Website Joy

K

Kiri

Joined
Jun 20, 2002
Messages
96
I hav'nt visited the Swamp Rat website for a while. Been away travelling! Hav'nt visited bladeforums for a bit either.

So I go to the swamp rat site and.............. Where is the catalogue ?

If I was a normal customer I would think 'mmmmmm they've ceased trading'

There is no link from the home page, nor any explanation! just the front page company info.

So I come here (being a knife nut) and read the sticky and find that they are being sold through the rat knives shop.

OK I look at the rat knives shop and see these tiny grainy photos..... not inspiring!

Eventually I try the link back to the rat chat forum and there are some really nice pictures on there! Makes me want to buy a friend for my Camp Tramp.

So can I make a friendly suggestion. Imagine you are a average member of Jo Public and you are trying to buy a swamp rat knife. You put swamp rat knife in to google and it takes you to a semi defunct website with no catalogue!

Most people would go no further!

Can I suggest you put a catalogue back on the swampratknives site.

Or redirect to ratknives shop

And on ratknives shop site why not use the cool pictures that are on the forum instead of the grainy ones!

Unless there is a new site I'm missing ? If so its damn hard to find!

Sorry I used to work in marketting!

:D

K
 
Kiri said:
I hav'nt visited the Swamp Rat website for a while. Been away travelling! Hav'nt visited bladeforums for a bit either.

So I go to the swamp rat site and.............. Where is the catalogue ?

If I was a normal customer I would think 'mmmmmm they've ceased trading'

There is no link from the home page, nor any explanation! just the front page company info.

So I come here (being a knife nut) and read the sticky and find that they are being sold through the rat knives shop.

OK I look at the rat knives shop and see these tiny grainy photos..... not inspiring!

Eventually I try the link back to the rat chat forum and there are some really nice pictures on there! Makes me want to buy a friend for my Camp Tramp.

So can I make a friendly suggestion. Imagine you are a average member of Jo Public and you are trying to buy a swamp rat knife. You put swamp rat knife in to google and it takes you to a semi defunct website with no catalogue!

Most people would go no further!

Can I suggest you put a catalogue back on the swampratknives site.

Or redirect to ratknives shop

And on ratknives shop site why not use the cool pictures that are on the forum instead of the grainy ones!

Unless there is a new site I'm missing ? If so its damn hard to find!

Sorry I used to work in marketting!

:D

K
Click to expand...

First things first. You are obviously not familiar with Swamp Rat and no nothing of their business... But thats alright.

SRKW is a SMALL business and sells RUNS of certain knives. That means that not all models you see on loyal rat owners' blogs or posts are still available. If you are looking for a market like benchmade then SR aint it. Eric and the lads get em out as often as they can and when they do, they let us know via this forum and on rat chat. As far as the wesbite... I used to think it was lame as well. However, when I learned about the business, I mean what else can they do?? Add pictures of knives they dont sell anymore or cant promise will be made again???? Bad idea... especially for a marketer. ;) the site does what it needs to... tells people that the Swamps knives are tougher than anyone elses... You buy from the Busse family and you are getting the BEST. Yes thats a blanket statement and i will say it again. THEY ARE THE BEST. You will do as you will.. If you want the best stay on these forums and look out for them. As for CS, you wont find a better company either.
 
I don't quite understand the harshness of the first reply, but I'll add my 2 cents.

Those "grainy little pictures" allow you to click on them to get a LARGER picture, which I never thought were "grainy." Maybe your monitor is better than mine and has better resolution!!

Anyway, there are a few knives currently available.........if you want one, order one soon. No idea how long they'll last.

.
 
Their original website got cyber-trashed by the Russians or Chinese or something like that. (Not the good Russians and Chinese here but bad ones) Therefore they had to abandon doing business there but left it as somewhat of a guide.
 
Kiri-

Welcome back and don't stay gone so long! ;) The res-c Camp Tramps are no longer around and the sales/production model for Swamp Rat has definitely changed since your days as an early adopter. Marketing has never seemed to be a problem for Jerry Busse - whether under the Busse Combat line or the related Wauseon companies like Swamp Rat or the new-to-you Scrap Yard. (Do a google search - you'll like them a lot!) There's an excellent thread on the Busse sub-forum that will illustrate it nicely with some outstanding tactful and insightful responses. Link to thread. The blades sell out within hours of being listed, so I don't think a dearth of customers is a big concern with them*. ;)*"Them" referring to all three companies.

That said, I will agree that tracking down the correct website is cumbersome and not incredibly user friendly. :D

I won't repeat the excellent advice given by mhawg and DavidE. I will add that Swamp Rat has changed the production schedule since you were around with the early Camp Tramps. They once listed a catalog of blades that one could order and, unfortunately due to demand and production output, wait anywhere from 2-3 months to nearly a year for delivery of a blade. Now, they only post knives as available for immediate delivery. Sort of like ordering from the Busse Company Store instead of the Busse Combat website. Potential customers are now only frustrated by the "hunt" instead of being frustrated by having to wait a long time for delivery - not as extreme of a wait but akin to waiting for that ordered Randall. I can't say which is best - I like the current model better - but it hasn't seemed to hurt sales at all.

Again, welcome back. Stick around and grab what you can. We are, for the most part, a helpful bunch and, as you are probably aware, Eric is a true gentleman.


When DavidE, whom I like but is known for pulling no punches and telling it like he sees it, describes a post as "harsh", one knows the rivers run backwards and lambs sleep with lions! :p
 
Kiri,
Welcome back.

Thanks for the comments, I do appreciate them even though they are hard to hear (read ;) )

I run the Company Store and I will admit it is often hard to find. For the most part we still sell out of everything we list within hours of listing it(at least initially) so we don't "suck" too bad ;) However, I agree for newbies it is hard to find, probably hard to navigate and we may be losing sales. Hopefully some things (such as links) will change in the near future.

Thanks again for the notes and welcome home to the Swamp, it is good to see you again.

I also appreciate how zealous are customers are, we love them and I'm glad that they love us, however, please be careful that the love doesn't hurt others in the process.

Eric
 
sorry if i came across as rude... i just took offense to someone saying the shop sucked. i have supported and bought from the company and then when someone chimes in and says the site turns people off, i took offense. sorry if i hurt any feelings.
 
Paddling_man said:
When DavidE, whom I like but is known for pulling no punches and telling it like he sees it, describes a post as "harsh", one knows the rivers run backwards and lambs sleep with lions! :p
Click to expand...

I, um, almost missed this............

Not sure how to take that ! :D

.
 
No worries guys, just remember that we can catch more flies with honey than vinegar ;)

We all want the Swamp to grow and criticism is not always a bad thing

:D:D
 
Thanks guys for all your replies!

Firstly I must apologise if I seemed overly critical.

Its because I like Swamp Rat knives that I wanted it to be easier for new knife enthusiasts to find them.

I was trying to give constructive feedback, not to criticise.

I know the Busse site well and think its great. Really nice pics even if its only of the 2-3 knives they are running at the time.

I will check out the other company you mentioned.

I did see the bigger photos on the Rat Knife site.

I just thought if you tidied up the link between the swampratknives site and the Rat Knife shop and explained the new system on the front page it would work smoother for the customer and probably be a bit easier for you guys not having to explain it all the time.

I am sure doing the smaller limited runs you are not short of customers anyway!

I live in sunny London UK and back when I got my Camp Tramp it was a bit of a saga!

Eric was a Gent to deal with and I am still very happy with my knife!

Looking forward to getting something new!

(And even then you didn't keep me waiting as long as Newt Livesay!)

Thanks again for your replies.

K
 
glad to have ya man. sorry if i sounded harsh... you are welcome in the swamp anytime, if i can say so myself. we are a bunch of good fellas. getcha a rat now!!!!
 
flies.png
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top