T.R | Title | User | Personal Name | Date | Lines |
---|
1318.1 | Not an isolated case | ASABET::CAVANAGH | | Mon May 06 1991 14:56 | 11 |
| re: -.1
They did the same thing with the Airtronics 4ch micro receivers. They
advertised at $49 and wouldn't accept less than $69.
BTW - The latest Tower Talk I have lists the OS 120 you described for
$374.99 They're getting good at screwing up prices.
Jim
|
1318.2 | That's nothing | SNAX::SMITH | I FEEL THE NEED | Mon May 06 1991 15:15 | 8 |
| I refused an order from them ONCE and now they won't even do
business with me. It wasn't like I didn't say anything and just
refused the order. I tried to cancel it but was informed their
system was such that they COULDN'T cancel it. Now THEY won't do
business with ME. They must be doing pretty well if they don't
need any more customers and can refuse to take orders.
Steve
|
1318.3 | | SA1794::TENEROWICZT | | Mon May 06 1991 15:21 | 22 |
|
You may be talking of the same flyer that has Heli 61 OS engines for
under a buck.
Don't bother calling, They don't have any of these either.
Tom
|
1318.4 | Any idea? | ASABET::CAVANAGH | | Mon May 06 1991 16:58 | 11 |
|
Just curious.....is there any law in Mass. about advertising something
at one price and charging another? I know that is you pick up an item
off the shelf and it is marked lower than the going price (ie: the price
on the sign or the rest of the packages), the store *must* sell it to
you for the lower price - this IS a Mass. law.
Maybe I'll give the attorney general or sec. of state a call........
Jim
|
1318.5 | They try | KAY::FISHER | Stop and smell the balsa. | Mon May 06 1991 17:44 | 25 |
| You guys are being too harsh. After all we know that Al Ryder
did manage to get that Airtronics receiver at the $50 price.
As for the OS heli engine - it was a old long stroke discontinued
model so I'd be willing to bet they had some sold at the price.
And oh bye the way, Tom means under $100 when he said under a buck.
I didn't notice the OS 1.20 pumper add but I know your note is about
the going price for a .91 non-pumped so it sure looks like an honest
mistake to me.
Just suppose you typed in a for sale note and dropped a Zero!
And oh bye the way again - I noticed on my last order they enclosed
a note about their refund policy and it has loosened up considerably
from before. Now they claim that they will refund for any reason.
Note this does not match the refund policy as still stated on their
invoice - but they did have this new special form that they enclosed
with my order. If you ordered something and changed your mind - that
is a good enough reason.
Bye --+--
Kay R. Fisher |
---------------O---------------
################################################################################
|
1318.6 | | POBOX::KAPLOW | Set the WAYBACK machine for 1982 | Mon May 06 1991 19:43 | 4 |
| Tower is here in Illinois, so our laws would likely be those that
apply. It seems that I've finally fallen off their mailing list,
so I didn't see the ad in question. Does someone want me to
contact the local authorities?
|
1318.7 | | SNAX::SMITH | I FEEL THE NEED | Tue May 07 1991 10:12 | 18 |
| Jim C.,
Tower is not selling in Ma. YOU ordered (were sent) one of their
catalogs and if you buy something, you are buying out of Illinois.
So, Illinois law would apply.
My own personal feeling after dealing with them on the phone is
that they have lost site of the reason they exist. THE CUSTOMER.
Kay,
They may have loosened up their refund policy, but that's assuming
you except and pay for what you ordered, and then apply for a refund.
If you order something, change your mind, and REFUSE delivery, you'll
be on their sh*t list.
Steve
|
1318.8 | How may I help you | KAY::FISHER | Stop and smell the balsa. | Tue May 07 1991 11:22 | 62 |
| > They may have loosened up their refund policy, but that's assuming
> you except and pay for what you ordered, and then apply for a refund.
> If you order something, change your mind, and REFUSE delivery, you'll
> be on their sh*t list.
I hate to ride this horse to death but I do love controversy and in the
interest of fairness...
What exactly do you mean when you say they won't do business with you?
When you call to they recognize your name? Do they say something after
you have completed your order and get your VISA number? Could
you elaborate on what they actually say and when? Just curious.
I must admit when I called to get a return authorization for an electric
charger a year or two ago some lady did give me a hard time and after
I finally had enough I told her I was shipping it to them and would refuse
to pay the visa bill and I hung up. Yes - I lost my temper but only after
she wouldn't bend a refund rule which I believe she was interpreting
incorrectly. Anyway - I shipped it back (with a long note) and they
didn't charge me. But by and large I have gotten very good service.
Now I must say if I was a small business man I think I would bend over
backwards at customer satisfaction - but... If someone ordered something
and I shipped it only to find that it was refused at the post office
and I received it back again 2 weeks later I think I would be inclined
to create a black list and put this guys name at the top.
So that's where all that "scratch and dent" sale stuff comes from.
Steve Smith rejects :-)
Hello - XYZ supply - How may I help you?
Hi - I would like to order a 6 small elephant blankets and 100 feet of
shore line.
OK - anything else today?
Yes - how about a quart of bulkhead remover and a half dozen pad-eye
covers.
And would you like that shipped UPS?
Yes please.
OK - that will total $39.50 plus $23.45 shipping and handling totaling
$62.95 will that be on a charge card?
Yes - VISA.
Your number please.
323207.
Oh - Mr. Smith - I have a message here for you from the President.
Click
Bye --+--
Kay R. Fisher |
---------------O---------------
################################################################################
|
1318.9 | It's like this | SNAX::SMITH | I FEEL THE NEED | Tue May 07 1991 12:15 | 35 |
| This was covered elsewhere, but I'll try and sum it up. BTW, although
I very well may have, I don't recall saying they won't do business
with you, rather you'd be on their sh*t list.
Anyway, I ordered a receiver from them. I had made calls to several
other mail order houses and got prices, and decided to order from
Tower. During my calls, however, there was one place that I didn't
get through too. When I did get through, they had a better price
by about $20.00. So I call Tower back to cancel. This is where I
have my beef.
I was told that they COULDN'T cancel the order. It was already in the
system and there was nothing they could do. I have two thoughts on
this. Either they could very well have cancelled the order but were
refusing to do so trying to force me to take the receiver, or they
need some serious upgrades to their system. I said do you mean to tell
me that you can't make a simple phone call to the shipping dock and say
when the order for Steve Smith comes through, don't fill it. I was
told nope, they couldn't do that either. BULL. As far as I'm concerned
they were just plain refusing to cancel the order. If their system IS
that bad that they can't cancel something, that's not my problem
either.
Now I'll grant you that I didn't do all my homework before making the
order but it really has no relevance. The order from Tower was
cancelled because I couldn't afford to pay for two receivers and wait
for a refund on the Tower one. What if I had made the order with Tower
only and then found out I needed a new furnace. Same thing.
Now, they'll only deal on a cash basis. Trouble is, they've taken me
off of their mailing list. So basically what their saying is "we'll
let you order by cash, but won't send you any catalogs so you can
see what to order." SCREW EM.
Steve
|
1318.10 | Towers needs a good shake down, me thinks... | HPSRAD::AJAI | | Wed May 08 1991 12:11 | 30 |
| Yeah, they got some bozos running their computer/inventory software
shop.
I once ordered some gift certificates from them, but didn't get them.
After weeks of delay and wrangling, they admitted that they/their
system/their sofware had screwed up.
So, I told them to *CANCEL* my olde order for the gift certificates
(that got delayed wayyyyy beyond the season for giving - may be they
figured out I wasn't a chris-chun! :-) ), and put in a *NEW* order for
the same thing, and ship me the _bleedin'_ gift certificates.
No Way! They wanted me to WAIT until their software weeny could figure
out his dumb code, and debug it, before they issued the darned certi's
3 months after Christmas!
I wrote a letter to the CEO/shop owner, and told him to wake up and
send a few bolts of lightening into his klutz-works aka computer room,
but I never hoid from the feller.
I have always got replies from beeg bosses of other places I have made
suggestions to, but I s'pose some businesses are more equal than
others.
I have to agree with Steve. They don't realise the customer is always
right. Someday, some smart cookie, somewhere, is gonna catch 'em
nappin'..
ajai
|
1318.11 | you're being too harsh | STEPS1::HUGHES | Dave Hughes LMO2/N11 296-5209 | Wed May 08 1991 13:02 | 9 |
| Every sales flyer from anybody always contains a disclaimer
somewhere in small print that they are not responsible for
errors in the flyer. That they would even consider honoring
an obviously erroneous price says a lot for them.
And if you want to see the name of a company that has a REALLY
screwed up order processing system, just look at the top of
your badge...
|
1318.12 | OOOHHHHH what YOU SAID!!!!! | SNAX::SMITH | I FEEL THE NEED | Wed May 08 1991 13:48 | 18 |
| Dave,
OOOOOHHHHHHHHH I'm gonna tell on youuuuuu. Shame on you talking
that way about the company that feeds your kids. YOUR RIGHT,
but you shouldn't talk about it.
During one of my numerous phone calls with Tower, I asked to speak
to the "boss". No way. Wouldn't let me talk to him.
One other side note, and you can take this for what it's worth. I made
3 or 4 phone calls to Tower several months appart. In one of the later
calls, I mentioned something that had been talked about during the
FIRST phone call. She said "yes, I have all that right here" and
read back my conversation practically word for word. Kind of makes
ya wonder don't it??????
Steve
|
1318.13 | Same-o everywhere | GRANMA::WFIGANIAK | YEAH..GET THE RED ONE | Wed May 08 1991 17:20 | 4 |
| Any body ever try dealing with stockroom 17 in Andover ?
Tower really doesn't have any problems.
No flames please B^)
|
1318.14 | probably rpg code, too! | POBOX::KAPLOW | Set the WAYBACK machine for 1982 | Wed May 08 1991 19:46 | 3 |
| I remember tower bragging about their "new" computer system
several years back. I think it was an ibm system 34, or something
around that class. Need I say more...
|
1318.15 | A few more details... | HPSRAD::AJAI | | Mon May 13 1991 14:55 | 21 |
| To give some more details...
Tower's had charged my card for the gift certificate, and I had even
got it on my statement, but they hadn't sent out the certi. I even
mailed them a copy of my statement to show that I had been billed!
I think it is bad business sense to make a customer wait while you
pussy foot with snarled up code, when they had already agreed from the
evidence that there had been a snafu! *THAT* is my grouse.
I am perfectly willing to condone incorrectly printed prices in
the flyer - mistakes happen. However, if they do it too often, they
will lose their credibility, as the distinction between a mistake, and
false advertising, blurs.
But if you are looking for the biggest bureaucracy in the world, come
to India. It was installed by the British to keep the injuns busy doing
zero output work, and is today exploited by injun politicians for
personal gain. :-)
ajai
|
1318.16 | Poor Catalog info. | USRCV1::BLUMJ | | Fri Jul 12 1991 11:06 | 11 |
| My problem with Tower is they do not give specifications on most
of their products. For instance I was shopping for an electric motor
and would like to know the external dimensions so I will know if it
will fit in my sailplane. Since no dimensions are given, or weight,
etc. I really can't buy from them because I won't know what I'm getting
until it comes. They are definitely geared to the power flyer using
"standard equipment".
Regards,
Jim
|
1318.17 | Never thought I'd be defending Tower...but | SNAX::SMITH | I FEEL THE NEED | Fri Jul 12 1991 11:56 | 8 |
| In all fairness, they list 2 numbers you can call. One is for ordering
only, and the other is for information. I have used it in the past and
managed to get specifics on certain items. It doesn't always work, but
it's worth a try.
Of course the ORDER number is toll free, and the info number isn't.
Steve
|
1318.18 | they have a toll free info line too | NUTELA::CHAD | | Fri Jul 12 1991 14:30 | 7 |
|
The help/info line is toll free too (actually they
have one toll-free info line and one non toll free listed).
Chad who_knows_because_hes_called_it
|
1318.19 | Tower favor please | RTOEU::CLEIGH | Keine Ahnung | Mon Feb 17 1992 11:57 | 37 |
| For the sake of a better place I'll put this here. It has to do with
Tower. I'll delete it when over. I am over here in Germany and need
to order some stuff from them to have shipped to my brother in Utah.
I have the most recent flyers coming in the mail this week and stuff (I
hope). What I need is someone to check the most recent RCM and other
rags for prices and order numbers for the following stuff. Just
drop me a mail if you can find this stuff in their most recent ad ands
let me know. Thanks (and ad number too).
K&B .45 sportster airplane engine
K&B .28 sportster airplane engine
Royal .40 RC engine
Royal .45 RC engine
GOldberg Eagle II plane
Goldberg Freedom 20 plane
Clear monocote (yes, no color at all -- for hinges for some things)
yellow monocote (plain yellow)
pearl teal monocote
pearl copper monocote
orange monocote
green monocote
yellow ultracote
green ultracote
GP Spirit sailplane
Royal Titan II micro servo (a side project)
Thanks
Chad
RTOEU::CLEIGH
|
1318.20 | please | RTOEU::CLEIGH | Keine Ahnung | Thu Feb 20 1992 03:06 | 12 |
| for the plea in -.1
Please! I want to order this weekend.
Also,
pearl white monocote
pearl yellow (do they have a pearl yellow?)
Thanks
Chad
|
1318.21 | Next time call my 900 number :-) | NICCTR::MILLS | | Thu Feb 20 1992 22:57 | 43 |
| tower:
K&B .45 sportster airplane engine TA2452 54.99 W/MUFF
K&B .28 sportster airplane engine TA2450 44.99 W/MUFF
Royal .40 RC engine TA1785 W/MUFF 62.99
Royal .45 (.46) RC engine TA1786 W/MUFF 66.99
GOldberg Eagle II plane TA2895 47.99
Goldberg Freedom 20 plane TA2894 33.99
ALL 6FT ROLLS
Clear monocote TA2062 8.79
yellow monocote (plain yellow) TA2065 8.79
pearl teal monocote TA2101 9.79
pearl copper monocote TA2102 9.79
orange monocote TA2064 8.79
green monocote TA2076 8.79
yellow ultracote (bright) 24"X78" TA1215 8.99
green ultracote NOT LISTED
GP Spirit sailplane TA1152 34.99
Royal Titan II micro servo (a side project)
Did not list "Titan II" just "Titan"
TA2669 Fut j conn 12.99
TA2670 Air conn 12.99
TA2671 Fut g conn 12.99
Did list "MAXI titan"
TA2672 Fut j 23.99 or (TM1237 3 for 64.97)
TA2673 Fut g 23.99 or (TM1238 3 for 64.97)
TA2674 jr 23.99
TA2675 air 23.99 or (TM1239 3 for 64.97)
TA2676 aristo 23.99
pearl white ta2098 9.79
pearl yellow ta2097 9.79
|