Another LDS Experience Gone Sour

[mels_2]

Working as a sales person I can see bothsides, however the sales person was WRONG. If i spend my time serving a customer and she buys the same thing at my sister store (i work for a chain) am i a little aggrivated at her...... absolutely....does she know...no way...she is future sales for me. Do i try to find out why of course....do i say things about her to my coworkers after she leaves....absolutely. In retail you win some you lose some, but you never let your frustration out on the client. If you truely want repete sales from the same person you do build a relationship with "your client" you ask questions you get answers, you get future sales. Of course i work on commission so I never want to lose a sale.....lol

If this LDS wants to give pool time to try out equipment maybe they should have you purchase first, test second. If the equipment isn't what you want they should have a policy in place that allows you to EXCHANGE for a different item/equivalant. That way they still GIVE the service and GET the sale.

 

[BabyDuck]

If I spent a couple of hours at a BMW dealership talking with a salesman who was giving me technical information, advice, and stories, and took the time to go out on a test drive with me, then I went down the road to the next dealership where the salesmen don't know anything and bought my new 530xi because the price on the window was lower, I would be disgusted with myself and I would certainly expect the salesman to give me the cold shoulder if I went back later for something else.

this may be true, jonny, but this guy did the equivalent of looking at & test driving a 530xi then going to buy an f-150. it's not just that he bought for half the price of the first rig, he bought a totally different rig. if the lds had that same set-up and he didn't give them a chance to offer their deal, maybe they had a reason to be upset. however, they don't have reason to *show* their upset and get so nasty.

 

[jonnythan]

I don't see it that way BabyDuck. He went to the store, tried out a backplate/wing, and bought a backplate/wing. He never went to the LDS and said "check it out, I'm strapped for cash and found this wicked good deal on a backplate/wing combo at xxxx a few days after I was here trying stuff out. Any chance you can come close to matching that deal? I realize that you guys provided me a good service in having the product, store, staff, and pool right here and I feel that's worth a lot, but I just can't spend the extra $300."

That would have been the right thing to do.

 

[Rick Murchison]

The businessman is always trying to balance the customer's value against the customer's cost. It's all about the bottom line. Good relationships that support the bottom line are important; good relationships that hurt the bottom line aren't really good relationships at all. If one expects to stay in business, a customer that costs more than he makes has to be dumped. The art is dumping him in such a way that he still likes you, usually with some variation of "gosh, we'd like to, but we just can't help you" - and recommending a competitor where he can be a drain on profits there... "but Joe over at Joe's Dive Shop can probably fix you right up."
Rick

 

[mels_2]

I don't see it that way BabyDuck. He went to the store, tried out a backplate/wing, and bought a backplate/wing. He never went to the LDS and said "check it out, I'm strapped for cash and found this wicked good deal on a backplate/wing combo at xxxx a few days after I was here trying stuff out. Any chance you can come close to matching that deal? I realize that you guys provided me a good service in having the product, store, staff, and pool right here and I feel that's worth a lot, but I just can't spend the extra $300."

That would have been the right thing to do.

that may have been the right thing to do, however the sales person was also wrong. Sometimes the deals can't wait for a counter offer.

I am all for supporting a LDS, as others hae mentioned I would personally contact the owner and tell them about the experience if it isn't the owner that you had the problem. If it was the owner I would look for a new LDS.

 

[jonnythan]

If it was the owner I would look for a new LDS.

Truth be told, I would too. But then I wouldn't have gotten into the situation in the first place.

I had one dive shop shun me because I bought my BC and regs off the internet... but I never asked him a thing about gear in his shop, he didn't sell anything I was interested in, and I never used a minute of his time for anything other than teaching my AOW class. *shrug*

 

[mxracer19]

I'll agree with that. But I can agree with myself too

 

[OneBrightGator]

As an LDS, I wouldn't want your business. A solid $200??? Wow, the profit on that might have covered the phone bill for the month, don't think you did them any favors. You have no appreciation for the staffs' training, experience or knowledge. They took time and outfitted you with a complete kit then took you diving in a pool. The employees time isn't free, having the gear in stock isn't free, having a place to show the gear isn't free, using a pool isn't free, but you have no appreciation for that. They spent the money out of pocket to open your eyes to a bp/w and you turned around and bought one with very little difference because you knew how nice they were.

Dealing with a diveshop is a commercial transaction, but people are quick to shun what is included in a transaction with a brick and mortar shop. With a B&M shop, you have local support, what will you do with your equipment should you have a problem? Is it under warranty? Is it even new? And keep in mind you would have NO idea how to proper fit a bp/w with your B&M shop.

We had a "customer" drop off a computer with us recently that crapped out after TWO dives, he bought it online and we would have packed it up and sent it back the manufacturer (for just the cost of shipping, even though he had never spent a dime in the store) and they would have sent us a reconditioned one, he chose to ship it back to where he bought it and have them deal with it. So he had to pay for more shipping and wait another 3 weeks. Had he bought it from us, I would have swapped it out that day.

You didn't even give the shop a chance to compete, cause they could have matched it (I know, I just ran the numbers).

 

[--tom--]

I am in retail and in a specialty sport industry that has been very affected by the internet. So I see the perspective of the LDS, but the LDS was STUPID!!!!
mxracer played to the opportunity, luck happens. (I think mxracer also played fair if he was my customer I would have been happy for him.) Sometimes my customer finds a screaming deal, I'm sorry I couldn't close the deal, but I'm glad MY CUSTOMER GOT IT! That means that there is a participant in a sport that will keep bringing me money.

That being said, there is a group of customers who come in just to use my technical knowledge to buy elsewhere. That gets old really fast. While I like talking to customers, I still have the repair bench demanding my time. I don't think I have an obligation to do that type of consumer's homework. Will I be rude? never, but that customer won't get "frequent flyer miles".

There are customers that have supported me throughout the times. There are always perks that happen for these special customers. When someone skoffs at the "relationship" believe me, it's there. If the frequent flyer needs the repair in 24 hours when the work backlog is a week out, it'll happen. When there is only two of something in the country, he'll get one of them. If there is a warranty issue guess who goes to the front of the line? I don't HAVE to work overtime for any customer, but for the customer who has been fair with me all along, I will, and gladly do so. Think that will happen to the person who simply wants a business deal?

So sometimes a great deal is sometimes only a good deal.

 

[nicvanzee]

I have a good story along these lines. I was seriously in the market for a new bc and a local shop had the one I wanted so I called them and asked if it was in stock and it was and what was the price. It was in stock but he said he wouldn't give me the price over the phone but he would meet or beat anyone esle's price. I took the trip across town fully intending to buy the bc.

I first talked to the salesman and tried on the bc. it was what I was looking for so I told the salesman that I was told that they would meet or beat any prices I found. He called the shop owner over to haggle prices. The only other one I had found (it was a big man bc) was on the internet for about $340 and the one at his shop was about $560. Now mind you he was the one who said he would meet others prices. I did not at all expect him to get down to the cost of the internet bc but since he offered i felt it was not unreasonable to ask for a little break. The shop owner became irate and said I was just trying on his stuff for sizing and I had no intention of buying it. I explained I had every intention of buying it. I had the money in my pocket.

When he walked away my wife and I were stunned and asked the salesman if that was completely rude or if it was just me. He said that it was very rude. I said, loud enough for the owner to hear, that I was not using him for sizing and I wanted to buy my stuff from a local lds if at all possible. He stormed back over and called me a liar and told me I was just using him for pricing and to take off the bc and leave the store. so I did as the salesman apologized.

In response to the other post, I am a contractor. I give free estimates. Sometimes that includes a quite a bit of time and effort. I never get mad at a customer if they don't take my bid. I feel that it is all on me for either not having a quality enough product or being too expensive. It is pure and utter bull $%#& to say that I have an obligation to a lds if they spend a little time telling me about a product. Learn how to run a business like the rest of us.