How NOT to do business and 4 tips for Good Business Owners

I just finished a call with TMC Autoparts in Maryland (tmcpubl.com –I think this is their site–but how would I know–read the story to find out why).
zHere is the scenario. I want bluetooth in my car. I just recently bought a Certified Preowned 2008 BMW and it has the buttons on the steering wheel without the actual functionality. I love convenience so I decided I want to put bluetooth into my car and found out I need a TCU Unit (part number 84109181230–if anyone can get this for me please let me know!). Sorry back to the story: I find a posting on Craigslist from a company that sells BMW parts. I called the number on Wednesday 11/23/11 at 5:50 pm (day before Thanksgiving) and left a message I was looking for a part. I was called back quickly that “Stan” would call me Friday 11/25/11 at 9 am to let me know if he has that part of not. He asked me the part number and my vin number. I was at the gym and let him know I do not know my vin number, but the part number was verified from BMW and the correct piece.

Friday comes around and no call. He finally calls Monday 11/28/11 at 9:37am and left a message he can get it and the cost was $287 plus shipping.

From the beginning I told Stan I did not have the original unit as my car didn’t have this piece to being with and I needed to put one in. I asked him 2x are these all the costs involved for $287+ shipping ($15). He said yes, but he will double check. I asked if there was a CC (core charge) and he said no, the only cost he knew was the $287+ shipping. I bought the item and asked him for an invoice. He said reluctantly, “yeah… uuuuh i’ll get you one.” That was a major concern after he had just taken all of my credit card and home address information (I felt like identity theft was about to happen).

The next day I was called by another male employee after they charged my credit card immediately the day before, without any invoice in hand, and was told I needed to send back the original unit. I explained the whole conversation to him that I had with Stan and he said well it’s $200 more and they can ship the TCU unit today. I asked him why I should pay the additional money, and he said “I’m not taking a $200 loss on this.” I then asked why I was not informed to begin with and he said “we made a mistake.”

OK, so YOUR team made a mistake, I spent my time waiting for your team to get back to me, I asked Stan to verify TWICE this is the final cost and now you are trying to get an additional $200 from me. Good Business Owner Tip: This is where a real business owner can correct a major error by simply working with the customer.

I asked “What are you going to do to make it up?” His response, refund you’re money is the only thing he can do. So basically nothing.

I said I could buy this unit cheaper at BMW and have it installed for $495 total. He then says, well Stan gave you a good price of $287, I said yes that’s the reason I bought it from you, but once you factor in $200 more it’s more expensive.

Good Business Owner Tip #2: See tip number 1.

He says “ok, I can ship it to you for $10 instead of $15”. THANK YOU SOOOOOO MUCH, you saved me $5 on a piece that is still $2 more than if I bought it directly from BMW!! Are you kidding me?!

I said as a good business man, you should take the loss of the $200. His response was “I’m not taking this loss. You’re not that good of a friend.”

Good Business Owner Tip #3: Friends buy From Friends. You’re goal is to make me a friend, not just a customer.

Had he said I can’t take $200 off, but I will offer $50 I might have thought about it. At the minimum I would not be posting this or even seeking out Google, Yahoo, Bing reviews to warn people about this company. I understand they made a mistake and I understand I was shooting for the moon. However, I am also a business owner and when one of my clients works with me, I appreciate it more. I go out of my way for them and they appreciate it as well. It becomes a win/win for all. Not a lose/lose like the above scenario.

To sum this all up, you should NEVER buy from TMC Autoparts in Maryland as you will not be considered a friend. These guys are a joke and they blamed the economy on the reason why their business is suffering.

Good Business Owner Tip #4: Before you blame the economy, check your customer service and process first.

Funny thing, I am looking for multiple parts and had this experience been a good one, I would have bought more. Instead I am taking this time to leave this post, a 1 star Google Review (wish it could be 0 stars) and anywhere else I can warn people about this company.

Feedback is welcome!

Alibaba vs Tradekey

Has anyone ever used Alibaba.com effectively? How about Tradekey? I’m interested in finding new ways to grow my business with the least amount of spam.

TradeKey.com – Your Gateways to New Business Geographic

How do you handle your brand?

Raise your hand if you work hard on your brand. Raise your other hand if you know what is being said on the net about it.  OK, now put your hands down and make sure you have done the following to really check it out:

For the following sites: Google, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn:

Google, use Google Alerts: http://www.google.com/alerts Google Alerts are emails automatically sent to you when there are new Google results for your search terms.

Choose: Comprehensive, As-it-Happens, then type in variations of your business and personal name.

Twitter: Tweetgrid: http://www.tweetgrid.com TweetGrid is a powerful Twitter Search Dashboard that allows you to search for up to 9 different topics, events, conversations, hashtags, phrases, people, groups, etc in real-time.   As new tweets are created, they are automatically updated in the grid. No need to refresh the page!

Twitter/Facebook: Tweet Deck: http://www.tweetdeck.com TweetDeck is your personal browser for staying in touch with what’s happening now, connecting you with your contacts across Twitter, Facebook and more. TweetDeck shows you everything you want to see at once, so you can stay organized and up to date.

Here is a good example of how to use Tweet Deck: Video:

LinkedIn: Add the Company Buzz Application If that link didn’t work, login into your LinkedIn account and go to Applications on the bottom left and find the Company Buzz app. Click install and set it up. Very simple.

Use these simple techniques to have a pulse on your brand. If you have any others to add, please comment on here–I would love to hear them!

Tags: Blog, brand, company buzz, facebook, google, linkedin, market YOUniversity, tweet deck, tweetdeck, tweetgrid, twitter, websites, youtube

Single file, one at a time, no pushing

Single file, one at a time, no pushing. That should be your process when walking into a club, theme park, sporting event or anywhere else there are large crowds. That also should be your process when deciding which Web 2.0 crowd you will start entering. Sure you could push your way into ALL of them, but then what happens? Mayhem! You get pushed around, lose your way and start thinking, “is this something I want to spend time doing?” If you keep it “Single file, one at a time, no pushing”, you will learn one Web 2.0 tool effectively. You will learn LinkedIn has connections, Facebook has friends, Twitter has followers, and not start asking your friends to “follow” you on LinkedIn. Once you have learned and successfully used one of these sites, it will become easier to learn the next one. All the sites have their own intricacies, but they mainly do the same thing–connect you will potential business.

If you are struggling with all of them, I would suggest you take a step back and think about which site do you know the best. Once you decide, use that site exclusively for a few weeks. Learn it, study it, read about it. Look on YouTube for videos, search Google for tips and tricks. Overall dedicate 20-30 minutes a day to learning it. By the time you are done, 2 weeks later, you should have a great understanding of the site and be able to benefit by connecting with potential business owners.

If you are still stuck, check out our site we are launching in April called Market YOUniversity. The site will feature tutorials, webinars and training classes walking you from the beginning of signup to finding business on the site. We guarantee to straighten your learning curve!

Tags: Blog, eric duchin, facebook, google, linkedin, market YOUniversity, myspace, twitter, web 2.0, youtube

Do you get it?

Since my initial post, I had been contemplating what topics and how often I would blog. I still haven’t come to that decision, however, for today’s post I decided I would share with you an experience I had with two small business owners and their two different understandings of today’s marketing.

Recently I met with a potential customer who “gets it”. He understands the importance of marketing, has a vision, knows what he wants to accomplish, but needs some guidance in getting there using new technologies such as Web 2.0 tools.

On the other hand, I also spoke with another small business owner who doesn’t get it. He doesn’t understand the importance of establishing yourself as an expert. He doesn’t understand the impact Twitter, Facebook, HARO (helpareporterout.com) can make on his business.  He doesn’t “get it” and it’s very frustrating since he is a good friend of mine!

Their backgrounds:
They both work in the same business field.
They both work for themselves.
They both have been doing this for over 7 yrs.

Their differences:
10-15 yrs in age
Computer abilities

So what makes one “get it”?

Business Owner A (older, less computer abilities) has written a book (self published), writes a monthly column in an online newspaper, video tapes his sessions, has video testimonials, has a well produced website, wants to pod cast, wants to be on YouTube, wants to start a blog, understands there is so much more he can do and that he is at the tip of the iceberg. He also doesn’t give excuses, and he seeks experts to help get him there!

Business Owner B (10-15 yrs younger, has more computer ability) has no website, has responded to a reporter’s article on HARO (helpareporterout.com) and then didn’t reply back once the reporter responded (missed chance to get published for free, not to mention possibly burnt a bridge), does not have any video’s of his clients/testimonials, doesn’t use Facebook to his advantage, is not on YouTube, does not “get it”. He makes excuses as he is “too busy”, does not utilize his free resources!

So my questions to you are…DO YOU GET IT?

1. Do you have a website?
2. Do YOU understand you should be on the following: Twitter, Facebook, Myspace, Blogging, YouTube, HARO?
3. Do you truly understand the power of the internet?

If you do not, that is ok. Ask someone who has a website for their business, ask someone who uses Twitter/Facebook/MySpace/YouTube, ask someone who blogs WHY THEY DO IT, not how they do it.

Finally, research some of the following people: Gary Vaynerchuk, Peter Shankman, Kevin Rose and find out how they became so successful using Web 2.0 technologies.

Then again ask yourself “Do YOU Get it?”

I’d love to hear from you. Please comment below with any questions, comments, concerns, or snide remarks below!

Thanks,
Eric

Tags: 2009, do you get it?, facebook, Gary Vaynerchuk, haro, helpareporterout.com, Kevin Rose, maketing, marketing strategies, Peter Shankman, small business owner, todays marketing, web 2.0 technologies, web tools, websites, youtube

Oh the pressure!!

So here it is, the first entry into my blog. I’ve not had much experience blogging before, except a few entries into my MySpace account which I quickly stopped after some comments from friends (it’s ok I don’t harbor any hate for them–they are my friends and I know what to expect).  I feel like blogging is like inviting someone over and having to entertain them….So I guess I should show you around the place. In the top right corner you can subscribe to my RSS feed or comments..My top left corner has a link “about”, you can learn a little bit of what I do. I guess you already know who I am, as you are reading this nonsense and have gotten this far. Here is the living room no one can sit in except the president of USA. If we do decide to go in there, we need to make sure not to touch anything or break it. Here is my junk drawer, some pencils, pens, scissors, rubber jar openers aka rubber husbands…whatever else you find in those drawers.

Finally, here is are some links where you can also find me:
LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/ericduchin
Twitter: http://twitter.com/dedtees, http://twitter.com/GoGreenGlass, http://twitter.com/MrktYOUnversity
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1110475241&ref=profile
Ded Tees: http://www.dedtees.com
Go Green with Glass: http://www.gogreenwithglass.com
MarketYOUniversity: http://www.marketyouniversity.com

Ok I think those are the major ones I am currently checking/updating etc. If you have any suggestions as to what you would like me to blog about please send them to me at eric@dedtees.com or comment on here.

Tags: Blog, ded tees, dedtees, eric duchin, eric@dedtees.com, facebook, go green with glass, gogreenwithglass.com, linkedin, market YOUniversity, marketYOUniversity, marketyouniversity.com, myspace, MYU