EuroCarParts

[SL300-24]

I know they are forum sponsors but replying to every post where someone inquires about parts.....really....

 

[Deleted member 6183]

I agree that it's not ideal but if they have paid for the privilege I don't suppose there's much to be done about it.

 

[Doodle]

That depends on what they've paid for...there's a difference between advertising and spamming.

Given the wayward focus of some of these posts, it's edging towards the latter.

 

[hotrodder]

My first thought was to report all the posts as spam but that's not really fair to the mods. Adding eurocraparts to my ignore list on the other hand...

 

[bob6600]

I would count an almost identical generic post to be spam.

As a forum, we do not really have a benefit from them do we since the permanent sale started a couple of years ago rendering the promo codes useless?

 

[hotrodder]

As a forum, we do not really have a benefit from them do we since the permanent sale started a couple of years ago rendering the promo codes useless?

We don't but whoever is paying the bills here certainly does. Personally what bugs saddens me more is that soooooo many people still fall for eurocraps stupid mind games and blindly believe that the "sales" are real

 

[renault12ts]

I have found that carparts4less are cheaper than ECP...even after the ECP 25% discount is applied.

 

[400ixl]

I have found that carparts4less are cheaper than ECP...even after the ECP 25% discount is applied.

Both the same company though. One is internet only, the other has physical locations you can go and pick it up from.

Depends on what you need really.

Other motor factors do exist though, may local smaller businesses. You could be unfortunate and come across GSF in looking for alternatives though.

 

[Deleted member 6183]

The forum isn't free to run and if ECP pay towards the cost I suppose we could be more tolerant than usual.

It's up to whoever pays the bills really.

 

[markjay]

What happened to Pat? He was a real Gentleman.....

 

[Deleted member 6183]

What happened to Pat? Ne was a real Gentleman.....

He was.

 

[EuroCarParts]

Hey Guys!

I'm Still Here, don't worry about that, but its been quite a while since i was last called a gentleman! :bannana:


I suppose its too late to Introduce him, but Seyi has joined the team recently to help give the Social & Community side of things a bit more TLC, as we've really slipped recently (although i'm sure your happy to have heard less from me )

Unfortunately over the past 4 1/2 years i've managed to speak to alot of the key forums, and get involved in alot of interesting topics and helped alot of car owners look after their Mercs, but during that time i also learnt that each forum is different, and there is a different way to speak to each one - I'm really sorry to say we've missed the ball this time - in all of the years i've worked with you the fact that we pay towards the forum upkeep has NEVER given me the 'right' to try and sell you something you don't want, I've always been here as a voice of the company to support forum members, with selling coming 2nd (or actually 3rd) however i'd hope no harm has been done and we've learnt from our mistakes this week!

The positive fact for you all as forum subscribers, the fact that we now have a dedicated resource in the team who is eager to help the forums (although we might have got it wrong over the past week, we've fixed that now!) it means a few key things;
Faster responses - I have had to apologise to too many members (1 is too many) for last responses to PMs on my behalf - A dedicated contact now means you can get the support you need faster (like before!)
Forum Discounts - About 18 mths ago the forum discounts went away, in favour of permanently low prices - this satisfied 99.9% of our customers as the face price was often lower than with the discount - however for some reason Forum members still thought that their discount would have been less! (and if it ever was, we matched it) However we're about to announce a bit of a U Turn on that for you all in the next 14 days, and Seyi has played a key role in getting this for you (so give him a pat on the back, and forgive him for his eagerness!)
Forum Events - This is one of my babies, but i'm still a bit nervous to ask the question, so if any of you want to help me with deciding if this is a good idea, drop me a PM so i can explain fully, and hopefully get your feedback (good or bad!)


So, i REALLY hope you can all forgive the excitement over the past 7 days, and that we haven't caused any offence - But the positives for this year look really good for you all, and I hope you'll join in with some of the things we have planned for 2016!

As always, you can ALWAYS contact me via PM, or if you want to have a chat about anything, you can always email me on pmcdonnell at eurocarparts.com

Pat :bannana:

 

[markjay]

Thanks Pat.

I think forum members would appreciate targeted advice... i.e. when someone is asking about a specific part and ECP can offer more information, recommendations, or purchase options etc regarding that part... then this is great.

What I would suggest is that ECP avoid simply posting a standard 'ad' including a generic link pointing to your website or to a service you wish to promote, and that has little relevance to the specific issue raised in the thread.

Hope this helps.

 

[EuroCarParts]

Thanks Pat.

I think forum members would appreciate targeted advice... i.e. when someone is asking about a specific part and ECP can offer more information, recommendations, or purchase options etc regarding that part... then this is great.

What I would suggest is that ECP avoid simply posting a standard 'ad' including a generic link pointing to your website or to a service you wish to promote, and that has little relevance to the specific issue raised in the thread.

Hope this helps.

Hey MJ

Totally agree, That's the way i've always joined in with the discussions - If i can help answer a question (with or without recommending ECP, sometimes i'd just join in and give my opinion on something) then I would - Posting links to every post, in every section isn't our style, and isn't how a forum works - That's my fault as we just got a little too eager, but its all a learning curve & i'm glad that we have been doing something right all these years!

I'll make sure we go back to the way you all like, as its a privileged to be allowed to join in with you conversations, not a right (although, i am now officially a Merc owner so you need to give me a little bit of love )

Pat

 

[bob6600]

Hi Pat, I think it would have been nice for ECP to inform members in a post/thread that the forum discount no longer exists and how to still receive 25% off or more rather than keep saying 'we have a sale on at the moment so codes are suspended'. I know it hasn't been you saying this but at least we know where we stand.

The recent spam by your new colleague trying to promote ECP's new venture just didn't seem very professional imo, again a thread and an odd post pointing to it would be more welcome I think

 

[Will]

Love how ECP's mouthpieces always gloss over everything in the same sort of way as an MP does when faced with an awkward question

The pricing structure is a load of BS. The prices are up and down more often than whore's drawers. Who genuinely believes these wild percentage discounts? No respectable company sells stuff for 40/50% less than what it's actually worth - unless it's a discontinued/end of line/overstocked type item with a shelf life approaching.

Likewise 25-30% discount was a bit silly in the first place for the 'MB Club' discount that disappeared. Even then parts were often cheaper elsewhere - including their own sister company. No point in arguing one does mail order only - do ECP charge different prices if you want to pick up instore - nah.

When the current discount codes are widely published on the landing pages of a company's website how can anyone think they are saving money? It's not some secret club deal or a bona fide trade price. Especially proven when their pseudo company, CP4LESS sells the same, identical items (even the part numbers they use match) for lower prices.

Regardless of the apology, EuroCarParts have done very little to benefit forum members. All I have seen is an aggressive marketing campaign to sell overpriced pattern parts with artificial discounts. How can an advertising company claim that they are here only secondly or thirdly to sell stuff and that they are here primarily to 'support' members? I've seen very little of that, and they never contribute any tech help or otherwise - they are here for sales, pure and simple.

If it's a case of them contributing to the running costs of the forum, let us know what they pay and maybe we can split it amongst the active members on this forum and set up a subscription fee of a few £ to cover it. I'd be surprised if it really was that much and I'm sure that the lack of all the spam wouldn't be missed.

And does anyone else get annoyed by the overused exclamation marks? Nine in the last post. Not an issue of grammar, just makes it look like a child who is posting.

Give us a proper discount that makes your parts cheaper than elsewhere online. Make sure it's not a generic and widely published code so we know it's cheaper than what everyone else is paying. Otherwise why would anyone want to buy parts from you and why would we use a 'forum discount' if there's cheaper places to buy the same stuff including your sister company?

We shouldn't have to constantly check sites like CP4LESS to make sure we're not being ripped off for buying like-for-like items for online orders.

Rant over.

 

[StuartK]

Love how ECP's mouthpieces always gloss over everything in the same sort of way as an MP does when faced with an awkward question

The pricing structure is a load of BS. The prices are up and down more often than whore's drawers. Who genuinely believes these wild percentage discounts? No respectable company sells stuff for 40/50% less than what it's actually worth - unless it's a discontinued/end of line/overstocked type item with a shelf life approaching.

Likewise 25-30% discount was a bit silly in the first place for the 'MB Club' discount that disappeared. Even then parts were often cheaper elsewhere - including their own sister company. No point in arguing one does mail order only - do ECP charge different prices if you want to pick up instore - nah.

When the current discount codes are widely published on the landing pages of a company's website how can anyone think they are saving money? It's not some secret club deal or a bona fide trade price. Especially proven when their pseudo company, CP4LESS sells the same, identical items (even the part numbers they use match) for lower prices.

Regardless of the apology, EuroCarParts have done very little to benefit forum members. All I have seen is an aggressive marketing campaign to sell overpriced pattern parts with artificial discounts. How can an advertising company claim that they are here only secondly or thirdly to sell stuff and that they are here primarily to 'support' members? I've seen very little of that, and they never contribute any tech help or otherwise - they are here for sales, pure and simple.

If it's a case of them contributing to the running costs of the forum, let us know what they pay and maybe we can split it amongst the active members on this forum and set up a subscription fee of a few £ to cover it. I'd be surprised if it really was that much and I'm sure that the lack of all the spam wouldn't be missed.

And does anyone else get annoyed by the overused exclamation marks? Nine in the last post. Not an issue of grammar, just makes it look like a child who is posting.

Give us a proper discount that makes your parts cheaper than elsewhere online. Make sure it's not a generic and widely published code so we know it's cheaper than what everyone else is paying. Otherwise why would anyone want to buy parts from you and why would we use a 'forum discount' if there's cheaper places to buy the same stuff including your sister company?

We shouldn't have to constantly check sites like CP4LESS to make sure we're not being ripped off for buying like-for-like items for online orders.

Rant over.

All the time ECP holds the monopoly nothing will change

 

[Deleted member 11979]

It's not all bad lads

I ordered service items for my w124 and clk and they were all delivered very promptly, well packaged and for what I considered a good price ( I think I got 42% off standard prices)

I was very pleased with the service, if it wasn't for the forum I wouldn't have known about the discount code, I don't care if my neighbour got the same discount on parts for his golf.

 

[EuroCarParts]

Love how ECP's mouthpieces always gloss over everything in the same sort of way as an MP does when faced with an awkward question

To be honest, you've probably experienced plenty of my replies over the past 4+ years, and one thing i will say i always have been (and always will be) is honest. If we have slipped up, I admit it and get a solution, If we could do better i'll take it on and learn, although it might come across political that's just the way I am, and the majority of members find it helpful...

The pricing structure is a load of BS. The prices are up and down more often than whore's drawers.

Many times in the past i've done this, but i STILL will offer it, please select a handful of part numbers, and ill show you the online pricing history as far back as i can go (6 years if the part existed that long.) the selling price was always the price we sold over the counter, and we offered discounts from that - It wasn't until Jan-16 that we made the move to match the stores to our web price. I can show you price history from other websites, which clearly show prices being increased to cover for a 40,41 or 42% discount - Bottle of Mobil Oil for £88 anybody?

Likewise 25-30% discount was a bit silly in the first place for the 'MB Club' discount that disappeared.

When we first launched the 'forum discount' it was market leading, and exclusive and nobody on here had a problem with it - it was great, as time went on the market became more competitive prices came down until the forum discounts were not viable, and we switched to an 'everyday low price'

Even then parts were often cheaper elsewhere - including their own sister company. No point in arguing one does mail order only - do ECP charge different prices if you want to pick up instore - nah.

We'll run different promotions online at various times, but with the forum discount (back at the start) over 90% of the time ECP would work out to be the cheapest, and when we weren't we would ALWAYS aim to match it. There is not one company that can always be the cheapest, but we will always aim to do our best, and when we need to help - we're only a PM away!

When the current discount codes are widely published on the landing pages of a company's website how can anyone think they are saving money? It's not some secret club deal or a bona fide trade price. Especially proven when their pseudo company, CP4LESS sells the same, identical items (even the part numbers they use match) for lower prices.

As above, the prices we know about but although forums are important to us, 99.99% of our traffic comes from elsewhere meaning the offers on the site are for the general public, but going back to when it worked best for forums, the secret is to ensure you have something better than the rest (where possible!) - this is valuable feedback that we've taken on board for when we re-launch the forum support.

Regardless of the apology, EuroCarParts have done very little to benefit forum members. All I have seen is an aggressive marketing campaign to sell overpriced pattern parts with artificial discounts. How can an advertising company claim that they are here only secondly or thirdly to sell stuff and that they are here primarily to 'support' members? I've seen very little of that, and they never contribute any tech help or otherwise - they are here for sales, pure and simple.

As above, we're been really slack the past 18 months, however as a long term member, you can go through any of out 1,000+ posts and i honestly believe that 9 in 10 posts are SUPPORT, answering a question (part or customer support) or joining in with the conversation - 1 in 10 will be us posting a promotion which was always received well (lots of Q&As regarding oils spring to mind!) - There has NEVER been heavy marketing on the forum (until this weeks slip up) and except for 3 or 4 forum members, i would like to say that we've been always pretty welcomed by the family. Infact i even remember dropping a set of Pagid pads to a member who lived on my way home (we've picked and shiped the wrong ones, so i exchanged them for him!)

If it's a case of them contributing to the running costs of the forum, let us know what they pay and maybe we can split it amongst the active members on this forum and set up a subscription fee of a few £ to cover it. I'd be surprised if it really was that much and I'm sure that the lack of all the spam wouldn't be missed.

Lets be honest - only the past week has seen spammy posts, and this has been explained, apologised for and rectified going forward - I know you will not find anything spammy prior to this..

And does anyone else get annoyed by the overused exclamation marks? Nine in the last post. Not an issue of grammar, just makes it look like a child who is posting.

Most of these will be emojis, but i'm also a pretty passionate person (for my sins) I've also been accused of being to friendly, too informal - however you can't win everybody's heart, and although i will try to town down any excess use of exclamation marks for you - I'm not grammatically perfect and am a human,

Give us a proper discount that makes your parts cheaper than elsewhere online. Make sure it's not a generic and widely published code so we know it's cheaper than what everyone else is paying. Otherwise why would anyone want to buy parts from you and why would we use a 'forum discount' if there's cheaper places to buy the same stuff including your sister company?

We've got plans to relaunch the forum discount, and not knocking it - your feedback IS helpful, we've had great success before, and will look to build upon that, and do a few different things to make the forum experience even better, but as above (i know you don't believe it) selling parts isn't the be all and end all of us being here.

We shouldn't have to constantly check sites like CP4LESS to make sure we're not being ripped off for buying like-for-like items for online orders.

Rant over.

People buy from John Lewis, and pay more for something without feeling ripped off - I believe we can offer a brilliant, unique, present experience and great price all in one site - if there are occasions when we're not the best priced, let us know but we will aim for 75% Low price first time!



We're not here to argue, and i hope you don't feel the above is an attack, or too aggressive - its just (another example of) our openness responding to valuable feedback from honest members - If i was to ever meet you at a forum meet i would love to buy you a beverage to help remove this idea of a big, evil corporate giant - I'm the same guy who signed up to MBclub nearly 5 years ago, and has been on the other end of a keyboard ever since!



Pat

 

[StuartK]

On a side note I want some really cheap H and R lowering springs for my C63