I hesitate to write this, because I am not here to bash anyone. I sincerely want our BRP products to succeed. But for this to happen, dealerships need to succeed. Some are, and I applaud them for dispensing good, honest service to their customers (you and I).
I don't know how many dealerships may visit this site. But I hope my plea to improve customer service, where needed, might make some difference.
When a Spyder dealership came to Greeneville, TN, I was thrilled. Up until then, we were getting all of our BRP parts from East Tennessee ATV through Amber, the parts girl there. She was outstanding. Knowledgeable, smart, easy to work with, and very reliable. But it was a hassle for both of us. She would order our stuff in, but then she would either have to pack and ship it to us. Causing an additional 2 or 3 business day delay. Or I would have to run up and get it. Usually about a 2-hour time expenditure. Either way, adding time and cost to the event. 2 things that any business is always trying to avoid.
She was gracious, and I enjoyed working with her. But now with a resource just 5 minutes away, well, you get my drift.
My issue here has to do with the number of complaints we receive about dealerships. It is frankly discouraging.
I understand that mistakes happen. Diagnosing and correcting problems with the Spyder can be difficult. It’s not always possible to make the customer happy. But at least some dealerships really need to try harder.
Poor customer service does damage to the product name and diminishes the experience of what I consider to be an excellent machine. You can't treat customers like a milk cow (herd them in, get all you can, then send them back out to pasture) and expect them to be pleased about it.
We try to treat our customers like friends. And why not? Because that's what we hope they will be. This should not be considered 'Extra', or 'Above & Beyond'.
We get customers from all over. We have 2 that come down from the Chicago area. Others from Florida, New York, etc. We even have one that comes out from Arizona. Most have somewhere in the vicinity that they are visiting or passing through. But not all. And frankly, we love seeing them.
We just had a customer come in from Texas. They were raving about their dealership and that always encourages me. Honestly, I was glad to hear it. They were passing through and wanted us to do some things for them. I think they had heard of us and wanted to see if we were for real. They had a beautiful, low mileage, late model RT. Great people! But when we started taking panels off their bike, disappointment ensued.
Daniel came to me and showed me what he'd found. Fortunately, the customers where there to see as the panels were removed. We would have shown them what was discovered in any case. But since they witnessed the removal, it precluded any suspicions that we might have done the damage.
Brake fluid had been allowed to run onto the panel below the reservoir. The paint had blistered up along the ridgeline where it pooled and had dried. It should not have been allowed to contact the paint in the first place. But if it had been removed and cleaned in a timely manner, there would have been no damage.
The paint damaged panel had not been properly located in front so one of the attachment holes didn't line up. We speculate that a pry tool had been used in an attempt to align the holes and it broke the plastic. With the hole still misaligned, there was no push rivet present. Other panels were also missing attachment hardware.
Now none of this damage was visible with panels in place. And even with the missing hardware, the panels were not going to come off. So, cosmetically, the bike looks just fine. And nothing was critical. Still, I know how I would feel. And I think reaction to these issues would be pretty universal.
I wish I could say that this kind of thing is rare.
Please, Dealer Techs! These are expensive machines that most owners love and take very good care of. Take some pride in your work if you are not already doing so. Don’t hide your mistakes. Own them and make it right. That is all any of us are asking.
