it out clearly somewhere might stop this issue which is clearly annoying you.
Whether it's people being lazy or whatever is debatable, but you can't change other people being lazy or stupid. You can, however, change something simple on your end that might solve the problem.
I'm not sure what websites you go to but most ones I've ever been to don't have a super long address on their site. They normally have a basic address which includes their street address, city, state and zip. I have rarely found a U.S. based website that had their country on it. I just did a few random searches to check out address and some had their states spelled out but most had just the abbreviation and not one I went to had the country. Again, do you really think that a few more letters in the state will really stop people from thinking I am in Canada? Seriously? And my location in the about us page is not buried, there is only 2 very short paragraphs on the whole page and the location is in the first sentence of the second short paragraph. Do we have to justify stupidity and laziness now? I mean my goodness, why do I have to bend over backwards to get it 150% crystal clear that I am in Texas and not Canada or anywhere else?
ANot sure if you actually want input/suggestions or if you are just needing to vent (I don't mean that snarky; I fully understand if venting is the requirement!) but I noticed that you have an FAQ section. Maybe you could add "Where are you located?" as one of the questions, preferable one of the first questions seeing as the problem people obviously don't look too far for any info! In might not make much difference, but it might stop a few annoying interactions. I agree that you shouldn't need to put a lot of info about your location in any obvious, in-your-face area of your website. It people really can't figure out this sort of thing they probably shouldn't be walking around!
The internet encompasses websites from the entire world. Not wanting to put your city and state front and center on a webpage is not the same as not wanting to put your city and state name above your street address on a physical retail location. If you aren't offering mail order services on a website, I think it is pretty important to list your city and state first thing. It is just like a business card - your city, state and phone number are prominent on that, so why not on the first page of your website? Maybe you should sign up with Google analytics or something similar and see exactly where hits on your website are coming from - most probably aren't coming from anywhere close to your physical location.
Liz
As you wish, that is a good idea and I keep meaning to do that anyways. Liz, my city, state, zip and phone number are on the contact page as well as the city and state on the about us page so if they can't read from the contact page before they start filling out the contact us page and they start off assuming I am in Regina Canada anyways putting it on every page and everywhere you look, at the top and bottom, spelling everything out and making a complete jackass of myself by repeating it 9 millions times won't make much of a difference. And if you do a search you will see that most other bakeries that don't ship either don't put their address in 9 millions places, they normally put it on their contact us page possibly their about us page and if they have a faq page. I will be adding it to the faq page and will see about putting a footer on every page as well but other then that I don't think any other place is necessary. I think a lot of people responding are trying to justify laziness and stupidity when it should be the other way around.
Other U.S. based websites are not having the problem of being mistaken for being located in another country. If they were, I am sure they would make sure that their address was much more prominent to minimize confusion.
I almost never read through paragraphs on about pages of websites. Is it because I am lazy or stupid? No, it is because I don't care why you are in business. I have 5 children that I homeschool, and am very busy. All I want to know is if the products you are offering suit my needs or not. I would look at the gallery, prices, and then straight to the contact page. The fact that Arlington, TX and the zip are at the top of the contact form just seems oddly placed to me, and honestly I don't think that if I was from any other country that I would make an impression on me at all.
Its really strange to me that so many people would just ignore the location. They are initially thinking that I'm in Canada and I cannot fix that. All they see is the Regina in the name and think for some reason that it is IN Regina and not BY Regina which is clearly says by Regina. If they are already thinking that I am in Canada then they don't even look at the location which 99.9% of people will do. I put the location front and center on the contact us page just because people where skipping the location. I did not say that if you don't read it on my about us page you are lazy or stupid I just said it was also there. I am more concerned about it being on the contact us page since you can't help but not see it before you have to send me a email and I would think a rational person would stop and think it may not be where they think it is. Even if they overlook the city, state or zip wouldn't you see the phone number? Not everyone likes to send emails, they like calling and talking to people and my area code is very different from the area codes in Canada so that would be a big indicator to me about location.
The bottom line is, regardless if you think people are not reading carefully or are being lazy, if this is happening on a regular basis you can either make some changes or be prepared to continue to be irritated about it. I've read the entire thread and you seem to be dismissing very good advice on how to improve your business because you think everyone else has the problem. I can't understand why it's such a big deal for you to emphasize TEXAS on your website if it's going to filter out customers that are in Canada. Or, BEFORE you take the time to give a quote or do a sketch, simply confirm with the customer "I just want to make sure you realize I am in Texas. I've had some customers mistakenly believe I am in Regina, Canada." This would take all of 1 minute and save you some time and hassle.
I have taken some of the advice which I said I would. I have dismissed the ridiculous advice thought. Most companies do not have to emphasize their location and don't have to worry about people ignoring their location. I also did not come on here asking for advice, its fine that I got some and I have taken so of the advise that I like but as I said in the OP I was just venting. It doesn't happen all that much, maybe one every 6 months to a year and yes it sucks but having to send a first response email to every single person is a hassle in itself. And again I don't think spelling out Texas will weed any of these type of people.
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