If you had to choose between a big clock shop with no website, or a big website with no clock shop, you should go with the clock shop.

Most, if not all, major clock shops have a website. Their website gives details about their store, their service department, how long they have been in business, and complete address information. Some even include a map with instructions for finding their showroom. They will also provide addresses or web links for you to verify the legitimacy of their business. However, there are many beautiful clock related websites that even though their website is impressive, they do not have a clock shop or showroom. Some of these website businesses are operated out of the back of a truck, garage, or the person's house and the factories don't know anything about them. It is impossible to get a valid address for them, or to contact them if you have a problem with their merchandise.

If you are considering the purchase of a new clock, it will be worth your time to read the following story.

Don't let this happen to you!

The seller presented a beautiful website but there was no store or showroom street address.

Grandfather clocks were offered at prices that were way below what the shoppers had seen.

There was a phone number, but when a shopper called it, he only got an answering machine that screened his call.

The shopper left a message on the answering machine stating that he wanted to buy a clock.

The shopper them received a call and was questioned to be sure that he was not from another shop, the factory, or from the law.

When the seller was asked where his showroom was, he said they were remodeling their showroom, and that they had a relative in the business that would get the clock for him.

The seller explained that the clock would be shipped direct from the factory.

The seller asked for a credit card number for identification. and then the shopper was given an address that he could use for mailing a check.

The shopper checked with the factory and discovered that the seller of the clock was not listed as a dealer, and the factory had never heard of them.

Because he was saving so much money, the shopper decided that it is worth taking a chance.

When the freight truck arrived, the buyer opened the box to check for damage. Finding none, he signed for the clock, and the freight company left. A couple days later he discovered that he did not receive the clock he had ordered. Although the seller listed the correct model number and weight on the box and on the freight bill, the clock he shipped was a much cheaper model. After checking around, the customer discovered that he could have purchased the clock that he actually received for a lot less money from his local clock shop.

The seller now had a signed freight bill showing that the customer had received the clock he ordered.

The buyer tried calling the seller to try and find out why he had received a less expensive clock than the one he paid for, only to listen to a answering machine. He never heard from the seller again.

The customer called the factory for help. The factory told him that they had no record of any drop-shipment from them to his location, and that they had never sent any merchandise directly to the people who took his money. They explained that while any misrepresentation or fraud on the part of an authorized dealer would result in the revocation of his dealership, there was nothing they could do to help a customer in this circumstance. The factories have no control over bootleg or grey-market dealers.

Fact

When you purchase anything from a dealer that is listed with a factory as an authorized dealer, you do have a large amount of protection against fraud.

Once you sign a freight bill, it would be hard for you to prove that you recieved the wrong item if the freight bill matches the invoice. The credit card companies accept a signed, itemized freight bill as proof of delivery.

Your local clock shop can usually give you your best value, will almost always give you your best service, and if you have a problem, you will deal with a person and not with an answering machine.

If you were given a price that is too good to be true, or a lot less than the average price you are hearing, it may be too good to be true.

It pays to shop, and all legitimate dealers are in business to sell their product, so there is no reason that a legitimate dealer will not be just as competitive as a bootleg dealer. Prices with authorized dealers may vary more than 20%, but If a bootleg dealer is offering an item for a lot less, it could be because it is either an inferior product, it is not what he will actually ship to you, he ships freight damaged and returned merchandise, or he doesn't plan to ship you anything.

The Solution

Make sure the dealer has an address that is listed with the phone company or is in the phone book.

Make sure that if you call the number listed, you talk to a person and not an answering machine that is used for screening calls.

Make sure that the dealer is listed as an authorized dealer for the product you are buying.

Take a look at their showroom. You can tell a lot about a dealer by looking at his showroom. If the merchandise is displayed in a manner that reflects pride in the product, the dealer is most likely proud of his customers. However, if the merchandise is just stuck on the floor and the dealer shows no pride in his product, he will also not have any reason to worry about what his customers think about his business practices.

This public service information
provided by Creative Clock of Eugene, Oregon