Kawasaki Sportsbike Riders Club - Australia - Online Forum

I agree with Kellz....

It shits me when I walk into a shop with Steph and she asks them a question and then answer back to ME....

Its rude...... One guy even did it to the point where I said "Dont look at me mate... I have nothing to do with this!" and he still kept doing it...

Steph buys from people that take her seriously...

Stereo wrote:
Steph buys from people that take her seriously...

I've got this seriously big bridge for sale in Sydney if shes interested !

mfzx6r wrote:

Stereo wrote:
Steph buys from people that take her seriously...

I've got this seriously big bridge for sale in Sydney if shes interested !

Pfff big bridge....... Ive heard that things you say are big are actually teensy weensy

Stereo wrote:I agree with Kellz....

It shits me when I walk into a shop with Steph and she asks them a question and then answer back to ME....

Its rude...... One guy even did it to the point where I said "Dont look at me mate... I have nothing to do with this!" and he still kept doing it...

Steph buys from people that take her seriously...

glad im not the only one..
and it doesnt change even if i go in in full bike gear carrying a helmet. or if i ride in and park at the door means jack shit to them...

the guys at teh shops need to wake up and realise that a larger number of women are riding now and are being more independant in their choices as to what bike they want...

kellz wrote:but i do find if i walk in with alex or my dad i get a better response than if i go in alone, and even then they still give me a weird look when we say the bike is for me..

If its the Kwaka shop I don't even bother, I just send HM.
Our dealership is as good a reason as any to buy a Yamaha.

i hate dealing with sales peeps altogether, ebay ftw

Daisy wrote:

kellz wrote:but i do find if i walk in with alex or my dad i get a better response than if i go in alone, and even then they still give me a weird look when we say the bike is for me..

If its the Kwaka shop I don't even bother, I just send HM.
Our dealership is as good a reason as any to buy a Yamaha.

nah places liek trevor jordan sydnet shitty, doesnt matter. only place i have gotten good service and not looked at weird is mittagong kawasaki..

kellz wrote:a salesperson taking me seriously is a big thing especially being a chick...

i am currently looking at 600's and i get that oh its a big bike you sure you can handle it shit..

if i didnt think i could i wouldnt be looking.

take me seriously, treat me the same as u do the male custoomers as i am the same, im a motorcyclist who is looking at spending money in your shop to buy a bike if your nice and curtious to me. if no ill go find it privately..

a good range of stuff for women is a must aswell, no we dont want to wear the same jacket as our best mate, if guys gets a good range we want it to.

othewise the same as everyone else has said..

but i do find if i walk in with alex or my dad i get a better response than if i go in alone, and even then they still give me a weird look when we say the bike is for me..

Farkin hell Kellz!!! Does that shit STILL happen????? I ran a bike shop from 1994-1996 and would have sacked a staff member on the spot for that type of carry on! We had loads of female customers, most of them RIDERS!

Now the problem you mentioned with having heaps of girls gear is not a sexism issue, it's a market/monetary issue. If you take a look around, women represent about 2-3% of the motorcycle market! So it doesn't make financial sense to have 50% of your stock to cater for 3% of the market! However, having said that, when I ran Cosways, we specialised in girls gear. Half our stock of leathers/boots/gloves/wet weather gear etc., was womens gear. Thus, very quickly we built a reputation for having what they wanted, or being able to get it, and friendly honest and Non-Patronising dealings! At least it was while I was there!

Thanks for the input, its the little thing that help make it better to deal with people and have them come back. Will let you know what happens

Right on Kellz and Stereo! I am sick of the sales guys always talking to the guy. The first bike I bought, I had my brother with me and they kept talking to him and trust me...he knows nothing about bikes....

Customer service is the key! I keep going back to the Yamaha place near us as they remember me and treat me like a person. But that's with all shops. I would go back to a mediocre restaurant with great service but never go back to one with fantastic food and crap service L)

I had the same problem with salesmen talking to the guy I rock up to the shop with and ignoring me. One day on a lunchbreak I headed down to Pro Kwaka at Slacks Creek, and a young male workmate came along. He knows absolutely nothing about bikes, but likes to look at them. We were browsing around, the salesman came over and started chatting to my workmate. My workmate said straight up to him that he knew nothing about bikes, and we were there browsing for my next bike. The salesman STILL didn't look even once in my direction, not even a flicker of the eye, he just said "yup, right" and off he wandered, never to approach us again!

Then, when I bought the Z, same think at Pro Kwaka at Bowen Hills. I was with Jeff the three times we went in there, the first two times he spoke to Jeff and glanced at me occasionally (what am I, diced liver?!) even after I did the test ride (well, Jeff & I swapped the Z750 and a SV650 halfway) he still barely acknowledged me! It was only when we started talking finance, and I made it abundantly clear that I am the Chancellor of the Exchequer and control the high finance that he really spoke to me!

[quote="Cougar I would go back to a mediocre restaurant with great service but never go back to one with fantastic food and crap service L)[/quote]

like theres a restaurant that stereo would never go back to!!

1. I don't give a fuck if you're busy, I can clearly see that... just take two seconds to say "hey mate, i'll be with you as soon as I can"

That applies for anything. I was waiting at Nandos the other day to buy a Chicken thingamy which i really enjoy. They were clearly busy and working very hard, but after 5 minutes standing at the counter with no acknowledgement whatsoever, i walked next door to Mcdonalds and ate a product I fucking hate and that makes me feel awful.

This could easily be parallelled with a Kawasaki fan ending up on a Yama... yama.... y'know.

2. Be genuine. Bullshit scripting, conversation progressing or clear selling cues are a bit old. I can see through the bullshit... and I reckon the average biker could too. Conversation is great, but a forced how you going/have a nice day/how was your weekend is a thousand times worse than just a simple, to-the-point "g'day mate what can I do ya for?"

3. Be cheap on the day-to-day shit that keeps people coming. Good range of chain lube, oil, filters, etc keeps people coming back to you every single time they need something.. this keeps the till ticking regularly with only a small profit, but when a big purchase comes up who is the first bike shop in your mind?

4. Regular staff. I love walking into a shop and having the guy have half a clue who I am/what I ride. My customers at work expect the same of me, I speak to them maybe once every two or three months by and they don't introduce themselves yet I'm expected to know who they are/where they're from. I only know because I'm a regular... if someone else came in that was just as good at the job as me, but had been there two months, the customers wouldn't get that "they know me here" feeling.

Shifty wrote:This could easily be parallelled with a Kawasaki fan ending up on a Yama... yama.... y'know.

Tell me about it .

That reminds me of a pet hate..... the one where you say Hi to a customer on the phone & they are so rehersed & mind set they say good thanks well hey I didnt say how are you? I never say how are you.... cause its a phoney question I dont ask what I dont want to know.
If I get asked then sure I will answer politely but I never ask that at the begining of a conversation as its overused & sorta meaningless.