Revdex.com: I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted] , and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below [Provide details of why you are not satisfied with this resolution.] Regards, [redacted] The venom in the tone of this rebuttal is what I would expect from this shopI`ve had many hunting buddies tell me, after I had already dealt with them, that you never take anything to the Outdoorsman, because they will always claim something is broken, out of adjustment, and/or, inferior, but they will sell you what you needI asked for the $I was taken for to be returned, and for an apology, but clearly, as the business stated, they just "cannot digest that"The money is far more valuable than their reputation I will consider contacting the Indiana Attorney Generals office, but either way, every single person I come in contact with will hear about my experience with the Outdoorsman, and the fraud perpetrated upon me
Roman">This is a situation that has several layersI say this because, although I have spent many hours working to understand the complaint issued against our store and worked hard to discover where our system may have failed, it remains unclear how this customer could even begin to feel justified in his remarksI can find nothing about his complaint that warrants his tone, rhetoric, disrespect, or unwillingness to even begin the process to work towards an understanding and solution to his complaintIt occurred to me the most probable reason that this customer has no interest in talking about his dissatisfaction is because he too knows that it truly has no basisSince the customer involved will not return any phone calls, it has been left to me to attempt to gain an understanding of the basis of his complaintAfter numerous discussions with my staff, the manufacturer, and by conducting a thorough investigation as to exactly what is said to have occurred, it appears that the goal of this customer was to raise enough controversy for the purpose of bullying both the manufacturer and our storeMaybe his illustrated outrage is a result of discovering that there were some additional unplanned expenses associated with his decision to make this purchase and to both begin the process of shooting it and gaining some degree of proficiencyHe is not the only person that has to work within a budget and we have all experienced situations in our lives that cause unplanned expensesI can only guessRegardless of the reason, it now appears his agenda has evolved with the intent to regain as much value as he can from us both as he has blamed everyone but himself for purchasing a crossbow over the Internet that fell short of his expectationsPerhaps it came from Amazon with the expectation for it to be in perfect working order and for him to have suddenly accumulated a comprehensive understanding of this equipment through a minute safety briefing, sight in, and lesson on how to safely operate his new crossbowThat is the equivalent of deeming , as a result of having taken a ten hour hunter safety course, the student can now leave the class upon completion and has suddenly become an expert hunter possessing all of the knowledge necessary to be considered proficient and a safe handler of a lethal weaponIt just doesn't work that wayThe services that this customer purchased from us included a presentation of the same information following the same procedure that our staff performs hundreds of times a year without incident and most often, resulting in a heartfelt thank you from those that we prepare with a valuable introduction to their new purchaseUnless it is made known through our interaction with our customers during this presentation, we simply do not have the insight to interpret the results of a customers level of understanding and comfort level from anything other than his answer of, " I feel I'm ready to go" at the close of the lessonThis is exactly what we are seeking and this is exactly how the lesson concluded with this customer who has issued the complaintTim asked this customer that very question upon conclusion of the lessonHow it has all changed remains to be a mystery and although I cannot say with certainty, I have tried diligently to attempt to understand it for what it isIf there were anything else that we needed to do to satisfy this customer, it was not disclosed to any of our staff, period, until his emails beganIt has been a morale killer for both myself and our staffI take this very seriously and have given every effort that I can muster to understand itIf he needed or wanted more then he had the ability to disclose that to us and we would have taken the time necessary to go over it all againIt really isn't rocket science and it is fairly straightforward and is offered as a means of avoiding injury to the shooter and to attempt to avoid the destruction of the equipmentI say this with compassion knowing that we all need help to undertake new endeavors that we are unfamiliar and we are all about bringing archers along but we do need their input to know when an end has been metVery few businesses of our type even attempt to provide this service but we recognize the importance and value that it can bring to the entire archery experienceWe want fellow archers to succeedI make no apologies for the fact that we charge for this service for those who have chosen to acquire their equipment elsewhereIf his particular lesson offered less than he was expecting, then please tell us that you need moreObviously that feedback was not provided upon what had been considered a completion of this goalMy staff and or I would have gladly seen to it that he was fully informed and truly comfortableWe would never intentionally leave someone feeling as if they had been slighted or shortchangedThat simply is not how we conduct our businessI recognize that my claim may sound bold but that is exactly what I believeIn the end, with having no direct dialogue with this customer as a result of his choice, I have studied the emails that he has sent to the manufacturer and realize that his objective is quite clear at this pointI find his discrediting behavior and actions to be unwarranted and unfair as it possesses the portrayal that suggests that everyone else should be expected to bow down to a person whose sole objective is for everyone else to be held accountable for his mistake or misfortuneNone of us are an island and we owe it to each other to find compromise and a resolutionIn order for that to happen, however, both parties must work together to accomplish this goalThat is the reality of this situation whether I or this customer likes it or notPurchasing products via the internet from sources that often do not or will not disclose the origin of the products they are listing, leaves the door open from the very beginning for potentially unforeseen problems or circumstancesIn this case, the only thing that was missing when the crossbow was brought to us was one of the two screws that fasten the accu-draw cocking device to the stockA screw hole takes a screwGlue is not a part of the short term remedy unless the hole was stripped and that concept would only be offered knowing that it would possibly get you by in the short term if you had no other solutionWe didn't have a screw of this type available to remedy the issueIt wasn't even discussed at any length beyond the fact that it was recognized as missingIts significance to the claim only became a topic as his barrage of opinionated inadequacies became dramatized within his emailed complaintRegarding the missing screw, his discontent should have been directed to the entity which sold him the crossbow in the first placeHad this customer asked us to get him one ordered or implied that he was focally concerned , through dialogue, we would have addressed it and sought a long term remedyRemember that the significance of this screw may easily have gotten lost by both parties during the lesson because there were multiple subjects being discussed at that time and it was not significant to the immediate safety and usage of the crossbowThrough our reading of this customers corresponding emails to the manufacturer which were requested by us for the purpose of gaining a more complete understanding of his complaints, apparently the zipper on the soft case that was part of his purchase, was problematicAgain, this crossbow was not purchased directly from the manufacturer or through our store yet he held the manufacturer accountable and he demanded that he be sent a new oneHis demands were unfair and were unwarrantedHe had purchased this from a third party who had sold him a less than ideal product and the rest of us, apparently were going to pay for what has ultimately been his mistakeTypically, the manufacturer who is not in the position of factually knowing what has exactly transpired, will always tend to side with a disgruntled customer and perform whatever they deem necessary to compensate the fastest way they can to dissolve the problem and make the customer find resolution to his complaintAs a business owner and human being, it is always my intent to fmd resolve to difference of opinion and bring fairness to both partiesThat is always my first desire and is logically what I will inherently try to achieveAccountability is a part of my everyday life as it is for many people and I want to believe that most people subscribe to the notion of trying to resolve differences respectfully and with mutual interactionGetting to that point can sometimes be challenging, but it has to involve dialogueBeing right is not my focus to the extent that it is the only thing that matters in a disagreementI recognize that there can be situations where we may not deliver what a customer believes he should gain from his or her purchase of a product or serviceAny time that I believe that may have occurred, I will step up and make it right with my customerhit simply not focused on making an individual sale to a customer for example who purchases a new bow every years, I am interested in developing a relationship that includes our store as a chosen destination for all of the products or services a customer may want for as long as he or she is interested in all of the awesome activities that our store representsIn over years in retail I have never had a situation arise where I was not contacted by a customer that was not happy or felt wronged that I did not apologize and do everything I could to create the opportunity to regain my customers confidenceAs much as I hate it, it is a statistical fact regardless of our intent to conduct our business in a manner that eliminates that from occurringSometimes it is impossible as much as I hate to admit it because I will do everything within my power to attempt that from ever happening as long as I am aware of it and the customer is willing to engage me and allow me the opportunity to fulfill my responsibilityI will bend over backwards to be fair and honest and admit when there is reasonable doubt that we may not have delivered as promisedIn my opinion, the purchase that this customer made was done so without this customer considering all of the costs or expenses that may be incurred by him to have the necessary foundation and level of understanding necessary to procure proficiency with his online purchaseHe didn't purchase a pair of pants or a shirtHe purchased a very lethal, complicated, and dangerous product if it is not assembled, maintained, and used properlyThere is a process to gaining that knowledge and it requires from the beginning that you make your choices wisely and consider taking responsibility for your decisionsMy goal is to bring an understanding of the truth of the circumstances surrounding these unwarranted accusations and to provide a palpable understanding of how off center they have becomeCorresponding via email is the most difficult way to communicate the tangled web of interpretation that surrounds most differences of opinionIf you will not subscribe to the notion of talking about it first, you are holding your opinion based clearly on the premise that you have a complete and total command of the factsIn this case, it should be considered within the realm of possibilities that the customer whom is always right...just might not beIt would be helpful if this customer would at least acknowledge this possibility before he presses to discredit a business that has little to gain from continuing a one sided dialogueWe have earned a very solid reputation and a wonderful customer base that represents a long standing mission of our store to deliver our products and services with honesty, integrity, accountability and with valueI have most likely already lost the possibility of salvaging a business relationship with this customer but money simply isn't at the forefront as to why I will take the time to defend the truthI don't want his moneyIn the end here, I will make a documented donation to a deserving charity amounting to the amount of money that he claims he was defraudedIt will not be in the form of a refundI will apologize in advance if I seem bitter but that's what you get when you are exhausted with the effort of trying to find resolve when the other half of the conflict has nothing to gain from the truth of the matterThis customer began his solicitation of possible services that he was needing by emailing us notice that he would be in our area on Saturday morning and telling us to make sure that our bow tech was there at 8:because he needed to talk to him to make sure that he had assembled the new crossbow that he had just purchased from AmazonThat's not quite how it works, but our bow tech would certainly be at the store on that Saturday morning because lots of people would be in this time of year to seek products and services that we offerThat would be great and we are happy to help himHe ultimately, decided to purchase a service that we offer to all customers that purchase a crossbow from us as we are the entity that performs this task of proper assembly on every bow we sellWe do not levy an additional charge for this to our customerWe accept it as a necessary component of the purchase and it stems from our desire for our customers to begin their new adventure with a solid basis and understandingAs mentioned, his particular crossbow was purchased on Amazon according to the customer but that in no way impacted our desire to help a fellow archer to be safe with his new purchaseNormally, it would have been great to have been the entity from which he made his original purchaseHowever, we will never know if that would have been the reality of the experienceIt would have probably saved him a lot of money in the long run but that was water under the bridge at this pointUpon his Saturday morning visit, Tim asked to see his crossbow and took it back to the workshop and began to look over his bowOur standard protocol is for the customer to leave the bow with us so that we can perform service on a first come first serve basis and offer our expertise thoroughly and undisturbedFrom years and years of experience, we believe this to be the fairest system we can follow for the well being of all partiesTim had made an exception because of the advance notice the customer had given us to simply look the bow over and to make sure that it would be safe for the customer to shoot the crossbowUpon examination, Tim went through the assembly and found the head screw to be loose and the crossbow to be out of timeA loose head screw on a crossbow could spell disaster on many levels and could easily have led to serious damage to the bow or to the shooterAfter Tim tightened up the head bolt, he told the customer that it would be fine to take to the farm and shoot the bowHowever, Tim discovered , through trained observation, that this crossbow was "out of time"Being out of time, Tim told this customer that he would likely experience left or right point of impact deviation as a result of being out of time but the bow could be shot safelyTim did not charge the customer for evaluating his crossbow, tightening the bolt head screw, or for informing him of the timing issue and the results he would experience if he elected to take it down to his farm to shootUpon hearing Tim's evaluation, the customer elected to leave the bow with us to be put back in time and to return upon its completion and pay for a safety briefing, have the bow sighted in, and to spend up to minutes to become comfortable with the proper shooting and care for the crossbowUpon his return, all of these tasks were performedThe bow was put back in time, sighted in at yards, and a one-on-one safety briefing and shooting session took place to insure his proficiency with his new crossbowIn hindsight we learned of this customer's skepticism regarding the sighting in of the bowWhen a crossbow is sighted in, it is sighted in for the person that shot the bowIt's the same with a crossbow as it is a scoped firearmThis is basic, and although its understandable that not everyone realizes this, it is of no obvious importance to even acknowledge on the front end of a sight in session because it is irrelevant when we know that this fact will all take care of itself because the sighting in of a bow during the briefing, will automatically include the shooter himselfThat's not to say that two different people may have the same point of impact but that is not the protocol you should follow! This customer remarked that it was shooting a few inches low and therefore it must have not been done, and he also added that we had to put some rail lube on to finish the sighting in procedure somehow inferring that since we added lube to rail before it was tuned to him that it must not have been sighted in from the beginningTwo things are wrong about this assumptionFirst, again, the bow needed to be shot by the customer himself because the definition of sighting in is subject to the person shooting the bowThe fact that rail lube was applied before he began to finalize the sight in, is correct to do so to eliminate as much friction of the string on the rail as possibleError on the side of caution! After we do the preliminary sight in, any residual lube is wiped down so that it doesn't find its way into unnecessary crevices and to just keep the bow cleanIts ridiculous to find ourselves in a position having to defend this minor observationAt this end upon the customers return from the archery range to the retail showroom, Tim asked this customer if he was comfortable and the customers reply was that he was now ready to go! All was good up to this pointWe had been reassured by the customer's verbal statement and that was the affirmation that we needed to move on to the next customerEverything seemed in order...until we received an email from this customer which began to undo all that had been doneThis is when I, Doug ***, became involved to gain a comprehensive explanation as to how we could now be accused of fraud and misrepresentation? Through a thorough examination of these accusations, I have tried to retrace how we could have possibly gotten to this point? It is easy to critically evaluate every step of the processWe are human, we are not perfect and although it is our goal to please everyone that steps through our door, it is sometimes unattainable regardless of our intentWe performed every task that we charged him for and did so with the confirmation that he was satisfied and with equal importance, ready and capable of using his new crossbow safely and competentlyAgain, this customer said he was ready to go! All of the subsequent rhetoric on the part of this customer is beyond frustrating! We have tried to have numerous verbal exchanges with this customer so that we can have a dialogue for the purpose of satisfying his skepticism and complaints but this customer has refused to provide us with that opportunityI do not know this customer personally, but if I were him, I would have called the shop looking for me to find some answersI am not difficult to find and would have gladly discussed the situation and pursued the truthAgain, he has never returned our phone callsI do not wake up each morning trying to find a way to take advantage of my beloved customersThey are the reason I love what I do and I absolutely love to see them grow ever more competent with their equipment so that they can have the best possible chances for success in the outdoorsI do not enjoy having anyone upset with our business and anyone who knows me, knows that about meI believe that reasonable people have the ability to work through any differences of opinion and I am certain that this could have been concluded long ago had that opportunity been givenI cannot say where his skepticism of the services that we say that we have provided, began to accrueIt was apparent that after he had made contact with the manufacturer of the crossbow, and the representative that he spoke to said that his new crossbow should have been in time because that is how they leave the factory....did not help our cause!! Although this goal may be true, the reality is much different and something we deal with nearly every dayVarious circumstances may cause a bow or crossbow to be out of time, meaning that the two cams or wheels on a bow are not at the same rotational position either at rest or upon firingThey are not working in unisonA problem, very much a part of the archery worldThe materials used in the construction of cables and strings of a bow are vulnerable to heat, cold, and can change when exposed to eitherThey stretch at various times and cause changes that are not idealMoreover, any time they are new, they have not been subjected to the strain of the bow upon usageGiven that a bow has been timed upon installation, this still does not guarantee in any way that upon shooting the bow, that the strings and cables will not stretchWhen they do, the two cams or wheels will begin to rotate out of unisonIt is common and easy to evaluate if you know what to look atFixing the problem, requires expertise, a bow press suited for crossbows, and the ability to manipulate the cables and strings to achieve the goal of making the two parts work as oneIt is not a subject matter where we would even begin to make the statement that we would show him how to keep his crossbow in timeFirst of all, that is not feasibleEvery modem bow and crossbow will at some point experience a timing issue, eventually, if not from the very beginningSecond, the remedy for that subject matter would only be shared with a coworker or employee and could not be entertained without lots of sophisticated equipment to even have the opportunity to show and discuss the methodsThe statement given on the part of the manufacturer's representative that this customer spoke to was both ignorant and irresponsible and simply implied that we must have performed an unnecessary task and milked him for the proceedsMy employees have never worked on a commission basis and there is simply no motivation for them to sell you anything or perform any service that is not truly warrantedIf I didn't understand the truth of the matter and someone who represents the manufacturer made that claim then, I too, would be skeptical of our claim to have performed a task that wouldn't have been neededIt is reasonable that he came to that conclusion upon discovering opinion of the manufacturer's representativeThe reality, however, is that might have been the fuel that steered this ship into a disasterIt is not fair but what can you do if you are not given the opportunity to discuss reasonablyThis business wasn't built by deceiving people or embarking on deceptive practices as a way to milk someone out of their moneyThat never has been the case and it never will beThis is a family business that started from nothing but a hope, a prayer, determination, a strong work ethic, sacrifice, and the desire to be respected by our customersWe provide honest goods and services with honest business practicesWe are in our 39th year of business and this principle will not changeI hate it that there may be even one person out there that may think otherwiseIf the other issue that this customer may have, centers around the idea that he may have been shortchanged for the lesson lasting less than minutes, then for that I am sorrySometimes a lesson lasts minutes and sometimes minutes depending on the skill level, type of archery equipment, and the feedback of the customers understanding of their equipment at lessons endEither way, we are there to provide answers to any questions that are sure to arise and to help guide them through the process of becoming proficient with their bow or crossbow and have an understanding of how to apply this information on their ownIn the end I feel compelled to explain that the construction of this response was done so for the benefit of all parties who may take the time to fully understand the facts of this complaintMy intent is not to persuade anyone to conclude anything beyond what I have discovered as the pathway of this disputeIn any case, it is regretful that the result has been met without any acceptable degree of satisfaction by either partyThis examination has not lacked any effort on the part of myself or our staffWe are always in pursuit of satisfied customers, both professionally and personallyAt days end, I have to be able to lay my head down in good conscience and know that we have completed our responsibilities with integrity, dignity and an effort to succeed in life, not just businessThat is my driving forceI wish that I could simply apologize and offer compensation but that just doesn't feel like an acceptable response that I can digest at this point
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
[Provide details of why you are not satisfied with this resolution.]
Regards,
[redacted]
The venom in the tone of this rebuttal is what I would expect from this shop. I`ve had many hunting buddies tell me, after I had already dealt with them, that you never take anything to the Outdoorsman, because they will always claim something is broken, out of adjustment, and/or, inferior, but they will sell you what you need. I asked for the $95 I was taken for to be returned, and for an apology, but clearly, as the business stated, they just "cannot digest that". The money is far more valuable than their reputation.
I will consider contacting the Indiana Attorney Generals office, but either way, every single person I come in contact with will hear about my experience with the Outdoorsman, and the fraud perpetrated upon me.
Revdex.com: I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted] , and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below [Provide details of why you are not satisfied with this resolution.] Regards, [redacted] The venom in the tone of this rebuttal is what I would expect from this shopI`ve had many hunting buddies tell me, after I had already dealt with them, that you never take anything to the Outdoorsman, because they will always claim something is broken, out of adjustment, and/or, inferior, but they will sell you what you needI asked for the $I was taken for to be returned, and for an apology, but clearly, as the business stated, they just "cannot digest that"The money is far more valuable than their reputation I will consider contacting the Indiana Attorney Generals office, but either way, every single person I come in contact with will hear about my experience with the Outdoorsman, and the fraud perpetrated upon me
Roman">This is a situation that has several layersI say this because, although I have spent many hours working to understand the complaint issued against our store and worked hard to discover where our system may have failed, it remains unclear how this customer could even begin to feel justified in his remarksI can find nothing about his complaint that warrants his tone, rhetoric, disrespect, or unwillingness to even begin the process to work towards an understanding and solution to his complaintIt occurred to me the most probable reason that this customer has no interest in talking about his dissatisfaction is because he too knows that it truly has no basisSince the customer involved will not return any phone calls, it has been left to me to attempt to gain an understanding of the basis of his complaintAfter numerous discussions with my staff, the manufacturer, and by conducting a thorough investigation as to exactly what is said to have occurred, it appears that the goal of this customer was to raise enough controversy for the purpose of bullying both the manufacturer and our storeMaybe his illustrated outrage is a result of discovering that there were some additional unplanned expenses associated with his decision to make this purchase and to both begin the process of shooting it and gaining some degree of proficiencyHe is not the only person that has to work within a budget and we have all experienced situations in our lives that cause unplanned expensesI can only guessRegardless of the reason, it now appears his agenda has evolved with the intent to regain as much value as he can from us both as he has blamed everyone but himself for purchasing a crossbow over the Internet that fell short of his expectationsPerhaps it came from Amazon with the expectation for it to be in perfect working order and for him to have suddenly accumulated a comprehensive understanding of this equipment through a minute safety briefing, sight in, and lesson on how to safely operate his new crossbowThat is the equivalent of deeming , as a result of having taken a ten hour hunter safety course, the student can now leave the class upon completion and has suddenly become an expert hunter possessing all of the knowledge necessary to be considered proficient and a safe handler of a lethal weaponIt just doesn't work that wayThe services that this customer purchased from us included a presentation of the same information following the same procedure that our staff performs hundreds of times a year without incident and most often, resulting in a heartfelt thank you from those that we prepare with a valuable introduction to their new purchaseUnless it is made known through our interaction with our customers during this presentation, we simply do not have the insight to interpret the results of a customers level of understanding and comfort level from anything other than his answer of, " I feel I'm ready to go" at the close of the lessonThis is exactly what we are seeking and this is exactly how the lesson concluded with this customer who has issued the complaintTim asked this customer that very question upon conclusion of the lessonHow it has all changed remains to be a mystery and although I cannot say with certainty, I have tried diligently to attempt to understand it for what it isIf there were anything else that we needed to do to satisfy this customer, it was not disclosed to any of our staff, period, until his emails beganIt has been a morale killer for both myself and our staffI take this very seriously and have given every effort that I can muster to understand itIf he needed or wanted more then he had the ability to disclose that to us and we would have taken the time necessary to go over it all againIt really isn't rocket science and it is fairly straightforward and is offered as a means of avoiding injury to the shooter and to attempt to avoid the destruction of the equipmentI say this with compassion knowing that we all need help to undertake new endeavors that we are unfamiliar and we are all about bringing archers along but we do need their input to know when an end has been metVery few businesses of our type even attempt to provide this service but we recognize the importance and value that it can bring to the entire archery experienceWe want fellow archers to succeedI make no apologies for the fact that we charge for this service for those who have chosen to acquire their equipment elsewhereIf his particular lesson offered less than he was expecting, then please tell us that you need moreObviously that feedback was not provided upon what had been considered a completion of this goalMy staff and or I would have gladly seen to it that he was fully informed and truly comfortableWe would never intentionally leave someone feeling as if they had been slighted or shortchangedThat simply is not how we conduct our businessI recognize that my claim may sound bold but that is exactly what I believeIn the end, with having no direct dialogue with this customer as a result of his choice, I have studied the emails that he has sent to the manufacturer and realize that his objective is quite clear at this pointI find his discrediting behavior and actions to be unwarranted and unfair as it possesses the portrayal that suggests that everyone else should be expected to bow down to a person whose sole objective is for everyone else to be held accountable for his mistake or misfortuneNone of us are an island and we owe it to each other to find compromise and a resolutionIn order for that to happen, however, both parties must work together to accomplish this goalThat is the reality of this situation whether I or this customer likes it or notPurchasing products via the internet from sources that often do not or will not disclose the origin of the products they are listing, leaves the door open from the very beginning for potentially unforeseen problems or circumstancesIn this case, the only thing that was missing when the crossbow was brought to us was one of the two screws that fasten the accu-draw cocking device to the stockA screw hole takes a screwGlue is not a part of the short term remedy unless the hole was stripped and that concept would only be offered knowing that it would possibly get you by in the short term if you had no other solutionWe didn't have a screw of this type available to remedy the issueIt wasn't even discussed at any length beyond the fact that it was recognized as missingIts significance to the claim only became a topic as his barrage of opinionated inadequacies became dramatized within his emailed complaintRegarding the missing screw, his discontent should have been directed to the entity which sold him the crossbow in the first placeHad this customer asked us to get him one ordered or implied that he was focally concerned , through dialogue, we would have addressed it and sought a long term remedyRemember that the significance of this screw may easily have gotten lost by both parties during the lesson because there were multiple subjects being discussed at that time and it was not significant to the immediate safety and usage of the crossbowThrough our reading of this customers corresponding emails to the manufacturer which were requested by us for the purpose of gaining a more complete understanding of his complaints, apparently the zipper on the soft case that was part of his purchase, was problematicAgain, this crossbow was not purchased directly from the manufacturer or through our store yet he held the manufacturer accountable and he demanded that he be sent a new oneHis demands were unfair and were unwarrantedHe had purchased this from a third party who had sold him a less than ideal product and the rest of us, apparently were going to pay for what has ultimately been his mistakeTypically, the manufacturer who is not in the position of factually knowing what has exactly transpired, will always tend to side with a disgruntled customer and perform whatever they deem necessary to compensate the fastest way they can to dissolve the problem and make the customer find resolution to his complaintAs a business owner and human being, it is always my intent to fmd resolve to difference of opinion and bring fairness to both partiesThat is always my first desire and is logically what I will inherently try to achieveAccountability is a part of my everyday life as it is for many people and I want to believe that most people subscribe to the notion of trying to resolve differences respectfully and with mutual interactionGetting to that point can sometimes be challenging, but it has to involve dialogueBeing right is not my focus to the extent that it is the only thing that matters in a disagreementI recognize that there can be situations where we may not deliver what a customer believes he should gain from his or her purchase of a product or serviceAny time that I believe that may have occurred, I will step up and make it right with my customerhit simply not focused on making an individual sale to a customer for example who purchases a new bow every years, I am interested in developing a relationship that includes our store as a chosen destination for all of the products or services a customer may want for as long as he or she is interested in all of the awesome activities that our store representsIn over years in retail I have never had a situation arise where I was not contacted by a customer that was not happy or felt wronged that I did not apologize and do everything I could to create the opportunity to regain my customers confidenceAs much as I hate it, it is a statistical fact regardless of our intent to conduct our business in a manner that eliminates that from occurringSometimes it is impossible as much as I hate to admit it because I will do everything within my power to attempt that from ever happening as long as I am aware of it and the customer is willing to engage me and allow me the opportunity to fulfill my responsibilityI will bend over backwards to be fair and honest and admit when there is reasonable doubt that we may not have delivered as promisedIn my opinion, the purchase that this customer made was done so without this customer considering all of the costs or expenses that may be incurred by him to have the necessary foundation and level of understanding necessary to procure proficiency with his online purchaseHe didn't purchase a pair of pants or a shirtHe purchased a very lethal, complicated, and dangerous product if it is not assembled, maintained, and used properlyThere is a process to gaining that knowledge and it requires from the beginning that you make your choices wisely and consider taking responsibility for your decisionsMy goal is to bring an understanding of the truth of the circumstances surrounding these unwarranted accusations and to provide a palpable understanding of how off center they have becomeCorresponding via email is the most difficult way to communicate the tangled web of interpretation that surrounds most differences of opinionIf you will not subscribe to the notion of talking about it first, you are holding your opinion based clearly on the premise that you have a complete and total command of the factsIn this case, it should be considered within the realm of possibilities that the customer whom is always right...just might not beIt would be helpful if this customer would at least acknowledge this possibility before he presses to discredit a business that has little to gain from continuing a one sided dialogueWe have earned a very solid reputation and a wonderful customer base that represents a long standing mission of our store to deliver our products and services with honesty, integrity, accountability and with valueI have most likely already lost the possibility of salvaging a business relationship with this customer but money simply isn't at the forefront as to why I will take the time to defend the truthI don't want his moneyIn the end here, I will make a documented donation to a deserving charity amounting to the amount of money that he claims he was defraudedIt will not be in the form of a refundI will apologize in advance if I seem bitter but that's what you get when you are exhausted with the effort of trying to find resolve when the other half of the conflict has nothing to gain from the truth of the matterThis customer began his solicitation of possible services that he was needing by emailing us notice that he would be in our area on Saturday morning and telling us to make sure that our bow tech was there at 8:because he needed to talk to him to make sure that he had assembled the new crossbow that he had just purchased from AmazonThat's not quite how it works, but our bow tech would certainly be at the store on that Saturday morning because lots of people would be in this time of year to seek products and services that we offerThat would be great and we are happy to help himHe ultimately, decided to purchase a service that we offer to all customers that purchase a crossbow from us as we are the entity that performs this task of proper assembly on every bow we sellWe do not levy an additional charge for this to our customerWe accept it as a necessary component of the purchase and it stems from our desire for our customers to begin their new adventure with a solid basis and understandingAs mentioned, his particular crossbow was purchased on Amazon according to the customer but that in no way impacted our desire to help a fellow archer to be safe with his new purchaseNormally, it would have been great to have been the entity from which he made his original purchaseHowever, we will never know if that would have been the reality of the experienceIt would have probably saved him a lot of money in the long run but that was water under the bridge at this pointUpon his Saturday morning visit, Tim asked to see his crossbow and took it back to the workshop and began to look over his bowOur standard protocol is for the customer to leave the bow with us so that we can perform service on a first come first serve basis and offer our expertise thoroughly and undisturbedFrom years and years of experience, we believe this to be the fairest system we can follow for the well being of all partiesTim had made an exception because of the advance notice the customer had given us to simply look the bow over and to make sure that it would be safe for the customer to shoot the crossbowUpon examination, Tim went through the assembly and found the head screw to be loose and the crossbow to be out of timeA loose head screw on a crossbow could spell disaster on many levels and could easily have led to serious damage to the bow or to the shooterAfter Tim tightened up the head bolt, he told the customer that it would be fine to take to the farm and shoot the bowHowever, Tim discovered , through trained observation, that this crossbow was "out of time"Being out of time, Tim told this customer that he would likely experience left or right point of impact deviation as a result of being out of time but the bow could be shot safelyTim did not charge the customer for evaluating his crossbow, tightening the bolt head screw, or for informing him of the timing issue and the results he would experience if he elected to take it down to his farm to shootUpon hearing Tim's evaluation, the customer elected to leave the bow with us to be put back in time and to return upon its completion and pay for a safety briefing, have the bow sighted in, and to spend up to minutes to become comfortable with the proper shooting and care for the crossbowUpon his return, all of these tasks were performedThe bow was put back in time, sighted in at yards, and a one-on-one safety briefing and shooting session took place to insure his proficiency with his new crossbowIn hindsight we learned of this customer's skepticism regarding the sighting in of the bowWhen a crossbow is sighted in, it is sighted in for the person that shot the bowIt's the same with a crossbow as it is a scoped firearmThis is basic, and although its understandable that not everyone realizes this, it is of no obvious importance to even acknowledge on the front end of a sight in session because it is irrelevant when we know that this fact will all take care of itself because the sighting in of a bow during the briefing, will automatically include the shooter himselfThat's not to say that two different people may have the same point of impact but that is not the protocol you should follow! This customer remarked that it was shooting a few inches low and therefore it must have not been done, and he also added that we had to put some rail lube on to finish the sighting in procedure somehow inferring that since we added lube to rail before it was tuned to him that it must not have been sighted in from the beginningTwo things are wrong about this assumptionFirst, again, the bow needed to be shot by the customer himself because the definition of sighting in is subject to the person shooting the bowThe fact that rail lube was applied before he began to finalize the sight in, is correct to do so to eliminate as much friction of the string on the rail as possibleError on the side of caution! After we do the preliminary sight in, any residual lube is wiped down so that it doesn't find its way into unnecessary crevices and to just keep the bow cleanIts ridiculous to find ourselves in a position having to defend this minor observationAt this end upon the customers return from the archery range to the retail showroom, Tim asked this customer if he was comfortable and the customers reply was that he was now ready to go! All was good up to this pointWe had been reassured by the customer's verbal statement and that was the affirmation that we needed to move on to the next customerEverything seemed in order...until we received an email from this customer which began to undo all that had been doneThis is when I, Doug ***, became involved to gain a comprehensive explanation as to how we could now be accused of fraud and misrepresentation? Through a thorough examination of these accusations, I have tried to retrace how we could have possibly gotten to this point? It is easy to critically evaluate every step of the processWe are human, we are not perfect and although it is our goal to please everyone that steps through our door, it is sometimes unattainable regardless of our intentWe performed every task that we charged him for and did so with the confirmation that he was satisfied and with equal importance, ready and capable of using his new crossbow safely and competentlyAgain, this customer said he was ready to go! All of the subsequent rhetoric on the part of this customer is beyond frustrating! We have tried to have numerous verbal exchanges with this customer so that we can have a dialogue for the purpose of satisfying his skepticism and complaints but this customer has refused to provide us with that opportunityI do not know this customer personally, but if I were him, I would have called the shop looking for me to find some answersI am not difficult to find and would have gladly discussed the situation and pursued the truthAgain, he has never returned our phone callsI do not wake up each morning trying to find a way to take advantage of my beloved customersThey are the reason I love what I do and I absolutely love to see them grow ever more competent with their equipment so that they can have the best possible chances for success in the outdoorsI do not enjoy having anyone upset with our business and anyone who knows me, knows that about meI believe that reasonable people have the ability to work through any differences of opinion and I am certain that this could have been concluded long ago had that opportunity been givenI cannot say where his skepticism of the services that we say that we have provided, began to accrueIt was apparent that after he had made contact with the manufacturer of the crossbow, and the representative that he spoke to said that his new crossbow should have been in time because that is how they leave the factory....did not help our cause!! Although this goal may be true, the reality is much different and something we deal with nearly every dayVarious circumstances may cause a bow or crossbow to be out of time, meaning that the two cams or wheels on a bow are not at the same rotational position either at rest or upon firingThey are not working in unisonA problem, very much a part of the archery worldThe materials used in the construction of cables and strings of a bow are vulnerable to heat, cold, and can change when exposed to eitherThey stretch at various times and cause changes that are not idealMoreover, any time they are new, they have not been subjected to the strain of the bow upon usageGiven that a bow has been timed upon installation, this still does not guarantee in any way that upon shooting the bow, that the strings and cables will not stretchWhen they do, the two cams or wheels will begin to rotate out of unisonIt is common and easy to evaluate if you know what to look atFixing the problem, requires expertise, a bow press suited for crossbows, and the ability to manipulate the cables and strings to achieve the goal of making the two parts work as oneIt is not a subject matter where we would even begin to make the statement that we would show him how to keep his crossbow in timeFirst of all, that is not feasibleEvery modem bow and crossbow will at some point experience a timing issue, eventually, if not from the very beginningSecond, the remedy for that subject matter would only be shared with a coworker or employee and could not be entertained without lots of sophisticated equipment to even have the opportunity to show and discuss the methodsThe statement given on the part of the manufacturer's representative that this customer spoke to was both ignorant and irresponsible and simply implied that we must have performed an unnecessary task and milked him for the proceedsMy employees have never worked on a commission basis and there is simply no motivation for them to sell you anything or perform any service that is not truly warrantedIf I didn't understand the truth of the matter and someone who represents the manufacturer made that claim then, I too, would be skeptical of our claim to have performed a task that wouldn't have been neededIt is reasonable that he came to that conclusion upon discovering opinion of the manufacturer's representativeThe reality, however, is that might have been the fuel that steered this ship into a disasterIt is not fair but what can you do if you are not given the opportunity to discuss reasonablyThis business wasn't built by deceiving people or embarking on deceptive practices as a way to milk someone out of their moneyThat never has been the case and it never will beThis is a family business that started from nothing but a hope, a prayer, determination, a strong work ethic, sacrifice, and the desire to be respected by our customersWe provide honest goods and services with honest business practicesWe are in our 39th year of business and this principle will not changeI hate it that there may be even one person out there that may think otherwiseIf the other issue that this customer may have, centers around the idea that he may have been shortchanged for the lesson lasting less than minutes, then for that I am sorrySometimes a lesson lasts minutes and sometimes minutes depending on the skill level, type of archery equipment, and the feedback of the customers understanding of their equipment at lessons endEither way, we are there to provide answers to any questions that are sure to arise and to help guide them through the process of becoming proficient with their bow or crossbow and have an understanding of how to apply this information on their ownIn the end I feel compelled to explain that the construction of this response was done so for the benefit of all parties who may take the time to fully understand the facts of this complaintMy intent is not to persuade anyone to conclude anything beyond what I have discovered as the pathway of this disputeIn any case, it is regretful that the result has been met without any acceptable degree of satisfaction by either partyThis examination has not lacked any effort on the part of myself or our staffWe are always in pursuit of satisfied customers, both professionally and personallyAt days end, I have to be able to lay my head down in good conscience and know that we have completed our responsibilities with integrity, dignity and an effort to succeed in life, not just businessThat is my driving forceI wish that I could simply apologize and offer compensation but that just doesn't feel like an acceptable response that I can digest at this point
Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint. For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
[Provide details of why you are not satisfied with this resolution.]
Regards,
[redacted]
The venom in the tone of this rebuttal is what I would expect from this shop. I`ve had many hunting buddies tell me, after I had already dealt with them, that you never take anything to the Outdoorsman, because they will always claim something is broken, out of adjustment, and/or, inferior, but they will sell you what you need. I asked for the $95 I was taken for to be returned, and for an apology, but clearly, as the business stated, they just "cannot digest that". The money is far more valuable than their reputation.
I will consider contacting the Indiana Attorney Generals office, but either way, every single person I come in contact with will hear about my experience with the Outdoorsman, and the fraud perpetrated upon me.