Ever get customers ringing you up complaining about a defect with the product they have just bought from you, even though you haven’t produced it yourself? Lets face it, we all get them time to time, especially if you’re an installer.
That is why I think it is a good idea to explain the supply chain to them, so that they understand that not all the onus is on you as an installer to make sure every iota of the product is 100% spot on. Explaining to the customer that their fitted windows originally started from a profiler, who sent frames to a supplier to make the windows and doors who were then sent on to you, the installer. In some cases, glass is sought independently of the frames, so bringing in a fourth stage of supply.
The whole point of this exercise is to explain to the customer, if of course they are screaming down the phone at you saying everything is your fault, that the fault with the product/s may not be the fault of the installation company, but that you will now go back to your suppliers to find the source of the issues and make them put it right.
I’m not saying that an explanation of the supply chain should be used as an excuse to justify not putting right any of the customer’s issues. But I have found in previous experiences that once a customer knows it wasn’t your fault and may be down to one of your suppliers further up the chain, then they quickly have a lot more patience for you. As long as you give them assurance that you will find which supplier caused the fault in question.
A lot of the time customers get frustrated through a lack of knowledge and understanding. I have often found that an explanation of the supply chain makes the customer feel more part of the process and knows that we as the installation company can confidently go back to our suppliers to rectify the issue and will leave the customer happy at the end of the day. We even get some of our suppliers to see the customer direct!
I suppose this is an extension of the key rule to business: constant customer communication The more the customer knows then the more they’ll feel part of the process and know where their money is going and being spent. They feel at ease and their confidence levels and trust doesn’t dip.
If i was a customer of yours or any other company i would expect YOU to quality check the products you recieve before you pass them to me. Thats what i pay you for . My contract is with you and no-one else.This sounds to me like a classic case of trying to pass the buck. From a salesmans viewpoint you can turn a “We quality check all goods on receipt” into a great selling tool surely?
Alan We do check our goods when they arrive to us. But what about the things that get delivered to site for example? You can’t check those before they come, you just have to trust your suppliers to make sure they get it right. And what about issues that occur after the installation has been completed which can’t be spotted prior to installation i.e. bad batches of hardware which go faulty after a few weeks? Also, you have to account for human error. No matter how many times you check things, you may occasionally miss the odd little discrepancy. As… Read more »
Sorry DGB most customers would agree with Alan and not be bothered where problem comes from. I had washing machine once that when used for first time would not spin. Currys do not do service calls and would not deal with, manufacturer had to deal with complaint, which they did, but I would never deal with Currys again.
Sounds like a great way to pass the blame down the chain. Personally I find the majority of customers don’t scream down the phone as our customer service isn’t lacking do it never gets to that stage also I would have imagined that telling an irate customer it’s someone else’s fault when there contract is with you will just make them more irate. Also from a confidence point of view telling the customer your just the installer and all these other guys are your suppliers will give them less confidence in you when comparing to a retail fabricator that controls… Read more »
Since soft coat glass came out, i have problems all the time with marks inside the units.
They are a BLOODY nightmare,spots inside ,tiny lines which you can only see from a certain direction. When the sun is shining at 4.15pm ;-)
Basically soft coat glass is Shite for mark etc.. imo. Planitherm sort it out…
It cost me time and money every week !!!
Rant over.
Plus tell me how you pre check the units!?
i have to say Nige i make units in both hard and soft coat and have no problems at all with planitherm, it may be worth checking with your unit supplier if they have soft coat brushes on their washer as hard coat brushes wont help the matter, if the issue is more dots it could be the toughened glass supplier to your unit line or the de min not being changed regulary in the washer, on the other hand we have got pilks new softcoat coming in for the first time on monday so will see how that goes… Read more »
I have to agree with Alan too, it’s our fault if we fit something that has a defect! We should have checked, it’s then up to us to take it up with our supplier. The last thing a customer wants to hear from us is that it was someone else’s fault.
I just think the mark of a Company is to sort the problem with the Customer quickly and without quibble (if its a “Supplier issue). Then to take up the issue with THEIR Supplier and get recompense and to work together to stop it re-occuring. As a Customer i dont care about the Conpanies problems – I just want what i ordered.