Am I Being Petty

[911Gil]

Here's the story. I finally saved up for the suspension upgrade on my 85 911. Did a lot of research on this forum, based on that research, one company's name kept coming up as the better one to deal with (I purposely left the name out). I went on their website chose performance package that I thought would best suit my needs, but I still had some questions, so I called and spoke to a gentleman, and while we were on the phone I explained to him what I was expecting out of the package (in terms of driving experience).

We ended up adjusting the on-line form a little and finally got it where we wanted. At the bottom of the form the total dollar amount came up $2900.(being in the negotiating business for close to three decades) I asked if there was any wiggle room in the total, he said the prices are what they are (I had to try, but wasn't offended). I asked if there wasn't a discount is it possible if he could throw in a t-shirt or a baseball cap or a couple of stickers, or any combination thereof, he said sure, "at the bottom of he form there is a special instruction box just put what you just told me and we will take care of it"(least that's what he made it sound like).

Three days later two boxes showed up, took inventory of content(to make sure all components were there). Well almost everything was there what happened to my free goodies??? The reason I bring this up is when I placed a simple low cost order with our host they at least threw in a cool sticker (now I'm spoiled).

Am I being petty for expecting something for free even though I ended up spending close to $3100 after taxes and shipping cost, let me know what you think......

[DanielDudley]

''Does this dress make my butt look big ?''

Um, No dear...

[ZOO]

You are being petty. Asking for the discount was a sound decision. But, they don't owe you anything based on what you've spent -- you aren't entitled to a discount or other swag because you are a customer.

Having said that t-shirts and stickers are cheap. I suspect there was simply a communications glitch. Call back if it will complete the experience for you.

[Groesbeck Hurricane]

It comes down to their business decision. Do not know their margins or understand their business.

That said, having your name running around on a bunch of stickers on 911s might actually increase your business a tad and pay for the cost of the stickers. I would like to think a company I owned would provide some free stickers for satisfied customers to display. It couldn't hurt!

[911Gil]

Gentelmen,

Like most of us in this community (Older Porsche enthusiast). We are always working on improving aesthetics, and performance on our beloved cars. Perhaps the thread title was not the right way of expressing my thought. I should of titled it. So What Do You Guys Think.

When working on these cars there is always one project after another. So when dealing on a project that is not necessarily inexpensive I didn't see the harm in trying to negotiate a reduced total, that would leave a little extra cash to for the installation cost or the Momo steering wheel that I'm eying as my next project.

Most people on this forum are always looking for a better price for parts, otherwise we would not have the classified section on this site. As far as the t-shirt, the cap, or a couple of stickers are concern they do go a long ways in costumer satisfaction and the free advertising doesn't hurt. If he would not of agreed to give me some swag it would not of changed my decision in purchasing the part! So please don't bash me for a mis-titled Thread.

[Steve Carlton]

Originally Posted by ZOOMiata

Having said that t-shirts and stickers are cheap. I suspect there was simply a communications glitch. Call back if it will complete the experience for you.

Here.

[redstrosekNic]

If it really bothers you, you could call and ask if you could buy a hat or something... I bet they would just give you something.

[GH85Carrera]

I order "stuff" on line all the time from all sorts of companies and products. Most of the companies send only what what was ordered for the price list. No discounts, no freebies. Pelican throws in a sticker with most orders and I have a stack of 20 or so stickers sitting on a shelf. So getting another sticker is not much of a "gift".

At our company if a customer asked for a discount or free sticker we would just laugh.

[gassy]

You don't need that crap anyway.

[red-beard]

Yes, now install that in your car.

[Gogar]

You are being petty.

In truth you dont even want the shirt, you just want to be the psychological "winner" of the exchange.

And that's not an attractive quality. Don't be like that.

[Joeaksa]

Guess I am going to go against the grain here.

Personally I feel that especially for a first order and something in the $3000 range that a company like this should have tossed in something like a hat and t-shirt free gratis.

First off its almost free advertising and second off it was asked for and agreed during the ordering process. Prolly would cost the company less than $10.

What should have been a happy customer saying "really liked the service I received and they even tossed in a hat and t-shirt" ended up with a bad taste in his mouth and this thread. We can do better...

[kaisen]

Originally Posted by 911Gil

free advertising doesn't hurt.

Free?? What am I missing? You expected the company to GIVE YOU a hat or T-shirt or mug or keychain, blah, blah.
You don't think they paid for those items? What's free?

FREE advertising would be if you were on here, naming names, and telling about your great experience.
Not b!tching that you didn't "win" and get them to throw in something of value and not charge you for it........

[stomachmonkey]

Originally Posted by Gogar

You are being petty.

In truth you dont even want the shirt, you just want to be the psychological "winner" of the exchange.

And that's not an attractive quality. Don't be like that.

Saved me some typing.

[Embraer]

i'm with joe on this one. so did the guy say that he would give you something for free? sounds like it. if so, then i would have an issue about him not telling the truth.

yes, this is part of customer service. perhaps the business needs to review that? if the guy he bought these suspension parts for specializes in porsches, then there's no excuse for saying one thing, and then doing another. he has a limited market and he needs to rely on customer service. he's not Sears, Best Buy, or any other large corporation. ...he's a specality company that sells parts.

i buy a lot of parts for my british cars and my "british pelican" always throws a little package of Walker's Short Bread cookies in the box with the parts. Pelican does the sticker thing.

these smaller companies DO need to make the customer feel like they're "winning." something as small as a sticker (yes...you can have thousands made for a cheap price) will get a customer's attention and make them feel like they got something special.

i think that the OP should call up and ask. the parts guy told him one thing, and did another. perhaps it was an oversight? 3K isn't an order to scoff at.

[sammyg2]

You are not being petty, you are entitled to all the free stuff you want. Unless you make too much money.

[Joeaksa]

Originally Posted by kaisen

Free?? What am I missing? You expected the company to GIVE YOU a hat or T-shirt or mug or keychain, blah, blah.
You don't think they paid for those items? What's free?

FREE advertising would be if you were on here, naming names, and telling about your great experience.
Not b!tching that you didn't "win" and get them to throw in something of value and not charge you for it........

Guess you have forgotten that these are usually on the "advertising budget" and written off on taxes as such.

[Zeke]

If it's a company that is a vendor to Pelican, you would have done better in the discount dept. by calling Pelican. Vendors have to protect pricing or risk losing an account. Secondly, if this company is a Pelican vendor, this whole thread is terribly out of line. You slapped our host.

As for the hat and shirt, it might have been an oversight. Did you agree on a shirt size?

[HardDrive]

I don't think you are being 'petty', but I think you should let it go and enjoy your new suspension gear. If you have $3100 to drop on suspension for your Porsche, your a lucky man.

[mossguy]

So far, we've heard only one side of this. Were goodies really promised?