what keeps you going back?

[niloc16]

i was just curious what keeps you going back somewhere to get your stuff.

[fishytime]

I voted customer service but I also considered price when I frequented other LFS. I refused to spend money at a couple lfs because of a lack of customer service and bad advice.

[niloc16]

You can choose more than one option

[SeaHorse_Fanatic]

It varies.

If the location is far away, but the price/customer service is good, then I will make the effort to go out there once in a while.

If the location is really close by, then I'll pop in out of convenience (whether I buy much will depend on selection & price of livestock/goods).

Rarely go to big box stores though. Generally poorly informed, poorly trained employees compared to smaller LFS.

Overall, the most important factors are probably customer service (if I don't like the people, why bother spending my money supporting their store?), selection of livestock (oooooh new corals), and price (wow, I can afford to actually buy what I see).

[whatcaneyedo]

I can buy anything I want online and get free shipping 90% of the time so location and customer service doesnt apply. Also, all of the retailers who are online serving this market are aware of their competition so drygoods and prices are pretty much the same throughout the industry. What makes me drive +800km several times a year to a LFS is to see the livestock in person and not just a stock photo.

[Myka]

I voted for everything except location because I don't care where it is, that's what shipping is for! I shop in many different places because no one vendor can give me everything I'm looking for. First, and foremost though I refuse to pay too much. I don't care how good the personal customer service is, I think good prices is part of customer service, so if the prices suck I find that to be ignorance of the vendor. So to me, price and customer service is the same thing. I like to chat with the employees/owner a bit, and am interested to have some more in depth conversations about different methods or results from experimentations, but when people say they don't mind paying a bit extra at a more expensive shop just because the customer service is good I just gawk at them, I don't get that. I won't pay for that, but maybe that's because I've been in the hobby since the early 90s, and (trying to say this in a humble way) I don't need much help.

For dry goods I buy wherever it's cheapest, period. For livestock, I go wherever has what I want. I will pay what I think it too much for a rare fish or an exceptional coral.

[iansfishy]

If I can phone somebody, and have a conversation with them, even if its not fish stuff the whole conversation thats always nice. Also if I need something they will go out of their way to get it and not give me the " yeah we'll have it when we get around to ordering from that one distributor", but order it that day. In the end its all about price, if you give me a good price and if you know me personally, Im going to be loyal.

[Snappy]

As a hobbyist I voted customer service & livestock, if pricing is good even better but it's rare that pricing alone determines my buying decisions. I don't mind paying a little more for good service & high quality livestock because you generally get what you pay for.

[xtreme]

I refused to spend money at a couple lfs because of a lack of customer service and bad advice.

When I first got into the hobby I used to shop all the LFS here in Calgary, but now there are a few I don't even bother going to anymore because of this. Customer service and livestock selection are most important to me.

[lastlight]

You haven't listed warm hugs but I doubt Doug wants me to say much about that.

[marie]

I remember a similar question years ago and I answered that I would buy from anyone who would ship to me and then realized shipping is just another customer service (and so is an up to date website).
So answer this time is customer service is what gets me spending my money there and keeps me coming back :mrgreen:

[fishytime]

You haven't listed warm hugs but I doubt Doug wants me to say much about that.

:lol:....The hugs are just for you Brett....:mrgreen:

[Skimmin]

For me I think it's a combination of all those things. I don't expect the lowest price but I expect it to be fair, and if it's not I HAVE to go else where(I unfortunately don't have the capital of a doctor or lawyer lol). Customer service along with quality livestock is probably the biggest one for me. I frequent two LFS and the others occasionally. One because I like the people there, yet I don't buy much based purely on price point. On that note their livestock is typically some of the best around and I will buy, if I see something I really want. The other has worked out really well, because the people, price point, dry goods, livestock, and customer service are exceptional. Its tough to find a store that harbors all those characteristics but after finding one I won't be going elsewhere anytime soon

[Puff]

didnt realize it was multiple choice :(

i chose livestock, but i also think customer service is equal.

i can deal with paying a bit more as long as the customer service is good, the livestock is of high quality, and the store is in good condition.

[Slick Fork]

I chose customer service and price. I refuse to accept that if a store in Vancouver can ship it to me (for free) in Central Alberta, the Calgary stores "can't match the price because of extra shipping" and I have NOT found a single store in Calgary that comes close to what I can buy drygoods for "shipping-in" from the coast. As a result, I do probably 90% of my drygoods business online with t5 bulbs and "odds and ends" being the only things I tend to buy locally. I realize most stores will price match, but really when the info is out there for anyone to see online I really shouldn't have to beg.

My other beef with the local stores, is I can buy the EXACT same products from each and every one of them (talking dry-goods here) They all carry the same lines of T5 bulbs, powerheads, T5 reflectors, MH Ballasts, etc. so if I want something different like say an ATI bulb I have to mail order it in. I know there are other considerations when deciding what to stock but I can't figure out the logic because at that point all you are competing on is Price. Anyways, my point here was that variety of products to choose from should be on the list

As far as livestock goes, I don't like ordering online as I've had poor luck in the past and I like to actually see what I'm buying. In the livestock department I'm very happy to see that the local stores diversify and have different things as health of livestock and honest, knowledgeable customer service is extremely important. If I don't feel I can trust the word of the guy selling me the fish/coral I won't buy.

[Pazil]

Typically you will always find in the polls of whats most important to a consumer that the top three things will be (in order);

1. Customer Service
2. Selection
3. Price

I am always willing to pay a bit more for better service and the retailer / wholesaler having the products on hand that I want. There are places that I know sell some things that I get on a regular basis for work for less than what I pay.... but I just find that not having to deal with certain people or stores is just not worth saving the few bucks.

[danny zubot]

I voted customer service and location. Location, not because of where the store is, but because of where I am. With no LFS to speak of for decent salt supplies, I always order in from the coast now. They've always been very good to my self and other reefers out here in the Kootenays.

[dkcrx]

As a hobbyist I voted customer service & livestock, if pricing is good even better but it's rare that pricing alone determines my buying decisions. I don't mind paying a little more for good service & high quality livestock because you generally get what you pay for.

x2:mrgreen:

[Parker]

I chose customer service. A store could have the best prices and selection but if the staff are too busy talking about what they did last night instead of giving me a hand then I refuse to shop there. I don't like to / won't beg a store to take my money.

I'll gladly pay a little extra if the service is good.

[untamed]

I will deliberately pay more for any particular item if I feel that the store has invested any customer service value into me.

Nothing frosts me more than a consumer who spends an hour of a person's time getting advice...and then asks the store to match another retailer who doesn't make the same investment. Good advice and employee time is not free!

That's why I'm not a retailer. I would lose my mind if a customer did that to me.

[Ian]

I voted customer service. As a relative newcomer to salt I need to rely on the store giving me good advice and being more concerned about my success than just making a sale. I keep a few books in my car when going to LFS' just to double check information I am being given but still have made a few mistakes purchasing livestock because I trusted what I was told. Needless to say those stores are not seeing me often now.