

Location : SM Seaside, Antuwanga, Cebu City, Cebu (province), Philippines
Malls are Not Equal
I thought that malls are essentially the same. But my recent experience at SM Seaside made me realize that there is no sewer these guys won't crawl into to trick you out of your last money.
P25 shuttle fee to go to SM Seaside
Having experienced the free shuttle service by Robinsons to their malls from varied locations across the (city), I thought the SM City to SM Seaside shuttle was also free - wrong! I had to pay P25 cash, one-way. I was already in SM City when I realized this, so I went along with it. That's not the worst part.
Ambushed
I walked around SM Seaside, but by the time I was about to head back using the same shuttle service, I was told that I could no longer pay cash! I now have to buy the P200 card with only P100 load! HuAmbushed By SM Seasidet? Why didn't they tell us that at SM City when we were paying for our one-way shuttle fee? From SM Seaside, there were no public buses or public jeeps. The only option out was a cab - which would be more expensive. At that point, I realized I was deliberately and methodically painted into a corner by the clever guys at SM who wouldn't let me leave their mall without getting more money from me - by hook or by crook!
Analysis
It's not just a matter of getting P200 from me or anyone else who fell into the trap. It's about making you come back no matter how grudgingly. With your card and the P100 load, when you come off the shuttle, you'll still end up with a P75 credit on the card. Even if you hate SM for that duplicitous act, you'll still come back to use-up the credit balance! And what if you already used-up your load? You'll realize that you paid P100 for the card itself. Would you let it go to waste? Probably not. So now, you'll make the most out of it by adding more load, making you come back to SM Seaside where you will have to spend more. Clever, no? And yes, disgusting and infuriating!
Ending Thoughts
Yes, these SM guys think they are clever and have outsmarted everyone else. But are they really clever or short-sighted marketers fueled by greed? With what happened, I would never go back to SM Seaside or any SM mall for that matter. Why? Because I cannot trust them anymore. Because with whatever they offer, no matter how glossy, I will be suspicious. I will ask myself where the booby-trap lies or at what point do I fall into their deceptive trap-door. In the same manner I will not work for or work with anyone I cannot trust, I also will not shop in a mall that has proven to be untrust-worthy. SM gained loose change with their trickery but lost it big time and in a very fundamenetal way - loss of trust! Let's not even mention they breed shopper contempt. This mall has 1st-world infrastructure with 3rd-world thinking.
There was no way in hell I would be coerced into buying that shuttle card. After looking at all possibilities, I learned that there are single motorcycles (habal-habal) who take passengers into the town of Mambaling or just to the nearest main intersection for public jeeps at P20. I took that. And that's the last time I'll be going to any SM mall.
This is no lip-service to Robinsons Galeria, but these guys offer no-strings value to their customer base - free shuttle service between branches and from main points across the (city). They offer a Travelers Lounge for free shower, free luggage storage and free wifi. In short, they build their customer base by developing goodwill and earning their trust. You would think this is just common sense - apparently not to SM. I am sure that when Henry Sy built Shoemart of Escolta back in the day, he also had customer goodwill in mind. Somehow, along the road to getting big, those values were abandoned for greed.
--- Gigit (TheLoneRider)
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More on Cebu City:
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Camotes Islands to Cebu City
Cebu City to Dumaguete by Boat
Cebu City to Dumaguete via Liloan (bus, boat, jeep, tricycle)
Cebu City to Tagbilaran, Bohol
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Sugbo Urban
There is only one bus plying this route - Sugbo Urban. Tourist class coach, a/c, comfortable, Sun-Fri (these dates keep changing). P420 for bus, P275 for ferry to Liloan. Leaves Cebu City (South Bus Terminal) at 8 pm (Sundays 1 am), heads south to Liloan (Santander), takes the ferry to Larena Port, Siquijor, docks around 5 am, makes a clockwise roundtrip around Siquijor Island - Larena, Enrique Villanueva, Maria, Lazi (stops at Lazi market for breakfast and leaves 6:50 am), San Juan, Siquijor (arrives 8am, P50 from Lazi to Siquijor Poblacion) and catches the 1pm ferry at Larena Port for Liloan, Cebu and resumes its land route. Arrives Cebu City 10 pm.
Sugbo Urban is the cheapest and most convenient way because when it reaches Larena Port (Siquijor), it continues its trip around the island (clockwise) along the circumferential road, passing through - Enrique Villanueva, Maria, Lazi, San Juan, Siquijor...and back to Larena. It spares you the cost of hiring a tricycle or habal-habal which charges exhorbitant fares. Besides, it's a long trip to the other side of the island to be taking by tricycle.
More on Cebu Province:
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