HYPOCRISY ON THE FORUM !!

[ferryman]

Dear Members ,i have read countless stories of poor service ,bad food,bad attitude etc etc about cafes,pubs,inns,hotels,restaurants on the broads and most of these places have been vilified by a lot of members on here !!

But when a big concern like a boatyard treats a customer so badly the guys wife is crying !! some of you say dont ,NAME and SHAME !! sorry if the staff at the boatyard dish out the bad attitude then we need to know what boatyard it is .the MD from the boatyard can make his comments on here if he as a case against the hirer !!

[Hylander]

Ferryman - this is not the place to name and shame a particular boatyard. If the original poster wants to have his matter dealt with then as he has said he will do it the correct way. Nothing is gained by naming and shaming. We (the Royal We) are not hypocritical as you suggest.

[Brian J.]

I am in rather a quandry about the issue of naming a boatyard that gives appalling service.

On the one hand, I agree that there is a right and proper way to resolve this kind of issue as the OP has said, but if the yard is not named, then how can prospective future hirers know which yards are getting these bad write ups and can then avoid them.

I am sure that if a lot of prospective hirers were to avoid these yards, then the owners would soon recognise that something was wrong, investigate and rectify the problems. Loss of income is a great incentive to improve.

It seems that it is OK to name yards that give excellent service, but not OK to name those that don't.

[Matt]

What you do is tell everyone what you have booked before you go. Then when you get home start a holiday thread saying how bad everything was when you return without naming the yard-simples!

[Happy Jax 3]

Naming and shaming is not what this forum is about, yes from time to time all businesses can get it it wrong, but as already said on another thread it is how they act on dealing with the complaint after the event. We always welcome all views when Broadland companys get it right as this gives good options for members to choose based on good experiences. We all have to remember there is two sides to every incident and it would be unfair to name and shame, if any Pub, Restaurant, or boat yard continually provides poor service, it doesn't take long for the word to spread but the NBN is not the place. I am not always saying it is the case but there can also be an element of personal vendetta against a business especially when someone makes a post for the first time and we need to protect against this.

[Brian J.]

As I said, how can I tell whether a yard as a bad record?

There is no system whereby a yard can be checked for efficiency, friendliness and good standards before I make a booking.

Admittedly, there are reports of good yards, ie. Richardsons and a few others, but for a first time hirer, how do you tell?

I have booked with Silverline solely on reading reports from other forum members. I have no other knowledge or experience to go on.

Suffice it to say, I am looking forward to my week on the Broads on the 15th September.

[C.Ricko]

As Colin says, we can all get it wrong sometimes, I think the main issue is when someone joins a forum to have a go at a business then you never hear from them again, I guess this can seem a bit hypocritical if a respected long term poster comments on a bad experience.

It is not easy for business owners to join a forum to respond as we have to be totally factual wheras sometimes the story 'evolves' to suit the arguement...

generally if a dispute is conducted over a forum then the complainer would be viewed as unreasonable as dirty laundry should not be aired in public. Most yards have a procedure to follow which should end fairly and amicably when there is an issue.

[Brian J.]

Clive, I agree. But the question remains, how does a first time hirer find out whether he is hiring from a good, well known yard, or from a rubbish one?

[Guest]

Clive, I agree. But the question remains, how does a first time hirer find out whether he is hiring from a good, well known yard, or from a rubbish one?

The only completely reliable way is by personal experience or the opinions of actual acquaintances or family whose quality of judgement is known to you.

Any other method of prior evaluation depends on the impartiality and expererience of the reviewer.

The Internet has brought self-publication to the world, where anyone can quickly and freely publish (almost) anything they like.

Many ecommerce sites (amazon, ebay etc) now encourage "feedback". This can be useful, but it needs to be read with a large pinch of salt, since much of the negative is ill-informed or revenge, and much of the positive is glowing "best" reports from people who patently haven't tried anything else or even have a full understanding of the product .....

[Happy Jax 3]

Clive, I agree. But the question remains, how does a first time hirer find out whether he is hiring from a good, well known yard, or from a rubbish one?

Simple, go with the hire yards that have good reputations on forums. But you still have to remember no business sets out to provide bad service, that would be suicide. Many Hire yards have been running for decades and this would not be the case with continual bad service.

[ferryman]

Dear Members i agree with happy jax ,certainly no business would deliberately want to upset and lose customers but,standards can slip and sometimes need a wake up call .i am certain lots of you on here use trip advisor and see no problem with that service so i can see no problem with poor performing boat yards being named.a few years ago i hired a boat from bridgecraft and it stunk of dogs and was full of dog hairs i reported it to the office ,he said it cant be our cleaners been on board we sailed off and cleaned it ourselves took 4 hours !!

[VetChugger]

There is a thread running on similar lines in the other place but on pubs and eating. Just about winning is the opinion that negative posts should be allowed so long as it is accepted that it is a subjective and personal opinion. Opinions and expectations will always vary and you will get wildly contrasting reports about the same business at times. To suggest that only positive reports are allowed is doing nothing but burying your head in the sand and helping nobody at all.

These forums are supposedly seen and used as a resource to Broads newcomers looking for guidance. So anyone new considering a first Broads boating holiday and looking for a reputable yard will now read this thread and think there is no point in asking here as they won't be helped if they happen to make a bad choice! Then to say that people must discover the bad ones via experience is positively cruel. The result could be a first time family coming to the Broads and having a lousy time because of the quality of service from a yard and deciding never to come back again when we all know that this is thankfully rare and boating holidays are a wonderful relaxing experience. Additionally, unfavourable reports can do much to encourage providers to clean up their act.

On the section description where it says "If you have a favorite Hire Boat Let us Know !" maybe it should also say "Don't tell us about any bad ones!"

Trevor

http://www.normanboats.co.uk

PS. Not my spelling mistake! - favourite

[pks1702]

My money was on you Trevor!

[VetChugger]

Now why does that not surprise me? Denis Healey and being savaged by toothless sheep comes to mind!

Sheep being the operative term!

[Dan]

I... This guy seemed to want Broadsman at Petite Gem prices ....

A growing characteristic nationwide I think

A truly unadmirable one too, in my opinion

Dan

[Guest]

Then to say that people must discover the bad ones via experience is positively cruel.

I didn't say "must" Trevor, I was trying to point out that amateur reviews by people not known to the reader are an unknown quantity. Some are very acccurate, but many are not.

With forums now becoming an easy conduit for ad hoc and often anonymous reviews, there is a danger that reputable businesses will be inaccurately represented, and suffer considerably from loss of custom.

The opposite case is also a problem. Many forum users praise every business they have used as "the best", and yet such an accolade implies that the others, (that they often have no expereince of), are inferior.

Perhaps the solution is to allow no reviews at all, good or bad.

(That wouldn't work either, would it ! )

[pks1702]

The wheel is turning but the hamster is definitely dead.

[Antares_9]

A word on the collective reasoning behind our reticence to allow, complaints on here and particularly from anonymous first time posters. We are not saying this applies to anybody in particular or indeed anybody at all but the anonymity of a forum persona and indeed the whole ether is a shield behind which anybody who has an overblown complaint or even an axe to grind, disgruntled ex employee et al can hide behind and vilify a hard working business that has slipped a little in their usual standard, possibly to the extent that it costs them business and revenue and that is wrong on many levels. Agreed a business that regularly provides service below a value for money level deserves not to thrive and they rarely do. Just look at the horror stories on Trip Advisor where a business has been complained about by one or two individuals to unjustified levels and this has caused the recipients of what can only be called abuse real problems. As I always say to my customers, If you are happy then tell your friends, if not then tell me as I'm the only one who can rectify your concerns.

[Brian J.]

Thanks all for your input. A very difficult subject with no obvious definitive answer.

Hopefully I will be OK with Silverline as someone on the forum has said that they are a good yard to be with.

[DelticMemories]

If you allow positive reviews then really you should allow negative reviews too. It is unbalanced otherwise. Personally I would not want to air my dirty laundry on a public forum if I had a problem with a business I had used but I don't think it is helpful to only allow positive reviews.

[Antares_9]

Perhaps I was unclear, we do not discourage negative comments per. se., what we do discourage is negativity from people who at least appear to join the forum to "have a pop" with no prior history or indeed anything posted after that

As an example, if somebody joined to research venues and discussed which boat yard, and other requirements in the lead up to their holiday and thereby established some kind of history and then made a measured, unembellished post detailing their disappointment that is an entirely different kettle of fish as the specific details could then be addressed, a simple "they were rubbish" is not helpful. The same goes for positive posts in a way, posts containing specific details about what impressed are far more helpful than a simple "they were great".

[Brian]

Perhaps I was unclear, we do not discourage negative comments per. se., what we do discourage is negativity from people who at least appear to join the forum to "have a pop" with no prior history or indeed anything posted after that.