A Customer Service Break Through - Light At The End of The T

[Vaibanez]

After talking to every local dealer in my area to order parts, and getting the same old story about how hard it is to get them, I went strait to the horses mouth.

I placed a call into Ibanez in Bensalem, PA. and explained my situation. The operator said hold on and transfered me. I had no idea to whom I was being transfered to and thought I was getting the run around again. I thought...typical...cool hold music...but typical...

Then to my surprise, a gentleman from dealer sales came on the line and said he was informed of my problem and wanted to help in any way he could.

I gave him my laundry list of parts, mostley screws and covers, and he took my payment information and address and confirmed that they would be sent out today. They also sent an email message to me with an order number.

I have to say that this does more to boost my loyalty to the company that makes the best guitars I have ever played, than any thing else could.

Hat's off people....they are listening to us!!!!!!!

The moral.....keep the faith. They are trying...and that says a lot.

J>

[Rich]

See, it's not all doom and gloom :biggrin: For small (cheap) parts it's praoably the best way to go! Sorry it took so long to tell you that dude, I got tired of waiting for saddles too! (Chesbro, different story)

[Vaibanez]

Rich,
I'm still waiting with you. The saddles weren't part of the list I gave them and I'm in no critical need right now.

I have to tell you guys that the sence of urgency(sp) to make things better was evident in my conversation this afternoon. They can feel the pressure...believe me.

[kirk]

Just curious though, how much did you pay? *Generally when dealing with the manufacturer (ie; DiMarzio) you're paying list price.

DiMarzio has no problem with selling direct from them, I suppose it's because they are making 40% more by doing so.

[Vaibanez]

Kirk,
Your right...I did shell out list for everything I ordered. There was also a shipping/handling fee of $10.

BIG DEAL:biggrin:...I'm getting them in a couple days rather than a couple months...and I'm getting what I ordered.

The person I talked to was very detailed to make sure what I was asking for was what I wanted, what I wanted was in stock and that there were no miscommunications about part numbers.

J>

[alienx]

Lucky you! The US distributor improves it's business practices on it's own. That's very positive indeed. Though, it's not fair. They will have to carry the whole cost of the process. And, the Ibanez players in other countries cannot benefit from that. So, I repeat Ibanez needs a central policy. There are good examples for that. Ibanez will not need to reinvent the wheel.

[Vaibanez]

Alien...a bit of pent-up anger?

My lengthy chat with the sales-rep included the topic of customer service world wide, not just in the states.

Hoshino as a company is very concerned about this issue and is working hard to get policies inplace that can be implimented on a global scale. This is very easy for a small, 2 or 3 shop, local business. But very difficult for a global company like Hoshino, so it ain't gonna happen over night. Relax, play yer guiter and rest in the knowledge that Hoshino has people working on the problem. I am:biggrin:

J>

[alienx]

Thanks Jim! Now, I can sleep in peace... :biggrin: