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[SGD Lutherie]

Right and as I told you in my last PM, for the last two weeks I have been mostly checking my email on my little cheap phone. So I was waiting to write you back a better message. But the last time I answered you was on Monday, the 25th.

You wrote:

Originally Posted by Bass-Adrenaline
Hey, just checking to see if you got the set of pickups done with the newer logo. I wasnt sure if right away ment this weekend or not (i hope it did). Anyway, lmk. Thanks

I said to you (via my phone):

I'm currently making them. Wont be long.


David

That was Monday.

You wrote back and asked:

Sounds good, how are the molds for the others going?

I didn't have an answer, so going into a long explanation wasn't going to cut it on my phone. I haven't been to the workshop in several weeks because I've had to stay here and work on pickups the last two weekends.

But I need to remake those molds, and a few others, this weekend.

You wrote me back on Tuesday and said:

Aside form the mold information let me know when the first set is ready. I need them sent directly to the guy building my bass. Thanks

OK, note taken, and I was waiting to tell you when the pickups were ready to ship.

Then two days goes by and you lost your patience. You just told me to let you know when the first set was finished. It's not, so you haven't heard anything from me. I probably should have wrote back and said "OK".

So, as is the case with the internet, it's hard to read people or to express yourself through typing.

 

[bassike]

So another week goes by and still nothing, I’m shocked.

 

[Rickett Customs]

Dave is obviously a good guy, for anyone concerned with delay, you can come talk to me (I had him making me a custom circuit)...I'm sure he'll honor everyone's requests.....I know plenty about delays.......

 

[KingRazor]

Please know before I say any of this that my intention is not to pick on you or call you out, David.

I think the problem was the fact that you gave a customer an estimated delivery time and failed to deliver by that time. At this point, simply saying they would be done "soon" might have been better. When I'm waiting for something to come in the mail, I'd rather not know when it was going to come than believe it will arrive by a certain date and not receive it by then.

I believe you should either simply not give out any estimated delivery times, or figure out how to make them more accurate, taking delays into account. If it's going to take 3 months, then no matter how badly you want it to take 6 weeks, it's still going to take 3 months and you might as well tell the customer that.

 

[SGD Lutherie]

So another week goes by and still nothing, I’m shocked.

You order has shipped.. check your emil.

 

[SGD Lutherie]

Im keeping this to PMs right now, debating this here wont help you in any way right now.

Your order has shipped as well.

 

[SGD Lutherie]

I believe you should either simply not give out any estimated delivery times, or figure out how to make them more accurate, taking delays into account. If it's going to take 3 months, then no matter how badly you want it to take 6 weeks, it's still going to take 3 months and you might as well tell the customer that.

I agree. The problem is when it should take three weeks and then takes longer. Sometimes I don't know how much longer.

But I've made several changes to the way I do things, so everything should run smoother now.

 

[joeyl]

I think our buddy Dave is getting a lesson on managing Talkbass customers' expectations... BTW Jazzbuckers are still my number one set!

 

[Bass4LifeRS]

We had the same kind of problem at work. We now inform of longer lead time than what's normally the case. In this way we always deliver better than advertised. Customer will feel positive about getting the product earlier than expected.
Oh yeah, keeping a (correct) stock of materials and finished products is an idea. Takes an investment, but can be profitable in the long run.

 

[KingRazor]

I agree. The problem is when it should take three weeks and then takes longer. Sometimes I don't know how much longer.

But I've made several changes to the way I do things, so everything should run smoother now.

Good to hear. I really hope your business continues to grow and do well. You're a good guy and you make great pickups. I'll get around to buying some someday when I actually figure out what I want.

 

[SGD Lutherie]

Good to hear. I really hope your business continues to grow and do well. You're a good guy and you make great pickups. I'll get around to buying some someday when I actually figure out what I want.

Thanks, I appreciate the support.

 

[Mystic Michael]

Oh yeah, keeping a (correct) stock of materials and finished products is an idea. Takes an investment, but can be profitable in the long run.

Sure, that's a great idea - IF you happen to have deep enough pockets to enable you to sink money into purchasing & maintaining an inventory of parts & materials that you might not be able to turn around anytime soon in the form of finished product. In fact, IF your pockets are deep enough, it's even better to purchase those parts & materials in bulk - so as to be able to realize steep discounts for them on a per-piece basis. This enables you a) to increase your market share by charging less for your product while keeping your profit margin(s) intact, and/or b) to keep your prices stable yet realize greater profit margins due to the improved efficiencies of scale in your purchasing processes.

There's just one rub: Your business has to be generating enough revenue to actually allow you to make purchases of that magnitude. Small businesses almost never have that luxury - and in fact, usually have to buy their inventory at a premium, due to their modest purchasing power. And one-man operations - such as David's - almost never have that kind of financial clout. In fact, most of them are constantly juggling money from one business function to another (i.e. using sales revenues to pay for more inventory, better manufacturing equipment, etc.), just to stay in business at all. So for them, it's all about cash flow. That's the name of the game.

As a customer, you generally will be exposed to these same bumps and bruises as your vendor. Although a good business person generally tries to keep it at an absolute minimum, a certain amount of trial & tribulation for the customer is almost a given.

In exchange, you obtain access to a premium, custom product - one that is generally much higher in quality than anything you can obtain from a mass-market producer, and generally manufactured or adapted to your particular specifications. That's the trade-off.

In my humble opinion, it is simply unrealistic for ANY customer to enter into a transaction with a one-man boutique operation such as David's, and expect to receive anything close to the same kind of turnaround time - or even the same kind of hand-holding during the fulfillment process - as with a mass marketer in the same industry. It's not realistic - and it's not fair.

If you're not in a position to be very patient and very flexible, then you simply shouldn't be doing business with a boutique vendor. Either adjust your expectations accordingly, or shop elsewhere.

/soapbox

MM

 

[SGD Lutherie]

Oh yeah, keeping a (correct) stock of materials and finished products is an idea. Takes an investment, but can be profitable in the long run.

I actually do this, but I don't keep finished products on hand because I can't anticipate which models people will be ordering. I tried it once and it didn't work out so well.

I also only keep enough materials on hand that I'll use in a certain period of time.

But I do have bobbins and blades and such cut to size.

 

[aborgman]

In my humble opinion, it is simply unrealistic for ANY customer to enter into a transaction with a one-man boutique operation such as David's, and expect to receive anything close to the same kind of turnaround time - or even the same kind of hand-holding during the fulfillment process - as with a mass marketer in the same industry. It's not realistic - and it's not fair.

I agree on turnaround time. I disagree on customer service.

Mainly because I've dealt with a number of one man shops that achieve it.

For boutique builders it is often smart to turn down business in order to avoid negatively affecting throughput. Too many small builders take on too many orders and fail to realize that smaller volume at higher quality and without the customer service issues puts them much further ahead.