Fine lines... iFish.net or ILie.net?

[Jennie@ifish]

Interesting...
I spoke with some people at the Sportsmen's Show who never post, yet picked up a hat and said thanks for ifish.
One of the things I heard was that people like to try and figure out how honest some of us are.
Like, "Are they really biting there?" or, "Did they really catch them on that?", etc.
After reading some of the biz complaints posts, I have to stop and think.
First thing that occurs to me, is that it is good to have ifish! It keeps businesses on their toes! That is good for good customer satisfaction.
But then, on the flip side: It takes one customer, who may just have a temperamental personality, or who got mad at one salesman... Perhaps what you are hearing is the honest truth.
But...
Perhaps the salesman didn't represent their company in the best way on one occasion, and that customer comes here to complain.
Perhaps he is so hot headed that he blows it out of proportion...
That just doesn't seem fair.
All in all, just be careful what you read and believe, right?
You can't take ifish for truth all the time. That's half the fun!
Many larger businesses know now, not to respond to bulletin board arguments, because there just isn't a winning solution.
Someone IS going to take a stab at every businesses someday on the Internet. Could be a miffed relative with a masked moniker, could be your ex wife!!! :smile:
YIKES!
So, it's a good policy that they just not defend themselves and to properly ignore it.
However, in other circumstances, it may be good to offer the correct information to the customer...
But how can they tell when it is a good time?
Public forums can be a crazy place!!!
How do you feel larger manufactures and companies should handle bulletin board activity?
Jen

[whitewaterbill]

They should read and watch the others reactions to the subject....And also offer advise when and where it will be helpful.

I normally read the instructions of the supplier or manufacture soon after I break the first and most important part.

Bill

[STGRule]

They probably should ignore it. Usually we get as many people defending as trashing. Readers can believe or not based on their own experience. I like to know how people are treated. But always take what is said with the proverbial grain of salt. If I don't know them, there has to be some agreement from others to see a trend. At the very least, you know what kind of questions to ask and have something to gauge the answers by.

[ampersat]

let's start with an example. i was up at oxbow today and the guy just downstream from me had a fish on (just when i was about to give up on the spot and head to another area). i stopped my own fishing and stood by to observe. fiesty little brat, maybe six pounds; he had on 8lb test and was letting the fish have as much of it as it wanted. i tried to be helpful and positioned myself downstream to help tail the fish (i asked before doing so). long story short, the fish wasn't very comfortable with my presence and made several attempts to stay away from me which resulted in my new found friend's loss of his very first winter steelhead. he lost it at the mainline knot when the fish bolted. shoulda loosened that drag a little.
we talked a bit and got back to fishing. he said his friend wasn't going to believe him that he'd actually hooked a fish. i told him i'd cover his story. sure enough, here comes his friend. sure enough out of the corner of my eye and with half an ear, the story is transmitted to said friend. said friend then addresses me to confirm this fish story. by my word, i did testify that he indeed had a fish and lost it, fair and square.
so far, this is just a fish tale. however, it did get me to thinking about how this whole thing might have looked to his friend. he wasn't there, didn't see a thing. this young man had nothing to go on but his reputation and the word of a complete stranger. and a fisherman, no less! aren't we known for tall tales that get bigger with every telling? how could this guy have believed me?
we are a brotherhood of fisher men and women. when someone next to us needs a swivel, do we not lend it? or a corkie, some yarn, scent, spinners, lead, tobacco, etc. - whatever is needed, we generally will offer graciously and not accept money for.
that's what this community of ours is about. we offer what we have. some of us are a little more zipperlip about locations and technique, but that's alright. others quite openly share techniques and locations. some folks grumble about how they were treated at a given shop; other people write about how well they were treated at another shop. i think you'll find out the truth as more people chime in on a subject. one person grumbles and ten more come back and agree; you see the trend. one person grumbles and ten come back that this was not their experience at all; you see the trend.
this board is about sharing our opinions. on fishing, on boats, on lines, reels, rods, lures, whatever. bottom line and pardon my language but here's one of the best lessons i've learned in life thus far: opinions are like ******** = everybody's got one and most of them stink.

[invader]

first let me say that was a great post jen!! as i think most products that relate to fishing are good, on any one day any rig may catch fish!!, and they need not worry about a message board that might put down anything they offer!. kinda wonder though how much we as fishermen that post to this or any other board, might stretch the truth a bit too!!.....john

[Jennie@ifish]

I just took a quick sniff...
My elbow doesn't stink!
Jen

[FM2]

Having been the captain of a company that had over 20K customers I would believe any business associated with a DB could and would respond to posts. Now maybe not all would be appropiate when they get to the flaming stage but a positive attitude leads to a positive result.

I have expressed my satisfaction/disatisfaction with business folks on this board and whole-heartedly believe a single persons testimony speaks about their "EXPERIENCE" with the company. Word of mouth has such a tremendous impact in our world today, especially with forums such as ifish and others, that if a company chooses to ignore or not respond to the people who are at the grass roots level of the desired product, they may have hurt themselves in a much larger way than anticapated. Large companies have the luxury of many customers from diverse cultures and backgrounds but if they choose not to understand the ways of the information highway and word of mouth, they too will feel the power of the web.

Customer service is so vital to a company's success that unless the right people are in place, the negative publicity will grow and fester much further than the company can realize today!

Ifish is a powerful entity and I personally believe what I read here is not a lie. If someone is not happy with what is posted then please visit another site. Jenny puts alot of hard work into ifish especially into the image of being a responsible, truthful, open, and learning site for everyone who visits.

My $.02 :smile:

[Catch 22]

I believe that we all should post our experiences with businesses pertaining to fishing. We all share the love of fishing in one way or another. We all spend a portion of our paychecks at businesses that supply us with what we need to fish. If I post how I had a horrible experience at "ABC" store and had the best at "XYZ" store, I don't expect anyone to stop shopping at "ABC" store and do all their shopping at "XYZ". However, wouldn't it be sad if we were all ripped off by a company that a few members had previous problems with if they never posted because they didn't want to be "whiners"?

Side note:
What I can't stand is someone who will go back to the same shop over and over again and always complain about how terrible the service is. STOP GOING THERE THEN!! It seems so simple to me. It's not the DMV!!! We have many choices in the Northwest to buy fishing gear. Put your money where your mouth is. Spend your portion of your paycheck where you feel you get treated right. Spend it where the people actually care about you (or at least act like they do).

[Salmonator]

Jen, people have told me you didn't know your elbow from your *******. I didn't believe them 'till now! :tongue:

[Chris Sessions]

I think ifish is a great resource for making friends and sharing fishing stories and info and sometimes is like a "consumer reports" on fishing related products and businesses. It appears to me that most ifish members are not very shy when it comes to serious stuff (fishing) and will voice their position positive or negative. Let the chips fall where they may. I also would encourage anyone who has a secret or semi secret productive fishing area to LIE LIE LIE LIE LIE like a dog!

[wiser]

Salmon Shark,
My dog is a Jack Russel Terrier and she doesn't lie much. Sort of like me. I try to tell it like it is. I don't give all the exact spots but I have been giving info here all winter and I still have plenty of room to fish the same drifts I've fished for years and I still catch as many or more fish than anyone else fishing those spots. To each their own.

[ 02-10-2002, 10:55 PM: Message edited by: Wiser? ]

[Sam I Am]

Jennie, I am fairly new to this fantastic forum, and I would like to thank you for helping me to get started in the right direction for posting replies to this board. I have been one of those people who have visited alot and enjoyed the diversity of opinions from many lovers of the sport of fishing and outdoors.

The times of today have blossomed the opinions of people in reference to our American right of speaking up on subjects that interact with our lifes. I welcome discussions on topics of fishing and would appreciate the comments from anyone connected with them, be they fisherman or buisnesses related to the sport.
This forum is loaded with great information,insights,opinions and yes humor! I wouldn't want it any other way!
Once again, thank you Jennie for a great job and the opportunity to enjoy a great informational avenue.
P.S. How the heck do I paste one of those gremlins on my replies? I have a smile for you!! Thanks

[omnivore]

I'm with you Wiser?!
This board's success depends on the truthfulness and respect for others. Credibility is earned when readers perceive that the information posted here is reliable. 'Lurkers' and members probably will dwindle in number if they feel that the material they read are not worth their time. What's so great about this discussion board is that so many truthful, credible, specific, and even humorous information related to fishing abound here. Having been here just a few months, I am beginning to notice who's straight and who's evasive with what they're putting out.

As far as product feedbacks are concerned, I think it's great to see a plethora of both positive and negative comments from the consumers. I think this is mostly positive for the consumers whom often lacked the power and a voice to speak out when they were wronged. Along with some negative cries, there are numerous acolades for certain models of reels and rods, etc. I should buy their stock, if I had the money! Many corporations and larger companies have the resources to advertise and market their products, which is a powerful voice on their part. So I think it's nice to see us consumers getting some leverage via the Internet. This should also help serious businesses to pay closer attention to the people who patronize their products.

Finally, I think those who are responsible for running this should take a pat on the back for managing and encouraging a relatively civil discourse by the members. Most of you probably know how some other boards are...ungood!!!

[ 02-10-2002, 11:51 PM: Message edited by: omnivore ]

[Perfect Drift]

As one that recently posted about a boat dealer, does one really gain by stretching or elongating the truth. Only gain is the brain has to remember the lie so you can get it right the second and third time.
-customer service, how would you handle this (2/5)
My reasons for posting are two fold, to vent and to see if others have similar complaints about this dealer. Guess I should have posted the dealers name. A guy gets a little crankie after not having his boat for four weeks.
I work in a customer service position and my number one chore is to please the customer. And that doesn't mean you give away the family store but it does mean if you tell or promise someone you'll do something, you follow through or you make it right. A really nice, I'm sorry letter saying we really dropped the ball on this one, you are very important to us and I can do better, let us try. Or, here is a discount or something to show we goofed and we value you as a return customer. When I am treated without that respect my neck hairs go up. The best we can all do is to -
treat others just how we would like to be treated.
With respect, with you are just as important as the guy spending 30K on a new boat and to follow through with things we say we will do.
Should dealers read these posts, absolutely !! Should they respond to them here, NO. In person.

[Thumper]

Wiser --- I knew you were a smarter guy than most of us. Another JRT-owner here.

[Pilar]

Well said Ampersat ... everybody has one.

Salmonator that was hole in the ground from your *******, not elbow.

Caveat Emptor as the Romans said. Let the buyer beware.

Some people have an axe to grind on a public forum. Luckily for us they are easily spotted. As many have said, there is a lot to learn here and not just about fishing. IFISH is a keeper ...IMHO.

[Jennie@ifish]

One of the great things about the computer age is the immediate gratification of being able to emotionally respond right away. You can shoot off an e mail spontaneously, as your temper flares, etc, rather than taking the time to sit down, pen a letter by hand, and mail it.
This, however, can also be the short coming of such an age.
When I pen a letter by hand, I tend to be more thoughtful. Perhaps I go back and edit it, after a day of thinking, before the mail goes to the box.
Sometimes I decide I have changed my tune, and I don't send it at all.
Something to consider, anyway...
Jen

The truth.