How To Tell If Your Dealer Is Honest!

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This statement makes you as bad as the folks that start the "my dealer is worse than your dealer" posts. Remember the customer is always right!! ;)

May not feel comfortable sharing....I would throw you out through the window if you came into my house with that attitude !!

That would be like a mechanic not hooking your brake lines back up because you didn't treat him correctly in his eyes. May not feel comfortable sharing...AAAARRRRRGGGGGGHHHHHHH!! Did you forget that sharing the info is your freakin' job...I better stop thinking about this cause my blood pressure is boiling!

Personally I feel the guy gave what I thought was an honest and fair defense and your angry response was uncalled for.
 
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Putting on my kid gloves -

A home owner has the right to be stressed when an expensive appliance does not function as stated within the warranty period.

That said, is it the manufacturer's fault or the home owner's? Depends on the problem... If it was a loose connection as implied, one would think that would be picked up on the site visit. Did the manufacturer use a connection robust enough? Did the homeowner dislodge it when doing routine vacuuming of internal parts to remove dust? The answer needs to be shared with both the manufacturer and the homeowner. The manufacturer might want to pay a few more cents for a better connection (reliability = more sales; warranty claims give them a heads-up somethings not right). The homeowner will be more cautious with their cleaning and checking connection security as part of their routine. The service tech can add it to their list of first thing to check when servicing that model.

Seaken, knowledge is meant to be shared. Not asking for a dissertation for each customer but... If it is a design or quality control flaw, reassuring the home owner that you will make sure the manufacturer is aware of the fault can go a long way to soothing a customer's ire (along with covering it under warranty). Recall of parts and retro-fits are part of manufacturing since what looks good on paper doesn't always function well in the real world. If it is something the homeowner has done, they will usually appreciate your tips on maintenance as it would mean they see your face at their door less often... You've been in the service industry long enough to know, most people are reasonable when treated well. When they aren't, let it go...

Eatonpcat, Chill with a beer :p studies show moderate alcohol consumption reduces blood pressure.
 
wow- I almost dont want to comment...everyone above has good points, both pro and con.

The retail business is an interesting one. On the one hand, we do see unqualified and underqualified techs out there....and the customer shouldnt have to pay to teach them the ropes. But, please allow that there are bad customers out there as well....they wont properly maintain their stoves, they wont pay even a good tech for work accomplished, etc.

Its good to hear the stories from others who are in retail as well, nice to see that I am not the only one dealing with "issues" at times. FWIW, signing a big mulitmillion dollar contract does not impress me, not even a little. I dont know your business, I dont know what the profit margin is, how much service work is involved, etc. Just throwing out numbers to impress someone and to provocatively hint that you are more successful is, well, elitist, and simply small-minded. You had great points till you pulled that card and you lost all your credibility.....not that it matters at all, just sayin'

Here is what we do:

When we do service work, we let the customer know what the service charge is, before we even head out. If we cant come to an agreement in terms before we leave, then we wont have an equitable agreement when we fix your stove. If its a warrantee issue (bad motor, etc), it wont cost you a cent, if you bought the uinit from us. If its due to your own negligence or the stove isnt under warrantee, then you know what the price is ahead of time, and we will fix your unit, but require compensation duly agreed upon ahead of time. Was it working when you called us? No? Was it working after we left? Yes? Well, then, sweetheart, we fixed your stove, pay us. If the part breaks again within 90 days, we'll come out again, no cost to you.

Now, I figure service work, and dealing with the public is a two way street. If you are kind and polite to the customer, they will almost always respond in kind. Oddly, I still beleive folks are inherently good. But, every once and awhile, you do run into a yahoo who has some kind of superiority complex, treats you like dirt since youre in retail, tells you they can buy and sell ya, stuff like that. Then, its very satisfying to simply tell them you dont think you can come to an equitable business agreement, thank them for stopping by, and go to the next customer. THATS whats nice about owning your own business. I know many of you folks wont like this....Im sorry. And no, the customer isnt always right...sorry.

It might be nice to remember, that person you are dealing with today might be the dealMAKER tomorrow. Follow the Golden Rule, and treat others like you want to be treated.

Flame away, folks.
 
Personally I feel the guy gave what I thought was an honest and fair defense and your angry response was uncalled for.


Fair enough...But if I call a service person to my house to fix my heat source in the dead of winter and they walk out the door with it so they can find free time on nights and weekends to try to fix it, My response will be angry and uncalled for each and every time!

OOPS...replied twice to this thread after I said I was done!!
 
Fair enough...But if I call a service person to my house to fix my heat source in the dead of winter and they walk out the door with it so they can find free time on nights and weekends to try to fix it, My response will be angry and uncalled for each and every time!

OOPS...replied twice to this thread after I said I was done!!

or, find a technician who can repair it in-house. We repair almost everything in-house, unless we need to rebuild a unit (replace the auger weldment)....that job is just too invloved and dirty to fix on-site.
 
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