A few days ago, I came across a thread on a forum where a member wrote about something dishonest she had done in order to save money. This individual was cleaning out her kitchen pantry and came across some jars of pasta sauce that she had gotten in a Buy One Get One Free sale some time ago and forgotten to use. She had exactly ½ the number of jars left as she originally came home with, so technically these could be regarded as the free jars she had gotten in the BOGO sale.

She saw that these jars of sauce were coming up on the expiration date (a week away) and since she didn’t have time to use them by the printed date and didn’t want them to “go to waste”, took them back to the store to return them. She told the cashier that she had lost the receipt and ended up receiving a $10.00 store credit for these items that she had gotten for free in the first place. She knew that what she had done was dishonest but said that she thought it had been worth it.

Now, I am all for frugality (which is defined as “prudence in avoiding waste,” see Language Lesson: Frugality is a Virtue) and saving money, but there has to come a point where one draws a moral line and takes responsibility for one’s own mistakes. This person had herself neglected to use a product she had received for free and taken it back to the store under false pretenses and made a financial gain.

Besides, as my sister Madoline often says, the bacteria in that carton of milk (or package of food) doesn’t look at the expiration date and think, “I’d better go bad now.” It is most likely that those jars of sauce would still have been usable for a little while. If “avoiding waste” was her sole concern, she could have had pasta for the next few days, made a lasagne, calzone, ravioli, or even donated them to a food bank or charity. She could also have put the sauce in a bag or container and frozen it to use over time at her leisure.

Instead she took them back to the store where they most certainly would have been wasted. The likelihood of the store being able to re-sell those jars of sauce so close to the expiration date is slim, and they most likely would have to throw these close-to-expired products away if operating under business and food services policies.

I have heard people reason and rationalize about taking advantage of businesses saying, “Well, they can afford the loss.” It may be true, but it doesn’t make it right. It is true that the wholesale cost of a jar of pasta sauce might be small, but the retail price the store charges the consumer takes into account other costs associated with selling that jar of sauce – lease, tax, business fees, storage space and equipment, employee wages (to organize and clean the store and products, run the cash register, bag the items), and all other expenses of making that jar of sauce available to you. Of course the business makes a profit, for that is the primary and accepted purpose of a business.

So, in actuality, one could say that this dishonest customer really cost this business $20.00 – $10.00 for initially getting the products free of charge, and then $10.00 of store credit she received for returning them later. In my opinion, taking advantage of a businesses’ desire to provide good customer service in this way is no less than stealing.

Yes, it was only $20.00, but it was still $20.00 dishonestly earned. $20.00 is 3 hours of work for some minimum wage workers. $20.00 is capital for a business to turn into a much higher profit. If $20.00 is worth stealing, it’s worth keeping to the rightful owner.

Money is a wonderful thing. It may not be able to literally buy happiness, but it can buy a lot of things that contribute to happiness. However, as someone once said, “The love of money is the root of all evil,” and a high percentage of crimes is committed in the name of money.

I know there are many levels of wrongdoings and everyone has their own standards in their moral code, but there has to come a time when one draws a line between what is right and what is wrong in order to save, or make, money.

Related posts:

• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #2
• April 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #19
• Blog Carnivals
• Pecuniarities (Our Fourpence Worth) 1 Year Anniversary

Unicorn Browband

Last month we received an order for a Unicorn Browband, a costume attachment for a horse’s bridle to give the illusion of them riding a unicorn. People often order the Unicorn Browband when they have a parade, show or a costume contest. The customer placed an order for a ready-made unicorn horn and then sent an email with special requests, one of which we agreed to do for her at no extra charge even though it cost us more.

She also told us her horse had a very large head and asked us to make the horn larger, which we couldn’t do because the horn was already made, and we advised her to order a custom horn in order to better suit her horse, but she decided to just take the smaller, less expensive one that she had ordered.

So we finished off the item (the horn was made but the length of the browband had to be customized to her specification) and added a special feature that she requested — Velcro loops instead of regular sewn loops at the ends — and shipped it off to her. A week later, she e-mailed to tell us the horn didn’t look right on her horse because it was too small and wanted to return it and order a larger custom horn as we had suggested at the time of her order.

We don’t normally allow returns due to health concerns — you never know if a customer will try a costume on an animal that isn’t clean, has parasites or communicable diseases and then return it. But because sales are slow this year and she wanted to order a replacement item, we made an exception and offered to send her a gift certificate for the purchase price after she returned it to us. She waited another 3 weeks to send it back to us, and when I emailed her a claim code for her store credit, she wrote back and said she had changed her mind and just wanted a refund.

A quick Googling of this customer shows that she participates in horse shows, and I am inclined to suspect that she used the unicorn browband for a show and then returned it for a refund, because she didn’t send it back to us until a month after making her order. This may or may not be true, but it wouldn’t surprise me if it was because I have heard of people doing the same thing with clothes.

I know businesses are supposed to love their customers, and I do like most of mine. But many people believe that a business must always treat customers as if they’re always right and give them anything they want, to which I don’t agree. As a customer, I am aware of what is honest and right. If I neglect to read a product description or terms of sale before buying something (which I never do), then it’s my fault. Perhaps this is unreasonable, but as a business I expect customers to be equally honest and take responsibility for their own errors.

So Madoline and I have decided that we will no longer accept orders from this customer. It may not be the smartest thing to do to turn away potential future earnings from her, but her actions have proven her to be more of a hassle and not worth the money we might earn, because:

• She wasted our time by not reading the product description
• She expected special features that weren’t offered or included with her purchase
• She ignored our advice to order the right size for her horse
• She expected special treatment when her decision to not take our advice turned out to be a bad idea
• She lied about wanting to order a replacement item and took advantage of us after the item had been returned to us
• She may have used the item for a show before returning it over a month after the order

All these reasons make it not worth our while to do business with her again. Maybe she’s not dishonest and merely unintelligent and inconsiderate, but I have no desire to deal with her in the future. I know we may lose a few sales that way, but most of our products are custom made from scratch to a customer’s specification and it’s not worth the risk of custom-making something for her just to have it possibly used and then returned under false pretenses again.

We agreed to give her a refund minus the shipping costs and a 15% restocking fee to cover the expense of her special requests and customization, and I will lock her account so she can’t place future orders.

Is this a wise business decision? Probably not. But as I said before, when it comes to my business, It’s Business But It’s Also Personal, and I won’t put up with dishonesty and aggravation (the dishonest ones often require the most personal attention and interaction) to earn a few dollars.

Related posts:

• It Saves to Be Nice Part 2: How to Be a Nice Customer
• Daylight Saving Time: Turn Your Clocks Forward Today!
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 1: It’s Business But It’s Also Personal
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 3: How Being Nice Pays Off
• 20 Minutes Can Save $180 & Tips for Receiving Better Customer Service

Due to issues with our wireless router, I am currently in the market for a lengthy and affordable ethernet cable so that I can work online on a laptop while Madoline does her artwork (as can be seen in our CafePress Shop) on our desktop computer.

Prior to leaving to run errands today, I checked Amazon.com’s pricing for ethernet cables so that I might pop into the local Radio Shack on my way home to compare prices. I wasn’t in Radio Shack for more than a couple of minutes before I was on my way out again as it was immediately apparent that their prices were 3 times what I would pay for comparable products online.

As I reached the door, the shopkeeper addressed me in the fashion typical of solicitous shopkeepers, and the following conversation ensued:

Shopkeeper: Did you find what you were looking for?

Me: Yes, I was just checking the prices on ethernet cables.

Shopkeeper: What length cable do you need?

Me: 100 ft.*

Shopkeeper: And?

Me: Well, they’re three time as much as I can get them for online.

Shopkeeper: Quality!

Me: Yes, well, the quality on Amazon is quite good.

Shopkeeper: Oh.

Me: Thanks, though.

Shopkeeper: OK.

*So I can work from my smaller and therefore warmer room during the winter.

I left feeling a little sorry for these local, brick-and-mortar businesses. Even when times are good, they have a hard time keeping up with the vastly discounted online stores. And now that times are bad, they must suffer even more. And as we live in a remote area, prices here were already higher than most cities.

Being a small business owner myself (albeit online) and experiencing first hand the strain on business brought on by the poor economy, it seems a bit traitorous that I am not supporting the small local business, and instead going to the lowest bidder.

But I also cannot justify nor really afford an expenditure of $60.00 on an ethernet cable when I can get a 100 ft. no-name ethernet cable for $20 including shipping or 2 Belkin 50 ft. ethernet cables for $24 and with a gift certificate (so no out-of-pocket expense for me) on Amazon because I feel sorry for the local store. After all, I have think about my mortgage, food and utility bills.

As for the question of quality, Radio Shack’s cable may be better than the $20 one on Amazon, but judging by the user reviews for the less expensive product, I am fairly certain that it would serve my purpose adequately.

Of course, the most preferred scenario would be to figure out how to get the Wireless router working so that I won’t need to have a 100′ cable running across the house. So good luck to me. And to all the little guys out there.

Perhaps if and when the economy picks up and money is no longer an object, I’ll be able to help support local businesses more. If they’re still around, that is.

Related posts:

• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #11
• Lottery Tickets: Worthy Investment or Waste of Money?
• Language Lesson ~ Finance: A Fine Word
• Save on Groceries, Auto Repair, Movie Tickets, Dining, Travel, Recreation and More with the Entertainment Book: Currently 50% Off
• Tips for Staying Healthy This Winter

With a current budget deficit of $17.2 billion, the urgent issue of who should pick up the firefighting bill has arisen. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has proposed an insurance surcharge on all California home and property owners to help raise funds for firefighting.

But for those of us who have not chosen to build and live in the areas where these frequent seasonal fires occur, we can’t help but feel a little resentful of this proposal. The existence of homes in those areas drive firefighting costs up due to the necessity for differing procedures and additional resources. Not only does it cost more to have to use fire engines, airplanes and helicopters to defend these structures, but they take resources away from other remote fires that would otherwise be more quickly and easily contained.

According to Timothy Duane, professor of environmental planning and policy at UC Berkeley:

“When you are forced to move resources in defense of structures, it means you’re often taking resources away from other areas of the fire, or entirely separate fires, which means those fires are harder to contain with less resources. You have to deal with life, and property and natural resources, in that order, and when you’re dealing with the first two, it increases the extent of the fire and the time period before you can put the fire out.”

Yes, we do feel sorry for those who have lost their homes or whose homes are in danger, but they willingly purchased and/or built homes in areas that they knew were susceptible to seasonal fires. When we purchased our California home, we did so after researching the various environmental factors and comparing risks of natural disasters with other areas. With this sort of information readily available, as well as the fact that the wildfires are widely covered in the news each year, it’s hard to claim ignorance to the risk when they purchased or built their homes.

I know I should be more charitable and sympathetic, but frankly, with the daily inflation of food and gas prices, the heat wave increasing our electric bill, and decline in business putting a strain on our already modest lifestyle, I am not in the mood to pay a surcharge on my home insurance in order to make up for the poor home purchase decisions of others.

Related posts:

• July 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #5
• Save on Vehicle Registration, Driver License Renewal and (for California Residents) Smog Testing & Repair with DMV Online
• Lottery Tickets: Worthy Investment or Waste of Money?
• Patchwork Berets from Fabric Scraps

Originally posted 2008-07-10 12:23:32.

From Pecuniary Associates

• Living Well On Less gives us:  Frugality is good for the Earth
• Financial Nut offers A Comprehensive Guide To Understanding The Pros & Cons Of Investing Into A Roth IRA, one of the many things I’ve been meaning to look into.
• Greener Pastures asks Should I Refinance? Obama Says Yes.
• Counting My Pennies talks about Keeping Money Matters Quiet, to which I completely agree.

Blog Carnivals

• At Money Ning: Carnival of Personal Finance #200 – Edition of Mini Accomplishments
  Post included: Slowing Down Makes Sense: Drive Safely, Save More Than Money

• At Mighty Bargain Hunter: Welcome to the Carnival of Personal Finance
  Post included: Falling Off Your Financial Horse: If  you’ve never fallen off a horse, you just haven’t ridden enough.

• At Wise Bread: Carnival of Pecuniary Delights No. 2: Saving Money Edition
  Post included: Honestly Frugal: the Ethics of Saving Money.

Related posts:

• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers
• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #12
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #2
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #3
• Early to Bed and Early to Rise Makes a Man [or Woman] Healthy, Wealthy and Wise

I have been wanting to get around to this topic for some time, and was reminded by Penelope’s recent mentions of speeding violations. Traffic tickets cost money and the resentment for that loss is often directed at the police officer who prescribed it. There are many instances when you may feel that you have been unfairly singled out while millions of speeders go unpunished. But your feelings, when  they are expressed, may get the the opposite result from that which you desire and compound the damage you incur financially and otherwise.

Once, when I was 20 years old, I unintentionally let my car go way too fast while coasting downhill. Because I was on a new, smooth, and wide stretch of highway with no other vehicles in sight, I had no sense of danger or unlawfulness until I approached an intersection and saw a police car half concealed behind some very bushy roadside plants.

This was the first and only time I had ever been pulled over by a policeman, and although I absolutely deserved to be ticketed and fined (because I acknowledge that my behavior was both reckless and inattentive) my encounter with the officer concluded with him giving me a benevolent warning to slow down and wishing me a nice day.

Because I have always been adept at dealing with people in authority, I want to share some tips on how to behave when confronted by someone who is superior to you in age, legal station, or position in a school or business. Even in instances when you feel that a so-called superior is morally and/or intellectually unworthy of that position, it does not benefit yourself to always show it.

But I want to emphasize the fact that submitting to authority does not mean being a pushover. Showing deliberate disrespect will only gratify a person’s desire to punish you and make you feel a disadvantage. By being respectful, you are acting in a manner which promotes the other person’s desire to benefit you and make you happy. This involuntary response to your (hopefully sincere) politeness can have a significant impact on the severity of your punishment or whether you are punished at all.

Some of the factors which persuaded the police officer against giving me a speeding ticket are as follows (in the order encountered).

One: I looked clean and neat

How you look is the first impression you make when someone approaches you. Its effect may last only until you open your mouth or forever. For example, if you first see someone in a stunning outfit and flawlessly groomed, you will still think he or she is good-looking when encountered later in grubby sweat suits, unshaven, or in the middle of a bad hair day. We can’t all look our best 24×7, but having a general habit of being clean and neatly dressed increases your curb appeal (and reduces society’s impulse to demolish you).

A clean appearance shows consideration for the health and comfort of people around you. Clothing that does not stray too far from convention shows you have respect for the ideals and customs of society. These two factors will contribute to persuade someone you are not in the habit of offending others, and do not intentionally do wrong.

On the day of my offense, I was wearing a buttoned up blouse, knee-length skirt and light makeup consisting of pale powder and pink lipstick. I think my benign appearance made the policeman reluctant to be unpleasant towards me. I also saw him glance repeatedly at my dog who was riding with me, and noted the power of a pet (like children) to influence someone for or against you. He saw that my dog was clean, well-mannered, and his breed and appearance (border collie with traditional markings) suggested that I had a conservative personality.

“When constabulary duty’s to be done, to be done, A policeman’s lot is not a happy one, happy one.”– from the  Pirates of Penzance by Gilbert & Sullivan

Two: I said Hello

When you know that someone is coming to give you a fine, it might not come naturally to offer a greeting as if you were pleased to see him. But saying nothing makes you look resentful. Think of the sulky silence of a teenager when being scolded by a parent or teacher. By saying hello, you turn a punitive affair into a social engagement.

When I rolled down the window with a little hello and a half smile, I saw a halt in the stern speech I was about to receive. The officer seemed a little surprised, returned the greeting, and then proceeded in a friendlier fashion.

Remember that cops are human too, and that they may be tense when approaching you because they are used to being met with resentment while doing their job. When you offer a polite greeting, the other party feels obliged to return it. Courtesy creates an obligation of return. But do not appear sycophantic, because authority figures who think you are trying to manipulate them will want to teach you a lesson.

Three: I did not argue

This may have been a little sly, but I gave no indication that I knew why I had been pulled over. I just looked at the officer as if I were curious what he wanted. This allowed him to choose how to bring up the subject and feel in control of the conversation. When he informed me how fast I had been driving, I said “Oh, sorry.” And I did not contradict him or argue on my own behalf. I just indicated that I accepted his ruling and casually apologized for having misbehaved.

The surest way to make a policeman angry is to deny that you were doing what he said you were doing, because you are calling him a liar and that would make anyone angry. If you say that the verdict is unfair (because everyone speeds), you are saying that he is unethical, which is equally offensive. By acknowledging that you were in the wrong, however slight the offense, and though you may have had good reason, you demonstrate that you do not think yourself above the law and the need for discipline is diminished.

I do not mean that we should be dumb sheep in the hands of the law. I am all for standing upon my rights when there is true injustice. But accepting the consequences when you have erred can reduce the cost of present and future incidents.

The Snowball Effect of Good Behavior

The same principles apply in school or work. My classmates in high school had a tendency to regard teachers as the enemy. This made the teachers eager to punish them, escalating the resentment on both sides over time. In college as well, students who make excuses for late homework or missing classes persuade teachers that they are more than usually deserving of penalties.

On the other hand, by showing respect to authority figures (so long as they retain my good opinion), I have often been pleasantly surprised by receiving sympathy or assistance when I expected to be scolded. I couldn’t help but notice that quite a few teachers could not bring themselves to lower my grades on the rare occasions that I missed classes or turned in homework late. I am aware that any such bias in my favor is not entirely fair and so am careful not to abuse it.

When you respond politely to people in authority, you are more likely to get a positive result from the encounter or at least avoid a disagreeable conflict. This will affect how you feel and behave when dealing with other authority figures you meet afterwards. Now I have met my share of bad authority in persons such as my legal guardian and a few bosses and teachers. In these cases, insubordination is perfectly acceptable so long as it is carried out in a practical manner and does not negatively affect your dealings with honest and respectable persons.

When people think you are a nice and generally responsible person, they feel guilty about doling out fines and punishment. This applies in relationships of five minutes or five years. The key to getting good treatment is having no expectations. Expectations give rise to resentment, whereas people are usually happy to do something nice when they may freely chose to.

Returning to the subject of my traffic violation and pecuniary considerations, the obvious benefit of being polite to a policeman was that I was spared the expense of a fine and increased car insurance rates. But perhaps the lesson learned was more valuable, for I was rewarded for good behavior and inclined to continue in that way.

Related posts:

• It Saves to Be Nice Part 2: How to Be a Nice Customer
• Prune Your Spending and Watch the Savings Grow
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 4: How to Save Money by Helping Businesses Keep Operating Costs Down
• 20 Minutes Can Save $180 & Tips for Receiving Better Customer Service
• Under the Weather – Recommended Reading

Whenever I make my 15-mile drive to the grocery store, even traveling at the posted speed limit of 55 mph, I am constantly being passed (via the oncoming lane), or tailgated until the highway splits to 2 lanes after 10 miles. While I understand the concept that “time is money,” this behavior just doesn’t make sense to me.

I admit to a somewhat wreckless time in my youth when the speed limit seemed like a nuisance that kept me from getting where I wanted to go as quickly as I wanted to go. But some time in my mid-twenties, I began to see how stupid I used to be and shudder at the chances I used to take.

Financial Reasons to Slow Down

• Save Gas
  According to the California Energy Commission, “Vehicles lose roughly one percent in fuel economy for every mile per hour driven above 55 mph.”
• Speeding Tickets
  In my aforementioned wreckless youth, I have been the recipient of 2 speeding tickets. My first (1999), for going 50 mph in a 35 mph zone, cost me $67. My second (2002), for going 30 in a 25 zone, was around $70. I don’t know how much speeding fines are these days, but I know they cost a lot more.
• Auto Insurance Rates
  Traffic violations and accidents, even if you’re not at fault, will raise your auto insurance premiums.
• Risk of Accidents
  Even if you’re insured, an accident will most likely cost you money in the form of repairs and deductibles. If you injure someone or damage someone’s property, it could potentially cost you a fortune in legal and liability costs.
• Auto Maintenance
  The less wear-and-tear you put on your car, the longer it’ll last and the fewer repairs it’ll need.

Health Reasons to Slow Down

• Reduce Chances of Serious and Permanent Injury
  Is the risk of an injury that will impact many years – if not the rest – of your life worth getting wherever you’re going 5 minutes faster?
• Reduce Stress
  Driving at high speeds is stressful. Whenever I drive at speeds over 55 or 60 mph – even when within the speed limit – I find my body tension level significantly increased. My back and legs are often sore when I arrive at my destination. We already have enough stress in our daily lives, why add more?

Moral Reasons to Slow Down

• Injury to Others
  This includes other motorists, pedestrians, children and pets. Injuring, or worse, accidentally killing, someone or someone’s pet would affect more than your own life.
• Your Loved Ones
  What would happen to your loved ones – children, spouse, parents and others who care about and depend on you – if you were seriously injured or killed in an accident?

Maybe because I drive very little these days – a few times a month to run errands – I am more conscious of the dangers of driving. Every time I leave my house, I am acutely aware of the fact that anything can happen. I don’t have human children, but I have a dog that I care about more than anything, and I remind myself that getting to the store 5 minutes faster is not worth the risk of my not being here to take care of him.

I know we live in a busy age where everyone has 30 hours’ worth of things to get done within a 24-hour day. But is it really worth it to jeopardize our safety, risk accidents, fines and more to get there faster? Try to leave earlier. If you can’t get everywhere you need to without speeding, then maybe you need make some changes. Easier said than done, I know, especially if it’s work related, but speed limits are there for a reason.

When I was younger, I used feel like I was being rude if I was holding people up, even if I was already going over the speed limit. But, not anymore. I drive the posted speed limit not only because it’s the law, but because it’s the smart and responsible thing to do. I will not be made to feel guilty or like a “prude” for driving the speed limit. I won’t increase my risks just so others behind me can satisfy their need for speed.

Recommended Reading

• Yahoo Finance: Slow Down a Little, Save a Lot of Gas
• California Energy Commission: Slow It Down to Save Gas and Money

Related posts:

• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #19
• Economical Pet and Child Safe Ways to Repel and Kill Ants, Spiders and Other Insects
• When “Free” Things Aren’t Free: Beware the Hidden and Indirect Costs
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #6
• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #15

For those of you who were around you might remember our name being Our Fourpence Worth. We have come a long ways in many ways and have had a great time sharing our thoughts and ideas with you. We’d like to thank you, our readers, both old and new, for being with us, especially those who have been with us since the very beginning. We’ve gone through a name change, domain move, hosting move,  site re-designs (2 of them), some of which went smoothly and some not so smoothly as I am still an amateur at web design.

I’ve learned a lot this past year – about blogging and about frugal living. We participated in many blog carnivals and have hosted 5 blog carnivals here.

The Best of Pecuniarities/Our Fourpence Worth

Here are some of our articles that received some good attention (mentioned by MSN Smart Spending, blog carnival Editor’s Pick, lots of link love, StumbleUpon and search engine traffic) over the past year:

• 101 Ways to Save Money in Your Everyday Life
  
• Monopoly Game Expansion #1: Personal Savings Account
• The Frugal Literate’s Guide to Affordable Reading
• Beautiful Homemade Christmas Ornaments From Eggshells
• Using Nature’s Gift Wrap: The Eggshell
• Simple Solutions to Staying Out of Debt
• Resisting the Urge to Splurge
• Closing Your Credit Cards Can Hurt Your FICO Score
• Economical Pet and Child Safe Ways to Repel and Kill Ants, Spiders and Other Insects
• Frugal but Thoughtful Mother’s Day Gift Suggestions
• Fast & Frugal Recipe: Yakisoba (Japanese Chow Mein)
• Free and Frugal Things to Do in Los Angeles
• Our Family Financial History

A Year Ago

At this time, allow me to point out a few of our very earliest articles that, due to the newness of the blog, didn’t get much attention. If you’ve got some time on your hands, have a read-through and feel free comment.

Penelope Pince

• Honestly Frugal: the Ethics of Saving Money
• Language Lesson ~ Frugality is a Virtue
• Language Lesson ~ Finance: A Fine Word
• The No-Budget System
• Save by Knowing Your Shipping & Mailing Options
• Credits Cards Really Aren’t So Bad
• Frugality 101

Madoline Hatter

• The Life Stages of a Dish Sponge
• Cabinet Secrets: Uses for Useless Things
• Thinking inside the box: Some Uses for Cardboard Cartons
• Patchwork Berets from Fabric Scraps
• Save Money by Sewing Your Own Clothes

Thanks again to all of you for sticking with us. We look forward to an even better year ahead of us.

Related posts:

• Announcement: Our Fourpence Worth Store
• Thank you!
• The Life Stages of a Dish Sponge
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #7
• ‘Tis Not a Crime to Pinch a Penny

Favors for Nice Customers

Here are some examples of our experience in dealing with customers in our business where we, as a business, decided to do one of our customers a favor in return for niceness on their part.

Example #1

We have a customer who has ordered costumes from us for her Great Dane twice before. She is always very friendly and polite in her emails, always saying “please” and “thank you,” never demanding or expecting special treatment, and we often exchange little personal updates on ourselves and our dogs. For this Halloween, she decided to dress her dog up as “Lipstick on a Pig” and asked us to make her a set of custom pig ears and tail. We invoiced her for the ears and tail, and after she paid, she realized that she had forgotten about feet. Because she is a good customer and we have a friendly relationship with her, we decided to throw in some matching pig’s feet for free. This made her really happy (we received an enthusiastically grateful email) which made us happy as well.

Example #2

We have another customer who orders very elaborate costumes from us every year. She competes in dog costume contests and always emails us to tell us when she wins and sends us pictures of her dogs wearing our costumes, which we never tire of seeing. She always asks how we are and sends us holiday greetings, and even mails us custom Christmas cards of her dogs wearing our costumes. Because she is such a nice customer, we often charge her a little less for her custom items than we otherwise might.

Good Consumer Experiences

Here are a few anecdotes from our past where businesses were particularly nice to us for having developed some sort of rapport with them. We didn’t do anything but be friendly to them – saying hello, saying thank you, etc. and they did us little favors and gave us savings in return.

Example #1

One year when we went to visit relatives in Taiwan, our cousins took us shopping at the night-market. In Taiwan, people aren’t as open and friendly toward strangers as many people are in the States. For example, it is common for us here to say “hello” to someone whom we don’t know but whose eyes we happen to meet at the supermarket. People don’t do this in Taiwan. We were browsing a stand run by a Middle-Eastern man. Because we are in the habit of doing so, we said “hello” to him and spoke to him as we normally do here in the States. He ended up giving us a discount without our even asking (haggling is a common practice at the Taiwanese night markets), saying we were all foreigners and should be nice to each other.

Example #2

In Madoline’s senior year in college and my first year working, we would sometimes eat at a small Chinese restaurant at the shopping center near our house. The restaurant owner was a nice, friendly guy and I would often chat with him when paying our bill. One time, because we were on a diet and trying to cut calories, we ordered one item to share. The restaurant owner, perhaps thinking we weren’t eating enough or maybe thinking we couldn’t afford more food (but we really were on a diet), brought us a free plate of won ton, telling us to take a break from our diet for the night and continue it tomorrow.

* * *

Now, we’re not saying you should butter up business people in the hopes of getting free things or discounts, but being friendly doesn’t cost anything and people who appreciate your courtesy will be more apt to be courteous and generous to you in return.

Related posts:

• It Saves to Be Nice Part 4: How to Save Money by Helping Businesses Keep Operating Costs Down
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 2: How to Be a Nice Customer
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 1: It’s Business But It’s Also Personal
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #10
• Giveaways Ending Soon! And Hosting 2 Blog Carnivals Next Week

As mentioned previously in Part 1 of this series, It’s Business But It’s Also Personal, no matter how professional a business tries to be, we sometimes can’t help but be affected by the people we deal with because we are human. When a customer is nice to us, we are nice in return. In many ways, this goes back to the customer as monetary savings (stay tuned for Part 3 in which we give examples from our personal experiences).

So how to be a nice customer? It’s really very easy. It’s not much different from being a “nice person” and we all know how to do that already, don’t we?

• Be aware of the person you are dealing with. Remember that the person you are writing or speaking to is a 3-dimensional person whose actions and decisions are based on the way you make him/her feel with your words. When talking to customer service reps in person, look at them and talk to them as equals. Talk to them as you would want to be talked to. A friendly smile doesn’t hurt either.
• Be tactful when you approach a business to inquire about pricing or discounts. You should be polite when talking to anyone, but when you’re looking to gain from an exchange (i.e. receiving a discount on a purchase), you don’t want to come off sounding demanding and expectant. Say “hello,” give a little introduction – it doesn’t have to be long and elaborate – if you have the time or if the occasion warrants it, then politely ask your question. It doesn’t take a lot of time or effort and the person helping you would be more inclined to help you because:
  1. By using a greeting, you are acknowledging the service rep as a person.
  2. Giving a short introduction to your situation/intent/etc. adds a personal touch, making yourself seem more human than just another nameless, faceless customer.
  3. By asking politely, i.e. using “please” and “thank you,” you again show that you consider them a person and worthy of basic human courtesy.
• Don’t expect. If you’re asking for a discount, do so without expectations. Remember that when you are asking for a discount, you are asking them to do you a favor, not the other way around.
• Don’t haggle. Discuss, suggest, ask, but don’t haggle. In some places such as the car lot or swap meet, haggling might be common and expected. In some instances, though, I find haggling rude and even offensive, especially if we (the business) have already offered a discount on a product and the customer keeps coming back with counter-offers that are so low that the sale would be a loss for us.Of course, this depends greatly on the type of business you’re dealing with. In our line of work, where we are a small business that hand-makes each product, our profit margin is quite low. Big businesses that have a bigger profit margin might not mind the haggling, but even then, be nice in your negotiation, and you’ll probably get a better deal.
• Remember the chain of command. The personal you’re dealing with in all likelihood is not a high-level employee that can grant your every wish. Most customer service agents are taught to deal with common customer issues and do not have the authority to authorize a big discount or erase fees from your account. This person is most likely another 9-5 worker not unlike yourself who is trying to earn a paycheck to pay their rent.
• Be sincere. Don’t act nice for the sole purpose of getting a discount or a freebie. Be friendly because you can and want to be, not because you think you have to in order to get something out of it.

For more tips, check out a post I wrote earlier this year: How 20 Minutes Can Save $180 & Tips for Receiving Better Customer Service.

In my business (and most others these days), most of my customer service is done through email. I have received many emails where the entire content consists of one terse sentence – un-capitalized, un-punctuated, no greeting, no please or thank you. Of course, one could say that well, we’re a business and we’re the ones wanting to earn the customers’ money, making the customer the boss and they can talk to us any way they want.

This may be true to a degree, but we are also providing a service or product that the customer wants or needs. We also determine the price at which we will sell the product or service to the customer. When a customer is nice to me, I feel like being nice back and sometimes do so by giving them a break on pricing because we like working with nice customers and a lower price encourages their business. When we are making our customers’ orders, we always do the best job we can, but when it’s a customer with whom we have an especially good relationship, we often add extra touches beyond what might be expected.

So customer relations really is a 2-way street; for an optimal end result, both parties – consumer and business – should be on their best behavior.

Related posts:

• It Saves to Be Nice Part 4: How to Save Money by Helping Businesses Keep Operating Costs Down
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 3: How Being Nice Pays Off
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 1: It’s Business But It’s Also Personal
• Business Decision: Turning Away a Customer
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #10

* * *

When we were all learning to talk, one of the first concepts our mothers tried very hard to ingrain in us was the habit of saying “please” and “thank you.” There is a very logical reason for this aside from keeping you from embarrassing her in front of other parents. Social evolution has shown that being polite is advantageous to one’s position in all walks of life. Most people prefer being around and talking to nice people (with the exception perhaps of Dr. Gregory House), and the natural reaction to niceness is niceness in return.

This goes for business interactions as well as personal. As much as people like to believe that business dealings – whether you’re the consumer or the business – are impersonal, it just isn’t true. If you have ever had a job where you had to deal with the general public, unless you are an absolute saint, I am sure you’ve met your share of unpleasant people and your behavior towards them was affected by it. Even though company policies (instituted by executives who don’t have to deal with difficult customers on a daily basis) often dictate that “the customer is always right,” human nature has its limits.

It’s Business, But It’s Also Personal

As a small business owner (Franga Designs) who also does customer service, I have personally dealt with hundreds of customers in the past few years. Because our product is custom pet clothing and costumes, our dealings with customers are often more in-depth than the average business as it often requires several email exchanges discussing design and sizing (fabrics, colors, pets’ measurements, special event deadlines, etc.).

The nice thing about our line of work is that we are working with fellow dog and horse lovers, and in my experience these types of people are some of the nicest in the world (yes, I am biased.) Everyone thinks that their dog or horse is special, which is exactly how it should be. And most everyone who cares enough to have a custom outfit made for their pet is a nice person. But even in this line of work, I have dealt with some customers who just rubbed me the wrong way.

When we custom design an outfit especially for a customer, we determine the price we charge per project based on material costs, complexity of the design, time to make the outfit, etc. Most of the time, we are methodical and reasonable in our pricing. But I have to admit that once in a while, when a customer rubs me the wrong way by being rude or unreasonably demanding, we do tend to charge a little more than we might otherwise to compensate for the unpleasantness – and sometimes in the hopes that they’ll just go away.

I know it’s not smart business practice and that we might lose money this way. And it is rare that a customer offends me so much that I do this, but it has happened once or twice. So, why do we do this?

Risky Business

When we feel that if a potential customer is troublesome in the initial stages of the sale, they could turn out to be troublesome after we’ve made their custom design. A troublesome customer might file a chargeback on their purchase after receiving it, seize their money back while keeping the costume, which would cost us the money we’ve spent on special ordering the materials, time spent making it and the cost to ship it.

Check back soon for Part 2 of 4 in our series on how it saves to be nice!

Related posts:

• It Saves to Be Nice Part 4: How to Save Money by Helping Businesses Keep Operating Costs Down
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 2: How to Be a Nice Customer
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #10
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 3: How Being Nice Pays Off
• Business Decision: Turning Away a Customer

I came across an interesting article on MSN Money last night titled Does money make you mean? which described a study conducted on a group of subjects who had been preconditioned to have money on their minds when various experiments were conducted. The study found that those with money on their minds tended to be more indifferent and less helpful toward others, preferring to do things on their own and waiting longer to ask for help when help was needed.

The Study

The “money primed” group was preconditioned by doing puzzles with money-related words, reading essays containing references to money, being shown posters of money and given play money and tokens to handle. This group was then combined with the control group (not preconditioned to think about money) in several staged situations. In one test, the group was assigned to complete a puzzle and told that help was available if asked for. Money-minded subjects waited longer to ask for help than the control subjects did. In another situation, a passer-by “accidentally” spilled a box of pencils on the floor and the test subjects were asked to help; those who had been “money primed” picked up fewer pencils. When asked to donate to a university student fund, “money primed” subjects gave less.

The researchers concluded that the money-minded subjects weren’t consciously being rude or selfish, but were simply indifferent, as if they didn’t know how to help out or couldn’t see themselves as having a role in someone else’s life.

This Sounds A Lot Like Me

When I read this, my first thought was that this sounded a lot like Madoline and me. Ever since moving to California and needing to live frugally, we have become very independent and tried to be as self-sufficient as possible. When something in our house breaks, we always try to fix it ourselves. When we find that we can’t do it on our own, we usually procrastinate a while before finally calling someone in to fix it. This is, of course, due to the fact that we are money-conscious and try to save whenever we possibly can. While we do not dislike being around other people, we also don’t actively seek to get involved socially.

At this time in our lives, most or all of our behavior is influenced by money. We do not have close family or friends whom we could go to for help if we needed it (because we have moved so much, we have lost touch with childhood friends and most of our classmates now live all over the world and have their own families). Because we don’t feel as if we can rely on people, money is the only thing that can guarantee our health and security.

Money Can Buy Happiness

My second thought after reading about this study was that this is natural survivalist behavior. In this day and age, one simply cannot survive without money. True, money can’t buy “Happiness” bottled and ready to go. But, money buys food, pays the mortgage and doctor’s bills. Money makes sure that our pets, who are our family, are well fed and taken care of. Money is what will keep us healthy and comfortable throughout our lives. And health and comfort play a big part in one’s happiness.

So, at this time, I’m afraid we are just as the research finds – indifferent and unhelpful (with the exception of this blog, hopefully) – not out of hate for others, but out of necessity to ensure our own future survival. As many others do, we dream of one day being financially free. We hope to one day be able to give to causes we believe in and even start charitable organizations of our own. But in order to be able to help others, we have to be able to help ourselves first.

Recommended reading: Does money make you mean?

Related posts:

• August 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• It Saves to Be Nice Part 2: How to Be a Nice Customer
• Put Your Brain Where Your Money Is: Think to Save
• Blog Action Day: Poverty. Awareness is the First Step: The Next Time You …
• Dear Taxpayer: Good News! Your Property Tax Has Decreased … P.S. So Has Your Property Value

(This list will be updated to include future inclusions for the month of April 2008.)

Descending chronologically by inclusion date

• April 16, 2008
  The 8th Edition of the Money Hacks Carnival
  Article: The Frugal Literates Guide to Affordable Reading (Double thanks for the editor’s pick!)
• April 15, 2008
  The Make It From Scratch Carnival!
  Article: Save Money by Sewing Your Own Clothes
• April 2008
  Festival of Frugality #121 – Tax Day Edition
  Article: 7 Cost-Cutting and Safer Alternative Household Tips
• April 13, 2008
  Carnival of Money, Growth and Happiness #40
  Article: Basics for the Young, Single and Frugal

• April 7, 2008
  Festival of Frugality #120
  Article: Homemade Coin Bank for Saving Wayward Coins
• April 7, 2008
  Carnival of Personal Finance #147: Q1 Financial Advice Edition
  Article: Closing Your Credit Cards Can Hurt Your FICO Score
• April 7, 2008
  Tax Carnival #34: Big Tax Dance
  Article: Tax Form & Publication Guide for the Newly Self-Employed
  
• April 3, 2008
  Carnival of Ethics, Values, and Personal Finance
  Article: Honestly Frugal: the Ethics of Saving Money
• April 2, 2008
  Carnival of Living Cheaply – April
  Article: Pay Bills Online and Save
• April 2, 2008
  Carnival of Music Lessons–3rd Addition
  Article: Playing Slower for Faster Results (Motivating Children to Practice Music Part 3)
• April 1, 2008
  Festival of Frugality #119: The Quitting My Day Job to Blog Full Time Edition
  Article: Thinking inside the box: Some Uses for Cardboard Cartons

Related posts:

• Recent Blog Carnivals (February 2009)
• Blog Carnivals
• May 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals
• Giveaways Ending Soon! And Hosting 2 Blog Carnivals Next Week
• August 2008 Finance and Frugality Blog Carnivals

Here are some great articles by some of my fellow PF Bloggers from this past month:

• Seb at Pinching Copper gives us Five things you should buy used
• Jonathan at Master Your Card offers a guide on How to Pick the Right Credit Card
• JB at Get Rich or Die Trying had a very close call and learned an important lesson about House Buying.
  
• Kevin at No Debt Plan reminds us that Superfrugality Can Hurt Your Relationship. This was inspired by a great post by Patrick at Cash Money Life titled Spend $10. It’s Worth it!
• Ginger at Girls Just Wanna Have Funds shares 8 Frugal and Cost Cutting Tips for the Newly Independent

Blog Carnivals

We’ve also had quite a few articles featured in various blog carnivals, a few of them were:

• Festival of Frugality #119: The Quitting My Day Job to Blog Full Time Edition
  Article: Thinking inside the box: Some Uses for Cardboard Cartons
• Carnival of Personal Finance #145 – Baby Education Edition
  Article: The No-Budget System
• Carnival of Ethics, Values, and Personal Finance
  Article: Honestly Frugal: the Ethics of Saving Money

Check out our page for the complete list of carnivals we’ve been included in.

Related posts:

• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers
• Interesting Reads From Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #12
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #3
• Early to Bed and Early to Rise Makes a Man [or Woman] Healthy, Wealthy and Wise
• Interesting Reads from Fellow Personal Finance Bloggers #10

We are 2 sisters in our mid-late twenties who discovered the concept of frugality several years ago when we quit our full-time jobs in Hawaii where good employment is scarce, and moved to California in search of a way of life that would allow us to work for ourselves and hopefully pursue our interests in the arts instead of dishonest employers whose practices went against our personal and business ethics. Having spent all of our savings on our move, we found ourselves constantly trying to find imaginative and unconventional solutions in establishing our new home and way of life. Over the past few years, we have learned and figured out a great deal about making economies, and we it is our intention to share our ideas and solutions here in this blog.

Although we are not experts in these matters, we will also share a few things we have learned in regards to personal finance, home improvement and decoration, holistic pet care, and even a few favorite recipes for inexpensive and time-efficient meals.

And while work and frugality are important, so are wholesome entertainment and activities. We are avid readers with a particular interest in good children’s and young adult literature, and will therefore also share reviews and recommendations of favorite books for both children and adults. We will do the same for films, music and activities that we have found especially entertaining, educational, enlightening, worthy and contributive to a well-rounded life. These recommendations can be found under the “Hobbies” category.

Author Bios

Just a short introduction about each of us, our interests and specialties in regards to the topics we write about.

Madoline Hatter

I am a compulsive reader, musician, and a sort of artist. I provide the artistic work in the endeavors I undertake with my sister such as sewing, pattern drafting, painting, and computer graphics. I have a B.A. in Music – Voice. Subjects that interest me are classical music, music history, English literature, foreign languages, science, psychology, and animal training. In my free time I play the piano, sing, read about music history, and teach my dog tricks.

I also love a good novel especially if it is by Jane Austen or Charles Dickens. My favorite languages are English and German. I am currently learning French and have acquired a vocabulary about 10 words and mastered vague notions of grammar. My interest in linguistics has led to experiments in teaching dogs English. My dog Wolfie can sing a song in rhythm, but out of tune.

Penelope Pince

I am also a compulsive reader, musician, and a left-brained sort of artist. I have the dubious honor of being the “office manager” and “finance person” in all of our business and household affairs, my duties including but not limited to webmastering, customer service, bill paying, and the unhappiest of all, taxes. I hold a B.A. in Interdisciplinary Studies: Linguistics, German, French, Spanish & Chinese.

My interests lie in foreign languages (currently slowly learning Italian), classical & film music, computers, collecting foreign editions of Harry Potter books, and German games. I enjoy literature such as Jane Austen and contemporary authors such as Sophie Kinsella. In my spare time I can be found at the computer, piano, strangling a questionable tune out of the violin, watching movies, or being trampled by my dog Luwie.

To find out a even more about us, please visit the More About Us page.

Photos

Many of the excellent photographs displayed in our articles were taken by Petr Kratochvil who has generously released them into the public domain. To find out if an image was by Mr. Kratochvil, look for “Photo by Petr Kratochvil” in the image properties (mouseover the image in Internet Explorer or right-click on the image and select “properties”).

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