What ever happened to "the customer is always right"

[s_morrison57]

I think I should be able to buy from whom ever I want but the 2 main suppliers for the drilling equipment we use have protections set up to prevent this WTF. ! supplier says I have to buy from Peru and they are total Eff ups, can never get it right, different people every month or 2 and the other company says we have to by from a certain branch cause they are closest to where the money is sent from, and they are almost as bad as the people in Peru.
Its probably only 200K a year but still, you'd think they'd want to keep customers happy, must be nice to have a business that has people banging the doors down even when you run it so poorly.
Any body else get the run around like this? As an example I have to wait 3 months for back ordered parts when I can go to the local branch where I live and buy it off the shelf. Ticks me off big time

[m21sniper]

So why don't you just go to the local branch?

[Joeaksa]

Originally Posted by m21sniper

So why don't you just go to the local branch?

My thoughts exactly. I would not put up with that sort of crap, someone is skimming $$$$ off of this and it needs to be stopped.

[s_morrison57]

Originally Posted by m21sniper

So why don't you just go to the local branch?

They know me and they know where its going and that breeches their protectionism, I do by small stuff from them but even if they sold me the big ticket items it has to be shipped another 2800 miles than if I bought it at the main office, shipping from Peru to the job is the same as Toronto to the job. I just wanna buy from the main office but they won't let me

[onlycafe]

the customer is always the customer.
don't be a captive.

[Jagshund]

Originally Posted by s_morrison57

Anybody else get the run around like this?

Every time I had to deal with the cable company. If they know you can't simply take your business to a competitor they have no reason to be polite. Just like Comcast!

[ODDJOB UNO]

FIRE EVERYONE, BURN ALL THE BUILDINGS DOWN..............SALT THE EARTH!



they will get the picture when they are eating rocks.

[Joeaksa]

Originally Posted by 1968Cayman

Every time I had to deal with the cable company. If they know you can't simply take your business to a competitor they have no reason to be polite. Just like Comcast!

Boy are you wrong there!

Last time I had some problems with the cable I asked for if they wanted to save a customer or not? Agent asked what I meant and told them that I had already been in touch with Hughes Direct-TV and that they were very close to losing my business.

Bingo! They cut my bill by something like $20 a month for a year, dropped $50 off of the whole bill for a month and when their repairman could not make it for the scheduled appt the next day they knocked another $50 off of that months bill.

This is with Cox Cable. You can make a difference, just have to be prepared to make the switch, which I was.

[Zeke]

Originally Posted by Joeaksa

Boy are you wrong there!

Last time I had some problems with the cable I asked for if they wanted to save a customer or not? Agent asked what I meant and told them that I had already been in touch with Hughes Direct-TV and that they were very close to losing my business.

Bingo! They cut my bill by something like $20 a month for a year, dropped $50 off of the whole bill for a month and when their repairman could not make it for the scheduled appt the next day they knocked another $50 off of that months bill.

This is with Cox Cable. You can make a difference, just have to be prepared to make the switch, which I was.

Wait until you try that with D-TV. I was a D-TV customer for 12 years when I called to tell them I was thinking about going FIOS. Or, they could send me an upgraded set top box for NOT the 200 bucks they wanted but I would pay the extra monthly fee for the DVDR in the box.

They basically said to not let the door hit me on the way out.

[Joeaksa]

Have not heard good things about Dish. They are the budget people in the mix and not going for quality...

[kanadary]

i called comcast for an extra cable box, the cheap one not the hd one that gets all the channels. they said they could not give me one for free i would have to pay something like $3 a month. i said i have been with them since i moved to seattle 14 yrs ago, and have my internet with them. they said sorry, can't do it. i said, okay cancel me then cause direct tv is willing to give me the extra box, they said, they don't have internet, my response, clear wire does... they upgraded my internet connection to a higher speed for 6 months free, gave me 50% off the cable bill for 6 months and gave me the box free for 6 months. it all added up to alot more than the $3 savings i was calling about originally. its been over 6 months so i am planning on asking for another deal. the deals are there if you ask.. you just have to ask.

[Groesbeck Hurricane]

Is there some reason you are locked into this particular manufacturer? Is there not someone else who makes this equipment type? I have a hard time believing there are no other good choices out there, but I know that could be the case.

Approach the local branch manager and have him explain the situation to you as to protectionism. I know many suppliers try that but not all dealers play that game. Find a way with the local branch manager for you to utilize their branch in all your business. $200K/yr is a good account no matter the size of your business.

Could the money be set up to come locally out of Toronto? That would by-pass the protection for Peru.

Will the company put in writing that you cannot buy from your local service center and have to use Peru because it is company policy? Then could you not take that to Canadian officials as an unauthorized way to do business in Canada?

$200K is not alot of money unless you are not receiving it anymore! It is the multitude of small users that keep the big boys alive. The other big boys occupy line time but not all the line time of manufacturers/suppliers. The small/mid size guys fill in the gaps and are the more profitable business in the long run. The small/mid size guys pay the bills and are more likely to pay on time and only take discounts when they are due. The big boys tend to play around with payments and will take discounts even when the discount is expired. They do it because they hold more cards.

Antenna TV is realatively free and you still have commercials with cable and satellite. Do we really need 200 channels of inane babble? I don't but we hardly watch TV. I have a 19" set in the living room. It will double as a computer monitor.

[UconnTim97]

Originally Posted by kanadary

i called comcast for an extra cable box, the cheap one not the hd one that gets all the channels. they said they could not give me one for free i would have to pay something like $3 a month. i said i have been with them since i moved to seattle 14 yrs ago, and have my internet with them. they said sorry, can't do it. i said, okay cancel me then cause direct tv is willing to give me the extra box, they said, they don't have internet, my response, clear wire does... they upgraded my internet connection to a higher speed for 6 months free, gave me 50% off the cable bill for 6 months and gave me the box free for 6 months. it all added up to alot more than the $3 savings i was calling about originally. its been over 6 months so i am planning on asking for another deal. the deals are there if you ask.. you just have to ask.

I just did the same thing yesterday. It's all a game. I mark my calendar and call every six months to get the new "reduced" rate. I can't imagine that there are people out there that pay full price for Comcast. I don't even threaten to leave, I just let them know that I am unhappy with the current price. Works like a charm.

On a side note, the customer service at Comcast has been surprisingly pleasant the past few times I have called.

[cashflyer]

Originally Posted by s_morrison57

They know me and they know where its going and that breeches their protectionism...

Set up a purchasing office in the next town over, under a different company name, and staffed by somebody they don't know. Have your purchases made from that office.

[john70t]

Build up a log/records to show their negligence is damaging your profits and business reputation, and then renegotiate their contract exclusivity clause.

Get it in writing.

In the end, you'll have to decide whether the risks of changing outweight the risks of the status quo.