csav8r05

if youve been searching through the forums for a while you have undoubtedly found someone bashing on how bad the customer service reps are from some companies. many people complain about rudeness and just upright denial. all i have to say is this, i bought 2 engines a few years ago, mds didnt run good, put them up and retried not to long ago, asked around found out it was the carbs, i sent horizon an email and guess what.... they said theyll send me 2 carbs right back, as is shown by first mine then their e-mails.


me: a few years ago my father and i began to participate in rc
aircraft, powering his innitial trainer with a mds 40 and soon after
buying a mds 68. after we had problems with these engines we just put them
away and a few days ago i took them out in hopes of getting them to
work. after i was unable i spoke with some flyers out at my local flying
field and they said the carburetors on the mds engines were bad and that
yall had now come up with unimproved versions that didnt have the same
problem. i was told that i could get new ones for the engines. is it
possible that could have new carburetors for the .40 and .68 engines and
should i send the old ones in first. thanks for your time


horizon: Dear brad,
That information would be correct. If you would like to give us a
call, or just reply with your name, address, and daytime phone number, we
will be more than happy to get replacement carbs out to you.

I hope you find this information useful. If you have any further
questions, please reply to this email or give us a call



further more most posts where the author is bashing the company for claimed inadequate customer satisfaction has no proof of themself not being a bigger ***** than the company, leading me to conclude that pretty much no matter what the circumstances, if you treat the company with no respect dont expect any. but if you are as polite as possible theyll send you a golden potty. so i salute all the companies out there hard at work justly protecting their polite consumers. any thoughts???

donhef

As a person who has worked in the Customer Service industry for the last 13 years, let me just say thanks for your comments.

There is an old adage that says "The Customer is always right" Well, I think that the average citizen needs to re-think that adage. I know that when I have had a Customer on the line with me, I'll listen and try my darndest to help them out if they are patient and have their information accessable and correct. If I had a nickel for every time I got the story of how the Company I worked for "wronged" them and I was able to show the Customer that it wasn't the Company, but themselves, I'd be able to have a really nice car (or a 33% Edge fully loaded!). People have to remember that you get more help if your are nice to the person at the other end of the phone whom they want to help them resolve their problem than by yelling and screaming at them.

Another thing they have to remember is that usually they got a product that was not actually made by the Company they bought it from, and unless that particular retailer was told by the distributer that there was a problem with a particular product that the retailer would never know something was wrong until the Customer informed them of the issue. It makes a lot of sense to fill out those warranty cards you get with a lot of things you buy so the original manufacturer can tell the actual end user that there may be a potential problem with their product. I have done this with every thing I have purchased over the last 15 years and have received 3 notices of recall and information updates for purchases I had made. And in one case, this was over a year after the warranty expired (Tape recorder).

So, once again, If you're calling the Customer Service department about an issue with something you bought, try and be nice. You'd be surprised by the help you should get. Or at least you'll be directed to someone who can.

I'll get off my soapbox now[&:]

scottfl78

You know I concur with you guys... I have found that almost any company is willing to stand up for and replace there products if they are faulty. They may require you to send product back, but that is only to prove the defectiveness is actually on their end, and that you aren't trying to cheat the system. It is possible to have a rude or unhelpfull costumer service employee but if that happens you just need to save the proof if is is in E-Mail or written form and jump up the chain to a manager... I can't say that there aren't bad companies out there but I havn't run into any... If I do hear however of a company with bad products then I do avoid them. Many people think they can Bully companies into replacing their stuff without providing proof. "That's all I have to say about that"

Mike in DC

Another thing I notice in the threads where bad customer service is alleged, and it's something touched on in your post, is that most companies are not as willing to deal with you in email as they are on the phone. You sent them an email, and you got a response, but the response says, in essence, "Please call us."

I'm not totally sure the reason for it, but I have no doubt it's true. So, I agree with you that most good sized companies will bend over backward to help you if you approach them reasonably and with respect. But I always improve my chances by dealing with them either on the phone (for simple problems), or by paper mail (when the problem requires extensive documentation).

dr_wogz

My Feedback: (3)

I have had to deal with Customer service reps, and i, like the above examples state, am not one to jump down the poor soul'd throat as soon as they say 'hello, can I help you. Politeness, and teh understanding taht teh person on teh other ned does not know what your particular problem is, and is in a position to help you, as long as you are polite and coridal. We all deserve to be treated in this way. Sure, we can get mighty peeved, but it's not their fault.

But, having dealt with Customer service reps: why is this concidered an 'entry level' position?! A very good freind of mine is 'the second level of fault finding' for a major manufactuer. He's constantly helping the help desk, because they are new, and don't know what problems will pop up, and how to fix them. As soon as one becomes quitre familiar withe the potiential problem, common problems, and how they all should be dealt with, that person is promoted.. Only with experience does one become 'good' at helping. but with Experience comes advancement, so the knowlageble one eventually becomes a manager, and no longer is in a position to offer direct help... and it starts all over again....

Also, to show that certain companies abide by 'equal oppertunities' policies, no longer are people in these postions able to properly and effectively communicate in the assumed 'preffered language' I have dealt with some companies who have put people on switchboards, and customer service department, when english (or french) is clearly not their first (or even second) language.

there's my rant....

FLYBOY

My Feedback: (11)

I think a lot of the people ticked at the big companies get told by the first flunkie that they come to on the phone that they can't be helped. Instead of pushing further, they just take that as gospel and stop trying and whine about it. If you get stopped at the first person you talk to at a large company, 9 times out of 10 if you go to the next level, you will get some satisfaction. The $5 an hour order takers don't have any reason to care about pleasing a customer. The next level up or a manager will usually do what it takes to make you happy.

As stated though, if you go in with guns a blazin, you are pretty much hosed from the get go!

ballgunner

My Feedback: (1)

Rude customers are the reason I decided early in my working life that I would no longer take a job that required direct contact with customers. All in all 95% of the people are usually not of the opinion that the world should always bow down to them but the other 5% can make life more miserable than high wages can overcome. The old adage that you can catch more flys with honey that you can with vinegar has always been true and it still is.

Cyclic Hardover

My Feedback: (3)

*Well I strongly disagree with the "Polite" part. I year ago last Christmas I lost my favorite little P-51 speedster due to battery failure. Over the coarse of the next couple weeks, I decided to go with the Kyosho Texan. This looked to be the most scale looking out of what is available. So I ordered it and got the remnants of what was left in my P-51 and got them ready for the new plane.
*The plane came and I was impressed by what I saw. It went together very well and I had top of the line stuff inside. Now the key to this story is I mounted a G90 in this thing which is the same engine that was in the P51. Obviously overpowered for a .40 size plane, I strengthend up some key areas and mounted a nice set of Hobbico retracts in it also.
*It was time for a maiden flight. First flight was good no speeding around, just cruising and trimming. Happy, the one flight was all I did that day. The next day I came out and took it up again and again it was fine. About an hour later a friend showed up and wanted to see it fly. So up it went again. I was up about 2 minutes when he siad biy that sure flys nice when "slap kabang" the right wing just broke off and to the trash can of life it went and what a mess it made.
*Thats was first crash of many years and had not had one since so I went throught the routine. Those at the scene weretwo LHS owners who said it was a factory defect due to the lack of or no gluing in the wing where the joiner mounts were the wing basiclly slid off withthe wing joine in the mount but no wing around it.
*So the LHS sent it off for a replacement. Now once it arrived a couple emials were exchanged which turned into phone calls. They wanted to know what engine I had and I told them a G90. Well that was the answer to the problem right there! I did not know what I was doing and they were not going to replace it because I exceeded the recommendations of engine size and placed to much stress on the plane!
*Mr Bill Baxter failed to grasp the fact that in addition to the so called extra weight of the engine, I also had to add 1lb of weight to the firewall to get it within CG as with most warbirds. This is where the "POLITE" stage left the building. After a couple days of exchanging how much we both don't know and me going over his head, he agreed to send me another Texan.
* Excuse me, but do I have "stupid" on my T-shirt? I was not about to do this twice with the same plane. Now Baxter was well aware of how I felt and we were going nowhere. I finally found my way straight to the top and recieved a Shoestring a week later for which has truelybeen a nice plane but absolutely no thanks to Mr. Baxter. CH


Another rare public appearance

Mike in DC

I should point out I was talking about companies in the RC business. Most other big companies are pretty good as well, but there are mud pits, such as the personal computer and cell phone businesses that for one reason or another it doesn't matter how respectful and polite you are, you're almost certainly going to be treated like a piece of dog poop.

ReallyUglyStick

My Feedback: (5)

a G90 on a .40 plane? you were lucky they replaced it with anything. i think yours is a story of taking advantage of a company trying to please the customer. if it had been a kit produced by a smaller mfg, i'd wager they would not have even considered replacing it.
oh...recommended engine for the AT6= OS 46fx, wt=13.2oz, G90= 20.6oz...Plane's weight (recommended) 5.7lbs. your balast=16oz. you added about 1 1/2lbs to a 5 1/2 lb plane (not including the weight added by your strengthing and retracts). that brings the approx wing loading to 28oz/sqft vs. the recommended 22oz/sqft. this is all assuming the plane weighs what they say, which, in my experience, they are usually heavier out of the box. no wonder the wing folded.

Crashem

ReallyUglyStick

You are right cyclic's post pretty much somes up the lack of taking responability in todays society. Sad commentary actually

scottfl78

Maybe he was showing an example of "what not to do" hehe

Cyclic Hardover

My Feedback: (3)

*Again the point was missed. Mr. Baxters argument was that of weight. Whatever the G90 weighs in at had to be supplemented with another 1lb of weight on top of that! I had everyright to demand a new plane because the flaw was in the construction of the plane from the factory. The engine had nothing to do with it and I would do the whole thing over again. The engine had nothing to do with the plane going in but since it was not the recommended size, he thought he had a loophole and he did not get away with it.
*According to the last three responses would it have been better if I installed a .40 and add 2lbs of weight? Remember the TT Champion? I don't know if its still around but I had one several years ago. Was it my fault that all my landings were very smooth yet the gear ripped out because the mounting blocks were held in with hotglue?
* I can't wait until you have a nice plane go in for a reason that is not your fault, and then try to stand up for yourself against some of these bananas.

hookedonrc

You are right about the promotion with experience. I have worked in large Call Centers in my career (largest being 820 employees.) The good ones move on and up, but another thing to remember, if it is a 24 a day one, the most experienced persons are on during the day. Most shift bids are done by seniority and thus the experience ends up on the day shift, and the new ones end up on nights and weekends. And, for email questions, many sophisticated centers use a "language" parser. It picks up key words and phrasses and decides the final handling. If it is done right, the answer can be quickly obtained, but if not, you end up in e-mail h*ll.

ReallyUglyStick

My Feedback: (5)

or you end up in india...hmmmmmm

scottfl78

Look man you exceeded the recomended engine! Not saying that that is always a bad thing but if you do you void the warranty and you are on you're own plain and simple... Some planes are made for G's some aren't... If I put a 150hp motor on my 16' Well craft I void the warranty... Same thing... If you had put a .40 maybe it wouldnt have gone in and maybe it still would have who knows, but you would have had more legs to stand on with the manufacturer...

DavidAgar

My Feedback: (108)

I have to agree with the current thought here. I completly understand adding a the weight to obtain balance of the plane, however strapping a 90 on a 40 size plane had to be the leading, if not the complete result of the wing failure. You should be thanking your lucky stars that Great Planes sent you a replacement plane, because in my opioion they could have told you to pound salt. Adding weight to the nose does not cause a wing to fail. It will cause an airplane to fly like a brick or not fly at all, but I would put my money on 1 in a 1000 wing failures related to nose weight. The bulk of the scale models on the market today, both ARFs and Kits need nose weight and I shall wait for the readers of this post to post their tales of wing failure due to weight on the nose to balance the plane. As for Great Planes, I have never had anything except the best customer service they can give. They are top notch in my book and have never given me anything but great service. Good Luck, Dave

Cyclic Hardover

My Feedback: (3)

*Had i been flying that thing like I was planning too after many trimming flights, it would have been understandable. Crusing along and head into a high "G" turn wouild have popped them suckers right off but that was not the case. It was the beginning of the third flight and was not doing anything remotely excessive. The wing failing was due to the lack of glue where it should have been.
*There was none on the caps at the mid section and inside where the wing joiners sections attach to the foam of the wing. I was simple tooling around with not much speed at all. The front end was heavy and would have been as heavy with a .40 ,.30 or a .25 up their. The weight had to go in to balance out the plane. You warbird guys know where I'm coming from. I have this big P-47 with 1 1/2 lbs up fron along side a 1.08 and everything else i can inside the plane as far forward as possible.
*I have this GS P-51. Fortunately I was able to shuffle the generic weight around to the back, like servos under the tail and such to keep from adding any more weight and it worked out well. Those who have seen my hangar over the years here on RCU know well that my fleet is set up for the dumpster but it has yet to happen. I build well and fly fast and carefully. There was a guy here on RCU recently who was telling the story of an ARF which I think was from GSP. Everything in the box did not fit right at all. Even one wing was longer than the other. Don't know what became of the mess yet. Can you imagine how he would feel if the whole box of junk was his fault?. On my Texan, one side was glued up fine and the other was not done at all.

DBCherry

My Feedback: (4)

Cyclic,
I think you're missing the point of peoples' comments.

Say you went out and bought a brand new Toyota that comes through stock with a 6 cylinder engine (as the largest option), and you take it home and drop in a big V-8. On your third trip downtown the rear end blows up and leaves a trail of gears down the street.

Do you think Toyota is going to replace the rear end? EVEN if you tell them, "but I never went over 30 MPH".
Dennis-

BasinBum

My Feedback: (2)

From a previous Cyclic thread

[link=http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_1398952/mpage_1/key_/anchor/tm.htm#1398952]HERE[/link]

Couldn't resist showing everyone one of Cyclics previous posts. You may be absolutly right about the plane but I really have to question your version of the dealings with Mr. Baxter based on your dealings on RCU. Maybe it's not always everybody else. Whether it seems right or wrong we all have to take some responsibilty for the situations we find ourselves in.

Cyclic Hardover

My Feedback: (3)

This is not a bad example. If the rear end blew then that is obviously directly related but what happened if I was driving down the road in my new Toyota (Land Cruiser) and the front bumper just fell off, I ran over it, rolled the thing and totaled it. What does this have to do with the engine I put in? Somebody please agree with me so I can give "Basinbum" a chance to up his post count some more.[sm=spinnyeyes.gif]

Cyclic Hardover

My Feedback: (3)

*You know you are exactly right where as we do have to take responsibility for our actions. I own a home here and about 6 months ago i bought a condo for an investment and rented it out. Now my tenants are no problem but it comes with an association and many rules, most of which are simple common courtesy and respect for your fellow neighbor.
*These are grown people who know the rules yet continueously choose to ignore them. Car gets towed, hey you know the rules, Dog crap on the yard and a $50 fine, hey you know the rules. I simply do not put up with it anymore.
*Anybody at your airfield choose to ignore the rules. If they pull that stuff at ours we call the park rangers and get them out. If I were the only person having bad dealings with RC related customer service from various companys, well I guess its me but i am not. I have had good dealings with some of them and bad, even with Hobby services. I even had one dealing where I sent the engine back 3 times in a month and yelled my head off at them, turns out it was my fault and apologized and let everybody here know what caused it to avoid a problem for them.
* I am not a total jerk but I am working on it. In the case of the Texan, as I saw it, they were trying to avoid there responsibility and blow me off. What about all these newr pilots who purchase there planes and radios from dealers who all but refuse and decent customer satisfaction or service. Its "you bought it, you deal with it." It shows up here constantly and the only thing it accomplishes is the pilot dropping the hobby.
*I had two respectable LHS owners there that day, One was one of the largest in the SW and they both agreed and it was also partly due to there help that I received a new plane. My poor P51 came by for a gear pass and when I went around on the downwind leg, it just kept on going south. I think pieces of it even reached the "Sepulveda Basin." I didn't go blaming that on anybody. We figured the battery cable came lose. Company's sell a product, they need to back it up.
*We have Arfs coming out our noses now and I have seen first hand from many of you complaining how things go. When your spending upwards of $500 for an ARF , you better get your money's worth. If not, you get upset when Customer Service does the tradition tap dance. Did you ever notice that the directions for most Arfs are published in such a way that beginners or intermediates have a very hard time.
*Customer Service? Anbody have "Dish" I don't even call them anymore, to avoid the stress, I just drive over to the install shop for our area and ask them and get a straight answer. Other wise I fight with a moron reading from a cue card. Call me whatever you want but IMHO, our customer service profession is only looking out for themselves

scottfl78

Cyclic, you got issues... None of us are perfect but you seem to be the only one who won't admit it... Reply to this in a nasty way and egg me on... Please?? LOL

BasinBum

My Feedback: (2)

Issues? Heck, he's got a subscription.

H. Wayne S

My Feedback: (18)

And we wonder why suppliers have to continually to raise prices to stay in business.

The "I want something for nothing" attitude and the blatant denial to take responsibility for one's actions will destroy this country in the near future.

Honor, Respect, Responsibility for ones own actions, The lack of these qualities will destroy not only the person lacking them it will destroy all those that individual comes in contact with.

Shame on you.

NOTE : This is a general statement. My $0.02 only, and is not directed at any individual or previous statement in this thread.