Guy, K2AV wrote: " I want them PROFITABLE so I get to keep them."
That's a message I've used in our business for many years. "You NEED me to be profitable so that I am around to continue to serve your needs" is a statement that I've ingrained in my sales reps. When you are not the "low priced spread" in an industry you are constantly faced with customers who admit that they really prefer your level of quality, service and attention, but keep on reminding you that somebody else is doing it "cheaper". I had a customer tell me that "I used to buy this model from XX for much less than you are charging me". When I told him that I then would recommend that he go back to that supplier and continue to purchase from him, the customer's response was "I can't....he's no longer in business!" Hmmmm. Wonder why he's out of business. Many hams don't understand that. Guy gets it! 73, Terry, W0FM K3 #474 -----Original Message----- From: Guy Olinger K2AV [mailto:[email protected]] Sent: Tuesday, October 19, 2010 10:34 AM To: Joe Subich, W4TV Cc: [email protected] Subject: Re: [Elecraft] KPA 500 There are a bunch of guys on this reflector, however decent and technically competent, that I would never want to run a business I had stock in. Decent folks, probably be great neighbors, and favored ham buddies, would trust my kids with them, but they would do what 85% of all startup businesses do, go bankrupt. There is a concept they are edging toward in their K3 nit-picking, and it's called mil-spec. They just don't want to admit it. A company that makes mil-spec MUST charge for it. A company that allows construction options MUST charge for it. The screws themselves either add bucks to ALL of the products, OR options increase production complexity and therefore cost for the option. However embedded, LABOR is the major cost of a radio. Even the cost of a screw has labor embedded in it. There ARE mil-spec radios that exceed K3 specs. You can buy them. You can get a LOT of that mil-spec in a K3, but not all. Exactly what part of that "lot of a mil-spec" was a business decision. If Elecraft were to go bankrupt, I'm fairly convinced that would make some posters happy. But bankrupt would bring further development and features to a crashing halt. And who repairs K3's then? Who will line up a source for your stainless screws and make them available then. There's a real easy answer for the malcontents. Are you peeved? Put it up for sale right here. I've noticed that they sell REALLY fast, usually in a couple hours for most of the retail price. Then you can go to another reflector and complain about Yakencom. They'll be happy to have you back. They might even put you in an ad about how you switched back to Yakencom because you didn't like the screws. OR, you could go out and buy 4000 K3's worth of stainless steel screws, drop your day job, spend several thousand dollars on advertisements for your new stainless steel screw replacement service, charge four times the minimum wage for your assembly time plus screw cost, and then wait for the business and profits to roll in to pay your mortgage and grocery bill. Myself, I hope Elecraft keeps making SOUND BUSINESS DECISIONS. I already know they have the technical moxy and the most customer-centric policies in this business niche. At this point, for me personally, their greatest worth is that they stay in business and keep developing. I want them PROFITABLE so I get to keep them. I feel good about that because Elecraft was developing products and making a profit right through the worst recession since the great depression on a product line that is completely optional to everyday life. They must be doing SOMETHING right smack on dead center to have half of all the transceivers at WRTC and made it through these financial conditions. 73, Guy. ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:[email protected] This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
