dogcow Posted August 30, 2012 Share Posted August 30, 2012 hey just wondering how do you guys handle service issues when u are out of town i know some guys on here run multistate routes if someone calls complaining a machine at some money or its down, how quick do you respond. got 2 service calls this week i had to put off until i get back one is from my best acct, he is pissed said he is ready to give me the boot i am considering expanding down to south florida seemed like a good idea if i could do the route every 3wks but now i am kinda leery due to service issues. any advice appreciated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musser Posted August 30, 2012 Share Posted August 30, 2012 I always call back right away and tell the location when we will be there. Most of the time people are understanding if you are upfront. But then there are those that are just difficult and nothing will please them. I do try to do all service calls asap. Makes for some long days but thats the biz. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mission vending Posted August 30, 2012 Share Posted August 30, 2012 I always call back right away and tell the location when we will be there. Most of the time people are understanding if you are upfront. But then there are those that are just difficult and nothing will please them. I do try to do all service calls asap. Makes for some long days but thats the biz. Yep, its a service based business and he who provides the best service wins. Honestly I have wondered how the large bulk operators with multi state routes effectively manage this part of their business. I guess you just have to decide if the account is worth the trip or take a chance of losing the account because you let the machine sit until the next scheduled service. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havending Posted August 31, 2012 Share Posted August 31, 2012 Bulk has to wait til service cycle. If I have a nine way and a head breaks down it won't hurt anything. Cranes and redemption gets priority. Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogcow Posted August 31, 2012 Author Share Posted August 31, 2012 Bulk has to wait til service cycle. If I have a nine way and a head breaks down it won't hurt anything. Cranes and redemption gets priority. Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk do you have out of state redemption, if so how long does it take you to get a service call taken care of out of state Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick505 Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 I am really interested in this as well. I operate out of Albuquerque, NM but I have picked up 6 crane locations in Phoenix, AZ. This will help me build a route through Arizona, and along the way. I know my mediocre crane accounts have not broken down in 3 months with an average of 320/plays per month. These are older cranes I am using. Would you operate 6 cranes that are 400 miles from your operating city? Combined they are earning around $3,600 per month. In my eyes this would make it profitable for me to expand into Phoenix area as well as in between. What are your thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogcow Posted September 3, 2012 Author Share Posted September 3, 2012 It would depend on the equipment 360 plays a month is very low and I would consider these to be relocated better places close to home. That said the low play action is most liekly why u haven't had svc issues (tho not sure wht type of cranes they are either). For what ur proposing I am looking at a similar deal 300mi route. I would consider at that gross if and only if the equipment was reliable and relatively new. I would also bulletproof the cranes as muuch as possible from simple svc issues. Meaning replace all claw strings and replace all arcade mechs with imonex mechs and any comparitor mechs with mechanical roll down mechs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick505 Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 Well the cranes I have are close to home. The 6 locations I am talking about are in Phoenix. I would be buying new machines. I have been looking into importing 6 cranes. The locations I secured currently earn the business $1300/month in just commission. I am assuming $3600 per month is what these 6 locations earn. I have no equipment in the area but I am thinking there 6 locations would allow me to expand into AZ. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
havending Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 do you have out of state redemption, if so how long does it take you to get a service call taken care of out of state My farthest redemption is 100 miles. Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musser Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 It all depends on where you want to go with your business. I have found that opportunity dictates a lot of my activities. The far out stops are ok if you are serious about building. I have always looked for the big stops first when expanding. That way the overhead is paid and I can build along the way to the stops. Just realize that if you are building a long way away that you may only be breaking even or even losing money until you have built the route out. And that can take some time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogcow Posted September 4, 2012 Author Share Posted September 4, 2012 Well the cranes I have are close to home. The 6 locations I am talking about are in Phoenix. I would be buying new machines. I have been looking into importing 6 cranes. The locations I secured currently earn the business $1300/month in just commission. I am assuming $3600 per month is what these 6 locations earn. I have no equipment in the area but I am thinking there 6 locations would allow me to expand into AZ. Do you have a trusted person in pheonix who can do service calls and stock if needed? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick505 Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 Yea my brother owns the restaurants. He told me the current operator is paying him $1200 per month in commission.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogcow Posted September 4, 2012 Author Share Posted September 4, 2012 Yea my brother owns the restaurants. He told me the current operator is paying him $1200 per month in commission.. LOL well THAT is different why didnt you say so. Why not put the equipment in, bulletproof it pretty good and just drop ship him the toys? Have him stock it and cut you a check for your cut each month. Hell just take a smaller cut, why not ur just paying off the equipment. If you have a big service issue come in to fix it but otherwise let him run it. Make sure he pays you off the meters, but its really dead simple to just stock and clean the thing once its set up so long as you dont change the TYPE of product you really dont have to mess with the claw settings very much. The main thing for owners running their own cranes is they have one or two locations and dont do enough volume to buy in bulk but since you already have some cranes out there, and these should give you a very nice volume to get products moving. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BorderJerry Posted September 5, 2012 Share Posted September 5, 2012 Or you can go half n half, and let him store the back up plush and he would have keys to just the front glass door - and you keep the keys to the bills and coin. If you want to build a route over there this would also be the model for any other crane locations you get. If your brother does not want to be bothered with restocking a crane (6 restaurants probably keeps him busy enough), I bet he could tell you which one of the many employees he has who would be trustworthy and reliable for you to hire on a part time basis to restock your cranes in Phoenix, regardless of where they are located. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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