Almost NBD - warning online retailer content

[mrperkolator]

Thanks everyone,

Yah, these are strange times and I am anxious to receive it and therefore getting impatient.

On the other hand they should change thier web site and remove promises they can no longer keep. It's just not right to sell you on false expectations.

I get your frustrations. And I understand why there's others crying "fraud" with you.

However, if they said a "ships in 24 hours" and that was a legitimate promise when given, it's not fraud. If variables changed after you bought, like the whole warehouse calling in sick, then it is out of their control. They did not commit fraud, as there was no intent to defraud you of your money. Now a phrase like "breach of contract" yeah. They definitely breached, even though it wasn't intentional.

But if they knew the bass was sitting on a container ship off the pacific coast, and told you it could be shipped in 24..... yeah they were lying, and that is intentional fraud.

I'm in the "if it's good just wait for it" camp. Stock of bass guitars has been very low since this crap began...

 

[Bonafide]

Plenty of fantastic basses, amps, pedals, effects and sellers...right here on TB. No waiting and generally very little fuss.

I still buy new, but my new MO is seeing a bass, synth, etc that is clearly labeled as 'in stock' and then calling to confirm. 6 times out of 8, MF actually did not have it in stock. 'The website has not been updated' is the common remark along with the apology. Sales folks get the worst of it from customers and it's not their fault either. I am happy there is someone there to take the call! This approach is just experience, not pessimism. Rest assured this is not the way any of those companies want to operate. We are all genuinely in this together.

 

[mouthmw]

One reason I buy from the best...Reverb.

Erm, Reverb is just a marketplace. It's literally a specialized ebay (for musical instruments).
And lately, prices on Reverb are absolutely awful, and always higher than going directly with vendors. Which is to be expected, they charge their service. Used gear prices are even worse on Reverb now.

 

[pjbassist]

@Ash Jazz man that sucks, sorry you're going through this. I live in Fort Wayne where Sweetwater is located and know countless people who work there. Supply chain issues aside, the one thing I do know is that Sweetwater will ABSOLUTELY make it right...if you give them a chance.

Not sure if you've been working with a Sales Engineer, but I strongly suggest that you do! They will get to the bottom of the issue and resolve it, or at least offer you incentives to keep your business. SW is known the world over for incredible customer service. Mind you, even SW can't snap their fingers and end a global shipping crisis, but before you cancel your order, at least find out what they can do to earn/keep your business. Good luck!

p.s. If you want the name of a few Sales Engineers that I know personally (Many I have been in bands with), shoot me a PM.

 

[turf3]

Hi all,

My enthusiasm for my new bass, an Ibanez SR1345b, is getting replaced with frustration. Maybe I'm being impatient but the web site specifically said in stock, same day shipping on most orders placed before 3pm and if not guaranteed to ship within 24 hours. I placed the order at 5am Wednesday morning.

Its my fault for waiting until the last minute but I was counting on using it Tuesday evening. I am going on day 3 with no change in the order status, "processing". I called, the lady was nice, apologized for the delay but couldn't tell me anything definitive about it.

Tomorrow I am calling and canceling the order.

I don't know what's up with Sweetwater but they are out of stock of just about everything.

Niether local GC or SA have one in stock.

Zzsounds supposedly has it in stock and guarantees 2 day free delivery. I think I'll try to go that way. Tough luck MF, I was looking at a Mesa rig too.

Maybe I am being too impatient but I feel lied to. That's the part that bothers me. Don't make promises you can't keep and if something happens, tell me, I shouldn't have to come looking for you for an explanation.

I think you're being unreasonable.

First of all, there's a worldwide pandemic with businesses of all types having record sick-outs. Yeah, fewer of those people are being hospitalized or dying but they're still too sick to be driving trucks, operating forklifts, packing things into boxes, making shipping labels, etc. Plus all the way up the chain, from the UPS guy that sets the box on your porch all the way back to the factory where they draw the copper wire that's wound onto the pickups of the bass, every single one of those organizations have long since burned through all their inventory and are now dealing with record backlogs and difficulty in obtaining their raw materials.

And secondly, expecting to receive an ordered item less than a week after ordering it, in these times, is highly unrealistic. People have gotten used to a rapid-shipment modality that can only be supported with a massive transportation infrastructure supported on indefinitely expandable supplies of cheap oil and cheap labor. I'm only 60 and I remember very well that ordering something from a catalog used to be "mail order"; you filled out a paper form, you mailed it in (one to two weeks), they waited for the check to clear (one to two weeks) then they filled the order and shipped it to you (one to two weeks) - thus every one of those mail order forms said "allow six to eight weeks for delivery". That, not three or four days, is "normal conditions". You're just going to have to adapt. The world is not going to snap back to 2019 any time soon.

 

[Gunga Din]

One reason I buy from the best...Reverb.
I'm betting there are a few on there right now.
Just bought this yesterday and it arrives tomorrow.
BOSS WAZA-AIR-B Wireless Personal Bass Amplification System
View attachment 4541688

Interested to hear how you get on with these.

 

[Stewie]

If you go to the post office and pay stupid money for “overnight delivery” it might get there in 4 days. This is what life will be like for a while.
“Sit down with a cup of coffee and enjoy the morning, you’ll be fine” says the guy who climbs the walls if the drummer is 5 minutes late.

 

[Gunga Din]

If you go to the post office and pay stupid money for “overnight delivery” it might get there in 4 days. This is what life will be like for a while.
“Sit down with a cup of coffee and enjoy the morning, you’ll be fine” says the guy who climbs the walls if the drummer is 5 minutes late.

I leaned a while back that unless you are a business - BIG BUSINESS - customer, overnight delivery is an absolute no guarantee. And that was before the Pandemic.

Pay the 3-4 dayer and relax

 

[buldog5151bass]

1. Because of supply chain issues, many retailers are out of stock.
2. Because of COVID, more people are ordering on line, and more people are out sick.
3. The holiday rush just ended, so delivery companies are still digging out.

It's been this way for a while. But if you want to cancel and go to the back of the line, be my guest.

Or why not actually pick up your phone and talk with a human being there?

 

[BassFalcon]

I’m astounded we are still getting these threads so regularly. This deep into a global pandemic? Catastrophic supply chain issues due to both sick and/or dead workers and policies in place that slow production in the effort to limit employee exposure that has effected everything from toilet paper and food to musical instruments. It’s effected every single industry and has been going on for years at this point. How is anyone not aware? How can any adult not understand this? How can anyone cry that their bass isn’t in their possession 24 hours after ordering when there is a good chance a significant amount of the employees in the sweetwater warehouse may be out on Covid protocol. Or maybe their levels are ok and the supplier said “oh yeah we’ll have it to you in a week” but the shipping company that was supposed to grab the container at the port has so many drivers in Covid protocol that they simply can’t get that particular container for another week. Or maybe they have enough drivers but a backlog of so many containers to get and the one your bass is in is in an inconvenient part of the yard with a pothole no feels like getting it because there’s hundreds of others much more easily accessible. Who the heck knows. Or maybe there’s enough drivers but Covid is tearing up the shop and there’s not enough mechanics to keep everyone rolling. Right now there are a million reasons why you won’t have your bass immediately. Calm down, Look around the world. Grow up and have some compassion and understanding. Sweetwater has an excellent reputation and has grown to a giant company largely based on their customer service because their prices are just ok. They are not defrauding you. They are not attempting to defraud you. They didn’t intentionally lie to you. They aren’t a fly-by-night operation that’s not how they do business. Do they make mistakes, yes. Was the 24 hour promise true when they made it, yes. It’s sweetwater, call them. They’ll take care of you or get your money back to you.

 

[TTA]

Hi all,

My enthusiasm for my new bass, an Ibanez SR1345b, is getting replaced with frustration. Maybe I'm being impatient but the web site specifically said in stock, same day shipping on most orders placed before 3pm and if not guaranteed to ship within 24 hours. I placed the order at 5am Wednesday morning.

Its my fault for waiting until the last minute but I was counting on using it Tuesday evening. I am going on day 3 with no change in the order status, "processing". I called, the lady was nice, apologized for the delay but couldn't tell me anything definitive about it.

Tomorrow I am calling and canceling the order.

I don't know what's up with Sweetwater but they are out of stock of just about everything.

Niether local GC or SA have one in stock.

Zzsounds supposedly has it in stock and guarantees 2 day free delivery. I think I'll try to go that way. Tough luck MF, I was looking at a Mesa rig too.

Maybe I am being too impatient but I feel lied to. That's the part that bothers me. Don't make promises you can't keep and if something happens, tell me, I shouldn't have to come looking for you for an explanation.

Hopefully you get what you want soon.

I get it. It sucks when someone sells and expectation, and then does not deliver on it. (Pun intended)

i can be mega patient… but when i have expectations for something to arrive fast… i want it fast and my patients is out the window.

it is all about managing expectations. These days, i have learned that most things are not as fast as they used to be. Hell, i have a loopi pedal that i ordered in august… still not here and cs sucks.

 

[smtp4me]

I had a bass where they were checking it before shipping and noticed an issue so had to get another from the manufacturer.

Obviously that is a good thing - that the seller noticed a problem and proactively resolved it. Just curious - did they communicate to you what they found and that there would be a delay while they sourced another bass?

This is where companies often fall down (maybe not in your case, but often). A simple status email to the customer notifying about the problem and that they are working to resolve it, or an explanation about delays due to supply chain issues, goes a LONG way in giving good customer service. It would also reduce phone calls to their customer service department, from customers trying to find out what the company could easily tell them in an email.

 

[Bass Viking]

I’m astounded we are still getting these threads so regularly. This deep into a global pandemic? Catastrophic supply chain issues due to both sick and/or dead workers and policies in place that slow production in the effort to limit employee exposure that has effected everything from toilet paper and food to musical instruments. It’s effected every single industry and has been going on for years at this point. How is anyone not aware? How can any adult not understand this? How can anyone cry that their bass isn’t in their possession 24 hours after ordering when there is a good chance a significant amount of the employees in the sweetwater warehouse may be out on Covid protocol. Or maybe their levels are ok and the supplier said “oh yeah we’ll have it to you in a week” but the shipping company that was supposed to grab the container at the port has so many drivers in Covid protocol that they simply can’t get that particular container for another week. Or maybe they have enough drivers but a backlog of so many containers to get and the one your bass is in is in an inconvenient part of the yard with a pothole no feels like getting it because there’s hundreds of others much more easily accessible. Who the heck knows. Or maybe there’s enough drivers but Covid is tearing up the shop and there’s not enough mechanics to keep everyone rolling. Right now there are a million reasons why you won’t have your bass immediately. Calm down, Look around the world. Grow up and have some compassion and understanding. Sweetwater has an excellent reputation and has grown to a giant company largely based on their customer service because their prices are just ok. They are not defrauding you. They are not attempting to defraud you. They didn’t intentionally lie to you. They aren’t a fly-by-night operation that’s not how they do business. Do they make mistakes, yes. Was the 24 hour promise true when they made it, yes. It’s sweetwater, call them. They’ll take care of you or get your money back to you.

Why don’t you use some falcon paragraphs!

 

[BassFalcon]

Why don’t you use some falcon paragraphs!

Lol, my bad. Pre-coffee rant. I’ll do better next time I have to rant about this, probably have the occasion to tomorrow.

 

[Spidey2112]

View attachment 4541687

We don't go out as much, but when we do, I tip more than I used to, no matter how slow they are.

But, everyone's threshold is different, as well as the situation and environment they're in.

Patience, @Ash Jazz! Oh, and...

... Go Bucks!

 

[Gunga Din]

Obviously that is a good thing - that the seller noticed a problem and proactively resolved it. Just curious - did they communicate to you what they found and that there would be a delay while they sourced another bass?

This is where companies often fall down (maybe not in your case, but often). A simple status email to the customer notifying about the problem and that they are working to resolve it, or an explanation about delays due to supply chain issues, goes a LONG way in giving good customer service. It would also reduce phone calls to their customer service department, from customers trying to find out what the company could easily tell them in an email.

Updates, in this day and age, mean a lot. Especially from couriers.

 

[filwitheneff]

It's definitely not what it used to be!

Last September, I ordered a wireless system from a major online retailer. I knew it wasn't in stock at the time, and was told it would be in stock in two weeks. 2.5 months later, I finally got it.

Just last week, I ordered a Mesa Subway rig (head and two cabs). I was told it would be in stock by the end of the month. I knew these are in short supply because nobody had the cabs in stock, so I wanted to make sure I was on the waiting list. I have hopes that I'll see it by the end of the month, but I ain't holding my breath.

 

[Spidey2112]

I'm thinking getting a new Harley Benton, but it's not going to happen until...

1. It's not winter.
2. Delivery system stabilizes, all the way around
3. (see #1 and #2, and don't forget to flush)

I made the mistake of ordering a bass from Sweetwater, right around Thanksgiving (2017, I think). No supply chain issues then, right? Seems like it took forever to get delivered. I could have picked it, round trip, in about 8 hours.

Timing is everything... and perspective is being lucky enough to have a roof over your head and food on the table..

... and that lamp over there. That's all I need.

 

[dalkowski]

As a marketing guy, a top lesson I've carried with me through my career is "underpromise and overdeliver." I learned this lesson in a decade + in the travel biz, where a great deal can be out of the provider's control (weather and war, for 2 examples). So I'll absolutely join the chorus of those saying the retailers need to update their websites to set more realistic expectations. (If any of them are reading this, DM me! ) And yeah, I understand your frustration.

That said, I'll also add my voice to those here reminding us that freakin' everything continues to be massively disrupted right now and a little equanimity on everyone's part can go a long way.

And with all respect, you are being impatient IMHO. I know how it feels to crave gear; this is among the first-world-est of first-world problems. I wouldn't cancel that order if you want the bass so much.

Good luck, all will be well.

 

[Smooth_bass88]

Patience is a virtue!! Everyone everywhere across all industries is experiencing delays due to supply chain issues. Heck, I was at grocery store last week and they were out of eggs as well as whole bean coffee. Just be grateful you’re not waiting for life saving medical equipment or medications.