I hate working with new sales people.

[scorpion 0]

Does anyone hate bad sales people?

 

Does anyone have any horror stories resulting from a bad site survey?

 

Like showing up for a single story house install and there sits a two story house and the "plan" goes south real quick?

 

How about the sales guy who says for a fact it has an attic good enough to walk through and you show up to a flat roof?

 

How about the sales guy who tells the customer, "no problem the tech can run the wire anywhere in you want and the building design says other wise!

 

How about the sales guy that says to the tech all you need is a six foot cable to hook up the network when in fact the modem is on the opposite side of the house?

 

How about the sales guy who forgets to explain to the customer that they need to call an electician to install an outlet in the closet?

 

How about the sales guy who starts talking technical to the customer and make all kinds of product recommendations and paints himself in to a corner?

 

??????

[jisaac 0]

thats why you should have a technical person do your site survey and put the design of the system together and then hand it over to a sales person to close the deal.

[scorpion 0]

Rodger That! All I can do is shake my head and educate as we go!

 

I am sure he will come around. Anybody have any tums I can have?

[scorpion 0]

I do subcontracting installs for another company. The owner hired his "best buddy" to help out with the business.

[jisaac 0]

oooooohhhhh

hiring a best buddy is never a good idea.

eventually they will hate each other

[scorpion 0]

Everything will be honky dory until something goes wrong! I know, I know, I will get the blame! When it cost the owner money, or custome wants a full refund then he will be on the spot.

 

Hey don't get me wrong we all have to learn, and I can cover anything thrown at me. It is when I show the guy, or forwarn about an issue, or give him the "please be a advised" and he IGNORES the advise, or ignores the education, or ignores the forwarning.

 

Today was funny. I am to do a little bar with seven cameras and a 9 ch DVR, (jpeg, 250GB, network). The salesman failed to mention that two cameras were actually going next door into another business (through a fire wall), and the customer was never informed in regards to upgrading from a business class to a commercial accout with a static IP included.

 

Customer was cool about calling the cable company and having a new modem brought out 4 days later. The sales guy quoted so many hours and the bar owner wanted it done before noon time before opening time. OK lets sprint!

 

It was not a time problem, but on a future installation I forsee KAOS!

 

Really I not venting. I thought these issues would be an education to someone starting their own business, or for them to take these hints before they get out in front of their very first customer!

[securitymonster 0]

It happens, all we can do is educate! But don't hire buddies and always get a techs opinion on a job. Tell your salesman to take pictures, especially if he is new!

[rory 0]

Tell them you must quote it

[jisaac 0]

shoot we recently did a job out of state and we were to replace 11 cameras and the vcr for a 16 channel dvr.

so we get there and she tells us of four cameras to swap out and says the rest are up to us where we think they shoudl go. So we install the four exactly where she wanted them and then added the rest of the 7 in various locations. Mind you this that we showed her each camera after they went up. Not one complaint!

So we get done on saturday night at 9:00pm and we train her and she is pleased with everything and so we fly out at 4 sunday morning. so monday I get a call and she is yelling that NONE of the cameras are where she wanted them! And the thing that sucks about it is that she is leasing this through our leasing company. So she is rasing hell and lying about all kinds of crazy crap. So until we get this settled the leasing company cant release the 23,000 for the system!

what pisses me off is she said NO complaints while we were there and now once we are on the other side of the country is when she starts complaining.

I think this woman is crazy or has altheizmers. (not sure on the spelling on that) .

[kensplace 0]

Ouch, looks like you may need to use a form that the customer signs off in future, stating the layout of the system, camera locations, etc and that they are happy with the install/training/locations in general etc...

[jisaac 0]

the worst part about it is that i usually do make everyone sign a handover sheet with them puttting their initials by every single part of the check list. and then at the end siging that they are pleased and that we have completed the entire job exactly like we were suppose to.

but the one time i didnt........ well you know the rest

[scorpion 0]

Jisaacmagee, I can relate to that!

 

On a new subcontract for a company,the first issue was to resolve a customer complaint.

 

This lady was going off! She was 55 - 60 years of age and she lived in one of those 55+ trailer parks. She had a really nice trailer. Even I was impressed! She had this double wide custom fitted with the best!

 

I had to agree with her about the bad video. Even I had to say to myself what the hay is up with the wiring? Her other complaint was that she could not see at night with the two cameras. Walking around the trailer I saw B/W bullet cameras. I recognized the brand and model. Great camera for entry level pricing. No IR though! I told her I would swap out the cameras for IR cameras. The company was trying everything they could to make her happy. She had a multiplexor and they let her borrow a 4 channel DVR to help her out. She had an exboyfriend who would drive by her trailer everyday. He threaten to kill her and he had done various things aroung the trailer. Since the police dept did not witness the events they could not do anything. This woman was petrified!. The complaints got worse and worse until it just became impossible!. I rewired her trailer with new R59 16/2. I did an autopsy on the old wiring and connectors and could not find anything. The connection was not up to my standards but it was doable. The R59 was good copper so go figure. Maybe the ex pressed a needle through the coax somewhere along the line???

 

I met her new boyfriend right after I had rewired the trailer, and he was doing his best to mediate between her and us. The problems were impossible now. She cannot read his license plate with the cameras, this... and that... blah blah blah (4mm 30feet IR bullet entry level) and she wants her money back and she want this system out today!!!!!!!!

Out comes the green pea soup with the head spinning around with the deep devil's voice!!!

 

Looking back at it now we get a good laugh talking about this customer, but now it dawns on me. She had a new boyfriend and he must of kept the old one at bay. What does she need with a video surveillance system now??? Since the company would not give her the money back she disputed it (you business owners now what I mean). Company lost and had to pay out another$400 for mediation costs! That floored me. They documented everything and showed where she changed paper work and changed dates and turned them in to the dispution.

 

Live and Learn

[rory 0]

Isaac that sucks big time .. hope that gets resolved ASAP!

[jisaac 0]

the one thing that she cant get around is the fact that in our initial paperwork we say NOTHING about installation. it only says the equipment and also "labor included". so her complaints about whats looking where and irrelevent crap has nothing to do with the fact that we delivered what was promised on the paperwork. So she will have to pay. eventually.