Update 3/28: I've updated the post to reflect the correct sequence of questioning that occurred over on Facebook.
I'd like to take a moment to speak openly and honestly about my opinions on how JewelMint has handled the current issue with the Golden Ticket Promotion. I took a day off from blogging yesterday to take some time to really think about why this issue with JewelMint was weighing on me. In the past year that I've been blogging about JewelMint, it sometimes feels that their own self-proclaimed "mess-ups" can affect everyone from their beloved members to fellow bloggers who spend many hours dedicating their time and sharing their love for the brand.
This past weekend, it was brought to JewelMint's attention by many over on Facebook that participants in their Golden Ticket Promotion were receiving 10% off promo code tickets instead of the minimum of one JewelMint credit the promotion that was promised. Based off of the official rules chart (
as seen in this post here), it was also possible for all participants to win up to 4 additional credits and a chance at the grand prize: a tablet worth $120 to $300.
JewelMint's response on Facebook to these complaints was for all participants to email JewelMint customer care at
customercare@jewelmint.com in order to receive their free credit.
While this was a prompt response, JewelMint members began asking about the remaining 44% of participants who should have received more than one free credit?
Someone by the name of
Carl JewelMint responded to this on Facebook (
posted Sunday 3/25):
"Ladies, Please let me start by saying once again how sorry I am for the frustrations you've expressed around the Golden Ticket promotion. We value our amazing members so much and always want to provide you with the best possible experience. Throughout today, several of us at JewelMint have been pouring over all of your feedback and analyzing what's happened. A number of ladies have pointed out that by offering to issue just one credit to ladies who received zero credits previously, we weren't accounting for the possibility of more credits being included with the original Golden Ticket – or a grand prize. Our explanation there (which we apologize for not including) was that based on our analysis, our miscommunication/mess-up was primarily centered around the distribution of the "one free credit" Golden Tickets. In other words, a LOT more of them should have gone out. But regardless of that, it's very clear that we missed the mark and we've simply left too many of you dissatisfied. So here's what we'll do. Any customer who did not receive either a promo code for 1-5 pieces or one of the grand prizes with their original Golden Ticket will get re-entered into the promotion – please just email Customer Care with the subject line "Golden Ticked Redo" and include your order confirmation number in the body of the email. We will then re-enter those members into the promotion and they will receive promo codes for free pieces (and grand prizes) according to the posted breakdown (55% will receive one free piece, 20% will receive two free pieces, etc). For the sake of reaching a quick resolution for frustrated members, we will need all eligible members to send us that email by Tuesday at 11:59pm PT. We will distribute credits/prizes by Thursday at 11:59pm PT. On Friday, we will also email those members with a special gift. I sincerely apologize again for all of the frustrations around this promotion. We are working to make this right and appreciate your help and feedback, as always. We promise to continue improving and will definitely incorporate learnings/feedback from this into future promotions."
While this was another prompt response, but other concerns arose including variations of the following:
- For those whose packages shipped late and may not receive their
package before the Tuesday redo deadline, should they submit an email
for the redo without knowing the contents of their package?
- If a customer receives their package after Tuesday, did not
receive their free credit(s), and wasn't aware of this redo, what will
be the plan for this customer in honoring the rules of the promo?
- Will this same information you just shared here be send out by
email, which is the same method that was used to communicate the
original promo? If not, how will this be communicated to those who do
not frequent Facebook?
- What happens to those who received "XXXXXXXXXXXX" as their Golden Ticket codes?
Carl JewelMint later followed up with the following statement (
posted Sunday 3/26):
"For those ladies that received a winning Golden Ticket with the code as all Xs, we are asking those customers to sign the ticket and email us a picture of the signed ticket. We will reply with their correct code. This applies to both JewelMint and StyleMint both. We realize that not all customers that participated in the promotion are on Facebook to see the announcement. We are working with our warehouse and logistics staff to figure out which orders were affected in hopes of reaching out to any other potentially affected customers. Now, for those select few that are not scheduled to receive your shipment until after the Tuesday midnight deadline, please still email customer care with your order number and subject line “Golden Ticket Redo”. We are hoping to figure out which orders are affected so we can be proactive and re-enter those members into the promotion that email us. A number of you made multiple purchases to increase your chances of winning. We plan to treat each one of your orders as individual entries."
In the meantime, I am still waiting for my Golden Ticket promotion to arrive in the mail - it shipped last Friday. I've also made a conscious effort to withhold from emailing JewelMint about the Golden Ticket promotion (at least until the last minute)...
Why? You ask? Well, because I still have not received an official email from JewelMint with official instructions as to the Golden Ticket issue. Additionally, "Carl JewelMint" is a separate account from JewelMint's Facebook page (it could arguably be anyone), and this official announcement did not come directly from JewelMint's Official Facebook page.
This is where my main issue with JewelMint lies right now: I've been waiting to see if JewelMint would hold true to their Facebook response regarding contacting all participants of the Golden Ticket promotion through the same method the promotion was originally announced.
It's currently Tuesday, March 27th. The time is about 1pm PST, and I'm still
waiting to receive an official email from JewelMint in regards to this
issue, my account, and how I could be affected by their recent mistakes.
This raises some serious questions, such as:
- What happens after 11:59 pm PST tonight when members who do not frequent Facebook or still have not been contacted via email receive their packages after today only to realize something is wrong with its contents?
- Is JewelMint still liable for offering those members (who have not yet been contacted) a chance at up to 5 credits after 11:59 pm PST tonight?
- And finally, why haven't all participants of this promo been contacted yet by JewelMint?
In my opinion, JewelMint could have handled their mistakes much differently. I feel that putting the responsibility on their members to contact them in response to their mistakes is very unfair...especially when there are still some members out there who have not been officially contacted by JewelMint and may miss out the 12:59 pm PST deadline tonight.
Please don't get me wrong. I love JewelMint, and I very rarely get into the negative here on my blog unless I feel the need to speak up. I personally felt that this was bothering me too much to go unaddressed, and I can only hope that future promotions go much smoother than this.
For now, I'll be waiting to see what happens, and I'll be sure to follow-up if anything else related this this issue arises. In the meantime, it's back to JewelMint blogging as usual, and all the reasons why we continue to love their jewelry...
xoxo, Lily