For most of us, the biggest consequence of typing errors is a little awkward.
But for John Winning, the founder of Appliances Online, a simple mistake cost him nearly one hundred thousand yuan.
The accident occurred at the end of last year when a technical glitch caused an Kitchenaid blender to be sold unexpectedly for 281yuan, compared with the normal price of 799yuan.
Within 12 hours, 190 blenders were ordered at the wrong price-meaning the 34-year-old boss faced a difficult choice; he either sacrificed nearly one hundred thousand yuan or risked losing 190 customers forever.
Winning says the solution to this major pricing problem is simple.
"the question is, are we going to disappoint hundreds of customers, or are we going to write off the losses? So the solution is simple, "he told news.com.au." He explained that he decided to see the loss as "an investment in customer relations".
"word-of-mouth marketing is the best way of marketing, and that's why you don't see much of our ads on TV."
This is a simple but radical way of thinking compared to the way other retailers do business, but the company has been doing so since its first day.
That's why when an elderly woman calls Appliance Online to help install refrigerators and dishwashers, they arrange for staff to install them, even though she bought them from competitors. The employee put the goods outside the house and left. That's why Winning calls the company's 24 / 7 customer service hotline in the early hours of the morning to check whether the service is up to standard.
"the company succeeds because we don't hesitate to make mistakes like this as an investment to satisfy our customers. One of our company's values is to impress every customer and 'every' is the key word, "he said.
Winning also revealed how he had moved from a mediocre student-who had "lousy" in school and failed the HSC-to a successful CEO, and at a time when many other Australian retailers were struggling.
Winning, who worked as a waitress at the age of 17 and wanted to take a taxi in hot water, eventually got a job and became a door-to-door salesman, but his father urged him to resign after being seriously injured by a dog bite. The Winning Group., a company that has been run by the family for 113 years
At first he was downgraded to pick up and ship goods, but eventually persuaded his father to let him do sales-although he was banned from engaging in complex "kitchen supplies" and allowed only to sell refrigerators, washing machines and dishwashers.
During that time, Winning realized that customers liked looking at catalogs, but he knew they were expensive to distribute and soon went out of date.
"I thought maybe the Internet would be a cheaper way-I know eBay exists, and I think we can open a eBay store," he said.
But he chose to tell his father the idea and eventually got a $50, 000 loan that helped him set up Appliances Online. at the age of 21 in 2005 But if the new company can't use the name Winning, it doesn't hurt the reputation of the family business if it fails.
The early company had 1300 customer numbers, which were transferred to Winning's own mobile phone, which meant he was always on the job phone when he was with a friend in the bar.
But everything paid off. Today, Appliances Online is Australia's largest online electronics retailer, and Winning is also Winning Group's fourth CEO. Overall, Australian retailers lag behind many other countries in embracing online sales and have no reason to be complacent, he said.
"the Internet makes everything faster, allowing global brands such as Amazon and eBay to enter the market."
"it takes advantage of traditional retailers, but the Internet doesn't kill retail, it just kills bad retailers."