World-Class Customer Service
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Well, this thread was awoken from a long hibernation!
While we're at it, Rivet & Hide has world-class customer service, and I shop there before many of the stateside shops because they bend over backwards to provide a customer experience on-par with Iron Heart.
“Good design is actually a lot harder to notice than poor design, in part because good designs fit our needs so well that the design is invisible” - Don Norman
@zeebeeleather
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Some of the US shops really dislike us and by extension Iron Heart customers because we have given the customers the idea that we'll do almost anything to help them make an informed purchase decision, so they have to too........
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@seawolf Second this. I went into the London shop last year and RnH were awesome. They even agreed to ship everything to me afterwards so that I didn't have to lug my heavyweight purchases around the city for the rest of the day.
I'll also shout out to Simmons Bilt, who were great with regards to making sure that I was totally happy during the ordering process for my custom leather jacket from them.
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@goosehd Exactly.
I've had frustrating experiences with a few US shops and really prefer to deal with Iron Heart or Rivet & Hide whenever possible.
Also, and this was part of a conversation on Facebook the other day, but retailers that only offer store credit for returns makes me run in the opposite direction. For an online purchase of an item I'm not sure about, even with the meticulously harvested measurement charts, there's still a chance that something just won't work out, and having the option to return for a full refund is a safety net that provides an experience that keeps me coming back. There are some shops in the US that I won't deal with anymore because they don't offer refunds. I'll gladly pay the return shipping to the UK if it means I know I'm not going to be stuck with a store credit worth hundreds of dollars.
I'm glad that Iron Heart has set the standard, and I can understand why other shops don't like the extra work it takes to provide a quality customer service experience, but that's the business. And if they want to stay in business selling high-end items, that's the standard, in my opinion.
“Good design is actually a lot harder to notice than poor design, in part because good designs fit our needs so well that the design is invisible” - Don Norman
@zeebeeleather
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+1 for R&H, in person and online, although their London shop is dangerously easy for me to get to (and just round the corner from the British Museum).
I completely agree that good customer service is a major attraction and I think pretty much essential for online business. In person, some places can make the notoriously obnoxious thing work, but that doesn’t do it for me.
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@seawolf said in World-Class Customer Service:
There are some shops in the US that I won't deal with anymore because they don't offer refunds
When I originally built up our "how will we do business:" principles. Offering refunds was to me a no-brainer. Why the fuck would you not want people to buy with the full knowledge that they can get a full refund if it does not work out. One of the keys to successful online selling is to take away as many reasons for not clicking "buy now" as possible.
"OK face up to it - you're useless but generally pretty honest and straightforward . . . it's a rare combination of qualities that I have come to admire in you" - Geo 2011
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@Giles said in World-Class Customer Service:
One of the keys to successful online selling is to take away as many reasons for not clicking "buy now" as possible.
I like to call that “removing friction,” and it’s wildly important in experience design. One thing I’ve always admired about what you’ve built is that IHUK provides a brick and mortar experience in an online shop. I didn’t even know that was possible, but now it’s clearly defined with a lengthy precedent.
And in the nearly 13 years since I created this thread, even with the significant growth that IHUK has experienced, that shopping experience has only gotten better. That’s quite an achievement.
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@seawolf I will 100% agree that your take on store credit versus returns is absolutely the right one from a logical perspective. I will say, at this point, I have found the shops and people that provide good service in the US, mostly through previous purchases, assistance with sizing, and hearing the store manager/owners on podcasts (I’m very grateful to @Olly and Ironcast specifically… it’s very informative to hear their business philosophies and find the people I like to support).
For these shops, I’m happy to take store credit as 1) I’ll almost assuredly be buying from them again, and 2) as I understand, the retail margins on the shops is quite small, and I prefer to support them now for success in the future.
Again: I think you are completely correct from a logical perspective, this is just more an emotional take!
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Just thought of a recent example. Division Road called me to make sure I understood Viberg sizing when I ordered boots from them and the packaging was so nice and with a hand written note referencing specifics of the conversation I had with the associate.
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@Buckeye said in World-Class Customer Service:
For these shops, I’m happy to take store credit as 1) I’ll almost assuredly be buying from them again
A first-time customer has no idea if he/she will be buying from a shop again. Giving credit is a major inhibitor to going through with the purchase.
"OK face up to it - you're useless but generally pretty honest and straightforward . . . it's a rare combination of qualities that I have come to admire in you" - Geo 2011
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@motojobobo Best in the business and having this wonderful forum where we get to chat with staff and also show case other brands too, amazing, I don't know of any other brand that does this, its genius really
I agree R&H are awesome and I always get a really nice handwritten message from Danny and sometimes an email after purchase. Simmons Bilt are exceptional too! -
I’ve bought a ton of things over the years as I’m sure most here have.
I can honestly say that I have had only one or two other superlative customer service experiences that would come close to Iron Heart but they are in luxury brands that don’t compete in the same market. You sort of expect a certain level of service at a price point.
That said, what impresses me most with IH is that they compete in a tough market. Clothing ain’t easy … but what stands out is their breadth of product range, the product innovation the knowledgeable sales staff, and they clearly “get” the customer experience. No other clothing retailer/manufacturer comes close IMHO.
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@Giles said in World-Class Customer Service:
A first-time customer has no idea if he/she will be buying from a shop again. Giving credit is a major inhibitor to going through with the purchase.
Added to that, what if it's an item from a limited run, and you just bought the last item they have, and it happens to be in your size, but you're not sure how you'll like it? Now you're stuck with store credit and you have to buy something you didn't necessarily come to that shop for in the first place. No thank you.
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IHUK customer service is indeed the best. Thank you stubborn crew for all you do for us!!
I've been lucky enough to make it to most of the US IH retailers. My favorites from a customer service / quality of interaction standpoint would be (in no particular order): James Dant (store is huge compared to the rest and also was his senior thesis as a business major in college, only job he's ever had, very cool), Franklin & Poe (unpretentious laid back philly spot), Snake Oil Provisions (can't imagine running a store with my spouse, so cool they pull it off; and maybe you'll catch a little of Ollie's accent if you're lucky), and most recently Guilty Party (Atlanta needed them badly).
I've also had great online experiences with Corlection (interesting selection of items US retailers don't carry), Redcast Heritage (fast shipping, great prices, seem like a nice couple, appreciate what they are doing on the content side), and The Shop Vancouver (definitely best leather selection in the business and probably best social media personality; can't imagine running a shop as a 1 man show).
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@Giles said in World-Class Customer Service:
@seawolf said in World-Class Customer Service:
There are some shops in the US that I won't deal with anymore because they don't offer refunds
When I originally built up our "how will we do business:" principles. Offering refunds was to me a no-brainer. Why the fuck would you not want people to buy with the full knowledge that they can get a full refund if it does not work out. One of the keys to successful online selling is to take away as many reasons for not clicking "buy now" as possible.
I have to concur that not offering refunds is often a reason I don't click "buy now" and prefer instead to buy directly from IHUK. So thank you for offering refunds if it doesn't work out.
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@bluemantra And the number of times I've actually returned something is extremely low, but having the option is extremely important to the user experience.
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@seawolf said in World-Class Customer Service:
@bluemantra And the number of times I've actually returned something is extremely low, but having the option is extremely important to the user experience.
Same here, however, like you say just having that option gives confidence to purchase. Also with other US retailers I find sometimes they sell out of the other sizes if I would need to exchange and then you're kinda forced to find something of equal or lesser value to spend the "credit".
