Wht is it, that when people buy stuff...

[WolfeMacleod]

Thery can't seem to figure out that they need to tell someone what they're buying.?

I run a small business. I have dozens of conversations each day, and answer hundreds of emails each week. It get tough to remember each particular order. And when people pay me, they can't seem to figure out that they need to tell me what it is they're paying for.
It's like...handing a car dealership a wad of cash, and just saying "gimmie a car"

I am tempted to put this on my website. THere is already a smaller, consensed, more nicely worded version on my site, but maybe I need to make it much more visible.

Tell me what you think...too harsh?


ORDERING INSTRUCTIONS

There are new ordering instructions in place. Please follow them. If you do not follow these ordering instructions, your order may be delayed as I try to hunt down your email, dig your phone conversation out of the back of my mind, or run a fingerprint test on a money order/envelope with an illegible name scribbled on it, to find out who sent it...

We have gotten many order payments lately with absolutely no details or explanation of the orders. This has continued to be a problem over the last several years, and digging through the bajillions of emails I get to sort out the details is taking up a lot of valuable time.

We have gotten cash through the mail with no idea of who it belong to....please do not send cash through the mail....cash in the mail with no contact info will be considered a DONATION. And we thank you...in advance, of course, because we will not know who you are...

With PAYPAL payments, order details MUST be included in the NOTES/COMMENTS section of Paypal

Paypal payments are printed and used as the build sheet. Any details that are left out...may be left out....



An acceptable explanation of the details would be something like the following:

"Dr Vintage

Aged Covers

Zebra Bobbins

Vintage braided style lead

Phone number, etc..."



Please try to avoid writing a novel.



An UNACCEPTABLE explanation of the order would be something like the following:

"Thanks dude, please let me know when they ship."



What are "They?"



The above also applies to orders which are paid for by check or money order through the mail. Please include a brief, complete description of your order, with phone number, address, etc. please make this LEGIBLE.



Following these instructions will help to reduce the time it takes to sort through the hundreds of emails I get each week.



AND ANOTHER THING!



When replying to email, please try to quote previous emails. Doing so will prevent me from having to re-read the three dozen emails and responses in order to follow our conversation. Going from inbox to sent-box and trying to read them in order can take a very long time, if more than a few emails have been exchanged.

it is also helpful to try to avoid emailing me from more than one account. If you are "shredderus_maximus@somedomain.com" and all the sudden you email me from "yourname@someotherdomain.com" it can be very hard to folow the conversations.

Especially when someone doesn't quote previous emails....





I hate to crack down, but sometimes you gotta...I must reduce the time that is being taken sorting through communications, to devote more time to doing what I do best.



Thank you,

Wolfe Macleod

[M.D. Holloway]

Wolfe, for 10% I will take care of any and all those pesky customer details!

FWIW - I know where you are going from and if it is at all helpful I do not think your request is out of line. Its all about including an invoice with remittance. Like paying any utility bill, you always include a portion with your check right? So why should buisness be any different?

[the]

I think given the industry you are in and what you do, you can definately get away with something like that. Or more!

I think you should make it MORE salty.

[930addict]

What line of business are you in? It sounds like you need to invest in I.T. to streamline the ordering process for your customers.

[WolfeMacleod]

Originally posted by the
I think given the industry you are in and what you do, you can definately get away with something like that. Or more!

I think you should make it MORE salty.

The original draft was much harsher. I'm a nice guy, but I can be a real hardcase on occasion. Some people just need to be kicked in the head, I guess.

I'm considering making a drop-down choice menu, or a fill-in-the-blank menu, but don't really want to take the personal contact and product discussion out of it. I suppose that after the discussion, they can then go fill in the blanks. But then I'd get fill-ins that are not detailing the order....

[cashflyer]

That does it.
I'm not sending you any money until you figure out what it's for.

[Dixie]

You know what I love about ordering from Pelican? They know exactly what 'it' is that I ordered, what the cost is, when it ships, and when it should arrive.

I refuse to deal with companies and people that rely on me to keep them straight. If you want my money, act like you want it.

[Owain]

Yeah, I guess if you're selling something that customers can only get from you it's ok to treat them badly.

Maybe you need to think of it in another way, though. Maybe you need to streamline your process. Get a contact management system where you log your calls and e-mails, so when Job Bloe calls or e-mails again you can see exactly what you've discussed immediately. It'll be less stressful for you and the customer both. Instead of trying to force your customer to be organised (because they won't) maybe you need to become more organised yourself.

Just a thought...

[Jeff Higgins]

Dang it Wolfe, I knew I was confusing you. Just send all my money back and we will forget the whole thing. Or better yet, just bring it all to the XXX next month. I'm not sure how much it was or what it was for anymore, but I'm sure you will come up with a fair and equitable amount.

[Chocaholic]

Way rude. Perhaps you don't have any competition (and that's why you don't want to tell us your line of work). But, that day will come and your arrogance will either subside or you'll go toes up.

[WolfeMacleod]

Originally posted by Capt. Carrera
You know what I love about ordering from Pelican? They know exactly what 'it' is that I ordered, what the cost is, when it ships, and when it should arrive.

I refuse to deal with companies and people that rely on me to keep them straight. If you want my money, act like you want it.

It's nice that they have an automated ordering system that fills in all the blanks for them, I'm sure. That is something I don't have, and don't have the knowlegde to construct something like that.
Besides that...I have gotten checks in the mail from people I have no clue who are, and the only note being something like "pickup" or, I have even gotten cash in the mail, with no explanation at all. I get money orders with no names.
To me, it's like going to a car dealer, handing them some money, and saying "gimmie a car" and not telling them what options you want...but expecting them to read your mind.

I *personally* answer in the neighborhood of six hundred emails each week, and it's growing weekly. A typical conversation between between me and one of my customers can span 20 or more exchanges before reaching a conclusion. I've had them up to 100 emails before reaching a desicion. When someone doesn't quote previous email, extra hard because I have to jump from inbox to oubox and try to re-read the conversations in order.
It's extra difficult when people email using multiple accounts, and the conversation jumps from account to account, and the accounts have different names.
Try to keep track of something like that. It ain't easy.
I'm spending almost 40 hours a week, just doing email hunts to track people down, read, reply, etc. Time I could spend doing production, instead of delaying other people's orders while I search through email for what it is YOU want.
To give you an idea, my inbox currently has 8843 mesages, with 531 that still need to be answered becasue were were at a trade show recently, and fell behind.
I back up my email and clean out the box once every couple months, by the way.

.



All I ask is that people tell me what they want when they pay for it, and I don't see why that's so hard.

Originally posted by Owain
Yeah, I guess if you're selling something that customers can only get from you it's ok to treat them badly.

Thanks, but I actually treat my customers very well. I'll bend over backwards to satisfy them and get what they want, and I do, to the point of taking a HUGE loss on one of the components I use because it's in high demand, and I'm the only builder to offer them on my product. They can go elsewhere, but they won't get the same kind of quality or workmanship.

Originally posted by Chocaholic
Way rude. Perhaps you don't have any competition (and that's why you don't want to tell us your line of work). But, that day will come and your arrogance will either subside or you'll go toes up.

I do have competition - most of it came from my teaching and helping other people get started in the same business I'm in, and I'm above most of the others in terms of customer relations, customer service, and satisfaction.
My message may be rude. It's the second draft, and I'm trying to re-word it so it's not so harsh. However, the ordering instructions were previously posted on my website, and people still ignore them.
One of my main competitors has very similar ordering instructions. Most of us have similar ordering policies: tell us what you want, when you order it.

To order ***, be sure to provide and read the following information:
List the pickup model
Specifications (ohm reading or number of turns)
Any options..

I've already mentioned here what I do for a living, in one of my recent posts

For what it's worth, I've posted about this on a few forums, and the people there agree that it needs to be said.
And also, for what it's worth, one of my favourite people's - and a highly respected and well liked amplifier builder, had a policy of: "After you place your order, do not contact me asking where it is. If you ask, your order will be cancelled. You'll get it when it's done, and not before then"."

I like that policy.


Jeff...see you at XXX dude.

[Shuie]

Guys, guys, guys....please settle down.

Seems like growing pains for a successful small business owner/operator. I envy that

For those of you that don't know him, Wolfe runs a one man operation producing guitar pickups. His only problem (if you consider things like this problematic) is that he produces a product that is 2nd to none in the industry and is generating a huge demand. He has a customer service policy that is unheard of in ANY industry. Wolfe is the best of the best at what he does and he is an absolutely first class guy to deal with. Thats exactly why everyone wants to deal with him.

I dont disagree with the organization comments at all. If I had a thriving small business and were dealing with issues like this, I would try to put a process in place that would insulate me from the non core business stuff (like sifting through the email and phone queue for the things that must be addressed) so I could focus on the core business functions.

[dentist90]

Good product + good customer service = very busy. 8000+ e-mails a month? Sounds like you're gonna have to hire staff, or if you want to keep things smaller, invest in a good web design that will help track customer questions and orders without so much searching back. How in the world do you get any production work done with all these other demands???
Sounds to me like there is good opportunity for dramatic growth if you can manage your orders without offending potential customers. Personally I always have doubts about placing orders if the proprietor gives me the impression that my business is 'inconveniencing' him. Unless you have a monopoly, watch the tone of your rules.

[WolfeMacleod]

Originally posted by dentist90
Good product + good customer service = very busy. 8000+ e-mails a month? Sounds like you're gonna have to hire staff, or if you want to keep things smaller, invest in a good web design that will help track customer questions and orders without so much searching back. How in the world do you get any production work done with all these other demands???
Sounds to me like there is good opportunity for dramatic growth if you can manage your orders without offending potential customers. Personally I always have doubts about placing orders if the proprietor gives me the impression that my business is 'inconveniencing' him. Unless you have a monopoly, watch the tone of your rules.

I've been dying to hire staff of some sort, but the problem is finding someone who knows the products well and can give the kind of responses and advice I can give. I have a part-time assembly helper, but all he's able to do is assembly. He will not learn the finer point of the products.
How do I get any production done? I work crazy stupid hours. I usually work untill around 10pm, or later, and answer email 'till 3 or 4am in the morning, and usually get up by 9am...unless the phone starts ringing earlier.
It's not someone's incoming business that is the inconvenience. I am more than happy to work with people, and love doing this kind of work. The problems arise when (and here's a perfect, fairly recent examples) I've been emailing with "GuitarusMaximus@something.com" for 30 emails. GuitarusMaximus doesn't sign his email, althought I've asked for a name, and the FROM collumn shows "GuitarusMaximus" - then, I get a Paypal payment from "Bob_Jones@somedomain.com" with a note that just says "Thanks, Bob" - but no order details. Well...who is Bob? An inbox-wide search for "Bob_Jones" reveals nothing. Ok...I try to track down Bob by using whitepages.com or similar to find a phone number. Bob is unlisted. So, I continue the search through the web.
Six hours later, I have finally connected "GuitarusMaximus" to "Bob_Jones" from a five year old post in some defunct web forum where his user name is GuitarusMaximus and he has signed his post with "Bob Jones"

The names, of course, have been changed. I still appreciate Bob's business, but yes..he did inconvenience me to some extent, and I've lost 6 hours of production time which ='s about $2000 worth of lost production.
It gets very interesting when I respond to a paypal email like this and the response is bounced back an undeliverable for one reason or another. Happens quite often when I respond to a Paypal payment to show reciept of the payment.
It once took me about 50 emails for me to get a guy just to tell me his name...

I appreciate my customers to no end. They put food in my mouth, a roof over my head, and fuel and parts in my car. Without them, I would no be doing what I love to do.
But man...sometimes.... this is exactly how I feel when trying to sort through orders...

[K.B.]

Wolfe, $.02 here
Looks like your genius is in pickups. Hire a business genius to help work out the details of your business. That will leave more time for you to do what you love the most. No sence wasting your time on what is frustrating. Hire other people to take care of headaches. I'm sure you made some connections at NAMM, maybe some possible employees? Finding good employees is indeed a challenge. A lot of web businesses use non-local employees to get more choices for critical positions.

Leave a legacy. If you hire employees this will be possible. As you age you may find it harder to keep up your current pace. That is where you will need to depend on other employees. Jim Marshall is old, but Marshall amps are still being made.

You know how gas stations sell more than gas? Expand your business to help pay for more employees. I really like the sound clips on your web site/ would buy songs mp3's of the same. Work out some deals with your clientelle to sell/promote their music.

Quantify your pickup styles as much as you can. All of the conversations/emails you have engaged in are experiences that will allow you to use language to help narrow this down, so another employee (the right one anyway) could do the bulk of communicating.

[teenerted1]

"Thanks dude, please let me know when they ship."

see you at the XXX

[WolfeMacleod]

Originally posted by Wayne at Pelican Parts
This is not a customer problem, it's a fulfillment problem, and there are a bunch of easy solutions.....

Finally, don't sell anything at a loss on purpose - there's not much point in that. If people want your product, they will pay for it. Don't get too caught up on price - it's only one factor in deciding to make a purchase...

-Wayne

Wayne, I'll look into that shopping cart stuff, thanks. I get the feeling though that people won't actually use it...and it may be very complicated to set up, because the possibilities for each thing I offer is fairly wide - more than 10 options for each model....

I think a word Doc might be the easiest thing to do..

Here is the part I offer at a loss. I do so for several reasons...because I'm unhappy with the quality of other similar parts, and because if I were to cover the cost of each one, sales would drop to zero, I'm sure. Parts from this company are hideously expensive, compared to other parts. I really don't mind, because I'm the only one who offers these parts.
About people pay for for it if they want my product...that's an interesting thing. Finding just the right price point has been an interesting challenge...we just increased prices recently, to cover rising parts costs. I've had people tell me to raise my prices higher...but then again, I've had people *****ing that the prices of my competitors were too high.... Where to settle?
And interesting thing to note is that in Japan, my product sells for about two to three times more than I get for them

[Chocaholic]

Good advice here. Suggest you get the logistics of your business figured out. Regardless of the market, the cutesy rude approach will only get you so far.

[Dixie]

I *personally* answer in the neighborhood of six hundred emails each week, and it's growing weekly. A typical conversation...

You've identified the problem. Now identify a good solution that does not P.O. your customers.

What will make you successful is realizing it's your problem, even though it's their fault. Work on solving the problem

[WolfeMacleod]

Originally posted by Capt. Carrera
You've identified the problem. Now identify a good solution that does not P.O. your customers.

What will make you successful is realizing it's your problem, even though it's their fault. Work on solving the problem

We're workin' on it. Problem, I think, really is that I'm a crafstman, not a business man.


I also want to say, that I really love this guy...perfect order details, and I didn't even have to ask him. This is the kind of stuff that makes life much more pleasant:


Guitar: 1997 Historic 1957 Les Paul Custom (3 Pickup)
Bridge Pickup

- Standard Wind (~9k)
- White/Black bobbin colour
- Aged gold covers (super ratty please)
- 4 conductor lead

Middle Pickup

- Standard Wind ~(8.2k)
- Black/Black bobbin colour
- Aged gold covers (super ratty please)
- 4 conductor lead

Neck Pickup

- Custom Wind (Less than Middle PU as per your recommendation)
- Black/White bobbin colour
- Aged gold covers (super ratty please)
- 4 conductor lead