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I just had the most incredible experience at Grant McCarroll Ford in Armidale NSW yesterday. To cut a long story short he has banned me from his new car and service division for having purchased a car from another Ford dealer!
To put this in persepective I have been a regular customer of his service division for the past five years. He just lost his nut in front of me at the sight of a car he didnt sell (a new Territory Ghia) and declared me off limits!
Anyway according to Ford Customer Service, he is entitled to refuse to service my car, but must do any warranty work. I was gobsmacked that any dealer who supposedly represents Ford could get away with this. Unlike the city we have very limited choices about going to another dealer and he obviously has got use to intimidating people into buying from him or not buying Ford. I refuse to do either.
I understand from talking to friends and collegues that this is not the first time he has done this, therefore I would like to hear from anyone who has had a bad experience with Grant McCarroll Ford, as I am preparing a file to help support a letter to go to Ford. All correspondence I receive will be answered and kept in confidence if you wish.
I'm sorry to hear you were treated like that Daniel. I'll ensure the Regional Manager for NSW is aware of this and see what can be done.
That's a great response Territory. Having visited a few country cities it's easy to see that you have to have a very high level of trust with your servicing guys - you simply don't have a lot of choice.
Thanks for the support Territory and I would appreciate you passing this on. The dealer I purchased from is as amazed as I am at the events that took place and could only say he wont stay in business. Unfortunately with a town to ransom I guess Grant McCarroll figures he will.
Fortunately for me, I have a witness to the whole rant. My neighbour, who is a lifelong Holden man, was so impressed with my new Territory that we decided to visit Grant McCarroll to checkout a TX, which is the car he was interested in. He was an excellent prospect for Grant McCaroll, before Grant came over to us and lost the plot. He witnessed the whole thing and was as much in shock as I was. He has already written a letter of support for me and not surprisingly in the circumstances has sworn off buying a Ford. As he said in his letter, he was offended and he wasnt the one getting ranted at.
It was the most outrageous thing I have ever been witness to.Takes some of the shine of an otherwise brilliant car.
All this in the middle of Ford advertising its dealers' attributes on TV. This seriously sounds like it needs a franchise taken away to send a message through the network - not easy for Ford to do admittedly.
Put yourself in his shoes, he not only has a obligation to you, but also to all his customers & employees. He needs to maintain an income level that will alow his business to stay profitable, so as to give his customers a service that they require and also to pay his work force.
He is probably very disappointed, after giving you five years of loyal service (that you are obviously very happy with) you have bi-passed him and gone to his opposition. His firm has lost out on some major income from someone that he thought was a loyal customer.
There are probably better ways he could have expressed himself, but he must be a very passionate man.
And isn't that what you want, someone pasionate about their job, their customer and the service they offer?
You probably saved quite a bit on your vehicle, but did you give the other guy a chance?
Also did you take into account the extras Grant McCarroll Ford would give you, such as great service.
I know it's hard, but since you purchased the vehicle somewhere else and you want to get it serviced at your local, you should either apologise to Grant McCarroll Ford (he probably feels like he was stabbed in the back by a friend), or go get the vehicle serviced where you purchased it from, after all it is only once a year.
I'm very lucky, I can't always offer big discount on things that the multi-national stores do, but the people in my community will come & discuss it with me and most times we come to an agreement that pleases both sides and ensures the long term viability to us, a business that has friendly neighbours that are also customers.
Quote:
Originally Posted by DanielXR8
I just had the most incredible experience at Grant McCarroll Ford in Armidale NSW yesterday. To cut a long story short he has banned me from his new car and service division for having purchased a car from another Ford dealer!
To put this in persepective I have been a regular customer of his service division for the past five years. He just lost his nut in front of me at the sight of a car he didnt sell (a new Territory Ghia) and declared me off limits!
Anyway according to Ford Customer Service, he is entitled to refuse to service my car, but must do any warranty work. I was gobsmacked that any dealer who supposedly represents Ford could get away with this. Unlike the city we have very limited choices about going to another dealer and he obviously has got use to intimidating people into buying from him or not buying Ford. I refuse to do either.
I understand from talking to friends and collegues that this is not the first time he has done this, therefore I would like to hear from anyone who has had a bad experience with Grant McCarroll Ford, as I am preparing a file to help support a letter to go to Ford. All correspondence I receive will be answered and kept in confidence if you wish.
All that is possibly true UFord, but I am in business myself and I follow the basic rule that the customer comes first no matter how much you feel they've dumped on you. There is no excuse for responding to a customer like that - not sure if its even legal to 'ban' them under trade practices legislation. You just can't afford to feel too important about yourself as a business person. At the same time that doesn't mean you can't be passionate about your job.
It does add to the uneasy feeling us first-time Ford buyers have about some Ford dealers being a rough and ready mob. And why did Ford Customer Relations respond to Daniel simply by telling him the dealer was entitled to ban him rather than taking follow up action as Territory has?
I've had a parallel experience with two Holden dealers in Sydney - service at one, buy a car at another. They were quite happy to continue dealing with me - understood I had an obligation to myself to get the best deal, continued to treat me as their best customer, addressed me as sir etc. Everything top shelf customer relations stuff. This is the act Ford needs to follow.
Put yourself in his shoes, he not only has a obligation to you, but also to all his customers & employees. He needs to maintain an income level that will alow his business to stay profitable, so as to give his customers a service that they require and also to pay his work force.
He is probably very disappointed, after giving you five years of loyal service (that you are obviously very happy with) you have bi-passed him and gone to his opposition. His firm has lost out on some major income from someone that he thought was a loyal customer.
There are probably better ways he could have expressed himself, but he must be a very passionate man.
And isn't that what you want, someone pasionate about their job, their customer and the service they offer?
You probably saved quite a bit on your vehicle, but did you give the other guy a chance?
Also did you take into account the extras Grant McCarroll Ford would give you, such as great service.
I know it's hard, but since you purchased the vehicle somewhere else and you want to get it serviced at your local, you should either apologise to Grant McCarroll Ford (he probably feels like he was stabbed in the back by a friend), or go get the vehicle serviced where you purchased it from, after all it is only once a year.
I'm very lucky, I can't always offer big discount on things that the multi-national stores do, but the people in my community will come & discuss it with me and most times we come to an agreement that pleases both sides and ensures the long term viability to us, a business that has friendly neighbours that are also customers.
BS..
Rule Number 1. The customer is always right.
Rule Number 2. See rule number 1.
Another useful business saying - for every customer you piss off, they will tell at least 10 friends. In a country town you can replace with 1000.
Another useful thing for a country salesperson - don't burn your bridges. Just because someone didn't buy from you this week doesn't mean he won't buy from you in future - even a lost sale is an opportunity at some time in the future.
In essence there is NO excuse for a crappy sales people. That also goes for the slimy oldies who go all stupid when a female customer comes looking for a car. Basically the car sales industry is still not good enough.
All that is possibly true UFord, but I am in business myself and I follow the basic rule that the customer comes first no matter how much you feel they've dumped on you. There is no excuse for responding to a customer like that - not sure if its even legal to 'ban' them under trade practices legislation. You just can't afford to feel too important about yourself as a business person. At the same time that doesn't mean you can't be passionate about your job.
..........
Some businesses still think that the customer is always right, but those days are gone.
Some customers can cost a business more than they are worth, not just in dollar value but in stress & frustration. There are idiot customers that no mater what you do they will not be happy, even if you paid them.
We only have one side of the story here.
And from past experience, never judge until you here both sides of the story. Let us here Grant McCarroll Ford side before we all judge him as guilty.
A business can choose their customers & also not sell to certain customers. After all it is your business, your merchandise, know one has the power or rights to force someone to do something against there will.
Rule Number 1. The customer is always right.
Rule Number 2. See rule number 1.
Another useful business saying - for every customer you piss off, they will tell at least 10 friends. In a country town you can replace with 1000.
Another useful thing for a country salesperson - don't burn your bridges. Just because someone didn't buy from you this week doesn't mean he won't buy from you in future - even a lost sale is an opportunity at some time in the future.
In essence there is NO excuse for a crappy sales people. That also goes for the slimy oldies who go all stupid when a female customer comes looking for a car. Basically the car sales industry is still not good enough.
This is a interesting article from one of the Business Newsletters I subscribe to, Yahoo Small Business.
Quote:
“Here is one of the most notable lies that has rendered many companies ‘not able’ — THE CUSTOMER IS ALWAYS RIGHT.”
“It sounds correct and even virtuous, but it is nonsense,” he argues. “Customers can only be ‘right’ about one thing, and that is how we manage transactions that ‘fit’ with their businesses. If they are also to be considered right about the nature and value of our offerings then one of us is redundant!”
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