Analysis of Early Bronco Vendors with Survey

[doghows72]

It might be just me but I think a large majority of products are all from the same manufacturer? All the vendors get them from the same supplier. I know some of them do make their own or mostly have them made for them.
My personal favorites are Toms and WH's. There is a couple of companies I won't buy from even if their price is half of my favorites. I won't go into why here.
That being said I personally prefer customer service before during and after the fact. That is the number one for me period, I'll pay for the help and advise all day long because it will save me big $$ in the long run.

 

[DaveLev]

Customer service is very high for me, but the results up above make it appear that the quality of parts is #1 for many.
No need to mention the companies you support or don't here in this thread - not a vendor shout out or bashing thread. Just seeking to understand as a new bronco family what motivates people to choose whom they chose.

I have over 20K into our bronco (although it still looks like a $4,000 bronco), and all vendors have benefited from our spending. However, it has taken spending to figure out who we will do business with again and again.

I should note there are a lot of smaller vendors who do a lot for the bronco community and fly sort of under the radar. I just stumbled across a site (like Etsy for broncos) that sells stickers and shirts and stuff I haven't seen at other places. If those products were at other vendors, I probably would have bought some by now, but this marketplace was unheard of by me before I poked around in the vendor forums.

 

[Faster Eddie]

I read 63% of this post, 90% of the time. When I'm looking for a part it's because I need it to complete a job. I don't mind spending a few dollars more if I get the part sooner and can move on to the next project.

Ditto


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[DaveLev]

Help me formulate the next round of questions. Once I hit 100 votes, I'll post a new one.
Potential survey questions:

Street Cred + Shipping Cost
Shipping Cost + Product Availability
Product Cost + Shipping Cost
Product Cost + Quality
Quality + Shipping
Street Cred + Quality
I have a friend who works there

etc. Post suggestions!

 

[sykanr0ng]

It might be just me but I think a large majority of products are all from the same manufacturer? All the vendors get them from the same supplier. I know some of them do make their own or mostly have them made for them.
My personal favorites are Toms and WH's. There is a couple of companies I won't buy from even if their price is half of my favorites. I won't go into why here.
That being said I personally prefer customer service before during and after the fact. That is the number one for me period, I'll pay for the help and advise all day long because it will save me big $$ in the long run.

/\/\ There is a vendor that I only buy from if they are the only source for the item.

 

[Scoop]

I support the vendors who support the Bronco community. The ones you see at Bronco events. The ones who participate in the hobby. The ones who sponsor our events. These are the folks who deserve our support.

 

[DaveLev]

+1 with Scoop...great feedback and we all appreciate your support of the vendors, too (and of idiots like me here on the boards who don't know the difference between a wing nut and a piston return spring)

 

[jw0747]

You must be an engineer

My guess would be engineer, a retired NASA scientist who worked on the Apollo program or a simple retiree with too much free time. Hope you never have to make a quick decision concerning something life threatening.

Why didn't you just list the vendors in a poll or is that your next poll or your third poll?

 

[DaveLev]

Ouch!

I am seeking to understand what the determining factors are for going with a vendor. People tell me all the time who is their favorite vendor is, but I want to understand the reasons why.

Put differently, I don't want to know who everyone's favorite vendor is or put any vendors in the position of having to defend themselves. This is not a competition, and I support all the vendors that I can. Especially ones that are sponsors of this site. I have learned a ton in a short amount of time because of hopeful people.

 

[welndmn]

...d I went with the lowest prices on every piece I ordered.
..

.
In addition, I believe in truth in advertising: If your part is a made in USA part, advertise it as such. If made overseas, ie Taiwan/Peoples Republic of China, please say so. It is discouraging (ie - buyers remorse) to open a box and find what appears to be low-cost substitutes for OEM parts that say 'made in Taiwan' on the bags before you open them.
.

This here is an issue. There have been numerous studies done on this, and time and time again, cost always wins. I've personally sold both a Made in USA and a Made in China part, the USA part was 20% more expensive and it was it discontinued after 2 years because of lack of sales.
While most people say they want a made in USA part, the sales numbers don't lie.

So for Vendors, it also has a lot to with with personal relationships. We are a small community and meeting that vendor on a trail run or a show, or knowing the name of your favorite parts guy at a vendor makes a large difference.

 

[bronconut73]

Ouch!

I am seeking to understand what the determining factors are for going with a vendor. People tell me all the time who is their favorite vendor is, but I want to understand the reasons why.

Put differently, I don't want to know who everyone's favorite vendor is or put any vendors in the position of having to defend themselves. This is not a competition, and I support all the vendors that I can. Especially ones that are sponsors of this site. I have learned a ton in a short amount of time because of hopeful people.

Ok....

I go to Duff's almost exclusively because I have Mike's personal mobile phone number and can call him for eb or fishing advice at anytime.

There....I said it....
Not fare I know...but it is what it is.....lol.

Just kudding,
I go to Duff's because so much of their product line has been vetted for years. The weak links have worked them selves out of their system.

I don't have to think about it. I know that they have the best shit. I don't have to do much research....I just call them.

And yes.....I actually do bug Monster Miike a lot.....haha....sorry Mike.

 

[DaveLev]

I find it interesting that as we approach 100 votes, not a single vote was cast for 'best return policy' being the #1 reason why someone would chose a vendor. Yet, I've heard time and time again (not just in this thread, but privately) that they go with a vendor due largely in part of their generous return policy. It just isn't the #1 reason they go with them, but it is important.

 

[Eoth]

I find myself spreading my money around only because they carry different parts. I have yet to find one with far superior service over the others. If the same item is sold by multiple vendors then I go with price.

 

[DaveLev]

Thanks Eoth. Vote if you have not. I hope to get this poll to 100 by this weekend if possible.

 

[DaveLev]

We are at 88 - vote if you have not - spread the word. Heading out for a few days - hope to see 100 when I get back!

 

[DaveLev]

Just 7 more votes...please respond to survey everyone, and have a great weekend!

 

[englewoodcowboy]

I shop at most of the vendors and have no complaints with ay of them. Most have quality stuff and the few items I have had that were bad were dealt with in a timely fashion. I do use a few more than others simply due to their location to me as far as shipping. It's not so much the price as it is the transit time now that I am building broncos for a living. I'm close enough to Duffs that I get that stuff in one day, graveyard 2 etc.

 

[jw0747]

What exactly are the survey's results going to tell us? It's titled "Analysis of Bronco Vendors with Survey." Is it really an analysis of bronco vendors or the shopping preferences of Bronco owners or something else? The final results will indicate the number of shoppers who selected a certain preference but those numbers don't relate to any vendor. My preference is reasonable cost and customer service but the survey won't tell me which vendor provides the best cost and customer service. Somewhat confused here.

 

[DaveLev]

I did my own analysis of the cost differential of a dozen vendors, and it is eye opening for sure, but honestly this survey is just that - the shopping preferences, and what motivates people to pick a vendor or repeat business with a vendor. It appears - even with a small sampling above - that if someone wanted to create a new bronco parts business that as long as they were selling high quality parts and were close by the purchaser they may do pretty well. But honestly the price wars are already going on from vendors who sell quality parts, which as consumers of said parts we benefit from and all, but the vendors may ultimately loose out as they find a way to cut costs of parts (ie - look overseas). Just my opinion, of course.

 

[DaveLev]

An example of this is National Parts Depot. They've been around as a company a long time, they've been selling bronco related parts for a while now (not sure how long - 10 years?) and the cost of shipping is low. However, they get negative reviews for their customer service (they aren't bronco people answering the phones, etc) and for quality (some parts sub-par and sourced overseas). Again, this thread is not to bash a specific vendor or praise any of those 'made in USA' vendors, but rather to analyze the shoppnig patterns.

A survey in the forums would not provide the answer to what is the lowest cost.

A survey posted here for 'who do you think provides the best customer service' may get me banned from the forums. We all have our favorites, and the reason for going with them. Probably 30 people have told me privately who their favorite or worst is over direct messages. I tend to agree with most of them.

In no particular order TBP, James Duff, and WH get a LOT of love/praise. Probably 95% of those who responded privately - again, not a large sampling - have mentioned this to me. Whether or not people actually are spending thousands of dollars with them or once a year buying a $2.95 door handle clip or $15.00 t-shirt I have no idea.