Fcp Groton Is Finally A Member Of Vs!

[TurboS60]

Keep in mind, we do have to stay in business. I will throw it out there- what is a REASONABLE VS Discount we can offer? What are the requirements? Tiered?

50% is pretty reasonable

Nahh... 15% for everyone and ditch all the aftermarket stuff :)

[Che'_Moderator]

3rd time was a charm on the ScanTech PnP switch

Did you use the alignment tool to install it?

[v4lve]

Did you use the alignment tool to install it?

Yes

[Cal3thousand]

Remember actions speaker louder than word. When I have read threads that show price comparisons between Factory Volvo Dealers who sell genuine at the same price others sell aftermarket for, honestly who you going to buy from. Thank God for Chill's Sig if i never saw it I would be lost.

Oh I hear you... I just got a 70R bumper for a steal at DW and I'm goin back for more! hahhahaaaaaaa

But, still... good to see FCP make the effort here. I'm sure DW's popularity also plays a part in this change in ethos

[FCP Euro]

Oh I hear you... I just got a 70R bumper for a steal at DW and I'm goin back for more! hahhahaaaaaaa

But, still... good to see FCP make the effort here. I'm sure DW's popularity also plays a part in this change in ethos

We just learned of Darryl Waltrip Volvo when we signed up on VS. Frankly, the markup on Genuine Volvo Parts is so marginal, it would not keep a company like ours in business. It is much more of a hassle to source Genuine Volvo Parts. We do it as a courtesy for our Volvo owners- we do not do it for BMW, Audi, VW, Mercedes, Porsche or Jag.

There was never a change in ethos of our company. Same people, same principles. We just experienced growing pains and we didn't have enough time to devote to other areas.

[FCP Euro]

Hello, when I try to select part for my 2000 v70R I get nothing. Sometimes I don't even get the option for a 2000 R, only 2004-07 R. I think you still need some tweaking to the website...

Site, def needs some tweaking! We are working on it. Let us know what drop-downs need to be consolidated/tweaking.

We started on a few models, but it's an extremely arduous task. We changed the S80 and XC90 so far.

Thanks for the input

Edited March 4, 2009 by FCPGroton

[NEU]

Thanks for the input

You're welcome. ;)

[betterthingstodo]

Maybe I'm in the minority here but I'm more of a loyal customer than a 'where and how can I save a few bucks kind of guy'. I tried to order parts from FCP in the past but got turned off by poor customer service – maybe that was when you were feeling major growing pains.

Now I have a supplier that I email my parts needs, he sends me back a price and I call with my credit card. He answers questions and seems genuinely happy to have me as a customer.

I like what you are doing here I think it's a great sign that you are trying to be involved and move in a positive direction.

BTW you mentioned that you're moving to web 2.0 what does that mean for the customers? I was always under the impression that was a comment made to imply more of a social networking approach, but I'd be interested to hear what you have planned.

-Rob

[FCP Euro]

Maybe I'm in the minority here but I'm more of a loyal customer than a 'where and how can I save a few bucks kind of guy'. I tried to order parts from FCP in the past but got turned off by poor customer service – maybe that was when you were feeling major growing pains.

Now I have a supplier that I email my parts needs, he sends me back a price and I call with my credit card. He answers questions and seems genuinely happy to have me as a customer.

I like what you are doing here I think it's a great sign that you are trying to be involved and move in a positive direction.

BTW you mentioned that you're moving to web 2.0 what does that mean for the customers? I was always under the impression that was a comment made to imply more of a social networking approach, but I'd be interested to hear what you have planned.

-Rob

Oh Boy, I may get a little bit of heat by saying this. You state, "He answers my questions and seems to genuinely happy to have me as a customer." Well, I say "They work with me, understanding the demands they put on me and seem happy to have me as a vendor" - is that so wrong, after all we are human too.

Straight up we got abused by a majority of the customers- being screamed at, yelled at, cussed out, demands here, demands there- and those demands unreasonable at best. It's something I wouldn't tolerate in my personal life, but required to take the abuse in a work environment. Life was miserable for a couple of years and we aren't the type of people who complain. There were a small handful that actually appreciated the work Nick and myself put in and complimented us, but that was few and far between. If it wasn't for those customers, we would have probably left the game a while ago. We just ask people to treat us how they would like to be treated.

You guys all want Genuine Volvo Parts, but unfortunately there is no magic button to make them appear overnight. It takes months upon months of compiling spreadsheets with Sku's, product ID's, taking images, HTML for the website, List Prices, Linking them to vehicles, finding weights for the products, then keeping up with the price changes Volvo makes every 30 days or so (and while we are feverishly trying to get this done everyone wants their products shipped out the same day and delivered tomorrow!)

The invitation is open for anyone on this board to come down on a Monday or Tuesday and just experience first hand what our operations entail. Maybe you will get a better understanding of what is required from us.

WEB 2.0

To me when I think of Web 2.0, it is the new generation of web design. Not only are the web pages a little more crisp and concise, but websites are beginning to integrate the social media and social networking aspect of the web. We have a blog, we network on Facebook and Myspace, we not only have images of our products, we will now begin to have videos on You Tube. Web 2.0 establishes inter-human connection, because after all, most of us are all humans. Here is the latest from our graphic designer on our Web 2.0 which has been 2 months in the works http://www.fcpgroton.com/content/newfront.php

A more technical description is found here

http://www.oreillynet.com/pub/a/oreilly/ti...-is-web-20.html

[Pops Racer]

Glad to see you guys are in.

I've got many parts/kits from you.

My big issue is I live in CT! Sale tax and shipping can be prohibitive - especially when the taxes and shipping for a dipstick tube seal is more than the cost of the part. Way more. It was cheaper and easier to drive to my indie mechanic and get one from him.

That being said, I'm down in E.Lyme every weekend during the summer, so I can drop by and pick stuff up, no? My indie mechanic is also in E.Lyme, so it all fits nicely.

Good luck in your re-org. Hopefully VS discounts can mitigate some of the taxes and shipping. You def have what I need when I can't find it elsewhere.

[betterthingstodo]

Oh Boy, I may get a little bit of heat by saying this. You state, "He answers my questions and seems to genuinely happy to have me as a customer." Well, I say "They work with me, understanding the demands they put on me and seem happy to have me as a vendor" - is that so wrong, after all we are human too.

Straight up we got abused by a majority of the customers- being screamed at, yelled at, cussed out, demands here, demands there- and those demands unreasonable at best.

I'm not going to give you any heat but I will point out a bit of irony. By your definition I'm the type of customer you want yet you lost my business while being abused by a majority of customers that scream and yell.

I really hope that you aren't abused by the majority of your customers as you state. If you are I hope for your sake your current efforts attract some more reasonable people to deal with.

[FCP Euro]

I'm not going to give you any heat but I will point out a bit of irony. By your definition I'm the type of customer you want yet you lost my business while being abused by a majority of customers that scream and yell.

I really hope that you aren't abused by the majority of your customers as you state. If you are I hope for your sake your current efforts attract some more reasonable people to deal with.

I have to ask, what exactly did we do to loose your business. Like I stated before, the majority of the seven or so years we have been in business it was only Nick and myself, so there is a good chance that it was one of us that you dealt with on a personal level. If it was current (in the past year or two), it might not have been Nick or myself. Either way I think it would be beneficial for us both that we determine the root of the problem.

[foxtrapper]

I've been buying parts from you guys for about 8 years now.

I greatly appreciate your listings usually saying who make which part. Helps me to sort out which one I wanted. As opposed to many suppliers who list head gasket a and head gasket b, see if you can solve the mystery!

Customer service wise, you all astonished me some years ago when I was chasing some long forgotten part and whoever I was on the phone with checked and very nicely told me to go order from a local dealership, because I'd be able to get it for a whole lot less. Could even hear the smile in his voice as he told me that. Nice. It's a big part of the reason I buy parts from you guys.

[betterthingstodo]

I have to ask, what exactly did we do to loose your business. Like I stated before, the majority of the seven or so years we have been in business it was only Nick and myself, so there is a good chance that it was one of us that you dealt with on a personal level. If it was current (in the past year or two), it might not have been Nick or myself. Either way I think it would be beneficial for us both that we determine the root of the problem.

Publicly I would say that you didn't meet the customer service expectations that I mentioned in my description of my current supplier.

I would also concede that maybe I'm not the type of customer you want. I'm just a guy trying to learn as I go how to repair my car and as such will have some n00b questions.

This was indeed within the past 2 years.

At any rate, if it's useful to you pm me your contact info and I'll go back through my receipts and notes and as a courtesy give you a call with the specifics.

[FCP Euro]

Publicly I would say that you didn't meet the customer service expectations that I mentioned in my description of my current supplier.

I would also concede that maybe I'm not the type of customer you want. I'm just a guy trying to learn as I go how to repair my car and as such will have some n00b questions.

This was indeed within the past 2 years.

At any rate, if it's useful to you pm me your contact info and I'll go back through my receipts and notes and as a courtesy give you a call with the specifics.

Again, I extend my apologies. We realize that many of our customers are do it yourselfers trying to learn as you go, so we have hired a certified tech within the past 6 months. His name is Michael Rivera available at 877-634-0063 ext 206 and welcomes anyone that needs assistance irregardless if you have purchase or intend to purchase parts from us.

Also, if you let me know your details I can find out the sales rep that took your order and possibly identify this weakness in our organization.