Navigating the Deal – Which company do you choose?

A lot of times people get stuck in the “How much” phase of a deal and will often give up so much more in exchange for a “better price”. This article will help you avoid the pitfalls and inform you into making a better decision as a whole, rather than in part.

Let’s say that you have a close relative that is unable to safely walk stairs anymore and you need something to help them up and down. So, you decide that a stair lift is a good option.

You decide to call on two companies to price out the job. Company A and Company B

Company A comes out to the home, does an assessment, and quickly narrows down the stair lift that will work best for the setup in the home, but also the individual that will be using it. Everything that Company Ais saying looks and sounds good. The price seems a bit higher than what you expected.

So, you decided to call on the efforts of Company B. They also come out to the home, do an assessment, and quickly narrow down the stair lift that will work best for the setup in the home but also the individual that will be using it. Everything that Company B is saying also looks and sounds good. Surprisingly the price is lower than Company A’s price. You decide to go with Company B! *CLASSIC MISTAKE*

 

Nine times out of ten, the first thing people are consumed with and often let dictate their decision is price.  Service, integrity of the company, and differences between the equipment are often an afterthought. This is not a good practice to have because while Company B’s prices are indeed lower, Company A is offering a much better deal. 

Let’s examine the deal a little more closely in the different categories:

Company A offers the following warranty: Lifetime on the motor and gearbox, 2 years on parts, and 1 year on labor.

Company B offers the following warranty: Limited lifetime on motor and gearbox, 2 years on parts, and 1 year on labor

*The key word here is “limited”. Unfortunately the word limited leaves so much room for argument of validity on the end of the dealer and or manufacturer. It’s not something that favors the end user.

Company A is a local company with parts for all their lifts already in storage. This means that if you have an issue and need something replaced, you get it replaced right away.

Company B is a sub contractor of a Manufacturer and if part needs to be replaced, they have to send that part to the Manufacturer first and then wait for a replacement later.This means that you are stuck without the use of your stair lift until the warranted part is approved and delivered.

Company A will answer their phones 7 days a week from early in the morning till late at night. The people that answer the phone can answer any questions you have and can help you troubleshoot any issues over the phone. They can also schedule a repairman to take care of the issue that day or the next.

Company B is strictly a 9 to 5 operation. If you do call afterhours you will get two options: leave a message and someone returns your call in the morning OR talk to an answering service that will not be able to diagnose any issues … both options do not get you taken care of. If you happen to call on a weekend, you will have to wait till Monday for someone to call you back. Not good. 

Sadly, you can only attest to the integrity of a company after the fact that business has already been done. There are steps however that you can take to investigate it a little further. The Better Business Bureau is a good website to investigate a company’s standing with current clients. They also grade companies on an A+ to an F- scale. It works exactly how it worked in school.  Another option that works well is doing an internet search as follows Company B customer complaints. A lot of times this will rend viable, unbiased results from customers just like you who have dealt with that particular company in the past. In all of this, you never know until you do the research. So, do your homework and know before you buy.

Company A is offering a top-of-the-line stair lift that comes standard with all the prominent safety features you would come to expect.

Company B is offering a similar stair lift… however, it is an older model, it is wider, and it doesn’t include a lot of the safety features that Company A includes.

In Conclusion, when you take all this into consideration it is easy to see where the better deal lies. Company A, although slightly more expensive, is the better deal. My hope is that if you are even in a position of choosing between two companies, that you would choose the company based off of the overall package versus saving a few bucks. And you never know, Company A may have used equipment, rental equipment, or gently used equipment that comes in under Company B’s prices.

RampNOW is like company A. We strive to provide the best product and service available. We also have very competitive pricing. We never use sub-contractors and we answer our phones EVERYDAY from early in the morning till late at night! 

Remember… when it comes to Integrity, Warranty, and Service, RampNOW is number 1.

 

Best of luck!