$2400 and the Alabama High Step for a re-gear?
- Thread starter MikekiM
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OP
While I’ll never know for sure if it was the case here but I worry more people when know and tell you something that’s wrong, possibly to their own benefit.
I have been in the financial world for three decades. I adhere to a Fiduciary Standard meaning I am obligated to approach every client with advice that is solely to their benefit, never my own. I do this regardless of the industry requirement and always have. It’s the difference between building lasting relationships and being transactional. No doubt there are advisors who are motivated only by their own advancement and monetary gain, but that isn’t me. Truth be told, I think my income is greater than many in spite of making less. We have clients for decades. Multiple generations. They trust us and just keep bringing us money. We earn less on each interaction but make it up in time and volume.
Any way.. this shop had some nice overland gear and a few OBA parts I could use. No other places like this nearby, that I know of. His actions, regardless of motivation, leave me feeling I would rather not so business with them. Unfortunate. There was a second sales guy sitting next to the guy I was speaking to. Could he believe and propagate the same wrong information? Did he know better but didn’t say anything? Is he guilty by association? Sadly, I think yes.
Kindness and Gratitude. The rules with which I live my life. Neither seemed to exist here.
I’ve heard the stories about them. Sounds similar.
Tray Burge
TJ Addict
Makes sense. Other than a few AR pistols I only have pistols and revolvers, never bee that big in rifles. Thanks
Well that leads me to another one to live by....
If your gut says no..
And as a sidenote I love what you said, My financial guy is the same way. I use a similar mindset as a contractor because to know to do the right thing and not do it is negligence- But I am getting off onto a little bit of a different view- You and I both know what is in our clients best interest. People need to have the knowledge in order to be accurate- That leads to credibility and that leads to trust. Trust is the foundation of all good relationships.
I. Can't. Help. Myself.
The shop that did mine had the owner and another doing customer service. I may have waited a bit to talk in person while they helped with a phone call. Or with a phone call may have had to leave a message, they would call back.
This was my quote from 7-19-21. Left a $200 deposit. Made the appointment for 9-20-21 to be able to gather the parts.
I prefer to communicate by e-mail and the fact that they specifically say they prefer that method would have sold me on them. The fact that they are too busy to answer the phone should tell you something. Sounds familiar, if I could just remember the name of that one company.
In this day and age, having things in writing is never a bad idea.
I get a rise out of prospects occasionally but I run my construction company a little bit differently when it comes to communication-
I was on the phone 10,000 minutes a month and nearly lost everything I had in about 2011.
By the time I would complete a conversation I would miss three calls and then I would have to check the messages and then still have to deal with the reason for the message.
I quit answering the phone in about 2014. Entirely. I quit voicemail. Entirely. My business has grew about 4-5 times. Our service has never been better.
I decided that I did three things well enough that I needed to focus on them- Developing work, managing work and getting paid for work -
I have a message on my phone that says if you want to reach me send me a text, or you can call my assistant.
Everybody gets an audience. No one is ever ignored. I can stand and talk to a customer and focus on them 100%.
I can run a circular saw and keep all my fingers.
What happens to a business is you get to a point where you’re big enough or your market is active enough that there is so much market activity at the same time you can only do so much work- The shortage of technicians means in many cases the owner actually works and it also means that you don’t need all the extra business or to pay somebody to field the calls at a desk.
We work exclusively off referral and we only add clients selectively as most of our work is repeat business.
It took me over two decades to create this and I guard it ruthlessly.
The reason I’m saying all this is it is a different world and it is a good idea to maybe sit back and appreciate new ways to do business and new ways to communicate- This holds true the most with information such as “I want 4:56 gears”.
It does not hold true for emotion or sensitive conversations.
For me it was not some brilliant move it was just a matter of survival and it actually took a lot of courage for me to make the change- It made me a little bit unavailable and that has made us even more sought after.
Importantly it also sets the tone that I am in charge and not acted on by the market.
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If you ever switch to being a mechanic, I'm driving to Alabama to have you work on my Jeeps.Great ethics.
The guy I let work on all of my vehicles is a long time family friend of my wife. Nice Harley MC guy that works his ass off. I respect the fact that I tell him how long it takes me to do a job and he usually agrees. I now have some spinal disease that ruins the discs in my back and arthritis. I blame it all on the newest wife and my lack of "activity".
Reminds me of a friend of mine, actually my brother in laws best friend from childhood. He owns a HVAC company that just won best HVAC company in the county. It's just nice having someone that works on something I have no experience with and I know there are shady companies out there. He actually charges me too good of a rate to be honest and I tell him that. I don't mind paying the same rate as others because I trust him and I know he isn't going to screw me over or overcharge or recommend things that I don't need. That in itself is highly valuable to me and the reason I recommend him to everyone that needs that type of work.
That and he lets me borrow his dual axle trailer when I want to tow my jeep around.
That and he lets me borrow his dual axle trailer when I want to tow my jeep around.
OP
Pay someone to answer the phone. Even if it is to say, “so-and-so returns calls on Wednesday mornings.. I’ve got you slotted for a call back”. I’ll wait for a return call.
I can get all of what I need in one call that might otherwise take a half a dozen or more emails. Don’t get me wrong, I am an early adopter of technology. I love email and text. But when I need to tap into someone as a resource and don’t know exactly what questions I need to ask or information I need to provide, I want to get the conversation started verbally. If we need to switch to email for confirmation or ”oh, I forgot to ask” type stuff, it’s fine.
I return EVERY call. Clients know in advance that if they say it is an emergency, they get a call back as soon as possible. If it isn’t an emergency, I promise a call back within 24 hours. They know how busy I am. I trust them (and I tell them so) to decide if it is an emergency. If I am tied up, I have an assistant who can help. Admittedly, my business is built on conversation. I don’t wrench in the shop out back. I do have to allocate a ton of time to detail work.. rebalancing, transactions etc. But I schedule it. Focus time is face to face with clients (virtual or otherwise) and calls. Service work and prospecting is Buffer time. It isn’t money making time, but does lead to it. And Free time…. Leave me alone. It’s on the calendar and it’s non-negotiable. It’s the only way I can deliver more than what I promise.
You’re not wrong. We can (and will) swap a summary email with details, later. But I don’t want to try to decide 4.10, 4.56 or 4.88 via an email.
I don’t consider myself in sales, per se, but you tend to sell the way you like to buy and vice versa.
All of these companies stay in business because someone out there likes the way they operate, right? In this case, I trust my gut. When the hair on the back of my neck starts to prickle… I move on. I might not know exactly why. Just another level of trust, this time in myself.
If you ever switch to being a mechanic, I'm driving to Alabama to have you work on my Jeeps.Great ethics.
Do you know why men die before women? We want to!
And thank you for the compliment- Character is what we are when nobody is looking. Also all this is not some incredible strength of character as much as it is a decision to do it and it’s a decision that you have to keep making.
Believe me, I spend hours driving, only to hear her repeat the same thing 20 times to her relatives on the phone. Thank GOD she spent the night at her mom's tonight.
My wife was wearing me out this morning about someone’s character that had been helping me on a temporary basis this week- I finally got to the point and said can we end this conversation now?
I know there is a dichotomy to this statement but as much as I like to keep my word and keep my commitment to my customers And avoid associating with people that don’t have similar character I will also bring somebody in temporarily to get me through something so that I can keep my word- At the same time the reason I wouldn’t only work them temporarily is because they do not have the kind of character that you can count on day in and day out- Except usually count on them to go goof up or flake out.
I have to lower my standards to keep high standards.
My wife was wearing me out this morning about someone’s character that had been helping me on a temporary basis this week- I finally got to the point and said can we end this conversation now?
I know there is a dichotomy to this statement but as much as I like to keep my word and keep my commitment to my customers And avoid associating with people that don’t have similar character I will also bring somebody in temporarily to get me through something so that I can keep my word- At the same time the reason I wouldn’t only work them temporarily is because they do not have the kind of character that you can count on day in and day out- Except usually count on them to go goof up or flake out.
I have to lower my standards to keep high standards.
Stop hanging out with that @Hog and @John Cooper. They really seem like great people. I'm jealous.
They are pretty good guys. Other than being complete perverts I mean.
You’re not black , athletic and you don’t happen to drive a bronco do you?
One thing we all need to remember is these meet ups can happen- The world is not that big.
They are pretty good guys. Other than being complete perverts I mean.
The @Hog is a dead giveaway. John Cooper lives off his daddy's tire company name..