[TriLUG] OT:<rant>Intrex just lost a customer</rant>

[Ben Pitzer]

Well, my take on replacing and returning defective parts from computer
stores is somewhat mixed.  In this case, unless Dave did something
particularly stupid in installing the part (like a jumper setting that might
cause the device to overload the power intake, but I highly doubt that), it
seems to me that Intrex at least owes Dave a replacement of the same
make/model.  Even if it was defective coming out of the store, they would
owe that.

The problem with Intrex, as I see it, is that so many of the parts they
offer are small, no-name manufacturers.  And as such, even by the time the
part is on the shelf, you can't guarantee that the company is still in
business, or that they're answering their support telephone number, assuming
they have one, or that they published it in the user's manual or any of the
hardware documentation.  So what recourse does the consumer have?  At that
point, good customer service is to at least replace the part with the same
make/model.  I once did that with a 10/100 generic brand switch that I
picked up there that stopped working after short time.  I thought my second
NIC in my Linux box might have gone south, but I replaced it with a known
good NIC, and found the same problem.  So I pulled out the switch and
replaced it with my 10-BaseT hub, and all was good in the world again (if
slower). I'd even swapped ports on the switch to try to fix the problem,
with no joy.  So I had to assume that the switch was at fault here.  I took
it back to Intrex, and they replaced it with the same make/model (although
the old switch's power converter had an AC output, and the new one used DC
input, so I feel a little more comfortable with it).  In any case, Intrex
told me that they would test it, and if it worked, they'd call me back and
expect me to pay for the new switch.  Having never heard from them, I assume
they found the same thing I did.  Go figure.

Nonetheless, I believe that in Dave's case, they owe him a new part, and
should take back the old one, verify its failure (as if the fried resistor
wouldn't be obvious enough), and take the loss for selling sub-par products.
Fact is, if you want to provide good customer service, you either sell
products that you trust for reliability (even if they cost a little more to
the customer, or sell for a little less and don't make as much of a profit
on the sale), and that way you'll get customer loyalty and sales volume
can/will go up.  So, it's a difficult choice.  Sometimes the quality of the
products is not as important to your customers as the quality of your
service when things go wrong, and their money is at stake.  Dave now has a
$20 paperweight that might or might not be fixable with a part from Radio
Shack and someone who is good with a soldering iron, and to my mind, that's
just not right, whether it be the fault of Intrex, or the manufacturer's
fault.

Regards,
Ben Pitzer

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

"Those that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."
 --Ben Franklin--




> -----Original Message-----
> From: trilug-bounces at trilug.org [mailto:trilug-bounces at trilug.org]On
> Behalf Of Jon Carnes
> Sent: Saturday, May 15, 2004 7:15 PM
> To: Triangle Linux Users Group discussion list
> Subject: Re: [TriLUG] OT:<rant>Intrex just lost a customer</rant>
>
>
> It's interesting to me that folks will try to take back components that
> they install themselves (and that get fried).  My first assumption is
> that unless I pay for the store to do it, it's my risk.
>
> Now my wife on the other hand wore the heck out of a pair of sneakers -
> playing Ultimate in them - then returned them six months later for a
> brand new pair... I was almost floored when the manager simply told her
> to select any new pair from the store as a replacement.  I mean, we
> didn't even have a receipt.  :-)
>
> I suggest you try talking to the manager of the Intrex store (or at
> least that is my wife's suggestion). But don't feel too burned by losing
> $20, as you said "caveat emptor". Heck my neighbor "borrowed" my $20 saw
> after a tornado and I never saw the saw again... but I still wave and
> smile when I see the neighbor.
>
> Jon Carnes
>
> On Sat, 2004-05-15 at 18:50, Dave Sorenson wrote:
> > I'm posting this for 2 reasons 1: caveat emptor to the rest of
> Tri-Lug'ers
> > and 2: I know some of those at Intrex reads this list so you'll know why
> > I'll choose to go 5 miles out of my way to not shop at any of
> your stores
> > ever again.
> >
> > Well, I didn't believe it when I heard about other peoples bad
> experiences,
> > but Intrex just lost me forever as a customer. I buy a memory
> card reader
> > from the Wake Forest store, get it home hooked up and working.
> A few minutes
> > later it stops working. I remove it from the boxen and find it fried a
> > resistor. I take it back and explain what happened and Mark
> tells me they
> > can't take it back because it has "physical damage" (the fried resistor)
> > they say my only option is to try to get help from the vendor.
> Note: vendor
> > is a small New York based outfit. We are talking $19.95 here..
> It's going to
> > cost me more to ship certified insured as required by the
> manufacturer than
> > the thing was to buy..
> >
> > I'm EXTREMELY disappointed in Intrex, They COULD have stepped up and
> > replaced the defective unit. In fact, I was ready to spend MORE money to
> > replace the defective reader with one that was $10 more. Now
> Intrex will not
> > see that $10, nor will see any additional patronage from me ever. They
> > CHOOSE not to help the customer, this customer now chooses not
> to shop at
> > Intrex. With "customer service like this, it's no wonder that
> stores like
> > Intrex find it harder and harder to compete against Best Buy,
> Tiger Direct,
> > Circuit City Et. All.. From now on I'll pay a little more not
> to have this
> > kind of hassle.
> >
> >
> > Dave S
> >
> >
> >
>
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