Well I wrote them and here is the response I recieved from them (below)....I find it hard to believe that in 2009, companies are not using "industry forums" to get first hand information about their products, pricing and overall customer satisfaction...seems like these busineses need new marketing managers. These forums are the "pulse" of the industry, and a wealth of information can be gathered from here including trending, market analysis, complaints, kudos, etc. My concern is the statement he made below, "we had one of the best years in St Louis"! St Louis? I think someone needs to check a business model.... There website says their in Belleview Washington! A company that has a "web business" should not benchmark its success based on one city's revenue generation. So Michael, if you had a success in St louis, you failed miserably in most other states. This may be why many of us have had problems dealing with GRP as they have focused on St Louis customers, and everone else can wait. I thought that was a laughable statement.
With the economy in the condition its in, and people having less discresionary dollars to spend on Holiday decorations, I would think that a "Website" issue or "email" issues would be fixed in a day. (there are plenty of "out of work" IT people available to help) Looking at the responses above and the order that I did not place with GRP, they have lost a tremendous amount of revenue this year alone. I guess we will have to wait and see what changes are made, but unfortunately if Im not aware of any changes, I wont be purchasing from them again.
Lastly, if you read is response below, he equates the problems to his "website" although I SPECIFICALLY said phone calls and customer service, If I cant get ahold of you via a phone call, I certainly wont use your website anyway, so save the money and hire some CSR's (Customer Service Reps) to answer phones. Anyone can put up a website, BUT if you cant deliver your product OR talk with me personally, do you really expect me to drop $5K?
"Thanks, we will be addressing these issues this upcoming week. Have had some MAJOR issues with our website and trying to figure everything out is not in my normal scope. I appreciate your letting me know what is going on. You will see a major improvement after this holiday weekend is over.
WE are very much in business! We had one of our best years is St Louis. Orders are going out, but not as fast as we want them to.
Which boards are you on?
Thanks for your help. "
Regards,
Michael J. Chaille
President
Ghost Ride Productions, INC.
425-452-0400
From: meltdown211
Sent: Friday, July 03, 2009 10:53 AM
To:
[email protected]
Subject: Poor Customer Service
Just wanted to inform you of your reputation on some of the major Halloween forums out there. Most of the posts are stating not to deal with GRP due to their poor customer service, no answering of your phones or no call backs. A few have purchased from you without receiving their products or are generally dissatisfied all around. As I start to gear up for our haunted attraction, I use the information from these forums to determine who is worthy of my hard earned dollars. Sounds like you may be going out of business or other problems, but it’s a shame that the customers are suffering and posting about their poor experience with GRP.
Just an FYI…