I would be interested to know what experience if any, the rest of you have had buying from (knifeoutlet.com) and if any of you know of sites that offer as wide a varity at better prices and better service. i recently attempted to purchase a microtech socom on their site on a saturday. since i received no confirmation e-mail, i called them on the following monday and was told the knife had to be ordered and would be shipped wed of this last week. i then wrote via e-mail and asked why i had recieved no confirming message regarding my order. i was told i had made an error in the order process and as it turns out, they were right. my error. however, in spite of my errror, i was told the knife would ship. after i was told of my error, i was told an other knife could be ordered but it would not be shipped till this next tues 10-2-2000. in spite of my request to ship next day air at my expense. when i received no response, i re-orded and received only a confirmation that said nothing about shipping next day air so i followed by sending a question asking if i would have the knife by 10-3-2000 via next day delivery at my expense. i was told, "only if you stop writing to us." what the heck ever happened to customer care, customer service and don't these folks understand that without knife freaks like me, they can close the doors and all go home to stay. there seems to be this attitude amoung many firms these days that customers are a pain in the you know what. were it my company, even though the customer had made an honest error, due to the confusion i would have offered to ship next day air at my expense. but then again, at the ripe old age of 58, i guess my sense of what is right and wrong have become outdated.
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Internet Knife Sales
- Thread starter shamancw
- Start date
- Status
- Joined
- Jul 14, 2000
- Messages
- 210
Hi there,
There is a section of the forums called "The good, the bad, and the ugly". The idea is that we can share our experienced with dealers and individuals to help sort out the good from the bad (you can't really tell who's ugly though without pics) You might get a better answer there.
Just my $.02
Brent...
There is a section of the forums called "The good, the bad, and the ugly". The idea is that we can share our experienced with dealers and individuals to help sort out the good from the bad (you can't really tell who's ugly though without pics) You might get a better answer there.
Just my $.02
Brent...
- Joined
- Sep 21, 1999
- Messages
- 1,819
OH GOODY!! OH GOODY!!
I get to do a Moderationalistical thingie!!!!
Like the man said, this really belongs in that Clint Eastwood film place...
Already spending the cash for this task,
I remain,
VG
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Vampire Gerbil: Nosferatus Rodentus Moderatus; similar to a domestic gerbil, except for the odd accent and little black cape.
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Odd Pictures at Photopoint
An assortment of pictures I decided to share with anyone that was so bored they wanted to check out my antics. I did this to prove that I am indeed sane. Be advised that there's hardly any nudity. Feel free to sign the Guestbook!!
Manifesto of Madness
I wrote most of that at work after drinking massive amounts of coffee. I needed to look busy and that dribbled out of my head. There's also a whole bunch of Optical Illusions.
The Deadly and Scary Leatherman Micra Website.
Be warned that the tactics used at that last site are not for the faint of heart!
A Ballistic Knife in Action
Even though the guy in those pictures has the same exact tattoos as me, I have no idea who he is!
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vampiregerbil@aol.com
I get to do a Moderationalistical thingie!!!!
Like the man said, this really belongs in that Clint Eastwood film place...
Already spending the cash for this task,
I remain,
VG
------------------
Vampire Gerbil: Nosferatus Rodentus Moderatus; similar to a domestic gerbil, except for the odd accent and little black cape.
------------------
Odd Pictures at Photopoint
An assortment of pictures I decided to share with anyone that was so bored they wanted to check out my antics. I did this to prove that I am indeed sane. Be advised that there's hardly any nudity. Feel free to sign the Guestbook!!
Manifesto of Madness
I wrote most of that at work after drinking massive amounts of coffee. I needed to look busy and that dribbled out of my head. There's also a whole bunch of Optical Illusions.
The Deadly and Scary Leatherman Micra Website.
Be warned that the tactics used at that last site are not for the faint of heart!
A Ballistic Knife in Action
Even though the guy in those pictures has the same exact tattoos as me, I have no idea who he is!
------------------
vampiregerbil@aol.com
bob_glassman
Banned
- Joined
- Jan 7, 2000
- Messages
- 414
It is unfortunate that you have had that experience. I have performed a number of internet transactions and consider it to be efficient. I will say, that as a new knife business man, I started an internet site (thebustlingbladesmith.com) to help people know who I am so that Bob Glassman can go to work for them as a person, not as a piece of software that takes an order or a credit card. This isn't intended to be an advertisement. My point is though, the internet is a great place for connecting people, computers are lousy for customer service. Maybe that is the mistake that alot of business people make. One I hope I never make. I think we need to give the folks at knife outlet an opportunity to respond to your gripe. That is what this forum is for.. Let's hear what they have to say...
Regards
Bob Glassman
thebustlingbladesmith
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Bob Glassman
The Bustling Bladesmith
http://home.earthlink.net/~theglassmans
http://thebustlingbladesmith.com
Regards
Bob Glassman
thebustlingbladesmith
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Bob Glassman
The Bustling Bladesmith
http://home.earthlink.net/~theglassmans
http://thebustlingbladesmith.com
No offense intended but some sites have really unfriendly order forms for Internet orders. Some don't even send order confirmation, so without an order number, further queries are really clumsy especially if you have several orders in the works.
I have had experience screwing up an Internet order and had lots of trouble straightening it out. This particular site:
- Didn't confirm the order
- Didn't tell me I screwed up and ask for a correction
- Didn't tell me my items shipped
In each case, I waited a week between emails so as to avoid being a nuisance. The big dealers may be swamped by email, some communication would be nice without me emailing them repeatedly. I try to be patient, but total silence really gets my goat.
This is especially bad for international orders as the Internet is probably the only way we can get the knives we want. All I can say is that deal only with folks who have given good service. They might have slightly higher prices but since I have to pay $25 - $50 shipping fees anyway, the additional couple of bucks is worth it to keep my blood pressure normal.
Red
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"Praise not the day until evening has come;a sword until it is tried; ice until it has been crossed; beer until it has been drunk" - Viking proverb
[This message has been edited by redvenom (edited 10-01-2000).]
I have had experience screwing up an Internet order and had lots of trouble straightening it out. This particular site:
- Didn't confirm the order
- Didn't tell me I screwed up and ask for a correction
- Didn't tell me my items shipped
In each case, I waited a week between emails so as to avoid being a nuisance. The big dealers may be swamped by email, some communication would be nice without me emailing them repeatedly. I try to be patient, but total silence really gets my goat.
This is especially bad for international orders as the Internet is probably the only way we can get the knives we want. All I can say is that deal only with folks who have given good service. They might have slightly higher prices but since I have to pay $25 - $50 shipping fees anyway, the additional couple of bucks is worth it to keep my blood pressure normal.
Red
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"Praise not the day until evening has come;a sword until it is tried; ice until it has been crossed; beer until it has been drunk" - Viking proverb
[This message has been edited by redvenom (edited 10-01-2000).]
- Joined
- Mar 20, 2000
- Messages
- 51
I've had a similar experience with KnifeOutlet.com. I ordered a BM 730 Ares when they first came out. I was naive at the time and believed that these sites (not just knifeoutlet, but almost all internet knife dealers) carried in stock everything on the price list. After about two weeks went by, I called and asked about my order. I was told they just got a shipment in and mine would go out that day. I then get an email saying the knife is not in stock, but they will order me one if I want. I was upset that I recieved NO communication from the place for two weeks while I was sitting there waiting for my knife, so I cancelled the order. Lo and behold, two weeks later after I cancel my order, I get an email saying that they now have them in stock, and since I ordered one before, did I still want it. At least they did not charge me and ship it. So, anyway I posted something about this on the knifeoutlet.com forum here on bladeforums, and it was explained that at the time knifeoutlet was shorthanded, and that Fred the owner was having open heart surgery. Now, Fred was nice enough to respond publically to my post, and he does have a good reputation with many here on bladeforums, so I gave them another chance. I ordered a Spyderco Sharpmaker from them (after first making sure it was in stock). I recieved it in a few days, and was quite satisified. That is, until I noticed that my card had been charged twice, and two days later I recieved ANOTHER sharpmaker from them. So, being naive, and thinking that just maybe because it was THEIR mistake, and since I was giving them a second chance after one bad experience, I asked them to refund me the cost of the return shipping (which was about $7 dollars). I recieved an email that said send back the item, we will credit your account once we recieve it. No mention was made of the request for shipping reimbursement. I sent the item back, checked with ground track that it arrived and waited for my credit. Now the credit did not show up right away, and that could be the fault of my bank, but I emailed asking where my credit was and recieved a terse reply that they had already credited my account. I checked with the bank and the amount credited was the exact amount debited, no extra $7 for shipping. Now, I'm not going to be petty over $7 dollars so I didn't complain to them or post anything here, but they had two chances with me and blew them both. I will look elsewhere for knife dealers on the internet. I suggest that whoever you order from, if you are the impatient type (which I am and it sounds like you are) that you check with WHOEVER you order from by email or phone and make sure the item is in stock before placing the order.
I gotta tell you, I know as a 'small' guy in the net, it works me pretty hard.....I just don't know how the big boys handle it all. Especially on the international orders like RedVenom said. Sometimes it takes about 8-12 emails to get the details worked out on international stuff.
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Knives & Things
Mike Payne
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Knives & Things
Mike Payne
Correct me if I am wrong? but, is this not "Fred", the very same "Fred" I was blasted for commenting on? Just checking. I would love to offer some feedback on an actual purchase, however I never made it past customer service. Stick with the polite, customer service oriented folks like "One Stop", Roger Claunch and Danny at 888 Knives r Us. Never a problem with any of the above and highly recommend them.
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"The conviction of the justification of using even the most brutal weapons is always dependent on the presence of a fanatical belief in the necessity of victory"
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"The conviction of the justification of using even the most brutal weapons is always dependent on the presence of a fanatical belief in the necessity of victory"
I'm going to use this thread not to talk about Knife Outlet, though I have bought from them and it went just fine. I'd rather bring up the whole subject of Internet Sales and how that's done. Bob_Glassman wrote, "My point is though, the internet is a great place for connecting people, computers are lousy for customer service. Maybe that is the mistake that alot of business people make." I disagree, Bob, Internet sites are a direct reflection of the owner's or company's business practices. The biggest problem for internet shoppers is getting timely information about their order. Let me refer everybody to a couple of sites I do business with that I consider pretty good. The first is a sports supplements outlet, http://www.netrition.com . Like most of our knife buddies here, they use secure shell for personal info and the actual order placement. But, they tell you if an item's out of stock and expected arrival date. They also allow you to pick and choose your method of shipping. I like UPS 3rd day air. Just a little more than regular ground, and you don't have to be there to sign for it like FedEx. http://www.eastbay.com does very similar things on availability, but they don't let you know an item's out of stock sometimes until you actually try to finish the transaction. In other words, the information is already on line for the customer to see. This allows a better customer service since the actual live bodies on the phone don't have as many of the "Do you have such and such in stock?" questions. I do business with these places because they support me as a customer, and their prices are competitive. For knives, I'll keep coming back to OneStop, not because their web site is as good as Netrition's, it's got a long way for that on the back end. The front end, the way the customer sees it is fine. Mike and Spark communicate pretty well. Sometimes I have to call, but that's because the business hasn't grown enough to afford the upgrades to facilitate better commerce. I'd love to see them have Netrition's backend to the order placement. But bottom line, they'll help you. The software is a reflections of the owners and companies. That's how the "netizen" interacts with them. If it's klunky, the business is klunky. I placed an order with Cheaper Than Dirt for a Delica - don't know if I can handle that hole though!
- on 9/25. Their site said 13 in stock, but the part# means it is in SC, so it'll take 5 days to process. (what the hell is with South Carolina boys, they only work one day a week?
) I called today and found out that where ever it actually was, it had to be shipped to Texas, received, and then shipped to me. It goes out today. I think they only like to ship ammo quickly!
Anyway, I probably won't do business with them - plus, shipping charges are based on the price of an item, not weight! they said ammo weighs a lot! - but I'm not buying cases of ammo, and that's their specialty.
Hank
[This message has been edited by HankS (edited 10-03-2000).]
Hank
[This message has been edited by HankS (edited 10-03-2000).]
Dave, I think your previous compaint about knifeoutlet and this thread are two totally different subjects. I this pertains more to web site design and administration, and the fact that it takes a lot of organization to make one of these super sites work. That's why I like Roger@bayou also.
- Joined
- Jan 4, 1999
- Messages
- 3,000
ShamanCW,
I received emails every few hours from you after I had told you that your order would ship on Tuesday - yesterday. I did ask you to stop emailing me because it is time consuming and I had nothing to add to the information I had already provided several times. Tuesday was tuesday and it didn't make any sense to answer emails every few hours about the same subject. So you agreed to stop emailing and then started telephoning.
I realize that you are an impatient person and that your son's birthday is a major event. Nevertheless, the first order was never received as we discussed. The second order was received. We told you when it would ship and it shipped on the the day we indicated. It's about as good as we can do.
I'm sorry we asked you to stop pestering us. It seemed the only thing that would stop the unnecessary work you were causing us. We deal with a very heavy volume of orders and put in 12 or 13 full speed hours per day to get it done. It's like a whirlwind here during the day. Sometimes we get a little tired and irritable ourselves. For that I apologize. I hope your son enjoyed the gift because it was an excellent one.
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Fred
Knife Outlet
http://www.knifeoutlet.com
I received emails every few hours from you after I had told you that your order would ship on Tuesday - yesterday. I did ask you to stop emailing me because it is time consuming and I had nothing to add to the information I had already provided several times. Tuesday was tuesday and it didn't make any sense to answer emails every few hours about the same subject. So you agreed to stop emailing and then started telephoning.
I realize that you are an impatient person and that your son's birthday is a major event. Nevertheless, the first order was never received as we discussed. The second order was received. We told you when it would ship and it shipped on the the day we indicated. It's about as good as we can do.
I'm sorry we asked you to stop pestering us. It seemed the only thing that would stop the unnecessary work you were causing us. We deal with a very heavy volume of orders and put in 12 or 13 full speed hours per day to get it done. It's like a whirlwind here during the day. Sometimes we get a little tired and irritable ourselves. For that I apologize. I hope your son enjoyed the gift because it was an excellent one.
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Fred
Knife Outlet
http://www.knifeoutlet.com
I am tempted to say as the old saying goes, he protest to much but that would be petty and suggest finger pointing which I do not want to do. I did admittedly send multiple requests for status on my order. If I had not sent these requests, I would never have known the orginal order was not received. In addition, there is the suggestion that there were many calls when in fact there were only a few. The first on Monday of last week when I was told my order, which I later was told was not recieved, would ship Wed. of last week. Then, around Wed of last week, it became obvious there was something wrong. That's when i called and was told the order was never recieved so I ordered again. I called thE last time on Monday of this week to confirm shipment overnight at my expense. None of the multiple e-mails nor phone calls would have been required had I been told in the first place that the order had not been recieved. There would have been no follow up phone calls had I received some kind of message indicating the new order was shipping Tuesday for sure. All I was told was, "thats the plan."
I have nothing against you or your firm. I have purchased from you before, and if you will accept my money, I probably will again. My concern is that there is room for improvement in the area of keeping customers advised of their orders. There are other sellers of knifes I have done business with that have taken the time to send a simple message stating order is shipping on such and such date for sure, and in some cases, order will not ship because of whatever. It seems to me, the key is communication that is offered instead of requested. Then again, that is only my opinion. The opinion of someone who has worked for a fortune 500 firm for over 20 years and would be teminated for not properly communicating with customers.
I do not want this dialog to develop in to something that is blown way out of proportion. I simply wanted to buy a knife for my son and didn't feel I was given adaquite shipping information. You simply wanted to sell a knife with as little needless work as possible. Both reasonable viewpoints. Yes, by the way, my son loves the knife. In fact so do I. I may order an other if you will take my money that is.
I firmly believe this was a case of nothing fancy. It was just poor communication. Perhaps some my fault but I will not accept all the blame if there is blame to place. Instead of pointing fingers I would much prefer to be advised next time I place an order if the item is in stock and when it will be shipped. If that imformation is supplied, there will be no e-mails and no calls.
I have saved all the e-mail messages that traveled between us. I do not feel it right to get in to some kind of conteSt of saying he said and I said. I feel at this point we both have valid viewpoints. Now, unless you have more to say on the subject, I feel it should be closed so you can get back to business and I can select my next purchase.
- Joined
- Jan 4, 1999
- Messages
- 3,000
Equally important in my book is after sales service. Rog at KnifeWorks was quick to remedy a problem I had with a folder I purchased. The profile was a bit off, but the knife was certainly functional - - just a cosmetic annoyance that really bugged me. Nonetheless, Rog had a replacement in the mail to me, even before he received the first one back. In contrast, on receiving a new Becker BK7 from KnifeOutlet, that had a really funky grind on the blade, KnifeOutlet told me to send it to the manufacturer - - a six week turnaround for a replacement.
TT2Toes
TT2Toes
Cougar Allen
Buccaneer (ret.)
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There's nothing like dredging up a 3-year-old thread to remind everybody to always look at the dates....
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