my experince with Zon (so far)

I would say call them again. Obviously they are a very busy shop. It's also quite possible they had an extended holiday.

BTW - congrats on the Vinny. I really miss my VB4.

Joshua said:

Skip the email, go with the phone. While I haven't owned my Zon in @ a year, when I pursued them in the past they were excellent, but always over the phone...

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+1 email seems hit and miss with them, calling during work hours i always get a live person.

I live about 40 minutes from them though and Joe's and his crew are nice guys, They installed a sweet bubinga ramp on my bubinga topped zon.

dunamis said:

I left another message around at around 1 PM (eastern) and just got a call back from Joe Zon himself. He said they're slammed right now and getting ready for NAMM, but that the main reason for the delay is that they're waiting for pickups. Apparently, my bass is all ready except for pickups and electronics, but Bart is behind in fulfilling their order.

So, the new expected date for shipment is the end of January (2006 that is! ). I'll post a pic when it arrives.

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Hey good to hear, If it's any comfort i orderd a Zon bass in dec 2004 and had a delay when they went to 2005 namm as well...

dunamis said:

I left another message around at around 1 PM (eastern) and just got a call back from Joe Zon himself. He said they're slammed right now and getting ready for NAMM, but that the main reason for the delay is that they're waiting for pickups. Apparently, my bass is all ready except for pickups and electronics, but Bart is behind in fulfilling their order.

So, the new expected date for shipment is the end of January (2006 that is! ). I'll post a pic when it arrives.

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Barts are always late. Happened to me too. It's well worth the wait though.

If it is of any support, I also order a couple of items from them (strings and stuff) and eventhough I tried to contact them, I was never able to talk to anyone.
And magically the items showed up in front of my door.

And yes, NAMM is approching fast, I am sure they are very busy.

Eventhough it doesn't excuse the lack of communication, I'd prefer them working on my custom bass than answering all the questions that people send...

dunamis said:

Apparently, my bass is all ready except for pickups and electronics, but Bart is behind in fulfilling their order.

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I know that pain, back in my buildin' days my longest wait for Barts was 16 months. They're still worth the wait though, I've wanted a Bart equipped Zon for about 20 years though that delay is solely my lack of ordering one

I've been dealing with Joe now for about a few years, and I've found that email isn't always the way to go with Joe. I've had much better success with giving him a call. I've also noticed that if you send an email and don't get a response within the first day, go ahead and keep sending emails untill Joe responds. Eventually he does respond to his emails. One side note, when Joe switched his website around, he changed his email as well. I not knowing of the change sent an email to the old account. I ended up giving them a call instead a few days later after no response. Well, out of the blue, a few months late, Joe sends me a reply email from the old account. I thought that was pretty good of him to check the old account even though he had the new one. At any rate, the Zon guys are great, they're just a small operation cranking out a lot of orders, so sometimes you have to be patient.

Sorry, but even if a subcontractor (Bartolini) is late and causing a delay, I think the absolute first thing that should be done is contacting the customer and giving him/her the update. I'd imagine the down payment on a custom bass of this level would more than enough to warrant that service. :scowl:

Halftooth said:

I've been dealing with Joe now for about a few years, and I've found that email isn't always the way to go with Joe. I've had much better success with giving him a call. I've also noticed that if you send an email and don't get a response within the first day, go ahead and keep sending emails untill Joe responds. Eventually he does respond to his emails. One side note, when Joe switched his website around, he changed his email as well. I not knowing of the change sent an email to the old account. I ended up giving them a call instead a few days later after no response. Well, out of the blue, a few months late, Joe sends me a reply email from the old account. I thought that was pretty good of him to check the old account even though he had the new one. At any rate, the Zon guys are great, they're just a small operation cranking out a lot of orders, so sometimes you have to be patient.

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I second this. I've tried to reach them via email a few times in the past and on most of those occasions I never received a reply back, and when they did it was only a lot later. Someone advised me to give them a call instead (I would have done that first except I don't live in the States) which I did and they were really very helpful, although I ended up ordering a Sonus Custom 4 thru Bass Northwest instead of direct from Zon (3 more months to go!).

Ian Perge said:

Sorry, but even if a subcontractor (Bartolini) is late and causing a delay, I think the absolute first thing that should be done is contacting the customer and giving him/her the update. I'd imagine the down payment on a custom bass of this level would more than enough to warrant that service. :scowl:

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I know Joe Zon, and I can tell you that he is not INTENTIONALLY being remiss here. His shop is understaffed (as are almost all of us in this line of work), and he does not have someone that solely takes care of this issue (i.e. replying to phone calls and e-mail), as I do at Roscoe. Joe does it himself, unless Mark happens to answer the phone.

Please keep in mind that in addition to scrambling for 10-12 hours a day building basses (and all that involves, which believe me if you're not doing it you don't have a CLUE what it's like), all of us in this industry would like to also have a PERSONAL LIFE. Joe has a child, and tries to spend some time with his family every day, and has every RIGHT to do so.

In a perfect world, Joe would be able to afford to hire a full-time "general manager" to handle all of the non-manufacturing issues his business has. As that isn't the case, allow for a bit of time in responding to inquiries, and make an effort on your own part to get in touch (as the original poster did, and he got a positive response eventually). Every one of us in this business has an order like this that drives us to distraction for some reason outside of our control, and we can't spend every moment of the day dealing with that ONE issue - not when we have 100 other issues to deal with, each with a concerned customer involved with it.

Patient persistance will pay off.

dunamis said:

I own a business too.

I understand being busy.
I understand that things don't always go as planned.
I understand being short on help.
I understand the need for balance in ones' life.

I do not understand poor communication with customers.

In todays world, there are numerous channels for communication (perhaps too many?). People have come to expect contant, up-to-the-minute information, and instantaneous notification of any changes. Just look at successful web based businesses and you'll see what I'm pointing to. Order confirmation notices, order fulfillment status updates, shipping notices, tracking reports during shipping, etc.

I'm not angry with Joe Zon, or trying to bash him. When I did get a response (after a month of trying) he was pleasant, apologetic, and helpful. I feel pretty good about him and about Zon, and I'm excited about the bass that's coming soon (I hope! ).

That said, I think we owe it to our customers to be intentional about good communication *especially when things don't go as planned*. In my business, our most loyal customers are often the ones who were involved in some past unfortunate delay or problem with us. How we communicate with them and resolve the proble, is what generates loyalty and good will. That's when you get the credit in their minds for going the extra mile, or even just keeping them informed so they know what to expect.

Peace,

Matt

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Matt, I'm right there with you, that's why I have the job I do, but not everyone's business model or budget allows for someone to be able to be that involved in that aspect of the business. My point is that while it wasn't an immedate reply, one eventually was given. Under the circumstances that Joe faces, I understand the time it took.

Rick Turner maybe cleared this kind of thing up for me the best: (paraphrase) "If I am on the phone with you then I'm not working on your bass" and his delays make this look like a hiccup (Love ya, Rick). I'm not saying that the delay with Zon is totally acceptable, but you are dealing with what is basically a one or two man shop, heading into Christmas, with NAMM 6 weeks away, and there is a choice: build the basses or communicate.

I've had good luck getting responses from Zon, once over info on my Sonus, and once over a messup with some strings. Both times they were pretty quick and resolved the issue quickly. Maybe I got lucky, but I doubt it.

Congrats on the Vinny! That is what I was looking at before I got my Sonus.

Hey, I agree dunamis, but there is always another side to the story, and fretlessrock's relayed comment from Rick Turner (another GREAT guy) is dead on - in a shop as small as the one at Zon, every second that is spent answering a phone call or e-mail is one that isn't spent building your bass!

Oh, and you'll dig the bass, I'm a Sonus Special 5 fretless owner, great instruments!

Gard said:

...you'll dig the bass, I'm a Sonus Special 5 fretless owner, great instruments!

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+1

Also, if it helps, here's MY story...

I had a bart mid module that was doa in one of mine, totally not Zon's fault. Admittedly, I hit'em up for help nowhere near NAMM time, but they were absolutely fantastic. I had no trouble getting thru, but I always used the phone, and planned my calls for either early in their day or late. I know what it's like to work your butt off in a small shop. It's a rock and a hard place. If circumstances jam you up, which they always seem to do when you least need it, you have your choice... have folks crab at you because their instrument is late, or crab at you because they can't get you on the phone and you aren't responsive enough at the emails. Unfortunately, it's got nuthin to do with how much you care about your customers. The overload isn't long term, so it makes no sense to hire, so you just gotta' grit your teeth and bear it. Sucks.

Anyway... I told them I was a very experienced solderer (which is true), and they ADVANCED me an entire new pre-wired drop-in preamp... not just the bad part. Outside of the time taken to carefully pop and reglue the modules, it took me only minutes, and I didn't have to pay any shipping, and since the problem only affected the mids adjustment, I was still very much able to play the bass while I waited for the parts. ZERO downtime or shipping cost. Can't beat that with a stick.

Sorry about your sitch, but if it helps, I got nuttin' but pure kudos for Joe and the gang, and I'm continually amazed at the basses. I have some pretty cool stuff, at least two basses more expensive than the Zons, but my Zons get plenty of air time anyway.

P.S. If you've never played a Zon fretless... you best be ready... if you can be, anyway... they sing so beautifully and are so alive and responsive... it is THE fretless for me for sure.