Re: The Bikesmith, Seattle, shutting down
"Reco Diver" <reco_diver@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:db285975.0401161747.61773dba@posting.google.com...
> "smiles" <csmillie@removethisboardnbike.com> wrote in message
news:<%4SNb.2305$%86.696@bignews4.bellsouth.net>...
> <snip>
>
> The sad thing is that you caved on your price. Now you have a customer that thinks you are either
> price gouging or pulling your prices out of your ... hat.
More than just one customer, now there's a thousand or more just from that post. Of course, those of
us here already have known this for years.
> Next time try this: Price match, then add $17.50 and tell the customer that it's for shipping.
That's all well and good, but when the MO places sell them for less than what you pay wholesale, you
can't even pricematch most of the time without selling at a dead loss.
>After you get the money, put the derailleur back on the shelf and tell him he can have it in 3
>or 4 days.
Total and utter crap. No one ever orders anything without knowing ahead of time if it's in stock,
how soon it takes them to ship (all the good MO shops ship same day or next day at the absolute
worst), and exactly how long it'll take to get to them. Everyone does this, and I know so from
selling on Ebay. Every single person wants to know when I'll ship, and how long it will take to get
there. It's almost always the very first question they ask. Most people gladly pay more for faster
shipping, too, probably like 60-75% I would guess. It's not like buying mail order is some new
concept. And, if it's going to take too long, then they bite the bullet and go buy from a shop. That
person knew exactly how much that deurailler cost, and how long it took to get it. That's probably
why he was in the shop at all to begin with.
>When he starts to whine, tell him that for another $5.00 he can have it tomarrow. (If the customer
>has not come across the counter at you) Go ahead and give him a derailleur. Pick the closest
>derailluer to you, not the XTR he paid for. When the customer complains that it isn't the correct
>derailluer,
No shop, not once, has *EVER* sent me the wrong part in the last 15 years, which is what your are
insinuating. Ever. *I* may have ordered the wrong part, but I always get exactly what I order.
> tell him that if he will pay the $17.50 (insured) to send it back to you, you will gladly send him
> the correct deraileur. When the customer hands (or throws) the derailuer back to
Again, that's crap. If the shop indeed makes a mistake and sends you the wrong part, or a part you
did not order, every single one of them will pay for return shipping. They, unlike you and your ilk,
concentrate on customer service and repeat business.
> you. Look at your monitor for a few moments, scroll a couple of pages, and tell him that it
> appears that you are now curently out of stock
That doesn't happen in real life. If the website says they're in stock when you order, then
they're in stock.
> on the requested item, but that you will gladly backorder one for him. At this point (if the
> police haven't arrived) take the original XTR derraileur remove it from its box, remove all
> installation instructions and materials, wrap it in the piece of plastic wrap (left over from the
> peanut butter sandwich you had for lunch). and hand it to your customer. Smil,e wish him a nice
> day, and remind him that "Price is not always the Point."
Well, you did make one good point; PricePoint does suck ass in that respect. BUT, in their
defense, if you ask them the condition and packaging of the part *before* you order, they will
gladly tell you on the phone or by email. I made that very mistake buying some Magura hydraulic
brakes and an SRAM shifter from them a few years ago that I did not know were takeoffs from a new
bike (there was nothing really wrong with them, they were virtually new, packed in a plastic bag
with a Xerox of the instructions.) And, guess what? When I called to complain, they offered to
take them back and refund my money, which they did without question. And then I'm sure they
promptly resold the parts I returned to them to someone else who didn't think to ask. They are the
only shop I know that does this.
Again, if this really is typical bike shop thinking, then why on earth should I pay a 40% premium or
more for my parts when this is what you guys think of me? You guys should be concentrating on
customer service and support, not thinking up ways to punish the poor customer for merely wanting to
pay less money for the exact same part.
This is the reason LBS's are closing up, and it really has nothing to do with price at all. Most
shops I've walked in aren't friendly places, and you usually get treated pretty poorly (if not
completely ignored) unless you're "in" with the shop guys. When you couple the ease of shopping on
the Internet with necessarily more expensive B&M pricing, sprinkle that with some arrogant (and
ignorant in a lot of cases) LBS salesmen, and you have a disaster waiting to happen. I'm surprised
so many stores have managed to remain in business to tell you the truth.
