Correcting Cake Mistakes - Miscommunication

Sometimes you can receive an order for a cake, ask all the relevant questions and still get it wrong, or what you envisage and understand a customer wants may be a world away from their actual expectations.  This happened to me a while back!  I was asked to make Dora the Explorer (the cartoon character) and an image of the customer's daughter sitting on a single-tiered cake.  Now let me tell you...No offence to anyone, but Dora the Explorer cartoons do not float my boat...Yes I know they're not made for adults etc but I cannot see the fascination in a bi-lingual girl with a talking bag and monkey.  Scooby Doo I get!  Bugs Bunny, I get! Dora The Explorer...NO!....

Anyway back to my dilemma.....  

I was also shown 1001 different  pictures as a guideline but to be honest the cakes seemed a little...how do I put this sensitively........tacky? They were all different shapes and colours.  As we did not discuss colours or format, I was not sure of the requirement and worse still, the customer said she trusted me to make the right decision.  

Now personally, when customers say that they will leave everything to me, alarm bells begin to ring and I break out in to a cold sweat, but I manage to pull it off and produce cakes that exceed expectations. However, apart from the fact that I had a headache because the alarm bells had turned into World War II sirens, I realised that I really didn't know what the customer wanted.  I felt that I could not ask as I didn't want to appear naive so I kept quiet and decided to do the best I could and this is what I made.

Dora the Explorer and the customer's daughter cake (BEFORE).

Not bad I thought to myself....the cake turned out okay!!! 

As I had finished the cake a day early I thought I'd deliver it to the customer.  She was surprised and happy and asked me to deliver even though she'd be at work and assured me her mother would be in.  However, about an hour after delivery, I received a text on my mobile phone telling me that although the customer had not seen the cake, her mother had described the cake to her and SHE DIDN'T LIKE IT.  

What? I asked myself - and re-read the text several times - She had not even seen the cake?... And she didn't like it?  After taking several deep breaths, talking and assuring myself that everything was fine I made the call to the aforementioned customer and she said exactly the same thing.  She told me the cake was not what she expected, and that she did not like the green colour.  I cooly reponded and told her that we had not discussed any colour themes or ideas and that Dora the Explorer was...well...an explorer so I couldn't see any colour theme more appropriate than green.  However, after speaking with the customer I realised that she wanted pinks and purples but had never mentioned this previously, Oh! and she added that she wanted her daughter to look a bit like Dora the Explorer as she had cut her hair (the last time I saw her daughter, when I made the cake for the previous birthday celebration she had shoulder length hair) - so I asked her to bring the cake over and I'd see what I could do.

As you may have guessed I had to be psychic to know what the customer really wanted, as she assumed I knew, but it was not all her fault, I had not asked the appropriate questions.

This was my amended effort...

Dora the Explorer Mark II (AFTER)

And the customer loved it!!!!!

I added more flowers and multi-coloured fondant balls and of course, changed the little girl's hairstyle. I received a phone call thanking me for my efforts and apologising for being, "...a pain in the ****".  (Her words, not mine). 

So the moral to this incident that had a great ending for me is, to ensure that, whether you charge or make cakes as a gift, clarify or attempt to ascertain what the requirements are and where possible, get it in writing.  Do not be afraid to ask questions as many times as you need, because you've got to get it right and also manage your client's expectations.  Finally, do not lose you temper or become argumentative if you get it wrong (whether you see it as your fault or not).   

Last but not least, do not take any criticism personally, learn from it. (What doesn't kill you makes you stronger) - So they say!  

Colette x