Sport Copter----Worst customer service

I wanted to respond to Doug Baker...
I don't know what world you live in but it is my opinion that customer service is customer service. I don't care if you sell a new Sport Copter or a set of blades. If a company wants to stay in business then service is the key.
If you need sales to stay in business then sell. If your overhead is too high reduce your overhead. If you cannot support the business then find a way to offset your cost with other products or services until the market returns.
But to make excuses in this world as to why they arn't shipping is not flying.
Most of the time there are other factors playing into it.
I am just fed up with excuses for everyone. If you can't support customers then get out of the business. But to drag on and on and not respond to emails and calls. There is no excuse for that. None!
You owe your customers a call telling them something. To ignore them is horse crap.....!

JD
 
I don't care if you sell a new Sport Copter or a set of blades.

JD

I know you werent directing this at me. Were you?

I do care. I build Sport Rotors and take a great deal of pride in it. I also take care of customers on my own time.

You don't know the situation. It has been rectified. If that's not good enough then it will never be for you.

I hope you find happier times.

Jon
 
Jon

I thing that is just an example. I may be wrong. Since I have been in aviation it has been a sellers market. Mostly because there isn't a lot of competition. So we wait. We call. And we wait. This is all thru the aviation industry not just gyros then we wait.
 
Jon, you need to check your emotions at the door bro. This is not about you, it is about Sportcopter as a company.

And I know Sportcopter is not the only company that offers products that may have had issues filling orders in a timely manner. I have heard of people having simular problems with many other companys involved in aviation. A friend of mine is building a Phantom ultralight and has had almost all the same kind of run around as Mike described he experienced.

I still remember when I bought my sportrotors way back in 2001, and after placing the order and telling the local pilots I ordered from sportcopter, they all told me horror stories of people who ordered parts and even full kits and never got the stuff they paid for. I was so scared I would get screwed after what I was told, I called Jim to verify their stories and make sure I would get my blades and get em on time. Had they told me what they told me before I ordered the blades I would have never ordered them.

There is no doubt Sportcopter is a good company, and the attention to detail and craftsmanship in the kits and products is worlds above any other american manufactor.... But at the same time, if Sportcopter can't clearly communicate with their customers, they may suffer from lost potential sales.

Im in business, and yeah, I'd hate to go onto a blog or forum and see one of my clients blast me in some kind of negative light.... But at the same time, it would be a sure sign telling me I am clearly doing something wrong on my end, and would in the end be a great way for me to learn and apply whatever I need to fix to keep my clients happy.
 
This is not about you, it is about Sportcopter as a company.

.

I know. Trust me, my emotions are in check, I thought his post was directed at me. I just wanted to clarify that I'm not the weak link.

Mike is still going to get new blades and hopefully this thread will become history and we can all work on a more positive future.

Jon
 
Guys, Sorry if I got carried away... I know there are circumstances that only the owners know of. But on the other hand I am in business also and not to return a customer's call or email is something I can't understand.
I would rather give an honest answer as why I can't ship at this moment rather than not respond. If I get an honest answer then I know the company is trying but to not respond?
Anyhow my comments were not directed to anyone special. Just to the world of not responding to customers...

JD
 
I have this customer...

I have this customer...

I am typing this on a DS3 so forgive my spelling...anyway this customer calls and leaves me a phone message telling me to order him something, I cant stand this guy...really gets on my nerves...if your in buisness you know thhe type..Ihave already ddtermined Ican survive without his business so Idont return his call in the hopes that he will become a customer at my competitors store. I would not be rude to his face, but I wont return his call either. Iam prepared to have him tell everyone he meets that I suck, cause 10 seconds talking to this buffoon and either they figure it out on their own OR they have the same mindset as him and I dont want their buisness anyway. I AM NOT SAYING THIS IS THE CASE HERE!!!!!!
This is just a rebuttal to those who seem to not comprehend why a buisness would not give you great customer service...maybe its YOU, maybe its that time of the month, maybe its a whole host of reasons, but if you have never been in retail sales let me let you in on a little secret...the customer is almost NEVER right, but you make him think he is so he will buy your product.
Think Im a lousy buisnessman for saying that? Stand behind the counter for a week than well talk.
Ben S on assignment in Indiana.
MMORGAN again this is not directed at you, ask any of these guys they will tell you I am really a friendly guy.
 
Coming from the times I've been around him I don't think Mike is one of those guys, Ben.
 
This is a problem all thru the Aviation industry not in the private sector so much. Like I said before not enough competition in it.
 
This is a problem all thru the Aviation industry not in the private sector so much. Like I said before not enough competition in it.

In my opinion the reason there is not more competition in the aviation business is because so many people have gone out of business. It is a hard business and driven by passion rather than profit. I feel it is not reasonable to expect the same level of customer service when someone is struggling to stay in business. I would rather they focus on quality and innovation than making me feel important. I am grateful for their passion to help me feed my passion.

Having been in the motorcycle business that is also passion driven I know that many of the customers are quite taken with themselves and can be particularly annoying or as Ed would say about my Harley Davidson customers, “they are a bunch of bitchy little girls.”

I feel they would have more fun sharing the passion rather than demanding attention and a reaffirmation that they are important. The idea that because they are a customer they have purchased respect doesn’t fly with me.

Thank you, Vance
 
Ben,
Thank you for posting your side of this. Some people just seem to rub some others the wrong way. But if you don't want to speak with him in a polite way tell him. The world has changes somewhere along the way. If I take an order and money for that order then I produce that product then. That money does not belong to me but to the customer. When I supply the product and what is left is then belongs to the business. Some companies don't realize that. I am not saying that is the case with Sport Copter.
I just want an honest straight answer in a timly fashion. When I am a customer I do expect that from who ever I am purchasing from. If I don't receive it then there is a problem. My pappy taught me early on what a razor strap was for and it was not always for sharpening a razon.
Right is right and wrong is wrong. There is no gray areas between like the world wants to say today. And I do believe a customer does buy respect and deserves honesty, quality and a timly delivery.
Anything less is just an excuse.
If a company want to stay in business. The customer is the key and a happy customer is only way to servive.
 
timchick,stolking,and all...

timchick,stolking,and all...

Iposted in capitols so mmorgan would understand I wasn't refering to him personaly. I dont know him at all. I was also careful NOT to mention my happiness as a Sportcopter customer or the fact I consider most of the guys there personal friends...kinda kills the objectivity. BUT stolking, I am a blunt straighht forward ex military enlisted type and of course if I thought for a mooment the customer would respond to my telling him straight up, I would...but you cant fix stupid and so like a flanking manuver I have made a consious decision on the best way to deal with this particular PITA. Airplanes and guns are different but both can kill in the hands of a moron. consider this my way of excersing my right not to serve someone.
Vance ol buddy, you hit the nail on the head...just cause you might have money, your not gods gift to the shop owner. Jon call me I need some measurements for my box.
Ben S
 
Thread diversion ...caution!

Thread diversion ...caution!

Scary I am almost done building my ultimate gyro trailer with crane and one piece rotor box to transport the blades without dissassembly! from the time I park the truck to set up ready to fly should be under 15 min!
Can't wait!
Ben S still in IN.
 
I have been a customer of Sportcopter too. I bought a set of blades from them several years ago and they said it would take about 6 weeks. I agreed and it took about 6 weeks. They came beautifully packaged and in absolutely perfect flying condition. I'm very happy with the experience. By the way, when I say beautifully packaged, I mean if the shipper was driving past my hanger at 60 mph and kicked the box out the back, I don't think they would have been damaged. That well packaged.

Someone who is interested in getting something immediately might not like to wait so long, but I just want the estimate to be correct. I'm more upset with someone promising it in 1 week and it comes in 3, than I am with something promised in 6 weeks and it comes in 5 or 6 weeks, even though I waited longer. That said, if Jon's back can handle it, it might help SC if they had a few sets of blades on hand instead of custom making them. It costs to have stock on hand, but you lose some orders if people have to wait too long.
 
All this turmoil made me reminisce about buying from Bensen in the early 70's.

Naturally, this was long before Emails and the Internet -- and long before competition brought down long-distance phone rates. I never did have a phone conversation with anyone there. At several dollars a call, it was too expensive.

I made a few dozen little purchases from Bensen. All were made by mailing a handwritten note and a money order. Sometimes the purchase was only $12-15 for the aluminum-angle materials package or some such thing.

Bensen's must have been a small shop, too, but they maintained the illusion of a bigger operation. Everything was in stock and you could set your watch (OK, your calendar) by the date your order arrived. They responded to all inquiries (again, by mailed note, not phone or email) very promptly. Most of mine were answered succinctly by someone who signed himself "J.F. Kernodle."

Either Igor had assigned someone with a funny name to answer customer inquiries or he did it himself using a pseudonym borrowed from a W.C. Fields movie. The service was great, in any event, even for a nickel-dime customer like me.
 
That said, if Jon's back can handle it, it might help SC if they had a few sets of blades on hand instead of custom making them. It costs to have stock on hand, but you lose some orders if people have to wait too long.

That's the plan John. I've decided to keep a minimum number of common sizes that I think I can sell before tax time. That way, when a customer calls with an order, I can fill it right away and then start building a replacement for the stock. I've pulled a couple of people from the other parts of the shop to help me the last couple of weeks, so I'm catching up pretty quick. Once I start building stock, I'll post it on the website as "ready to ship" sizes.

Jon
 
...I've decided to keep a minimum number of common sizes that I think I can sell before tax time...

Jon, I never ran a business involving inventory in Oregon. Do they charge an ad valorum tax on merchandise in stock on a certain date each year?

I've never understood this. Georgia did that when I lived there, and it basically guaranteed that if I needed something specialized or low-volume in December, I had to order it from out of state, because businesses in GA were trying to clear to the bare walls by January 1.

I've often doubted the common sense of politicians. But every year that goes by, I think it's just as big an issue for voters.
 
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