does sweetwater know when to give up?

Recording Techniques, People Skills, Gear, Recording Spaces, Computers, and DIY

Moderators: drumsound, tomb

rwc
resurrected
Posts: 2333
Joined: Sun Sep 09, 2007 8:21 pm
Location: Bed Stuy, Brooklyn

does sweetwater know when to give up?

Post by rwc » Mon Jun 16, 2008 10:10 am

I emailed one of their reps asking for pricing on some stuff I was considering getting later in the year around february.

he emailed me back once, and I said I may consider it later. then he emails me back asking about the stuff, then I had two missed calls this morning from a number that wound up being sweetwater, and a voice message, where he didn't even get my full name right, asking about those potential purchases..

Seems a little sharkish to me. definitely never giving an audio vendor my real number again...
Real friends stab you in the front.

Oscar Wilde

Failed audio engineer & pro studio tech turned Component level motherboard repair store in New York

User avatar
;ivlunsdystf
ghost haunting audio students
Posts: 3290
Joined: Mon Oct 18, 2004 7:15 am
Location: The Great Frontier of the Southern Anoka Sand Plain
Contact:

Post by ;ivlunsdystf » Mon Jun 16, 2008 10:23 am

My rep (I order there about once every 14 months) used to pester me after an order. I picked up one of the calls and politely told him to make a note never to call me again, with my future business as the reward. It's win/win: he knows I will keep ordering stuff now and then, and he doesn't have to waste any time on me. Much more effective than complaining here (which I have also done)

In a related note: Full Compass? WTF? I requested a catalog there (via their website) and started getting spam emails soon after. Then I started getting a sharp uptick in audio-related junk mail via US mail. However, they never sent me a catalog. Flakes?

cgarges
zen recordist
Posts: 10890
Joined: Mon Jun 16, 2003 1:26 am
Location: Charlotte, NC
Contact:

Post by cgarges » Mon Jun 16, 2008 12:12 pm

That's a drag about Full Compass. I've had nothing but totally great experiences with them for years. I've got a bit of a track record hating for Sweetwater, though, so I can totally relate.

Chris Garges
Charlotte, NC

User avatar
scott macdonald
takin' a dinner break
Posts: 197
Joined: Fri Dec 02, 2005 3:40 pm
Location: San Jose, Calif.
Contact:

Post by scott macdonald » Mon Jun 16, 2008 12:49 pm

Sweetwater order, a play in two acts:

ACT ONE:

Me: places order online ...

... two seconds pass, home phone rings

Sweetwater: HI, this is so-and-so with Sweetwater, i see you've ordered two rack trays and a six-foot xlr cable, is there anything else I can help you with today?!?

Me: (stifling giggle) No, thanks, that's it.

Sweetwater: OK, great, my name is so-and-so, be sure to call me for all your audio needs!

*curtain*


ACT TWO:

... one month has passed ... the phone rings

Me: Hello?

Sweetwater: HI, this is so-and-so with Sweetwater, how are those rack trays working out for you?

Me: (again stifling giggle) They're great, thanks.

Sweetwater: OK, great, my name is so-and-so, be sure to call me for all your audio needs!

*curtain*

*end*

User avatar
;ivlunsdystf
ghost haunting audio students
Posts: 3290
Joined: Mon Oct 18, 2004 7:15 am
Location: The Great Frontier of the Southern Anoka Sand Plain
Contact:

Post by ;ivlunsdystf » Mon Jun 16, 2008 1:21 pm

scott macdonald wrote:Sweetwater order, a play in two acts:
You still answer the phone? How quaint.

MoreSpaceEcho
zen recordist
Posts: 6671
Joined: Wed May 07, 2003 11:15 am

Post by MoreSpaceEcho » Mon Jun 16, 2008 1:21 pm

i especially love the fake 'personalized' emails you get from your salesdude.

memo to sweetwater:

pretty much all of us hate the aggressive, fake-friendly salesguy shit. cut it out already.

mjau
speech impediment
Posts: 4023
Joined: Mon Sep 29, 2003 7:33 pm
Location: Orlando
Contact:

Post by mjau » Mon Jun 16, 2008 1:25 pm

My Mom once bought me something from Sweetwater, and she now gets the emails, which are forwarded on to me.

"Dear mjau's Mom:

Looking to coax out blistering solos on that perfect shredbeast this holiday season? Well look no further than Sweetwater's new line of...etc, etc, etc"


Good stuff.

MoreSpaceEcho
zen recordist
Posts: 6671
Joined: Wed May 07, 2003 11:15 am

Post by MoreSpaceEcho » Mon Jun 16, 2008 1:27 pm

i coaxed a blistering solo outta your mom last night.

mjau
speech impediment
Posts: 4023
Joined: Mon Sep 29, 2003 7:33 pm
Location: Orlando
Contact:

Post by mjau » Mon Jun 16, 2008 1:31 pm

Should've seen that one coming from a mile off. I'm rusty, but well played all the same.

User avatar
Mudcloth
steve albini likes it
Posts: 332
Joined: Sat Nov 01, 2003 6:30 pm
Location: Elgin, Texas
Contact:

Post by Mudcloth » Mon Jun 16, 2008 1:33 pm

MoreSpaceEcho wrote:i coaxed a blistering solo outta your mom last night.
Hi-oooo!!!!! :D
Matt Giles
Austin, Tx


http://www.mattguitargiles.com
http://www.myspace.com/mattguitargiles
http://www.thedrakesband.com/

How much is a stamp? I'll buy the goddamn stamp.

RefD
on a wing and a prayer
Posts: 5993
Joined: Fri Aug 27, 2004 9:10 pm

Post by RefD » Mon Jun 16, 2008 1:33 pm

MoreSpaceEcho wrote:i coaxed a blistering solo outta your mom last night.
you didn't make it a duet?

*disappointed*
?What need is there to weep over parts of life? The whole of it calls for tears.? -- Seneca

mjau
speech impediment
Posts: 4023
Joined: Mon Sep 29, 2003 7:33 pm
Location: Orlando
Contact:

Post by mjau » Mon Jun 16, 2008 1:35 pm

*emails Robinson and JoeyD! about joining the 'MoreSpaceEcho is Dumb' club*

User avatar
RedCrownStudios
pushin' record
Posts: 221
Joined: Tue Mar 11, 2008 6:28 pm
Location: Tulsa, Oklahoma
Contact:

Post by RedCrownStudios » Mon Jun 16, 2008 1:35 pm

I only ever get one phone call from them after an order, and since i usually order at night the call is the next morning so if i order and the next morning i see an out of state number i let it go to voicemail.

Besides, dont you guys like how they always put candy in with your shipments?
I do.
:)
Marshall Baker
Media Designer
Tulsa, Ok
www.MarshallBaker.com
www.MarshallandRoxy.com

User avatar
Jay Reynolds
carpal tunnel
Posts: 1607
Joined: Thu Feb 07, 2008 5:48 pm
Location: Raleigh, NC
Contact:

Post by Jay Reynolds » Mon Jun 16, 2008 1:38 pm

scott macdonald wrote:Sweetwater order, a play in two acts:

ACT ONE:

Me: places order online ...

... two seconds pass, home phone rings

Sweetwater: HI, this is so-and-so with Sweetwater, i see you've ordered two rack trays and a six-foot xlr cable, is there anything else I can help you with today?!?

Me: (stifling giggle) No, thanks, that's it.

Sweetwater: OK, great, my name is so-and-so, be sure to call me for all your audio needs!

*curtain*


ACT TWO:

... one month has passed ... the phone rings

Me: Hello?

Sweetwater: HI, this is so-and-so with Sweetwater, how are those rack trays working out for you?

Me: (again stifling giggle) They're great, thanks.

Sweetwater: OK, great, my name is so-and-so, be sure to call me for all your audio needs!

*curtain*

*end*
Ok. Yes, this does seem funny. But, when you consider some of the realities of being the the retail MI biz, it makes perfect sense:
1-Not everyone is an experienced engineer. You don't have to pass some kind of test to order from SW. And its on the internet. So how does Sweetwater know who you are? How often do they call customer X to find out that the customer ordered the wrong item? Its a lose-lose if a person orders the wrong stuff and then wants to send it back for a refund. The customer has to wait for the right gear and SW is out the extra shipping and now has some more open-box inventory they they can't sell for full pop.
2-Its called add ons and its a fact of life in all retail. How do they know you didn't finalize your order while completely forgetting you needed wind screens too? Having worked for a MI retailer in a brick and mortar environment, this approach made me a lot of money. Every time, before I finalized the sale, I'd ask the customer if they needed anything else. One in five would add something to the ticket, either because they forgot, they though I didn't have it, or they thought I couldn't sell it to them because they wanted a snare head or a guitar stand or something outside my department.
3-The follow-up is a good thing, usually. I used to tell my guys to skip call-backs on accessories, unless they had a good relationship with the client or they knew from talking to the client that there maybe be issues with that particular transaction. But, Sweetwater doesn't have the luxury of that type of personal interaction with their clients. So, rather than giving their call center people the option, they just call everyone on every sale, every time. Me, I'd rather get the call than not.
4-Consider the alternative. Imagine if Sweetwater handled its business like Guitar Center, based more on volume than customer relationships.
????? wrote:he emailed me back once, and I said I may consider it later. then he emails me back asking about the stuff, then I had two missed calls this morning from a number that wound up being sweetwater, and a voice message, where he didn't even get my full name right, asking about those potential purchases..
This is where it gets weird for me, maybe. If they build a $1000 quote for you, a call/email makes sense. I'm also curious about the wording of the correspondence. There's a difference between "Are you ready to buy this stuff" and "I wanted to follow up with you and see how things are going". Really, this is where they suffer. i had the ability to read my customers and spend time learning about them. So I knew who I could call and who I couldn't. And I had better info for a pretext. If I knew someone was looking for a...say...Firewire to ADAT interface, I had people I was on the phone with when M-Audio released one. I had one guy who lived 90 minutes away who had a standing request for calls whenever we bought a used Akai MPC 2000xl.
In business in general, there a two basic models. One is to try to close as many transactions as quickly as possible (transactional basis), the other is to try to understand your clients as thoroughly as possible and cater to their needs(consultational basis). SW started out in the first model and is trying to move to the second.
Prog out with your cog out.

MoreSpaceEcho
zen recordist
Posts: 6671
Joined: Wed May 07, 2003 11:15 am

Post by MoreSpaceEcho » Mon Jun 16, 2008 1:45 pm

mjau wrote:Should've seen that one coming from a mile off.
too easy!

hey remember like a million years ago when i said i was gonna send you some records? it's actually going to happen this week. really.

Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 50 guests