Just because the percieved 'norm' for the industry is to receive your hull late, without instructions and hoping god all the bolts fit, it doesn't make it ok. I dont see the net benefit of justifying someone's issues with the mistakes made by companies who have a horrible reputation or they are out of business. To me it perpetuates the problem.
Doing things the correctly shouldn't be some amazing feat. When it happens, it should be rewarded with more business.
For instance:
My JM BB781 arrived when I was told it would, confirmed with tracking, in good working order, with 3-4 pages of instructions. Chris gets my return business.
X2. "Everybody's doing it" isn't an excuse for my kid, why should it be an excuse for a multi-thousand dollar item?
Don't aim to fall in with everyone else's level, aim to have it done like it should be done.
Again, I am not talking about anyone specifically, but rather about the industry as a whole. It isn't hard to figure out how to write up a production schedule and giving a customer somewhat accurate time estimates rather than WAG'ing some made-up number out of the air. Industries world-wide have figured out how to estimate production schedules - it's not hard.
Next, while it may be easier to imply the customer is an idiot that should know better than to ask stupid questions, perhaps the approach with better long-term strategy would be figuring out what the most common questions are and taking a weekend to write up a simple 5-page document with helpful hints and instructions. SBT had this figured out years ago. And while you might risk that some customers won't need the instructions, the ones that do will be very thankful and are sure to comment on that guide when talking about it. Maybe record a couple videos that go over common issues and build processes? You could post that on youtube and reference a link on your web page. Ski Clinic has that figured out.
I understand that taking customer calls all day takes away from your time in the shop. This is a business, not a hobby - start having a) a secretary (fat chance), b) dedicated 'office hours', or c) some other reliable form of communication. PS: I bet having the most commonly asked questions written up in a document that you supply to the customer would take care of a lot of this stuff. But maybe answering the same question over and over with your head in a resin bucket is more fulfilling?
A lot of these aspects are being done right by a variety of vendors. If only they could get together and combine the best practices. Perhaps that will come with time as businesses mature.
