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Poor Dahon service

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01 / Original postPoor Dahon serviceB.G. · 17 Jun 2003 02 / This pagePosts 1–13Page 1 of 1 · chronological order 03 / Latest replyPost #13Steven Scharf · 26 Jun 2003

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Road Cycling
Published
17 June 2003
Last activity
26 June 2003
Original author
B.G.
Posts
13
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Public discussion
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628
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Topics
Folding bikesCommuting

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  1. Original post
    B.G.
    Archived post
    #1

    Sent the following thread to Josh Dahon. He never even bothered to respond. Just thought others
    might want to be aware of the quality of support you can expect from them. My whole problem is with
    the fact that i have tried since April to buy a Dahon Helios XL. For 3 months they have been
    "back-ordered". No-big, good stuff is hard to get.

    But when a frustrated potential customer sends feedback to a manufacturer, the last thing he needs
    is smart assed replies. When a frustrated potential customer then writes to the CEO of said
    company, he definately doesnt need to be ignored. Its just bad business and needs to be shared with
    others who will at least be warned of the quality of customer service this company has. Thanx, B.G.

    the following was mailed to josh Dahon on 6/13

    Hello,

    I would like to share with you a thread of emails from myself to your company. They have completely
    turned me off from your products, and I may use them as an example of "How to lose customers by
    unprofessional, unskilled, product support and e- commerce team)

    I sincerely hope you are bothered by this, because I can tell you from a customer standpoint: Right
    now, as it stands, I am very unimpressed by your companies public face! If as a customer, this is
    the type of support and attitude I can expect from Dahon, I promise you:My money will go to a more
    professional company.

    P.S. my final email is still unanswered and ignored.

    Thank you

    B. G.

    1st email to you:

    Hello,

    Your "find a dealer in your area" link does not work. Can you tell me of some dealers in downtown
    Philadelphia?

    Thanks, B.G.

    -----------------------------------------------

    RESPONSE

    -----Original Message-----

    From: [email hidden] ["][email hidden]]

    Sent: Wednesday, May 14, 2003 5:09 PM

    To: [email hidden]

    Subject: Re: dealer locator

    Trophy Markets, 311 Market Street

    Bike Line, 1028 Arch Street,

    Jay's Pedal Power, 510 East Girard

    Bike Line, 4151 Main Street

    --------------------------------------

    2nd email to you

    Hi

    Can you tell me what the story is here? I have been trying to look at a Helios XL for the last 6
    weeks. I am in Piladelphia.no dealers have them, the one dealer has told me "next week, next week,
    next week" Are you guys incapable of getting bikes to market or what? Does the Helios XL exist and
    where can I get one like today?

    Thanks, B.G.

    --------------------------------------

    the 2nd reply is buried in the following post, but here it is so you don't miss it.

    Yep, the Helios XL really

    does exist. It sells out as fast as it comes in. The next shipment will be in

    the warehouse this week. You can't get one anywhere today.

    (note)Heres how it was sent to me. Horrendous email skills and completely void of professionalism:

    2nd response:

    From: [email hidden] ["][email hidden]]

    Sent: Monday, June 09, 2003 6:30 PM

    To: edited @yahoo.com

    Subject: Re: dealer locator

    << Can you tell me what the story is here? I have been trying to look at a Helios XL for the last 6
    weeks. I am in Piladelphia.no dealers have them, the one dealer has told me "next week, next week,
    next week" Are you guys incapable of getting bikes to market or what? Does the Helios XL exist and
    where can I get one like today? >>Yep, the Helios XL really does exist. It sells out as fast as it
    comes in. The next shipment will be in the warehouse this week. You can't get one anywhere today.

    ---------------------------------------------

    3rd email to you

    Thanks for the reply -I'll believe it when I see it! Maybe I'll try again next summer thanx

    ---------------------------------------------

    3rd response from you

    As quickly as these bikes sell, they may be out of stock again next summer.

    -------------------------------------------

    final email from me (which went unanswered)

    What sort of customer service is this? I have a good mind to send this entire thread to your
    corporate offices, as well as post my dissatisfaction with your poor marketing abilities, combined
    with your attitude to every website I can. Taunting frustrated potential customers with smart-ass
    comments like this does nothing to further your company image. Did you offer any way for me to get
    one or recommend where or how I could order one? NO. Did you try helping me maybe by telling me what
    dealers in my area have ordered one that I could maybe see in person? NO! I have been trying since
    April to see and possibly buy a XL, but my local dealer says they are backordered. I write you to
    see if they really are, or if he is just not interested in ordering one unless it is sold, and I get
    comments like this. This bike looks less attractive every day!

    Report
  2. Jim Edgar
    Archived post
    #2

    B.G. at [email hidden] wrote on 6/16/03 4:43 PM:

    <customer tirade snipped>

    Thank you for posting this in the "P" section. I might've missed this if you'd only posted it once
    in this group - often just skip right by the "D" section in my haste to see if anyone has anything
    bad to say about Performance.

    Report
  3. B.G.
    Archived post
    #3

    Huh? .........I have no idea what your talking about. I guess it's some sort of slam, but I don't
    think anyone else knows what your talking about either.Remember this rule of thumb! When slamming,
    try to stay with the mob mentality. Be sure to twist and distort actual facts till they fit your
    tirade. Multiple insults are always welcome, and if person you are slamming was trying to help
    others, you may be eligible for extra bonus points!
    B.G Jim Edgar <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:<[email hidden]>...

    Quoted message said:

    B.G. at [email hidden] wrote on 6/16/03 4:43 PM:

    <customer tirade snipped>

    Thank you for posting this in the "P" section. I might've missed this if you'd only posted it once
    in this group - often just skip right by the "D" section in my haste to see if anyone has anything
    bad to say about Performance.

    Report
  4. Just Zis Guy
    Archived post
    #4

    On 18 Jun 2003 14:03:12 -0700, [email hidden] (B.G.) wrote:

    [said Jim Edgar:]

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    Thank you for posting this in the "P" section. I might've missed this if you'd only posted it
    once in this group - often just skip right by the "D" section in my haste to see if anyone has
    anything bad to say about Performance.

    Quoted message said:

    Huh? .........I have no idea what your talking about.

    Or how to snip or bottom-post, apparently.

    Quoted message said:

    I guess it's some sort of slam,

    Oh yes :-)

    Quoted message said:

    but I don't think anyone else knows what your talking about either.

    And there you are dead wrong. Again.

    Quoted message said:

    Remember this rule of thumb! When slamming, try to stay with the mob mentality.

    Round here the mob has a higher order of mentality than you are evidently used to. But your
    reply serves a useful purpose in closing the loop in this textbook example of use of irony.
    Kudos to Jim :-)

    Quoted message said:

    Be sure to twist and distort actual facts till they fit your tirade.

    No, we leave that to the likes of you.

    Quoted message said:

    Multiple insults are always welcome,

    Ah, I do like an open goal!

    You are a pusillanimous whining excuse for a troll who has plainly come to this battle of wits
    entirely unarmed. Eventually you may work out that your tactics of aggression, sel-pity and poor use
    of English are more likely to exacerbate any problem than solve it. Put succinctly, you are a
    semi-literate git.

    Sufficient? Or do you carry around an unrealistic mental service level agreement for
    insults as well?

    Quoted message said:

    and if person you are slamming was trying to help others, you may be eligible for extra
    bonus points!

    So that's alright then.

    Guy
    ===
    ** WARNING ** This posting may contain traces of irony. chapmancentral.comchapmancentral.com Advance
    notice: ADSL service in process of transfer to a new ISP. Obviously there will be a week of downtime
    between the engineer removing the BT service and the same engineer connecting the same equipment on
    the same line in the same exchange and billing it to the new ISP.

    Report
  5. John'S Cat
    Archived post
    #5
    (B.G.) said:

    Huh? .........I have no idea

    That's all that needs to be said.

    Report
  6. Edward Wong
    Archived post
    #6

    "Just zis Guy, you know?" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:<[email hidden]>...

    Quoted message said:

    On 18 Jun 2003 14:03:12 -0700, [email hidden] (B.G.) wrote:

    [said Jim Edgar:]

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    Thank you for posting this in the "P" section. I might've missed this if you'd only posted it
    once in this group - often just skip right by the "D" section in my haste to see if anyone has
    anything bad to say about Performance.

    Quoted message said:

    Huh? .........I have no idea what your talking about.

    Or how to snip or bottom-post, apparently.

    Quoted message said:

    I guess it's some sort of slam,

    Oh yes :-)

    Quoted message said:

    but I don't think anyone else knows what your talking about either.

    And there you are dead wrong. Again.

    Quoted message said:

    Remember this rule of thumb! When slamming, try to stay with the mob mentality.

    Round here the mob has a higher order of mentality than you are evidently used to. But your
    reply serves a useful purpose in closing the loop in this textbook example of use of irony.
    Kudos to Jim :-)

    Quoted message said:

    Be sure to twist and distort actual facts till they fit your tirade.

    No, we leave that to the likes of you.

    Quoted message said:

    Multiple insults are always welcome,

    Ah, I do like an open goal!

    You are a pusillanimous whining excuse for a troll who has plainly come to this battle of wits
    entirely unarmed. Eventually you may work out that your tactics of aggression, sel-pity and poor
    use of English are more likely to exacerbate any problem than solve it. Put succinctly, you are a
    semi-literate git.

    Sufficient? Or do you carry around an unrealistic mental service level agreement for insults
    as well?

    Quoted message said:

    and if person you are slamming was trying to help others, you may be eligible for extra bonus
    points!

    So that's alright then.

    Guy
    ===
    ** WARNING ** This posting may contain traces of irony. chapmancentral.comchapmancentral.com Advance
    notice: ADSL service in process of transfer to a new ISP. Obviously there will be a week of
    downtime between the engineer removing the BT service and the same engineer connecting the same
    equipment on the same line in the same exchange and billing it to the new ISP.

    Excuse me for "butting in" this lively conversation but I don't know what the f**k Jim is talking
    about either. You slam "BG" for improper use of the English language but yet expect for us normal
    people to translate the jibberish or jive talk from Jim. Maybe I don't know the complete details of
    this topic but all I've read so far is a posting on one individual's frustration with getting proper
    customer service out of a well known folding bicycle company and gets slammed by another newsgrouper
    for it. Doesn't make any sense to me. I don't know about you all.

    Over and out...

    Report
  7. A-J-S
    Archived post
    #7
    Quoted message said:

    Doesn't make any sense to me. I don't know about you all.

    Seems to make sense to the vast majority of people who have responded to him. See the post below,
    maybe that will help you understand it.

    AJS

    "Edward Wong" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    "]news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:

    "Just zis Guy, you know?" <[email hidden]> wrote in message


    news:<[email hidden]>...

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    On 18 Jun 2003 14:03:12 -0700, [email hidden] (B.G.) wrote:

    [said Jim Edgar:]

    Over and out...

    Report
  8. Steven Scharf
    Archived post
    #8

    [email hidden] (B.G.) wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

    Quoted message said:

    Sent the following thread to Josh Dahon. He never even bothered to respond. Just thought others
    might want to be aware of the quality of support you can expect from them. My whole problem is
    with the fact that i have tried since April to buy a Dahon Helios XL. For 3 months they have been
    "back-ordered". No-big, good stuff is hard to get.

    His name is Josh Hon, not Josh Dahon.

    He actually is well aware of the distribution issues in the U.S. For whatever reason he is unable to
    do anything to rectify the issues. I've met him, and he's a good guy, but I guess that the situation
    in the U.S. is not a high priority.

    I would suggest contacting www.gaerlan.com and see if he can get you the XL. 3 months is not all
    that long considering that they have to do a production run and then send them by ship to the U.S.

    Dahon loses a lot of sales in the U.S. due to their distribution issues. They need to provide demo
    bikes to shops that are too small to stock the bikes so at least buyers can try them. They could
    even loan the demo out to the buyer and get it back when the new bike arrives.

    Report
  9. Jasper Janssen
    Archived post
    #9
    (Steven Scharf) said:

    Dahon loses a lot of sales in the U.S. due to their distribution issues. They need to provide demo
    bikes to shops that are too small to stock the bikes so at least buyers can try them. They could
    even loan the demo out to the buyer and get it back when the new bike arrives.

    Doing this could very well not be cost effective though. Providing demo bikes to every LBS in
    america costs a *lot* of money, and unless you plan on selling tens, maybe hundreds of thousands or
    more of bikes, I don't see it being cost effective.

    Jasper

    Report
  10. Steven Scharf
    Archived post
    #10

    Jasper Janssen <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:<[email hidden]>...

    Quoted message said:
    (Steven Scharf) said:

    Dahon loses a lot of sales in the U.S. due to their distribution issues. They need to provide
    demo bikes to shops that are too small to stock the bikes so at least buyers can try them. They
    could even loan the demo out to the buyer and get it back when the new bike arrives.

    Doing this could very well not be cost effective though. Providing demo bikes to every LBS in
    america costs a *lot* of money, and unless you plan on selling tens, maybe hundreds of thousands
    or more of bikes, I don't see it being cost effective.

    Of course it would not be every LBS in America, it would be just enough shops so someone could
    not have to drive more than 50 miles or so to try one. The whole key to driving sales is to
    have a product that a customer can see and ride, while not expecting shops to keep a stock of a
    niche product.

    There are lots of examples of stores that ONLY have demos on the sales floor and all product is
    shipped from a central distribution center upon purchase. A folding bicycle is typically not an
    impulse buy and the buyer is not in a rush to get it.

    Report
  11. Rich Clark
    Archived post
    #11

    "Jasper Janssen" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    "]news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:
    (Steven Scharf) said:

    Dahon loses a lot of sales in the U.S. due to their distribution issues. They need to provide
    demo bikes to shops that are too small to stock the bikes so at least buyers can try them. They
    could even loan the demo out to the buyer and get it back when the new bike arrives.

    Doing this could very well not be cost effective though. Providing demo bikes to every LBS in
    america costs a *lot* of money, and unless you plan on selling tens, maybe hundreds of thousands
    or more of bikes, I don't see it being cost effective.

    Well, just your own dealers, of course. A more manageable number.

    I agree with the principle that a "dealership" should provide better representation of the
    manufacturers than many do. Even big bike shops representing major brand names often can't show you
    a sample of certain models (Trek and the 520 being a classic example), and while I understand the
    constant struggle between space and cost of inventory, I don't understand why bike manufacturers
    aren't looking for better ways to use their dealerships to increase sales. Demo models, loaners,
    these are things that could tip the balance on a sale to an undecided customer who will often tend
    to buy whatever's "close enough" if he can get his hands on it.

    And the more esoteric the bike is, the less likely anyone is to buy one thet can't try first.

    RichC

    Report
  12. Jasper Janssen
    Archived post
    #12
    Rich Clark said:

    "Jasper Janssen" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    "]news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    Doing this could very well not be cost effective though. Providing demo bikes to every LBS in
    america costs a *lot* of money, and unless you plan on selling tens, maybe hundreds of thousands
    or more of bikes, I don't see it being cost effective.

    Well, just your own dealers, of course. A more manageable number.

    Well, OK, but still. Depending on how big you are, sending bikes to a shop every 100 miles in Texas
    or wherever that's not on one of the coasts might not be terribly worthwhile. Especially compared to
    sending demo bikes to New York or Los Angeles.

    Jasper

    Report
  13. Steven Scharf
    Archived post
    #13

    Jasper Janssen <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    news:<[email hidden]>...

    Quoted message said:
    Rich Clark said:

    "Jasper Janssen" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
    "]news:[email hidden]...

    Quoted message said:
    Quoted message said:

    Doing this could very well not be cost effective though. Providing demo bikes to every LBS in
    america costs a *lot* of money, and unless you plan on selling tens, maybe hundreds of
    thousands or more of bikes, I don't see it being cost effective.

    Well, just your own dealers, of course. A more manageable number.

    Well, OK, but still. Depending on how big you are, sending bikes to a shop every 100 miles in
    Texas or wherever that's not on one of the coasts might not be terribly worthwhile. Especially
    compared to sending demo bikes to New York or Los Angeles.

    You've to do it intelligently. You have to look at the demographics of each market and whether or
    not the people that live in that area are of the income and education level where it would make
    sense to try to market the product more effectively.

    Who buys folding bikes? People who want to use them to commute on mass transit, people who live in
    small apartments with little storage space, people who want to use them for travelling, etc. You
    could probably cover most of the market with less than 100 shops.

    I think that Dahon is being way too cautious in their marketing efforts. They should try something
    like this, if it doesn't work they can tell the shops to sell the demo bikes at cost. I constantly
    get e-mails from people asking where they can buy a folding bike and I have no answer other than for
    them to order on-line and take their chances.

    Report

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