Opinons wanted

[PRattenbury]

Let's say I buy a product from a manufacturer on January first for discussion sake. Since prior dealings with the manufacturer have proven to be slow, I ask what the lead time is on the product being purchased. I get told three weeks. I say okay, and I'll pay when you say the product is ready to be shipped. I get told no, I pay before they start making the product, because people have asked for stuff only to say later they can't pay for it. Fair enough, even though concern exists there is no hurry if the manufacturer already has his money, I want the product. Past transactions have proven this theory, as mentioned before. So three weeks later, no product at the door. Nothing said be me or the vendor. Four weeks, still no product and no word. I ask how it's going. Get told waiting on parts, problem with machinery used to make product. They will let me know when product is ready to ship. Five weeks, no product. Message written by me asking how it's going. No response. Six weeks, message written by me again. I can see the vendor is online when I write the messages. Vendor blips offline, no response.

So, after seeing the story, what is your opinion? Should the vendor give the customer the courtesy of an update? Or am I just a pain in the arse that should just STFU because I already got told they will let me know? I personally feel a company making a product should be able to give an accurate lead time on how long something will take to be made and delivered. Granted, sh1t happens sometimes, but even in light of that it would be courteous to respond to a customer's inquiry regarding delays on an order in my opinion. I mean not every day, of course.

Seems to me this vendor needs to maybe give a more pessimistic estimate on lead times for his products. I'm never unhappy to be told 8 weeks wait on something and have it show up in seven. What do other people think??

 

[9 LIVES]

I can honestly say its a 50/50 situation. Like you said he did tell you he would contact you when its ready.....with that said he also would loose a substantial amount of clients if he was honest and told them 6-8 weeks.

Personally I would go shopping else where if I was told 6-8 weeks! I would rather find someone who has it in stock or has a better outlook. BUT to be told one thing and its another still has no excuses for that.

In my business I can get held up by many other people down the chain. So when I quote time I usually try to account for other vendors holding me up. Often I expect one of my part vendors to have something in stock and they don't....that can throw my times off big time :doh:

I would think it would be nice for whomever you bought your parts from to at least e-mail you back weekly to let you know there still is no changes in progress. I know just how it is to want something so bad you can taste it....and wait day after day for UPS or FedEx to show up only to be empty handed :bang


Hope all goes well with your purchase though