back-words... Energizer energized me...

Monday, November 3, 2008
Energizer energized me...
Recently, I purchased a pack of batteries and I was surprised at what I found inside.
It turned out to be a coupon, except that the coupon had expired about eight months earlier. So my thoughts followed the following sequence:
Woohoo! a coupon- that's rare!
Ooh, a buck off; I can use that.
Oh, it's expired...
Damn, I bought old batteries!
...because of course, if the coupon is expired, it means that the batteries are also old since coupons are meant to expire ahead of purchase time. Simply going back to the store would most likely result in an exchange for more old batteries with an expired coupon contained within. Who needs more of that? Not I...
With this thought in mind, I decided to navigate my trusty browser to the Energizer website to see if I could find a direct way to contact them and indeed they had the typical contact form one would find on many websites. I explained to them what happened and that while i wasn't specifically looking for restitution, I felt they should have a heads up that a store was selling a less than fresh version of their product. Having completed my little note, I sent it off ans gave it very little thought.
Days later, I received snail mail from Energizer. It was in response to my online communication with them, which surprised me as I expected if anything at all, I would get an email. However, as I poured through the hard copy template communication, I realized they were indeed acknowledging a foul up and as a way of making amends they gave me a $10 coupon! Granted it's only applicable toward the purchase of only one product, but if I apply it wisely I can get something very useful out of this coupon and maximize its worth, plus it expires toward the end of next year so I have time to consider my options. Not bad, huh?