| Author |
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Court
| | Posted on Friday, May 23, 2014 - 06:30 pm: | 
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No . . no . . . don't get me started on Customer Service.
I am one of the "old school" who believe Customer Service can, and should be, one of the primary motivators to buy a product.
Trust me . . and this is just me. Some motorcyclists may be able to tell you how their brand did in racing and racing my initiate some interest . . . but VERY few buy based on racing.
If your game market "hook" is solely racing . . . I can . . easily . . beat you at your own game.
The other piece I found was 46 pages and would be boring here. |
Hybridmomentspass
| | Posted on Saturday, May 24, 2014 - 12:26 am: |
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thanks court |
Ratbuell
| | Posted on Saturday, May 24, 2014 - 09:26 am: |
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I'm 1000% on board with the Honesty approach. However, the "catch" is always in the PRESENTATION.
How best to be honest, without being a dick (or being perceived as a dick)?
Sometimes, rapport with the customer in question allows you to be a dick, then play it off (The guy go through his spiel and asks "what da ya think?".
My reply . . ."I think you're a F***ing idiot".
DEAD SILENCE.
Now that we are clear on your role in this . . . let's get it solved. )
Sometimes...you need kid gloves when you present your honesty. True customer service professionals...know the difference, and act accordingly. The trick...is knowing how to present Honesty to a customer a) without pissing them off, b) while making them realize whatever situation it is, isn't the end of the known universe, and c) making them think it's all their idea and the perfect solution to their life-altering dilemma. If you're fluid enough to pull that off...regularly...with any type of personality or customer...THAT makes you a pro.
I'm a no-bullshit kinda guy. Sometimes it gets me in trouble...sometimes it solves problems. From the other side of the table...I bought myself a new Jeep Grand Cherokee diesel for Christmas - my first new car in over a decade, with a sticker price of over $50,000. 12 years without a car payment made me feel...un-American 
I'm signing papers. My salesman - who I've known and worked with for nearly 20 years and made me a smokin' deal on the Jeep - gets a call on his cell and turns white as a sheet. "We have to get in my van right now". We go up to the corner filling station where a porter is filling my Jeep with diesel, and an elderly gentleman has clipped the truck with his tupper-car Saturn. Practically ripped the front end off his Saturn; clipped my Jeep's driver front wheel, fender molding, and fender. No dents, just some scrapes in the clearcoat on the plastic molding; rub marks on the paint on the metal fender; and gouges in the aluminum 20" wheel.
Steve - my salesman - says "OK, well...I guess you don't want this one...I'll see when we have another one coming in and we can set you up on that one...".
I looked at him and called bullshit. "you've got other Summit's on the lot...pull a wheel, program the TPMS sensors, order a fender molding, and I'll come back when it's in to have it installed and get the paint buffed out".
His reaction...made me wonder what sorts of expectations customers have these days. Shit happens. Find a solution and move on. I've already been dead once...and that makes me FULLY aware that there are VERY few things in life that are worth getting that torqued up over. By the time the paperwork was done, the Jeep had a new wheel, they'd hand-buffed most of the marks out of the paint, ordered the replacement molding, and had the Jeep sitting out front waiting for me. The non-key (it has a pocket transmitter and pushbutton start) was handed to me by the owner of the dealership, who shook my hand and said "thank you so much for understanding". Steve put a unit on the books for the month, and I got what is quite possibly the best vehicle I have ever owned. Win-win, and easily solved by NOT over-thinking it.
And I suspect that's why I enjoy Buell so much...the not-over-thinking things part. Small enough company-wise to act quickly and decisively, and smart enough to know HOW to act and HOW to solve.
The flag thing? Could have (SHOULD have) been handled much more diplomatically. Could have had the same results...but the PRESENTATION sucked. Does HD sell holders for 8" tall flags? Yep. Should they have considered giving him enough holders for small versions of the flags he flew? I would have, and if my manager didn't like it, I'd write him a check for them. Did they explain the physics of airframe drag versus clutch friction to the guy so he understood WHY things behaved they way they did, without making it sound like they were taking him to school and making him wear a dunce cap? Most likely not. My gateway? Would have been the 'tattered flag' reference. "so, how much wind force do you think it takes to shred a flag...? That's how much drag you're putting on your motorcycle, and its clutch..."...and go from there. Gently, and clearly. Could he have gotten a bad clutch? Yep. Could it have been maladjusted? Absolutely - where was your last service done? Was it a dealer, or do you service your own? Cite THAT for claim denial if you have to deny it...not the flags. You (HD) still don't have to pay for a clutch...but you avoid all the bad press. |
Bob_thompson
| | Posted on Saturday, May 24, 2014 - 10:36 am: |
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Buelliedan: "I have seen a lot of passengers of the female persuasion riding on the back of touring Harleys that create a hell of a lot more drag than those flags would!!"
I'm sitting here visualizing just what would be flapping in the breeze! LOL
And I also believe patriotism should not try and be weighed by how big or how many flags you display. My little insignificant example below:
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Coxster
| | Posted on Saturday, May 24, 2014 - 11:46 am: |
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WOW! The things I learn because I care about our flag. As always, thx Court for the posts/inside info/etc. Enjoyed the four categories. (I have been a 'terrorist' in the past - after a local home builder put a single level home on the basement lot next door - guess where the rainwater goes??) +1 to everyone that mentioned passengers. What about trailers???
Anyhow, here's my flag offering. Ventura brackets minus the Rack, and a 3/8" section of stainless instrumentation tubing for the mast. It has a 12V LED at the bottom because the flag should always be lit when flown at night. The cheesy vinyl on the windscreen is to remind others we're still out there
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Crusty
| | Posted on Saturday, May 24, 2014 - 04:49 pm: |
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I wonder if H-D would reject a warranty claim by this guy?
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Ourdee
| | Posted on Sunday, May 25, 2014 - 01:09 am: |
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Look how crazed the fellow beside him looks. |
Torquehd
| | Posted on Sunday, May 25, 2014 - 02:21 am: |
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First of all, let me say, when you look at the total amount of money you spend on motorcycles in your life, a clutch is just a drop in the bucket. Sorry guy, if you have to buy a clutch, suck it up and buy the damned thing, and quit complaining about it.
Now, it wasn't HD who screwed this guy, but the dealership who diagnosed the issue and submitted a warranty claim to HD. The tech/consultant who talked to the warranty dept didn't have to mention the flags, especially if you know this customer has logged a million miles on HD products.
Aero drag is unlikely to overburden a clutch. Clutch abuse comes while the plates are in the "friction zone", while the clutch plates are slipping against eachother while engaging under load.
The flags are more likely to cause poor fuel mileage, sluggish handling, reduced power at speed. The motorcycle was designed to be a single-track vehicle, I wonder if the HD-installed extra ••••••• wheel on the back had anything to do with excessive load on the clutch... |
Torquehd
| | Posted on Sunday, May 25, 2014 - 02:29 am: |
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you know, when I first heard about Putin riding a Harley, I was almost impressed. Then I saw that it was a trike, and any diffused hint of respect I might have had for him turned into (additional) spite.
I like how the bling-bling 22" rear wheels compliment a stock front wheel. On his trike. He's not sure if he's new and hip, or needs a new hip. |
Slaughter
| | Posted on Sunday, May 25, 2014 - 08:16 am: |
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The owner's perspective in interview:
http://video.foxnews.com/v/3584793354001/biker-cla ims-harley-davidson-voided-warranty-due-to-flags/# sp=show-clips |
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