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Thread ID: 98602	2009-03-30 22:27:00	Are businesses really hurting in these economic times?	Chilling_Silence (9)	PC World Chat

Post ID	Timestamp	Content	User
760868	2009-03-31 02:22:00	I do have to say, knowing what service Chill's company is providing, it certainly produces huge cost savings. It's just a matter of finding a way to market that, in a way that works...	somebody (208)
760869	2009-03-31 02:25:00	What does your company sell, Chill? If you don't mind me asking...	wratterus (105)
760870	2009-03-31 02:52:00	Bollocks. Your companies purpose is to make a profit. You don't go into business as a charity. Ok, your product/service may involve something that benefits others in a financial way but thats just more salesspeak. Ordinarily I'd let this post go to internet heaven or where ever posts go after no one reads them, but maybe I should clarify/nitpick: the main product/service is literally just reducing other peoples bills. I meant it in the fashion that saying a window cleaning company's purpose is to clean windows. Sure, he gets paid and that's why he's doing it, but the purpose is not to lay bricks now, is it? :P. Chill's company's purpose is to provide X service, but a sales point is that you save Y money. That isn't a 'sole purpose'. If X service was to save you Y money, then that's what I would call a 'sole purpose'. Ahh, the joys of having far too much free time ;).	Neongreen (6358)
760871	2009-03-31 03:12:00	The other thing with the so called savings is that they are compared to retail, these newbies often don't realise how good a deal some companies are already on. The telco's are the worst, they ring and spout all sorts of savings but the deal is not as good as I currently get from everyones most hated phone company. I am involved in some group buying houses and new entrants expect significant savings, but don't actually understand they are already on list less 20% or better already. As Metla rightly says, the time to investigate is not worth the potential saving, not to mention the relationships involved which in these difficult times can count for much more than a few bucks. When you need a supplier to understand your temporary pain it is much easier if you have a long trading history rather then being one who jumped the fence for 20 cents a gig or whatever the supposed saving was. If the new supplier is already giving you a large joining discount he isn't going to want to wait for his money.	bestie (6891)
760872	2009-03-31 03:29:00	You and me both! :D Yeah of course, we're in it to make a profit, its mostly just a nice 'perk' for me, helps me feel better we're saving people money ;) The thing is that these businesses that under cut others to entice new customers, very often don't prove the same level of service or support. They aren't really doing it to give people a better deal, they are doing it to entice new cusomters, and lower prices is one approach. They also have to cut costs somewhere, and it is often in the human support side of things. I would also blame the telemarketers that cold call out of India or other asian countries, on behalf of companies such as Slingshot, as they are impossible to understand, and they don't even know what they are selling. These days people are very turned off by cold calling calls, as there are so many scams out there. People may save a few dollars in the short term, but in the long term it could cost a lot if they have to switch back again. What type of service are you selling anyway?	robbyp (2751)
760873	2009-03-31 03:57:00	Metla & co are right, work is drying up much quicker prior to winter than other years (2 months). Some Govt dept's are cutting out sourced contract work by 30% in some cases, don't ask me to name them otherwise we might lose what is left. Other companies are not getting the work it is just not there. Sealords etc are acting at the right time not holding on until it is too late, any decent bank manager will tell you that.	Arnie (6624)
760874	2009-03-31 04:53:00	wratterus / robbyp, I'm a little hesitant about posting what I do, not because I'm ashamed of it (far from it) but I don't want this to be an exercise in publicity for the company I work for -- That would be double-standards on my behalf with the forum rules. Might PM ya instead ;) I agree, there are so many scams out there, its made it quite difficult to penetrate the market as consumers are soured by the idea of a deal, there is "always a catch"... The economic climate of late seems to have simply eased up consumer spending, people want to hold onto their money in a physical way as it appears to provide more 'certainty' for them. Cant say I blame them really, all the crap thats gone on with investments and banks overseas, dodgy as hell...	Chilling_Silence (9)
760875	2009-03-31 07:25:00	We can't stifle enthusiasm of youth but ...... {here goes from a not-so-old cynic} Once you've taken 100 of these calls you get to a point where you don't actually care what the product or service is. No offence Chill, but if there is that much of a saving to be had, I have either probably found it or I am just not interested. For example, if it is a 50% saving on my internet then I still don't care. Why? I'm happy with my current service provider and the extra $20-$25/month is just not a deal breaker for me. I'd happily pay the extra per month just to know that it is up and running exactly as I want it to 99.99% of the time, as opposed to trying to save $20 with a johnny come lately organisation (again no offence intended). Now if it was something that saved me $1000/month then I'm all ears - but is it real? Andrew P.S. In answer to your original question : Yes businesses are hurting and they are hurting bad. I can also say that all those businesses that pull back on advertising as one of the first things they cut back on, have already done so........	andrew93 (249)
760876	2009-03-31 07:56:00	Yeah, as I said earlier, I have a feeling the general populace has been 'stung' too many times by a bad deal. Most businesses we've dealt with thus far are saving between $200-500 a month on average. Unfortunately its a self-fulfilling prophecy: Cut back on advertising = (generally) less customers = Less cashflow to do advertising next year = cutback on advertising more = vicious circle.	Chilling_Silence (9)
760877	2009-03-31 08:25:00	The company I work for doing high class joinery has no big jobs on the books at the moment unlike last year, but is having a run on smaller jobs so many in fact that we have just had our hours put back up. The house building here in Nelson doesn't seem to be slowing down yet but I know it will as winter comes on.	gary67 (56)
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