Customer Service in Pedal Steel World

[Chris LeDrew]

What has been your experiences overall with customer service in this relatively small sector of the instrument business? I teach customer service in college as part of a business communications course, and was wondering how you think the pedal steel world measures up. I have my own thoughts, but would like to hear some opinions first. Thanks in advance for sharing!

[Mark Eaton]

Just like in the rest of my customer service experience, I have found it ranging from excellent to downright poor. But unlike the rest of my experience as a customer, I have found the majority of the folks I have dealt with in the steel guitar world to tend more toward the excellent side.

[Bent Romnes]

Out of the 10 or so steel guitar related stores I have dealt with I have to say that only one out of the 10 gave poor service. I won't go back there unless attitudes change considerably. It is refreshing to see how the great ones will bend over backwards for you.

[CrowBear Schmitt]

i've delt w: most steel vendors in the past 7/8 years
just a bit of logistical probs on shipping
otherwise i consider they all came up solid

same goes for the builders & fo'bros i bought stuff from too

[Joe A. Camacho]

Jim Palenscar, none better!

[Jerome Hawkes]

this would be a hard one to use as a customer service model, just due to the fact there are less than a dozen dedicated steel stores in the US, and some of those may just be run part-time on the side. in any case, they are usually 1-2 person shops - your probably dealing with the owner (who often is a player) or a family member.
- a better question may be CS from steel manufacturers, of course, most of these are 1 person shops too.

i will say, that the service from the steel specialists i have dealt with is above and beyond what i have experienced in the general day-to-day. the guys who specialize in steel related products like electronics, amps, repair, etc is just A+++.

i recently had 2 great (I mean GREAT) experiences - 1 was Mike Cass setting up my "65 p/p - i couldnt ask for better service and he called me many times to go over things and make sure it was right - and there is no such thing as a 5 minute phone conversation with Mike - it would go on for 20mins! he would explain everything he was doing and why. he even called to tell me it would be a bit more than he quoted me and explained in detail why it was best to fix the problem while he had the guitar apart and i was in total agreement and i appreciate someone doing that instead of just leaving a potential problem for later.

the other great experience was with Billy Knowles, who i just bought a beautiful '92 Emmons Legrande II from. Billy doesnt have a "store" but he might as well, he is an Emmons dealer/repairman and general set-up guru - he really went over the top to make my 15 year old steel factory new, down to new rubber tips on the legs!!! setting up the knees to my specs, not to even mention how good it plays - everything was gone over, cleaned and checked or replaced. most people sell used "as-is", but not Billy, he was concerned with stuff i didnt even care about - i finally said "Billy, its a 15year old steel, dont worry about it!"

thats how you win customers for life!!

[john widgren]

I have had customer service needs from the following vendors. To me they exemplify the apex of excellence in customer service and satisfaction in the world of PSG. No question or concern is to small, too big or too complex, for personal and timely attention.

BRUCE ZUMSTEG (Zumsteel)
RICK JONES (Acoustic Image)

[Ben Jones]

Our community is so small that many of our "vendors" are simply players who offer very specialized items or services. Its not quite like the real world of semi anonymous customers and vendors is it? word travels super fast in this little circle.

I also think there is an age and cultural component to our vendors that comes into play. many of these people come from a time and place where your word meant something, and where good customer service was integral to a succesful business. Their products tend to also be superbly crafted with the finest materials available.

So these things might account for some of the differences between customer service in our niche market and say customer service in the computer market.

My own personal experiences have been 100% positive. Ive had people refuse payment until the job was completed or item received. Personal phone calls to make sure I was happy and my questions were answered. Everyone Ive dealt with has been a genuine pleasure to meet and talk to and has bent over backwards to help me.

some of these individuals and companies would include
Carter Steel Guitars
Sho Pro
Tru Tone
Jutsice cases
bOb here at the forum
Jaydee Maness
Gary Rittenberry
Mickey Adams
Jaguar Strings
Tom Bradshaw
..man... i now I'm forgetting some more, sorry

Im truly sorry if Ive left anyone out..honestly Ive been overwhelmed by the generosity and kindness of these people and the excellence of their service and products.

[Chris LeDrew]

This is good to hear. I'm happy that the norm is excellence.

My experiences have varied, but it sounds like I may have been either unlucky or too demanding in those less-than-stellar transactions.

I will say one thing: A trend I have noticed is that when I've approached a dealer or builder with a problem or complaint, the overall reaction from them is to accuse me of not knowing how a steel guitar works, or not being mechanically inclined. (The words belittling and condescending come to mind.) Also, distance has been a problem for me living in Canada. If I want to return something to a US company, the general trend has been they do not want to absorb any costs incurred from border transactions, etc., on the return - even if the product is faulty or not accurately described. If this is the case, then maybe certain companies should not sell abroad, or at least have a clear cut policy in place for returns and refunds.

If no one else has had a similar experience, I must truly be a steel company's worst nightmare.

[Jack Stoner]

All the Steel Guitar "stores" and Steel Manufacturers I've dealt with have been excellent.

However, as far as strings or accessories most of what I buy from the Steel "stores" is either in person or I get my "annual stock up" (e.g. George L's strings) at St Louis.

I have a 1981 Franklin D-10 and the service I get from Mr Franklin (Sr) is the same today as it was when I got it new in 81.

[Nathan Golub]

In the past three years that I've been involved with the steel guitar, I can't think of any business interactions that have been negative. This is with steel guitar stores, builders and individuals here on the forum. A few times people have come across as curt and brief, which could be construed as condescending. But even in those cases they were getting back to me quickly, providing all the info I needed, and elaborating if I didn't understand something. So that falls squarely in the positive camp for me. Most of the interactions I've had have been over email too, which is different from doing business face-to-face. Sometimes things can come across a certain way over the internet that would be different in person.

So that being said, everyone I've had interactions with in conjunction with pedal steel have all been very good people to do business with.

[Erv Niehaus]

I've really only bad one bad experience.
Some years ago I bought a used Emmons p/p from a prominent guitar builder. I paid quite a bit extra to have some changes made to the pedal setup. When I received the guitar, nothing had been done to the guitar and there were even loose pull rods in the case.
I'm not mentioning any names but they are located in Mesquite, Tx.
The lady's concern was more about $$$$$ and not service.

[Michael Robertson]

Jim Palenscar, none better!

Here Here!
Great service and incredible attention to detail.

[Jerome Hawkes]

i would add, if someone was doing research on this, although it doesnt fall under customer service, yet is as important to sales is that better designed web sites would drive customers to purchase more. in a way, it is a branch of customer service as emails are becoming the standard form of communication vs phone.

the sites for most of the steel related shops are low grade "do-it-yourself" designs, rarely updated, and stuck in 1995 html design. pages dont fit the screen, photos are either poor, too small or too big, hard to navigate, etc

i would think that web sales could be a big part of a steel shop, as most of your customers are spread out over the globe - i would buy more from a shop with a good well designed web site.

[Chris LeDrew]

Jim Palenscar, none better!

Here Here!
Great service and incredible attention to detail.

I know Jim on a personal basis, and can imagine that the service would be second to none. If we were closer to each other, I'd do my transactions through Jim for sure.

Dana Flood at allsteelguitar in Maine is also a great dealer. I highly recommend him.

[Mike Perlowin]

Jim Palenscar, none better!

Agreed.

Tum Bradshaw is also up there with the best. Prior to Jim opened his shop, I drove to Tom's house (389 miles each way) 4 or 5 times over the years to have him work on my guitars.

Tom's wife one asked why I would drive so far. I told her that there was nobody who did better work than Tom.

Fortunately for me, Jim is a lot closer.

[David Mason]

A few times people have come across as curt and brief,

I've had this kind of vibe before, but it seems clear from the context that a lot of people (who don't come to the forum ) want to get on the phone and gas away about how great it is to be a steel player, what-kind-of-bar, who-knows-who etc. If you have your questions formulated to be exact and structured (if this - then that; then that, etc.) people are better able to help you. Everyone was a beginner once, and it's hard for an owner sometimes to back up thirty years in their head and realize just how dumb you really, really are. Maybe they could just refer people to this forum and tell 'em "come back in six months when you start making sense...." That's sure to go over well.

[John McGuire]

I buy most things by phone, some online and here is my take on those I have dealt with.

Emmons.Parts etc. Great service and shipping and pleasant experience with Bobbe and Rebecca.

The Forum; great service and shipping (strings etc)

Tom Bradshaw Dunlop pots. Great service and shipping

Steel Guitar Nashville, great service and shipping

Peavey good service slow shipping due to backorder.

[Andrew Roblin]

Too often, vendors in the wonderful world of steel guitar try to get by with as little customer service as possible. Too many vendors engage in outright deception about delivery time and product quality. Too often, they try to "solve" the problem by suggesting it is in the customer's imagination.

Examples:

I ordered and paid for a custom seat from a manufacturer. He repeatedly missed his own deadlines for delivery. After several months, I demanded he return my money. Only then did he deliver the seat.

I ordered a pedal. On delivery, it had audible problems. When I told the manufacturer, he implied I didn't know what I was talking about. I disagreed. After several emails and several weeks, the manufacturer repaired the problem. A search of the Forum archive showed that others had found the same audible problem with this pedal.

I ordered a couple of books and CD with a dealer by phone. Gave my credit card number. About six weeks ago. So far charges on my card, no books or CDs, no word from the dealer.

I ordered two used instruments from another dealer. Both arrived with significant defects the dealer hadn't disclosed. One had a bad pickup and was poorly assembled: an amateur job masquerading as a major brand. The other had a bad pickup and a cracked mounting block for one of the leg sockets. I glued the mounting block. When I confronted the dealer about the pickups, he implied I didn't know what I was talking about. When I continued to demand repairs, the dealer replaced one pickup and took back the other for repair. Slowly. Leaving me to install them myself. This situation has not yet been fully resolved. The dealer has had my money for a couple of months, but one of these instruments is still awaiting the return of a repaired pickup. Meanwhile, it's not usable.

I'd like to add that for one instrument, this dealer deliberately withheld information--even when directly asked--about the identity of the builder. Though the instrument bore the label of a major manufacturer, I now know the dealer himself was the builder. It had poorly aligned tuners, tuner shafts of varying sizes, and a body that had been drilled through. I take exception to this dealer's business practices.

I think these individuals give poor customer service. Each of them was a pain to deal with. I can't imagine placing a new order with any of them.

Outside the wonderful world of steel guitar, I have had very good experiences with a number of excellent, ethical instrument dealers. I can sincerely recommend Bernunzio Uptown Music, Intermountain Guitar and Banjo, Elderly Instruments and Gruhn Guitars.

None misled me about delivery time. None misrepresented the condition or provenance of their merchandise. All accepted returns when instruments were not up to my standards. I'm happy with my purchases from all of these trustworthy, ethical and responsible dealers. They practice good customer service.

[Chris LeDrew]

Thanks, everyone, for posting their thoughts. I think it's important to remind our vendors and builders that we expect top notch customer service, and to also remind them of a job well done when the service is great.

As the saying goes...you may not remember what someone said, and you may not remember what someone did.....but you'll always remember how someone made you feel.

[chris ivey]

originally, customer service was a major consideration when i bought a zumsteel in '82.
i don't know how it is lately since bruce has seemingly gotten so busy.

[Erv Niehaus]

When I ordered my D-10 Hybrid from Bruce, he gave me a delivery date and came through in fine fashion.
A great guitar, BTW!

[Pat Comeau]

Can't beat 'Bill Stroud (BJS bar)' and 'Al Brisco (Steel Guitar Canada)'for there customer service , the're some of the best in my opinion.

[Chris Morrison]

I got great, fast service from Tom Bradshaw!