Reputable Dealerships?

[Scalem]

Hi All

My question is a simple one. How do you rate Brisbane's boat dealerships and the service they provide? I could nearly have started a poll, but there are too many catagories that you can grade a dealership by. I don't mind paying for good work done, but how many of us are feeling we have not been properly looked after as a customer?

I don't want this thread to become an open slagging of the industry. I simply want to see what others think about the quality of relationship that should exist between the boating industry and their clientel. It might be a wake up call to dealership operators and the standards they keep, depending on your responses.

Give us your thoughts?

Scalem

[finga]

Don't know. Never used one for either service or buying in Brisbane.
I'll probably never buy a boat through a yard either.
When I was asked for $300 non refundable for a water test and seeing the standard contract for buying a boat they can get stuffed. (still no answer from a thread awhile ago Mr ausmarine).

Before that walk into a dealership looking for a little Honda and they're flogging off motors a few years old as new WITH no compliance plate saying they're put on in the workshop when sold. :-/

There's a couple of people I would trust. Only trouble is they're 200km away from Brisbane.
Gidday Rod :D

Needless to say though. I'm sure there are some excellent dealers in Brisbane. I just haven't found one yet.

[PinHead]

Are you talking about dealerships as in boat sales or maintenance and repair organisations. I could write a book about some of the funny things that happened when we bought out boat.

[russ81]

I have only ever dealt with the one dealership for serviceing purchasing and chandlery and i must admit i am pretty happy with all aspects i have always been able to speak to the mechanic who has serviced my o/b and have never recieved any b/s

[Marlin_Mike]

Word of mouth........the most powerful recommendation.

Mike

[wags on the water]

I've some dramas with the new rig (3 months old) and the dealer I bought it through are 'bending over backwards' to have it sorted for me. Although many moons ago, I had a motor serviced then the next day it seized and they said it was my fault! I know it wasn't and never went to them again.

Wags

[mamu]

Scalem,
not sure how to cut and paste on this format but if you check post 11 on motor maintaince posted 27/4/07 in general chat that you replied to, you find my thoughts in detail (if you havnt read them already)
I agree with your sentiment,are we getting what we pay for?
One word,
NO.

Mamu

[bastard]

I know a lot of out board mechanics both by experience and friend ship and i wouldnt let them work on my engines,For honesty and family service you would find it hard to go past yatala yamaha,paul doesnt really have a personality but once you work him out hes a good bloke that runs a profesional buisness,the only other won i would recomend is geoff ore mobile ,also honest and knows what hes doing.AS far as stern drives go i dont think there is any such thing as a good won.

[BM]

AS far as stern drives go i dont think there is any such thing as a good won.

Ouch!!

What would possess you to make such a statement? I'm interested to know because if what you say is true, then my move to Qld could well be very prosperous.

MerCruiser is not a favoured topic in Melbourne either I guess but the biggest cause of the problem is the "you are trapped in a marina and we will screw you like theres no tomorrow".......

It doesn't have to be that way....

I am in the middle of a 34 Mustang repower (twin 5.7's) with leg work and other bits and pices etc etc etc. When I'm done the owners have 12 months warranty on their new engines. And of course it goes without saying (in my mind) that any other problems that I would regard as caused by me would be covered also.

So if Bris and its north don't have a gun MerCruiser bloke I am pleased :) :) :)

Cheers

[PinHead]

my boat is at a marina and I have not used the on site mechanics yet...have used a mobile mechanic...but he has now moved on...will have to find someone else now.

[Antony]

Hi Scalem ,

Your question has come just the right time for me , I have just bought a couple of brand new 140 4 st from a major SE Qld dealer ( S W M ), I thought I was getting a resonable deal that was untill I found out they sold me 2005 model motors when I was under the illusion of buying the the latest models .Now I feel as if I have been taken for a ride.

anthony

[bastard]

I rang 4 mercury dealers today and sent 2 emails to get prices on new manifolds and risers,the 4 mercury dealers were with in one hours drive of each other,the price for a genuine manifold was 30 dollars dearer than the aftermarket one,not only that the price varied from 750 to 540 on the same item when your buying four of them thats a big saving,a friend of mine had both legs serviced recently on a 2003 model boat when it went back in the water it leaked after they pulled it out again to repair it still leaked these people still couldnt fix the mistake they caused and have now given up,leaving him with the expense of the second lift,not only that when he put the boat in forward gear it went backwards into a pontoon.I could go on all day about stern drive mechanics.I could understand if they were working on old 470s or 165s that are passed there used by date but these are late model boats,i think what happens is apprentices are given jobs they cant quiet handle and this is the outcome.

[BM]

Pinhead,

I am coming.....

Antony, that is a disgrace and I do not understand why anyone would/could/can do that.....

I may be stupid (perhaps???) but I believe in "give people what they pay for"........

Its a pretty simple equation really. YOU pay for "x" job, and "x" job is carried out with due care and diligence..........

Any problems that are CAUSED by the dealer should be rectified by them also. But I guess this is often the sticking point......

I would rather fix a small problem (that was not really mine to fix) at no cost (or parts cost) and keep a happy customer, than lose someone over such a small issue.

Its all about trust. And when the trust is developed (provided its not abused down the track) a GOOD working realtionship can be established whereby the owener knows that the service agent is doing what NEEDS to be done without doing things in order to move product.....

Cheers

[Scalem]

BM

That's a well written answer and you are on the mark, it's all about "relationship" and if ever a client feels that he/she has been given a raw deal, they simply won't come back. Seems that some people working at dealerships have forgotten that, or simply don't care, thinking you as a client are dispensable. Notice I said "working at dealerships" but not the owners themselves. Often, if you make enough noise to the owner, you can get the problem sorted out, but who wants to do that every time you need a service or purchase something? More training perhaps?

Anthony, if I questioned the sales person who did the deal on your motors, is he going to swear black and blue that he told you they were 2005 motors, that's why you got a good deal? Or is this a blatant case of misrepresentation where you thought you were buying 2007 models straight off the production line? What date is stamped on the plate?

I for one am learning - and any grease monkey who thinks they are going to work on my motor need to give a written " Scope Of Work" or "estimate of repair" before commencement of work. Same goes for quotes when buying motors or boats including exactly what additional work is agreed on. There's too many discrepancies between client and dealer. None of this "It's booked in for its 100 hour service and just walk away" without knowing details of what work is to be done. How are your services conducted? It probably varies from one place to another, but how far from the truth am I?

Scalem

[Poodroo]

Well we all know about relationships with dealers don't we? As Marlin_Mike said that word of mouth can be an ali or foe to the dealers. One particular example of this that comes to mind is someone's bad experiences with buying a new trailer recently. If that didn't happen then I would have gone to them and bought a new trailer from them as well. But they didn't even get a look in so there was a sale they didn't get. Good topic Scalem. It pays for dealers to look after and estrablish their relationship with their customers because they are going to chin wag whether is was good or bad service.

Poodroo

[Big_unit]

I recently had to look around for a new boat ( small vee nosed punt ), after trying to source one locally I had to look at the Brisbane based dealers. I found some real problems when dealing with them -

Do they train their staff in good customer service skills ie; phone response & calling a customer back. One dealership I rang twice said the sales staff were busy and they would back, I still havent heard from them ??? Another dealership let me wander around for 30 minutes before I had to go in and ask for a salesman, who then made me wait another 15 minutes before I jumped in the car and went to next place.

Some sales staff are very vague in product knowledge, one sales guy tried to get me to buy a motor that was 7kgs over the recommended transom capacity.

Another guy, after I explained what I wanted & the application requirements recommended that I buy a light duty trailer. The dirt road I travel on would kill a light trailer I explained, he told me that they are a lot stronger than they look.

Nearly every sales person tried to upgrade me, I dont blame them for trying but isnt " nah I dont want to do that " enough when you have said it twice let alone 4 or 5 times.

A salesman in the Springwood area quoted me a price, so I asked if it was his best price, another salesman came out & spoke to me and told me that the first guy actually had it wrong and the price should be $780 more than the original price quoted BUT they would still do it for the original quoted price. Geez thats nice of them I thought as I walked off.

I ended up going north and buying a boat from Ron Glass Marine in Bundaberg, the blokes up there do a top job ( prompt, efficient, honest and decent ), I had absolutely no problems with them and left with my new boat and a big grin.

Cheers
James

[disorderly]

Scalem,

I think that is a good idea.
Scope of Works or estimate of repairs in writing.But will they do this?
Also an agreement if something extra comes up throughout the job that could blow out that estimate,they will contact you before they go ahead.

cheers Scott

[Scalem]

Scalem,

I think that is a good idea.
Scope of Works or estimate of repairs in writing.But will they do this?
Also an agreement if something extra comes up throughout the job that could blow out that estimate,they will contact you before they go ahead.

cheers Scott

Thanks Scott.

It's a two way street here too, I've seen some pretty unreasonable customers who want the earth, but don't expect to pay for it.- so there's an agreement reached for both parties' benefit.

James - you also understand what I meant by "More training"
I think you could be in sales, and what you have highlighted is what I would expect from a boat yard if they were to have a hope in selling me anything. Good follow up is a key, product knowledge is another. But if you don't know the answer, don't whaffle, tell me you don't know, check with another guy or do some checking and come back - it's no big deal.

Scalem

[PinHead]

Then there are the ones that when you ask if you can look over their boats...tells you yes and that he will be back in 15 minutes..45 minutes later and still not back.
Another was asked if i could look over the boat...he looked me up and down and said that I would not be able to afford the boat. Another wanted a $20k deposit to go for a water test. And then there was one where nothing was a problem...went for several water tests...all questions answered and all options listed in quote and deal done on a handshake without a single problem.

[Antony]

BM



Anthony, if I questioned the sales person who did the deal on your motors, is he going to swear black and blue that he told you they were 2005 motors, that's why you got a good deal? Or is this a blatant case of misrepresentation where you thought you were buying 2007 models straight off the production line? What date is stamped on the plate?



Scalem


If you where to ask the salesman the question, he would say that “I saw the year model and I picked him up on it at the time of delivery ”

What happened to me is mostly my own fault only because I believed what the sales team told me (there where more than one sales person I trusted) after my experience I have to agree with you , if details where put in writing there can’t be a misunderstanding . One would think a reputable dealer would put it in writing no matter what the circumstance. This may be one way to sort out the reputable ones from the rest.

Anthony

[Chris Ryan]

I actually applied for a sales job with a dealer - got a call from the principal but timing was bad for me to talk to him. Said I would call him back in 1hr. I did, then the next day twice, then the next day twice - left messages. Didn't get a call back.

I am a salesman - Scalem knows this - but if they can't even call back prospective employees, then they wouldn't get back to potential clients etc. Glad it didn't happen even though I know I would add something to the industry that has been built over 15yrs in IT - CUSTOMER SERVICE.

Unfortunately these guys are now tarred with the "used car salesman" brush - not good for the dealers and people are now skeptical of everything they do. Its a shame. Why can't we all just go back to being honest; say I don't know or even No???

Puff

[haggis]

I had a couple of problems with my new boat , got that sorted ,
had its first service boat came back with chipped and damaged paint ,
damaged biminni pole and black hand prints all over biminni cover .
now being a mechanic of twenty five years and dealing with the public for most of this I now how I treat customers and how I like to be treated . a phone call with the salesman who sold me the boat then a conversation whith owner of boat dealers and everything is fine . will I take my boat back for its 100 hour service ?
not sure as there is a nother dealer who will honour the warranty so we will
see .
cheers fae haggis ......

[Big_unit]

It's a two way street here too, I've seen some pretty unreasonable customers who want the earth, but don't expect to pay for it.- so there's an agreement reached for both parties' benefit.

James - you also understand what I meant by "More training"
I think you could be in sales, and what you have highlighted is what I would expect from a boat yard if they were to have a hope in selling me anything. Good follow up is a key, product knowledge is another. But if you don't know the answer, don't whaffle, tell me you don't know, check with another guy or do some checking and come back - it's no big deal.

Scalem

No Im not in sales at present but I was partly responsible for our live cattle export business and it involved big money from some very astute shrewd foreign businessmen ( $1400 to $2200 per animal in lots of around 750 to 2000 animals ) These guys are spending a lot of dough and they dont stuff around at all. You can bet that if you stuff these guys around they will not be back, they demand the very best and at all times.

I grew up in family business and learnt as a young fella that you do the job well, as you were taught to do and aim to please the customer every time.

Keep the private business matters as exactly that and make certain all staff are conversant in thier particular aspect of the job, some junior staff members only need limited info with the knowledge they can refer anyone to a senior staffer for more detailed info.

All staff should know that lies are highly unacceptable in any circumstance to every customer.

Cheers
James

[Seahaven]

Seems the key word here is relationships.
You can't go past talking to several, see who you seem to get on with and try them out.
The honesty/service mentality does show through quickly. Usually at the first hiccup. It's then you find out how solid the relationship is.
I'm lucky, have been dealing with the same family business for 15+ years. Just hope the buggers don't want to retire!

Mark

[Big_unit]

Spot on mate classic examp-le of that is Ron Glass Marine they have been operating for 30 years and I reckon they will go another 100 years if they keep doing things the same way they do now.

I can speak highly enough of the team up there.

Cheers
James