Dannyalcatraz Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 [mostinterestingmanintheworld]I don't do much online shopping, but when I do, I'm serious about it.[/mostinterestingmanintheworld]. And yet, several times over the past 18 months, I have encountered retailers that don't bother to monitor and/or update their websites, costing me purchases. Some highlights: 1) I've had my overnight online purchase of a guitar negated by an in-store sale the following morning. 2) I've had a transaction cancelled because the last available unit was defective. (I appreciate this, but shouldn't they have figured this out beforehand?) 3) During the hunt for one particular guitar, I actually had the maker ascertain whether a certain website was accurately listing a whole flotilla of them, only to find out that page hadn't been updated in more than a year- all had been sold. 4) several retailers I emailed sales inquiries to have not answered. They've had weeks if not months. Some are rumored to have gone out of business- I'm investigating this- but others are CLEARLY announcing new sales and products. And why am I venting tonight? Well, after completing a transaction for a pedal this weekend while all the online sales were going on, just a few minutes ago, I received notification that the transaction was cancelled due to lack of availability. Not only will I not get my pedal in 2 days, if I can find another, it will probably cost me an extra $50. Sturgeon's 2nd Law, a.k.a. Sturgeon's Revelation: âNinety percent of everything is crapâ My FLMS- Murphy's Music in Irving, Tx http://murphysmusictx.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Winston Psmith Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 I can't imagine running an online store, without having Inventory tied in to the Web ordering, and I worked in Music Retail, so I have dealt with this before. "Yes, we have no bananas!" Quick way to lose potential customers - take their order, then cancel it. Re-reading #1? Did you buy an instrument online, and then have the store sell it out from under you? I'd want to know who that was, so none of us ever make the mistake of dealing with them. Doubleplusungood if it was a one-of-a-kind item, (used, vintage, custom) as opposed to something they can re-stock. As to #4, I think some retailers set up a website, then lose interest, especially if they don't have a dedicated IT/Web person to manage the thing. At the store where I worked, there was no such person, so the owner would sit around at home, after work, putting up photos and links, the work of Sisyphus. Considering that most of our sales were in-store, the work of maintaining the website seemed counter-productive, much of the time. I wouldn't be surprised if that were the dynamic with some of the stores you're tried to contact. Dannyalcatraz, send me an email, let me know what pedal you were looking for, and I'll put you in touch with my local gear guy. "Monsters are real, and Ghosts are real too. They live inside us, and sometimes, they win." Stephen King http://www.novparolo.com https://thewinstonpsmithproject.bandcamp.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dannyalcatraz Posted December 2, 2014 Author Share Posted December 2, 2014 On #1, that is what happened. I saw it & played it in store, thought about it over dinner, and bought it before bedtime. The guitar in question was a limited edition. I found it at another store...that was guilty of not updating their site. When I ordered from them, I got the out of stock message the next day. HOWEVER, they had 2 others in different colors, and I got the guitar I wanted, minus a "disappointment" discount & plus a free HSC. The first store closed their doors and- ironically- went to a purely online business model. So I suspect what happened to me there can't happen anymore. As for #4, its a T-Rex Gull Wah. I have found a few of them out there, but it is a discontinued product. I'm not too concerned about finding it, thought. I have contacted T-Rex about it, because it seems their current wah is very similar, albeit with more traditional visual aesthetics...and a slightly smaller price tag. So I'll probably be able to get the function I want, it's only a matter of time & price. Besides, the $$$ I didn't spend this week on ME can now be applied guiltlessly to buying Christmas gifts...or guiltily buying other pedals? Sturgeon's 2nd Law, a.k.a. Sturgeon's Revelation: âNinety percent of everything is crapâ My FLMS- Murphy's Music in Irving, Tx http://murphysmusictx.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whitefang Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 The only way for me to relate to this is to tell of the time I went online to get the model numbers of a few Nakamichi CD players, you know----the ones they used to have that used the seven disc CARTRIDGES? So, I dutifully printed out the web page which provided photos of the players I was looking for and went to the nearest Nakamichi dealer( which WASN'T near at ALL!) only to be told that Nakamichi had DISCONTINUED making the players the YEAR BEFORE! So, I CAN feel your pain and frustration! Whitefang I started out with NOTHING...and I still have most of it left! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dannyalcatraz Posted December 2, 2014 Author Share Posted December 2, 2014 I remember those! I almost got one, but wound up with JVC's 6 + 1 version instead. Sturgeon's 2nd Law, a.k.a. Sturgeon's Revelation: âNinety percent of everything is crapâ My FLMS- Murphy's Music in Irving, Tx http://murphysmusictx.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric VB Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 One time we booked a hotel room during a sporting event. We were surprised we were able to get such an affordable room so close to the stadium. Turns out they were indeed sold out but the third-party websites paid no heed and continued to sell rooms. We were lucky. We tried to check-in early before the game and watched the last available room go to the party in front of us. Meanwhile their printer was printing new reservations non-stop. We were able to make alternate arrangements; those trying to check-in after the game were surely SOL. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whitefang Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 The reason I was looking for one was that I accquired a Nakamichi "Stasis" TA-4A reciever that came with a remote, and I wanted a CD player that would be compatible with it. I did wind up with a newer Nakamichi "carousel" player(5 disc) that the remote worked, so it wound up OK I guess, but it WAS a waste of time going 15 miles to the dealer to find out I was SOL! Whitefang I started out with NOTHING...and I still have most of it left! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larryz Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 One time we booked a hotel room during a sporting event. We were surprised we were able to get such an affordable room so close to the stadium. Turns out they were indeed sold out but the third-party websites paid no heed and continued to sell rooms. We were lucky. We tried to check-in early before the game and watched the last available room go to the party in front of us. Meanwhile their printer was printing new reservations non-stop. We were able to make alternate arrangements; those trying to check-in after the game were surely SOL. We had the opposite experience...Made reservations weeks in advance on-line at a 4star hotel and at a very reasonable price. When checking in the chic at the desks says "sorry we only have a ground floor room left, is that OK?" I figure there is only one answer if I wanted a room and said "yes". It was a very nice room pool side instead of street side so it was safe from street break-ins and afforded a good view of bikini clad chics...so what's the problem? The pathway to the pool went right next to our window with a clanging gate, people laughing and joking, and passing by our window the whole time...and we had to keep our drapes closed all day when people could see in, etc. OK OK Ok so this didn't bother us as it was an overnighter place to crash. The problem was the parking lot was empty at check in and again the next morning at check out. This lead me to believe that they shut down a few wings and floors to save on utilities, room cleaning confined to one wing, etc. I know they had hundreds of other rooms that weren't booked at all...I won't be staying there again anytime soon... Take care, Larryz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
desertbluesman Posted December 2, 2014 Share Posted December 2, 2014 I tried the Black Friday sale at Sams Club on Black Friday this year, after filling in my order, then giving all my credit card info, I hit the submit order and the page disappeared. I went back to start again but the cart was still full, I then decided not to pursue it any further in fear someone hacked the site. Now I am monitoring my CC account daily to see what is up. So far no problems. dbm If it sounds good, it is good !! http://www.soundclick.com/bands/default.cfm?bandID=143231&content=music Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dannyalcatraz Posted December 30, 2014 Author Share Posted December 30, 2014 And why am I venting tonight? Well, after completing a transaction for a pedal this weekend while all the online sales were going on, just a few minutes ago, I received notification that the transaction was cancelled due to lack of availability. Not only will I not get my pedal in 2 days, if I can find another, it will probably cost me an extra $50. And now, the punch line! http://i1307.photobucket.com/albums/s593/AJA1967/imagejpg1_zpsdd4db045.jpg No, you're not seeing double- or if you are, it's your own fault- I now have 2 of the pedal I was shopping for, the T-Rex Gull Wah. I contacted a few places claiming to carry it. Most said it was a special-order item, not currently in stock. That's how I got into this mess in the first place: (this version of) the pedal is discontinued; if your store isn't stocking it, you can't get it for me. So I ordered one from the first of the only 2 companies that replied and said they had one in stock. But that initial order started looking like my order from Amazon- days to confirm the purchase, get me a tracking number...and finally notify me that it had actually been shipped. But by the time I got notification of the first order's shipment, I had...panicked...and bought the one the other company had. And in fact, that one arrived before the first. So now I have 2 T-Rex Gulls. Wah-wahhhhhh. Sturgeon's 2nd Law, a.k.a. Sturgeon's Revelation: âNinety percent of everything is crapâ My FLMS- Murphy's Music in Irving, Tx http://murphysmusictx.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larryz Posted December 30, 2014 Share Posted December 30, 2014 You'll have to sit down to work them both at the same time! Just imagine those cool left and right stereo wah's crying from one side of the stage to the other LOL! Take care, Larryz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dannyalcatraz Posted December 30, 2014 Author Share Posted December 30, 2014 Making lemonade from lemons! Actually, I have a stupid number of pedals already, and was strongly contemplating breaking the collection into separate and distinct pedal boards for different kinds of music.. I could consider this an omen, then, that I should do just that. Sturgeon's 2nd Law, a.k.a. Sturgeon's Revelation: âNinety percent of everything is crapâ My FLMS- Murphy's Music in Irving, Tx http://murphysmusictx.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larryz Posted December 30, 2014 Share Posted December 30, 2014 Give it a try before sending one back... Take care, Larryz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dannyalcatraz Posted December 30, 2014 Author Share Posted December 30, 2014 Ohhhh, no. Not sending EITHER one back. I went through too much hassle to do that. On the off-chance I decide to get rid of one, it will either be sold, or I'll donate it to a charity auction of some kind. Sturgeon's 2nd Law, a.k.a. Sturgeon's Revelation: âNinety percent of everything is crapâ My FLMS- Murphy's Music in Irving, Tx http://murphysmusictx.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larryz Posted December 30, 2014 Share Posted December 30, 2014 Yeah you better keep them both...if it is an omen and you send one back, the one you keep will take a crap on you! Take care, Larryz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caevan O’Shite Posted December 31, 2014 Share Posted December 31, 2014 That looks to be a very cool wah pedal! It's beautiful, and it's very cool that it's replicating the interior and dash themes of a vintage Mercedes 300SL "Gull Wing"... Ohhhh, no. Not sending EITHER one back. I went through too much hassle to do that. On the off-chance I decide to get rid of one, it will either be sold, or I'll donate it to a charity auction of some kind. In either case, emphasize that this particular model/version can be difficult to obtain... Ask yourself- What Would Ren and Stimpy Do? ~ Caevan James-Michael Miller-O'Shite ~ _ ___ _ Leprechaun, Esquire _ ___ _ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dannyalcatraz Posted December 31, 2014 Author Share Posted December 31, 2014 Actually...I should check more closely- I may have a breeding pair! Sturgeon's 2nd Law, a.k.a. Sturgeon's Revelation: âNinety percent of everything is crapâ My FLMS- Murphy's Music in Irving, Tx http://murphysmusictx.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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