How Communications impact perceived Customer Service
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@michael-0 said in How Communications impact perceived Customer Service:
FYI that I spoke with Eric Sands from Positive Grid today.
There is a huge amout of internal activity going on right now. They fully recognize the problem and are making significant internal changes as a result.
THE GOOD NEWS is that a large number of orders have been shipped and are in the process of being shipped. There's a big internal effort to catch up on the shipping backlog before the end of the month.
There are definitely still logistics challenges - hand-offs to fedex and other carriers, updating the tracking system, fixing past problems with out-of-order deliveries. However, I'm very happy to report that things are looking up!
That they cannot look in their system and the dates orders were placed and the order numbers and ship in that order is laughable. It's not a backlog. That they did not catch this from the getgo is laughable. You would think at the least they would upgrade those shipments from January and February which have not been fulfilled to a priority next day or at least two day delivery. I was told Fedex has my unit, Fedex says no they do not. Fedex scans as soon as they take possession and can give a delivery date within 24 hours. They don't sit on shipments for two friggin weeks before they move them move. I have customer shipments going everyday including rush and Fedex does a great job of tracking and updating so I have to doubt the veracity of ANYTHING PG says about it.
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The thing that annoys me is that the pre-order screen keeps pretending that the Last Chance offer will be sold out soon, but the number of Last Chance Sparks available keep going up after the order.
I ordered at the end of June under the impression that I will receive my Spark by the end of July. After hearing all the complaints, I guess that it will not happen.
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@michael-0 Good work on obtaining that information so far. I'm not sure if I'm being a bit dim, but how does my order number (246xxx) tie in with the total sales number supposedly around 79000? Is their order number system for all of their products or just for the Spark? I ordered at the start of July when the sales total was 76000. By your numbers, they need to ship another 46000 before mine. If they ship 10k units every two weeks... I would get mine in 9 weeks. Wishful thinking?
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@bk Completely agree. I had to do a bit of reasearch before convincing myself they were a legitimate company. Their marketing has all the hallmarks associated with scam companies. I'm wondering if the product will ever retail at $299? If not it moves their marketing from the slightly dubious to the completely immoral category.
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@jsp said in How Communications impact perceived Customer Service:
@michael-0 Good work on obtaining that information so far. I'm not sure if I'm being a bit dim, but how does my order number (246xxx) tie in with the total sales number supposedly around 79000? Is their order number system for all of their products or just for the Spark? ...
There could be a number, llikely the first one, for the "type of order" coding. Not sure though. :-)
However, that would limit the total orders number quite a bit, as it's a 6-digit number and if they use one to code the type of order-product-whatever they'll be forced to add a digit as soon as the sales reach 100,000. Looks like another "not-as-well-thought-as-it-should" thing, but as I don't know how they code their order number I'll keep waiting for further information. -
@bk Agreed.
If you refresh the pre-order page the number available jumps up and down by 10-40 units. Seems an awful lot like a 'fear close' to me.
I could understand if the figure periodically increased as they secured more inventory but I can't think of a reason why it would jump up and down on every page refresh. -
I just sent a ticket to PG last week, they gave me an automated response. I replied that wasn't satisfactory and they replied immediately.
I knew when I ordered this thing it was a preorder. I have pre-ordered many things in the past from figures to electronics and usually they take longer than expected.
I understand the dissatisfaction with PG but I have not personally experienced this. Also their customer service has improved significantly. I do think that is because to dissatisfied customers. None the less they show they are listening and using our feedback to improve.
Just a different perspective. I dont work for PG nor am I affiliated any more than pre ordering a spark. Hopefully mine will soon be here, just got a tracking update and tracking number. Crossing my fingers.
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@drbaroni @jsp I would be surprised if they set up a separate order sequence just for a single product (it's certainly possible, but unusual). We could confirm that by speaking with someone who purchased one of their other products.
From the customs logs we're able to tell that the're importing new product 2-3 times a week - most recently on the 13th. I was told that they already have enough supply at the 3PL to fulfill the majority of current (US) orders. However, they continue to take orders (over 80K units now). I'm watching the customs page (thanks @reedym) to see if there are any more shipments received and will post accordingly.
New product is directly received by their 3rd party logistics (3PL) provider who physically handles (labels, serial numbers, ships, updates tracking) the product. Clearly they're having multiple problems in this area...
This thread now has more votes (you did click the upvote (
^
) button in the lower right, didn't you) any other Spark thread. It's also in the top 10 for number of post and growing in views - currently 6.8k. When I made the original post I had a simple ask to PG - "Keep us updated on progress on a weekly basis". It's been a week since that original post and I'm hoping for a weekly Friday or Monday official update from someone at PG. @Mike can you assist?Given that orders are supposed to ship based on date, here's my personal list of questions:
- Orders through xxxxxx date yyyy-mm-dd have shipped (orders that are confirmed as handed off to the delivery carrier)?
- If your order is NOT in the list above ^^ what is the procedure to notify PG?
- A count of outstanding "skipped" orders
- How many orders went out last week?
- How many orders going out next week?
- Inventory status
Finally, Spark Community: PLEASE keep it positive - there's no use complaining/bashing about PG as a company in this thread. We all know the issues... The goal of this thread it to get PG to provide us regular updates on the status.
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Status update: over 80K pre-orders. Estimated Delivery still shows as June - July 2020 for someone ordering today.
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@stinger0625 said in How Communications impact perceived Customer Service:
@michael-0 said in How Communications impact perceived Customer Service:
FYI that I spoke with Eric Sands from Positive Grid today.
There is a huge amout of internal activity going on right now. They fully recognize the problem and are making significant internal changes as a result.
THE GOOD NEWS is that a large number of orders have been shipped and are in the process of being shipped. There's a big internal effort to catch up on the shipping backlog before the end of the month.
There are definitely still logistics challenges - hand-offs to fedex and other carriers, updating the tracking system, fixing past problems with out-of-order deliveries. However, I'm very happy to report that things are looking up!
That they cannot look in their system and the dates orders were placed and the order numbers and ship in that order is laughable. It's not a backlog. That they did not catch this from the getgo is laughable. You would think at the least they would upgrade those shipments from January and February which have not been fulfilled to a priority next day or at least two day delivery. I was told Fedex has my unit, Fedex says no they do not. Fedex scans as soon as they take possession and can give a delivery date within 24 hours. They don't sit on shipments for two friggin weeks before they move them move. I have customer shipments going everyday including rush and Fedex does a great job of tracking and updating so I have to doubt the veracity of ANYTHING PG says about it.
I'm one of those 200 (although I suspect more) customers whose order got shipped out of order. Everyone makes mistakes, it's how you fix them: I can see that the backlog is being resolved, and PG has switched from FedEx to UPS in the US. However, after all this mess, there is STILL no direct way to inform PG Support about problems with delivery. Emails to support@positivegrid.com bounce back with an automated message, and if you choose "Shipping" as the subject from the web site form, you get back a canned reply and no action is taken. The only way to get the attention of a real live CSR is to select "Refund" as the subject. I don't think one should have to know Eric Sands's (who's done a great job as a community liaison) personal contact info in order to get support with delivery issues. Just my $0.01.
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Yes I got through to CS and suddenly mine was with Fedex......except it isn't. I have an account and can check. And now PG says 10 -14 days for Fedex to sort and ship. I'm not a fool I ship Fedex all the time. I also get backlog reports daily to insure my orders are being shipped. The January and February order fiasco was known weeks ago and they should have immediately halted later orders and moved those to the front and then upgraded the shipping to a priority 2 day at the least and sent specific emails to all effected with truthful information.
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It seems like they are working on their communication. I don't remember this info on the tracking page:
Your order is in transit from our factory. It is expected to arrive at your local distribution center from July 23 to July 31.
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@michael-0 That borders on false advertisement
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From another thread
"igamus041176 about 3 hours ago
I just got my tracking number from UPS aswell with a expected delivery date on 7/21/2020. Order 188*** last chance special ordered on 4/19/2020 to Pennsylvania, USA."This is exactly what I am talking about. Why haven't the orders that were passed up in February and January been given PRIORITY handling and moved to the front of the line with a PRIORITY shipment. There is no excuse for this. Ordered mine in February and no shipment information just a well maybe by the end of the month.
FedEx just now
Estimated delivery date:Pending
The delivery date may be updated when FedEx receives the package. -
@stinger0625 My status just changed too:
Your order has been picked up by your local carrier (FedEx, UPS, GSL, DHL or other) and is estimated to ship from July 23 to July 31. Your tracking number is below and you should be able to follow the progress of your shipment directly with the carrier. Please note that FedEx has informed us that due to COVID-19 logistical issues, they are behind in processing shipments and delivering them to some customers. -
@stinger0625 Stinger, Did your fedex info have a delivery date also?
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@marke204t Nope, pending they have not received in spite of what PG says.
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I appreciate the general email update from C.E.O. Calvin Abel.
I ordered my Spark with the understanding that this was a pre-purchase for production.
From Mr. Abel's explanation of how Positive Grid is responding to demand, it appears that I may receive my Amp sooner than expected.
My thanks and encouragement to the Positive Grid team, in light of challenges and customer concerns.
Chin up! After all, these are first world problems. -
Here's the text of an email that went out to Spark users a few minutes ago. Thank you to CEO Calvin Abel for the updates!
There is also a copy posted to https://www.positivegrid.com/spark#updates
Where is my Spark? A Letter from Calvin, CEO at Positive Grid
Hi Michael
Calvin, CEO of Positive Grid here. I am overwhelmed and truly appreciate your support for Spark. It is clear that we have not been communicating effectively about delays and obstacles that have prevented us from shipping your Spark. I sincerely apologize for keeping you waiting for so long.
There are things we will—and must—do better. From here on out, I promise to do everything within our power to keep you 100% informed. Here is an update I want to share with you directly.
What happened?
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In November and December of 2019, the early response for Spark far exceeded our expectations. We had to significantly increase our production capability, operation and logistics, and solve resource challenges.
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In January and February of this year, the COVID-19 outbreak hit which closed our factory and many vendors in our supply chain, dramatically affecting our production capability. Once the production issue was resolved, the pandemic had spread worldwide, affecting our logistics and shipping.
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As a small team, it has been very challenging to navigate the large scale uncertainties of producing and shipping in the world today. But we should, and we will get better. This I personally pledge to you.
What's happening now?
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We have ramped up production and shipping extensively. Most pre-orders (90%) will be shipped by the end of July. The remaining orders will ship by mid-August.
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We are revamping our order tracking system and customer service team to make it easier for you to track your order, and to be more responsive to you when you have questions so that we can reply in a timely manner.
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Some customers received tracking numbers many weeks prior to their amp's delivery. Tracking numbers were automatically generated the moment our warehouse received a shipping order. We are working to improve the process to ensure tracking numbers are not created until they are in fact scanned and in the shipping process.
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Yes, we are shipping Sparks in the order they were received, and based on their location in the world. We did make an operational mistake and shipped a few hundred units out of order. We’ve fixed that and it won’t happen again.
Looking forward
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We are doubling the warranty on Spark to Two Years as a thank you for your support.
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We will post communications every week until everyone has received their Spark.
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Spark is created with the vision of a smarter way to play and jam. We have many new developments in the pipeline, and we’re committed to adding new features, sounds, software and firmware updates on a regular basis.
This has been an incredible learning experience for me and for our company. As a group of forward-thinking musicians who are passionate about creating new experiences for guitar players, we hate to disappoint you. We are working hard every day to make our customer experience equal to the quality of our Spark amps.
Thank you, once again, for your continued patience and support.
Sincerely,
Calvin Abel
CEO, Positive Grid -
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Agreed, the letter from the CEO is welcomed and appreciated.
It is good to see this communication and acknowledgement of the issues.Transparency is key in this case, faults confessed are half redressed...
Looking forward the upcoming weekly communication on the matter.