What's up w/ Mike Basso

[ztnoo]

Just got this news from the Topica list.
Thought all who have orders on the front burner with Mike, might want to know this.

David Campbell, Editor, 181 Magazine wrote:
"I just got off the phone with Mike Basso. He's in the hospital with an
infected arm and asks that anyone with orders pending for Things Unlimited please be patient. He'll get to them as soon as soon as the doctors say he can. Like me he's a one man shop and it doesn't take much to upset the cart.

I guess he got a sliver in a finger that got infected and took off up his
arm.

I'm sure we all wish him well."

[Kubelmann]

Steve, Thanks for posting this news on Thing lists. I am not sure what do beside send good thoughts and prayers for Mike's speedy recovery. Wish I lived closer to pitch in a hand. K-mann

[Scamutz]

Any new news? I have a couple of major purchases that I've beet trying to make for a few weeks now, but phone calls/emails have not been returned. Man, I'm thinking it's got to be pretty bad if he hasn't been able to even post a message somewhere with an update...

Mike in Tampa
'74 Thing

[markie61]

Read all about it in this thread
- all has begun to get better
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewto ... 6fbb4b7cfd
Mark

[Scamutz]

Ahhh, cool. I must have gotten bounced off of the Topica list...again.

Thanks.

Mike in Tampa
'74 Thing

[Kubelmann]

I have received more than a bit of voiced concern 9 via telphone, email and other forms of communication) about Mike. If anyone has received parts or had communication with him, please post it here. I have made a number of attempts at contact and none have been successful. Mike is my firend first and a Thing guy second. I am in Colorado buried in my life and have been unable to confirm that he is on the road to good health and family well being. Please resond. More later, K-mann

[CapnDavy]

Yes, Mike is fine.. or was Monday when I talked to him by phone. My order arrived on Thursday Sep 15.

[ztnoo]

The soothsayer foretold.....but blind eyes and deft ears ignored the obvious...
_____________________________________________________________

----- Original Message -----
From: "Kubel Mann" <kubelmann@att.net>
To: <things@topica.com>
Sent: Monday, September 26, 2005 6:50 AM
Subject: RE: [VW-181] Mike B. updates?

I too have sent multiple requests for parts from Mike B via email and phone message. I too have gotten no reply. I hope Mike is OK and that he will again resurface in the Thing community. I have sadly gone to other sources to get some sorely needed parts. If anyone learns anything new please update us all. It would be nice to support Mike's efforts if we are able. More later, K-mann

-------------- Original message from Michael Morrell <scamutz@tampabay.rr.com>: --------------

I too placed an order about four weeks ago...a body lift. I have not heard
anything; an email has not gotten a response. I actually requested that if
it had not been sent yet to cancel the order, but have not heard anything in
response to that email either. Hopefully he's ok.

It's frustrating, because I finally have the finances and the ok from my
wife to go ahead with the body/suspension lift, and paint...but It's been on
hold for 6 weeks. I had hoped to be finished by this year's Bug Jam..but
it's not looking good.

Mike in Tampa
'74 Thing
___________________________________________________________

-----Original Message-----
From: Salvatore Riccobono [mailto:ricco5@msn.com]
Sent: Monday, September 26, 2005 4:25 AM
To: things@topica.com
Subject: RE: [VW-181] Mike B. updates?
Don,
I have heard from Mike but that is it. I have to think that he is doing what >
he can do. I would only expect the professional thing from him, to contact
the people he has orders with and go forward.
Mike if you are reading this, how are things? lets get some email out to
update all of us that all is well, and that you are getting stronger each
and every day.
Sal
_______________________________________________________________

From: Donald Hunter
Reply-To: things@topica.com
To: things@topica.com
Subject: [VW-181] Mike B. updates?
Date: Mon, 26 Sep 2005 03:03:52 +0000

Can any one tell how Mike is doing? Hope he didn't overdo things and
have a relapse. I ordered some parts the 12th of Sep. via talking to
the answering machine and then following up with an E-mail to Things
Unlimited but never heard anything back. Finally I ordered from another
source and have installed the new Right outer Tie Rod end and adjusted
the toe in. Wasn't able to drive Lili Marlene as the Death Wobble was
so bad. I had gotten a new steering damper from Mike about a year ago I
think and that cured it till recently and then it came back. Running
good again, not too many warm days left here in NE Iowa before we have
to put her in for the Winter otherwise I would have waited on Mike

[markie61]

As I said on the Samba:

"Talked to Mike 2 minutes ago. Took an order from me for a bunch of fuel tank and tuneup parts. Some salient points:

-The damage to his arm is still there and it flares up when he stresses it too much.
-He is not out of the woods yet healthwise.
-He has someone sporadically helping him out.
-He feels very bad that there are a few people out there who are mad at him, but he is doing his best while maintaining his health.

Nice guy - you can't help but root for him"

Mark

[ztnoo]

It's great to hear some substantive and definitive news about M.B.
I do wish him the best in health related matters.
I agree M.B. is a good guy. He has been helpful to me in the past.

But....the question in my mind (and lots of other customer's minds), remains unanswered.
Why isn't The Principal Party, the focus of this thread, communicating directly with buyers individually, collectively online at the forums, and by other means?
Why aren't phone orders left on the answering service and email orders being processed with some reasonable speed?
Is week after week going by, without acknowledgment of placed orders, reasonable speed?
What are the priorities concerning orders? Is there a priority procedure in place to complete orders? Is it first come, first served? Is it who calls first today? Last week? Largest orders first? Vince's old customers first? Just what are the priorities for filling orders?

It's so easy to communicate...and you can bet if my bread and butter was dependent upon selling Thing parts (or anything) to the US and elsewhere, I would sure as hell be finding ways to communicate my personal information and situation as it relates to my ability to deliver to my customer base.
The phone isn't the only means by which to sell products or relay information.
Is it a matter of not understanding the importance of using other means to sell and to inform? Not understanding the electronic methods to accomplish this end? Lack of awareness and good business sense? Or maybe...just not caring.
Ya got me...

Where's the spouse in all of this mess???...if the family bread and butter is dependent on real communication to sell parts and fill orders...one has to wonder.
I would logically think someone would/should grasp the wheel and steer the ship...but no one at T. U. is doing anything in the way of Thing community communications.
Duh.

Why can't someone at T.U. edit the web site to reflect changes in business/personal status, post the current situation at the forums, or answer emails?
i.e. .....direct information from the source, from the horse's mouth?
Seems like the modus operandi is to do nothing regarding giving customers real information, and to continue just muddling along.
Saying "I'm back"...and then things continuing as they have been (for three months now) ...and for an unknown period into the future...without real information from The Business Principal delivering the goods, is...well...just plain stupid and totally disengaged from reality.
Responsible business activities and attentive communications with the customer base is primary to business success...meaning long term survival.

Join the 21st century...quickly...for the customers' sake, please.
In the academic world, the phrase used is.....publish or perish.

[tooter]

As far as I understand, Mike is a one man operation. His parents help out when and if they can, but none of them have the knowledge that Mike has about product and application. Those that attended the show in N.C. Treffen East may have met Mike's Mom and Dad there, we did. I, like Mike, own my own business. My parents and my wife help out, when I am out or sick, but I can only teach them so much. The rest is experience. When you run a business that is more customer service oriented, not just order taking and boxing, the business becomes - YOU. Each of us has probably contacted Mike not just for product, but for advice on how to install or use the part we are buying. I am not defending Mike, I'm just explaining to those of us who may suffer from Wal-tardation, that Mike's business is not just parts and price, but personal service and product; service only he can provide and his family is aware of that. If you have any concerns, when you message in your next order offer to take time off from your job to fly out and help....for free. His doctor bill has got to be out rageous!

As far as e-mail and messages...he's operating on one hand. Try typing with one hand...for business purposes....

[Kubelmann]

Right on Tooter. I too run a one man operation. A few years ago I broke two ribs and it was a rough road to get it together. I could still type but I could not stand for very long. I personally care about Mike much more than I care about the fact that I have not received a number of requested parts.. For most of us owning a Thing is a journey of passion. In that my only concern is that Mike heals. He owes us all nothing. It is the opposite. WE owe him for all his support and hard work and in that should patiently wait for his recovery. I have recently needed a few parts that I was unable to wait for Mike so I got them from alternative sources. My preference would be to buy from Mike but that was not an option.

[ztnoo]

All valid points...and well thought out commentaries.

However...what are we really discussing here?…the ability or inability of a business to deliver dependable, prompt service.
As K-mann’s example cites (not atypical in the last couple of months), if anyone has a Thing down waiting on parts for weeks, and absolutely no information or response concerning your order, what are you going to do?

Simply stated, it’s a matter of pure economics...the desire to purchase something and the desire to sell something.
If one party cannot deliver in a timely fashion, no matter what the reasons, the marketplace will seek its own level, and there will be someone, somewhere, who will be able to supply the products desired and fill the vacuum.
Supply and demand, pure and simple.
If your fuse is running shorting waiting for electronic responses or even the seemingly simple act of connecting by phone...if it gets picked up on the other end...what are you going to do?
Well...you will find another source, obviously...and they are out there.

A business practice due consideration here is the process of delegating. If the key player is incapacitated...he should be proactively delegating work very quickly, or the customer base will naturally shift to other sources when reasonably prompt service cannot be provided. Good managers delegate, realizing they cannot do everything, particularly when circumstances beyond their control occur.

Give someone else the responsibility of packing.
Give someone else the responsibility of answering electronic orders and inquiries.
Give someone else the responsibility of shuffling the paper.
Give someone else those more mundane and general chores.
Concentrate on answering the telephone (a task which can be handled given the situation), taking orders, i.e. doing what you do best, and delegating and dividing the workload. Even if delegating leaves the operation only break-even for now, if the level of service doesn’t rebound to previous standards, the marketplace will decide the future of the business. It may have already made its choice. Continuing operations in the same old way, given new limitations, endangers long-term business viability. New solutions are needed for new circumstances.
Supply and demand, pure and simple.

[tooter]

Ok, good suggestion. Hire a seceretary/reseptionist - $350/week. Hire Shipping Recieving Clerk - $475/week, Hire bookkeeper $450 week, non-CPA. Hire - General Chores to manage Sergent Shipping messes and Private Potty messes - $230/week. Total Payroll not including employer matching FICA, Disability Ins., Unemployment Ins, for these add another 30% of $1505.00 Estimated sales to pay for goods sold, utilities, services, and employees - $5,300/week. Estimated Business income to meet expenses, not including income taxes, benefits, or debt service to suppliers - $270,000/yr. Parts for Thing - Priceless.

So, if we really have something to complain about, I'm back to flying out and helping at our own expense to prevent the "shift" to higher priced and perhaps less knowledgeable competitors. If you are Thingless, consider a "Will work for parts" sign around your neck. Fee giggles and pleasent parts gathering to all!

[Kubelmann]

Tooter ( went to college) or at least understands the general business process..

other comments (clueless)

One man business that supplies broke folks with all their needs (priceless)

For everything else there is Mr. Know It All

This is getting boring to rehash the issue that Mike got hurt and everyone needs to fill their heart(s) with love and wait for the next stage....