watsonr
Addicted to ArboristSite
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- Jan 3, 2010
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I see lots of parts orders and mostly its a really easy transaction. You go on the site (whoever you order from) and select your stuff. Go to check-out and pay only to get a back order report after you pay or your stuff doesn't get shipped for an extended period of time and your pissed!
This thread is a tips to ordering and explanation of why it takes what it does. I want you to get your stuff fast and easy, maybe I can help you do that. There are lots of guys that order, post up your info to help this along. I'm sure that almost every supplier you deal with is in the same boat here. Helping them fulfill your request takes a little effort on your part as well.... here's what you can do to help yourself and the supplier get your stuff to you.
1) touching your stuff slows it down. Drop ship directly from the manufacturer/supplier is the only method that's fast.... period! Anything you order that I have delivered to me and then sent to you is a 2-3 week deal minimum! Like the Sugi order. A week to process the order, 5-10 days to ship by truck, 5-10 days to you..... get the picture. And I hate doing it this way! ASK if drop ship is available... its faster. Special orders are what they are, special and they often are a wreck for both you and I.... AND why most will not do special order stuff/group buys.
2) Stock check if possible. Web sites normally list a quantity in stock, if not.... call them to see if it's in stock and ready to ship.
3) You need to place the item you want in the cart yourself. Having me do it is slowing your order. I get all kinds of requests for parts. If I need to look the part numbers up, it slows it down as research is tough to do. There is always the chance I get the wrong part or there are several to choose from as is mostly the case. Tell me "I want an Stihl 025 carb" and make me choose from 4 different carbs is a sure guaranty of the wrong part. I need to ask which one and then the email chain is messed up, you don't receive the email, I ask again and we miss somehow. You get pissed and I'm frustrated because I can't help.
4) Know the part number. Just like above, tell me the part number and I can find it easier. A mistake costs money for a return shipment, time delays in getting the right parts and were both frustrated. Carbs have a number on them, have all the info ready, even a picture of the thing helps if that's what it takes.
5) Shop around. Not everybody carries everything. I don't want to carry every part you need, well I do want to but can't. It requires huge storage space and a competent staff to organize that inventory. When that goes bad, you get the "back order" after you paid and a lot of companies are really bad for this , they have a very hard time managing 1000s of items, miss it by one item and your order is delayed.
6) Talk to a knowledgeable person. This is everything in a parts order that requires some questions answered. After you get the answers you needed, order the part from the site yourself. The printed record is a very good record to fulfill the order without a mistake. Having to remember what we spoke of and then send invoices and emails and..... get the picture.
7) Saving a couple bucks for shipping. This kills me and you too. Shipped fast and reasonable is rare. Somewhere along the line one of these becomes tough as shipping becomes more expensive. Express shipping costs money and if you order with standard shipping, your just waiting. They don't scan the item, no tracking info along the way... even if they say it's included. Once it leaves my hands... I'm waiting too! Items are dropped at the shipping facility every day, they provide a tracking number to me and then I provide it to you.. it's easy to drop the ball on this. I drop 50 items off and they scan 30.
8) Adding items to an order. If you do, its a sure thing to slow the order down. Place an order, than email with questions and increased items... I love the business, really but...... I've now moved it to the rear of the line. Research may be required, I'm holding the order for a part to arrive from a company that doesn't ship direct. This is train wreck almost every time.
9) Asking for OEM parts. Most suppliers don't have access to OEM unless it specifies in the description. Trying to get OEM requires me to go to my dealer, order the part and wait for him to get it and its not saving you anything $$ wise but costing time in receiving your parts.
10) Not on the site. I'll try my best to find it, but there is no sure bet I will and at the price you want. I spend hours a day researching parts to get you an answer... when you don't respond back, I drop the request and I'm sure the others do as well. I'm not going to ask more than once if you want it.
11) Give feedback. We need to know that a part was broken, wrong, doesn't meet the quality so we can feed that back to the manufacturer..... AND don't wait a year to get back. Not saying anything is a message of satisfaction.
Last thing, have patients! The sponsors of this page and the dealers that participate here want to do a good job for you. Earning your business as repeat customers is the best thing in the world... however, some things we can't control and often you only hear of the really bad deals that got messed up. Have a little understanding, we miss emails, misinterpret what you said/wanted and mostly try to make the transaction go as smoothly as possible.
Hope your order goes smoothly, we'll do everything we can... we want it to be smooth as well.
AND thanks for your business!
This thread is a tips to ordering and explanation of why it takes what it does. I want you to get your stuff fast and easy, maybe I can help you do that. There are lots of guys that order, post up your info to help this along. I'm sure that almost every supplier you deal with is in the same boat here. Helping them fulfill your request takes a little effort on your part as well.... here's what you can do to help yourself and the supplier get your stuff to you.
1) touching your stuff slows it down. Drop ship directly from the manufacturer/supplier is the only method that's fast.... period! Anything you order that I have delivered to me and then sent to you is a 2-3 week deal minimum! Like the Sugi order. A week to process the order, 5-10 days to ship by truck, 5-10 days to you..... get the picture. And I hate doing it this way! ASK if drop ship is available... its faster. Special orders are what they are, special and they often are a wreck for both you and I.... AND why most will not do special order stuff/group buys.
2) Stock check if possible. Web sites normally list a quantity in stock, if not.... call them to see if it's in stock and ready to ship.
3) You need to place the item you want in the cart yourself. Having me do it is slowing your order. I get all kinds of requests for parts. If I need to look the part numbers up, it slows it down as research is tough to do. There is always the chance I get the wrong part or there are several to choose from as is mostly the case. Tell me "I want an Stihl 025 carb" and make me choose from 4 different carbs is a sure guaranty of the wrong part. I need to ask which one and then the email chain is messed up, you don't receive the email, I ask again and we miss somehow. You get pissed and I'm frustrated because I can't help.
4) Know the part number. Just like above, tell me the part number and I can find it easier. A mistake costs money for a return shipment, time delays in getting the right parts and were both frustrated. Carbs have a number on them, have all the info ready, even a picture of the thing helps if that's what it takes.
5) Shop around. Not everybody carries everything. I don't want to carry every part you need, well I do want to but can't. It requires huge storage space and a competent staff to organize that inventory. When that goes bad, you get the "back order" after you paid and a lot of companies are really bad for this , they have a very hard time managing 1000s of items, miss it by one item and your order is delayed.
6) Talk to a knowledgeable person. This is everything in a parts order that requires some questions answered. After you get the answers you needed, order the part from the site yourself. The printed record is a very good record to fulfill the order without a mistake. Having to remember what we spoke of and then send invoices and emails and..... get the picture.
7) Saving a couple bucks for shipping. This kills me and you too. Shipped fast and reasonable is rare. Somewhere along the line one of these becomes tough as shipping becomes more expensive. Express shipping costs money and if you order with standard shipping, your just waiting. They don't scan the item, no tracking info along the way... even if they say it's included. Once it leaves my hands... I'm waiting too! Items are dropped at the shipping facility every day, they provide a tracking number to me and then I provide it to you.. it's easy to drop the ball on this. I drop 50 items off and they scan 30.
8) Adding items to an order. If you do, its a sure thing to slow the order down. Place an order, than email with questions and increased items... I love the business, really but...... I've now moved it to the rear of the line. Research may be required, I'm holding the order for a part to arrive from a company that doesn't ship direct. This is train wreck almost every time.
9) Asking for OEM parts. Most suppliers don't have access to OEM unless it specifies in the description. Trying to get OEM requires me to go to my dealer, order the part and wait for him to get it and its not saving you anything $$ wise but costing time in receiving your parts.
10) Not on the site. I'll try my best to find it, but there is no sure bet I will and at the price you want. I spend hours a day researching parts to get you an answer... when you don't respond back, I drop the request and I'm sure the others do as well. I'm not going to ask more than once if you want it.
11) Give feedback. We need to know that a part was broken, wrong, doesn't meet the quality so we can feed that back to the manufacturer..... AND don't wait a year to get back. Not saying anything is a message of satisfaction.
Last thing, have patients! The sponsors of this page and the dealers that participate here want to do a good job for you. Earning your business as repeat customers is the best thing in the world... however, some things we can't control and often you only hear of the really bad deals that got messed up. Have a little understanding, we miss emails, misinterpret what you said/wanted and mostly try to make the transaction go as smoothly as possible.
Hope your order goes smoothly, we'll do everything we can... we want it to be smooth as well.
AND thanks for your business!
