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Good Business

  • audio
  • technology
By michael lee ⋅ June 4, 2008 ⋅ Post a comment

I just got bailed out of another gear jam by Sweetwater. They run a very, very good business.

  1. I always talk to the same person, Trip. He’s been my rep for 5 years. The guy before that was my rep for 6 years. Low turnover in a position like sales tells me they’re doing something right.
  2. Trip knows everything I own, and what I do with it, and can make intelligent recommendations based on that. He understands the gear as well as I do. Those of you who shop at Guitar Center will appreciate how valuable that is.
  3. There have been times when I’ve called to purchase something that I think I want, and he’ll talk me into something else based on his own experience. It’s even odds on whether the new thing costs more or less. Just today he talked me into a pair of stereo mics that were $200 less than the pair I was looking at, because he’s convinced that the price difference isn’t worth it for our application (live sound).
  4. Get in, get out, get paid. I have a job to do, so does he, and the phone calls are always very quick and to the point. I can’t stand sales reps who try to engage you in “casual conversation” to “make you feel at home” with them. I need one thing from you. Send it.
  5. They save me money. Their prices are cheaper than our local stores (even here in LA), and they look for ways to cut the cost down on large purchases. We just ordered about $2000 worth of mics, snakes, cables, stands, etc., and they’re picking up the tab to ship it overnight to us. Nice.
  6. I called once to see if they could match the price on a ridiculously cheap Shure SM7 from another sales company. Their response: “Whoah! That’s really cheap - sorry man, we can’t do it. You should buy it, that’s a great deal.” No trying to talk me out of it and into another mic, no attempt to pitch me their “superior level of service” as a reason to buy from them, nothing. Just the truth. I feel like every time I talk to them, I get the straight. I like that.

When I was 21, had no money, and was trying to scrape together the first few pieces of my professional rig, I spent hours on the phone with the sales rep (Alex, the guy before Trip), picking his brain, trying to figure out what I needed and what I didn’t. I would call for 20 minutes, ask a ton of questions, and then end up not buying anything. I was never once made to feel like I was wasting his time.

Now, I make pro audio purchase decisions for myself, for a touring ensemble from our school, for our church, and for the 200+ students who come through our school of music. I don’t always buy from Sweetwater, but I always start with them. I also get asked all the time by students who are buying their first mic, or their first keyboard, where they should go. I always tell them the same thing. “Call Sweetwater. You’ll thank me in 10 years.”

That’s my little unsolicited advertising for the day. I like this company. I love how they do business.

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Discussion

21 comments for “Good Business”

  1. Word on Sweetwater. That’s a first class joint.

  2. Mike, you should really send this over to the Consumerist - Consumerist.com. Great site. Lots of stories of good and bad retailers and businesses. More bad stories than good ones, for one simple reason:

    You ever hear the retailers creed? “If a customer has a bad experience, they tell all of their friends. If they have a good one, they usually tell no one.”

    I don’t use Sweetwater, only ’cause they don’t shill the kinda gear I need. (Video, Film, etc) But I do have a similar love affair with a particular print shop in the Valley. All Printing in Van Nuys is the shit. I’ve been printing all my work with them for years. Small jobs, HUGE $25,000 jobs, and everything in between. Their prices are competitive, their turnaround times are fair and fast, and get this: They actually care about your opinion, and the quality of their work. Sure, I’ve had my share of screw-ups with them, but they always make it right, and never make the same mistake twice. (Something I can’t say about other print houses)

    As a die-hard consumer, I really get jazzed about businesses who do things right. Not the cheapest, not the fastest, not the newest - the best. A little service goes a hell of a long way in my book.

  3. You reach a point, too, where lowest cent isn’t always the last word. I’m willing to pay more to know that I’m working with someone I can trust, and to know that there are no surprises on what they will deliver.

  4. I do all of my music purchases for my schools through a company called Anaheim Band because simply put, they deliver a quality product and provide excellent customer service. Some of the other local vendors in my area of Orange County do not actually repair things they promised, jack up their rates, etc. A little customer service goes a long way. And for the record, I too have had good experiences with Sweetwater…as opposed to the guy at Guitar Center who could not answer my response of what the difference is between active and passive pickups…

  5. I concur about the experiences with Sweetwater. I, myself have been a client of theirs for about 6 years now. Great service and it’s good to have you own sales representative to help you along the way.

  6. I was just at Sweetwater’s Gearfest 2008 last Saturday in Ft. Wayne. I can’t begin to articulate what a first class outfit it is. For starters, they go to work in a $35M building that is set up to accommodate many of the employees’ needs (like on-site barbers, pack-n-ship, etc.). They also have a huge, centrally located diner/chow hall that allows the employees to hang with one another while they’re not doing business. Indoor golf games, rec area, and a set of recording studios that are multi-million dollar build-outs. Even the tile and commodes in the lobby men’s room are higher quality than anything I’ve ever seen at Home Depot. This is not to mention that they do so much online and by-phone business that their site is actually a Fedex hub.

    It’s pretty spectacular. And their business model is such that the employees wanted to quit whatever they were doing before and move to Ft. Wayne to work at Sweetwater. It’s actually fairly Apple-like. They’re not the first to sell instruments and gear online, just the best by a longshot.

  7. That’s cool to hear, Corey. I can understand why they hang on to sales reps for so long! I mean seriously, what other consumer sales outfit do you know who has the same guy answering the phones after 5 years? And is still pleasant to talk to?

  8. Agreed. Nothing but good experience with Sweetwater.

  9. One question…how long does the catalog have to live in the bathroom before it is okay to throw away? This is the predicament that plagues the wife of a “gear slut”. I have learned over the years that said catalog, “is not junk mail, honey!!!”

  10. Honey, it’s the only porn we’re allowed. Celebrate.

  11. Erica, you can throw the catalog away once the things in the catalog start showing up on Craigslist with the word “vintage” next to them.

  12. Or the Winter catalog arrives.

  13. That’s when the summer catalog moves to the library. In a dust cover.

  14. Erica, I feel your pain.

  15. Ok, so again….

    When I visited your house (for a week) I found approximately 0 porn, give or take 0 percentage points.

    We’re complaining about Sweetwater?

  16. It’s mostly hidden in the subliminal subtext of June’s paintings. They’re all about boobies.

  17. Gotcha.

    Figures.

  18. Zack, I submitted this to consumerist, as you suggested. I also emailed a copy to Sweetwater. No sense in keeping good reviews quiet, I guess.

  19. Oh man, I’ve been found out. Shoot.

  20. Prone.

  21. Lord, I feel it.

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