Why do shops bother with websites..

hedzball

When they don't bother putting up their stock?

I mean I don't have the time during shop hours to go about ringing and ordering carts down the phone. But I have plenty of time in the evening to scope about and look around..

As it stands I'm looking to buy 2-3000 clay carts and about 2000 game carts and I would love to just go online and go about buying them that way.

Lakelands.. East coast dog and gun.. Knocknagoshel..

Fingal sports website has been " in the process" for the past shioting 5 years..

I mean why pay to host a site if you are not willing to do a decent job of it?

Half assed Irish shiote as usual..


I just want a site that tells me what they have in stock.. and lets me fecking buy it..





'hdz

useurowname

Cos they don't do the volume sales online.

hedzball

useurowname wrote: »

Cos they don't do the volume sales online.

Why.. Whats to stop them advertising what they'll sell 1000 at instead of what they sell 250 at..

We all know through a lot of different sectors that buy in bulk and save.. Its not a secret.

There are systems out there where you scan every item in the shop and it will link to your site saying 68 available.. or 5 large in stock.. All of these options been around years and we are still so so behind. I know there is **** all to be made off carts. when I'm spending a few hundred quid I generally buy a few more bits and pieces.. the stuff they make money on.



'hdz

useurowname

hedzball wrote: »

Why.. Whats to stop them advertising what they'll sell 1000 at instead of what they sell 250 at..

We all know through a lot of different sectors that buy in bulk and save.. Its not a secret.

There are systems out there where you scan every item in the shop and it will link to your site saying 68 available.. or 5 large in stock.. All of these options been around years and we are still so so behind. I know there is **** all to be made off carts. when I'm spending a few hundred quid I generally buy a few more bits and pieces.. the stuff they make money on.



'hdz

Cos they don't do the volume sales online.size of the market,Ireland guns, ammo, accessories is small. Numbers aren't there. It's specialised retail. I haven't spent €500 on shooting equipment in the last 4 years and that applies to the 4 guys I shoot with.

DogfoxCork

€500? i wish i could say ive spent €500 in the last 4 years. that isnt even a years worth supply of carts and bullets for myself or Hedz and im sure most of the other shooters on here! it doesnt really apply to the fellas who are only out a few times a year after game as their demand isnt high.

and frankly its besides the point, they should have everything listed on their websites. its not a difficult system and makes things easier for the shops too. i can think of at least 4 times off the top of my head where ive had difficulty ordering equipment online due to poor stock information

useurowname

Well go and tell them that

rhino1

It would be interesting to know how much trade goes overseas from guys buying from the like of Cabelas and English sites because the selection is so much better.

useurowname

Same as everything else, a lot. The market isn't there in Ireland. Customers want variety sure but there isn't enough there for retailers to tie a whole lotta money up in stock that they won't shift. It's not that the retailers are a lazy or thick, the sums just don't add up. I accept there are people who spend a big money on the sport, but for a lot of shooters our needs are relatively low and straight forward. I do a fair amount, I haven't changed a gun for over ten years, where else does it go, ammo mostly, clothes (v little). Biggest expenditure for me is prob dog food.

Nekarsulm

hedzball wrote: »

When they don't bother putting up their stock?
I mean why pay to host a site if you are not willing to do a decent job of it?

It's so you can find their phone number, and then ring them up.

Honestly though, if they had a half decently set up w'site, it should be easy to update with a minutes work, add any new lines or guns etc, and add photos.

One or two seem to be moving to Facebook more than the usual business web site.
Many may have no affinity or interest in internet/computer activities.

J.R.

hedzball wrote: »

When they don't bother putting up their stock?

I mean I don't have the time during shop hours to go about ringing and ordering carts down the phone. But I have plenty of time in the evening to scope about and look around..

As it stands I'm looking to buy 2-3000 clay carts and about 2000 game carts and I would love to just go online and go about buying them that way.

Lakelands.. East coast dog and gun.. Knocknagoshel..

Fingal sports website has been " in the process" for the past shioting 5 years..

I mean why pay to host a site if you are not willing to do a decent job of it?

Half assed Irish shiote as usual..


I just want a site that tells me what they have in stock.. and lets me fecking buy it..





'hdz

I have bought cartridges & bullets on-line from Sportsden in Navan.

I've found their prices reasonable & usually next day *(or day after) delivery by courier.

http://www.sportsden.ie/guns/gun-accessories/ammunition/shotgun-ammunition.html

P.S. I am not associated with Sportsden in any way ...just buy from them!

gunny123

I dunno, Patrick Carley in Wexford, who is a one-man band afaik, has a very good website. Guns etc that are sold are taken down and new stuff put up. If he can do it easily why not bigger set-ups ?

cavan shooter

There is a lot of work keeping your Web page up to date etc. Sometimes it's not worth the time and hassel of you don't have the volume turning over.

A man walks into your shop buys x walks out....job done.

A man buys x on line for y now you have to add postage and go and post it and take the risk it gets there. It sounds great but unless your turning over the goods and have the help it's actually a PITA.

Luckysasha

Most shops now seem to favour Facebook for advertising. Mourne shooting grounds have at least 40+ pics of second hand firearms over the last couple of days. I also see courtlough now have a separate Facebook page for their guns for sale. Top gun in Drogheda are also using their Facebook page to let you see what's in stock. I know recently I was toying with the idea of adding a shotgun to my collection and it ment sitting down with a bunch of dealers phone numbers and ringing around to see what stock they had.

Nekarsulm

M C Grahams in Monaghan town are also using Facebook. Putting up photos of all their Auto's in the one picture, for example.

goz83

cavan shooter wrote: »

There is a lot of work keeping your Web page up to date etc. Sometimes it's not worth the time and hassel of you don't have the volume turning over.

A man walks into your shop buys x walks out....job done.

A man buys x on line for y now you have to add postage and go and post it and take the risk it gets there. It sounds great but unless your turning over the goods and have the help it's actually a PITA.

It doesn't really take much time at all tbh. I provide my clients with external access to change photos and text on their websites. Its really easy to use and only takes a minute or less to change a couple of images.

It's a different kettle of fish if you are adding stock control systems, but it doesn't need to be that complicated. If stock is low on a certain ammo....they could just mark it as out of stock, or put a low stock notice on the item, without the expense of stock control systems.

Making registered post a standard feature is one way to deal with the worry of items not arriving. The post office is usually not far away either.

Most people return to websites they can browse and buy stuff they hadn't been looking for. Facebook just doesn't do that and in my opinion, it often cheapens a business, especially when used to post products for sale all the time. It's ideally used as a point of contact for customers and a way to promote the business with competitions and general mentions. It is not an online shop and only clutters the page.

German pointer

I found an online RFD in Ireland advertising some ammo I wanted. I emailed him and gave him the manufacturers product code. it took over a week for the answer to come back yes we have it. I was happy to pay what I thought was over the odds an extra €6.50 a box compared to what my usual supplier charges, anyway I ordered 5 boxes. the wrong ammo arrived in the post. When I phoned to see if they put the wrong ammo in the parcel. I was very abruptly told that the actual ammo I wanted was not brought into the country any more so they sent me a different type instead. Probably hoping I wouldn't send it back. It went back in return post. Just waiting now to see how long it takes for the refund to hit my card and wondering will he add on the ten quid for return postage.

Why do they bother?

scwazrh

hedzball wrote: »

When they don't bother putting up their stock?

---

Half assed Irish shiote as usual..
'hdz

Unfortunately you have answered your own question in the same post .

From my experiences with firearm dealers in Ireland there seems to be a lack of willingness or understanding that they are in a sales business .The excuse of the customer base is too small and profit is too low doesn't make any sense .Yes maybe the Irish market is too small for 30 - 40 RFDs if there is even that many here but it would easily support 5- 10 good dealers.

gunny123

scwazrh wrote: »

Unfortunately you have answered your own question in the same post .

From my experiences with firearm dealers in Ireland there seems to be a lack of willingness or understanding that they are in a sales business .The excuse of the customer base is too small and profit is too low doesn't make any sense .Yes maybe the Irish market is too small for 30 - 40 RFDs if there is even that many here but it would easily support 5- 10 good dealers.

The problem is for every genuine guy coming in the door, you get fifty tyre kickers, dreamers, retired oul boys amusing themselves. An ex-dealer i know had loads of people coming in ordering in expensive stuff, but the second you asked for cash, either as a deposit or paying for the goods up front, there was the usual excuses.

Ditto for guns, easy for a guy to wander in and have a look at an expensive gun and leaving a small deposit with no intention of really buying the gun. The dealer then has the hastle to ring, email or whatever to see if the gun has had a licence applied for, this could be six months later. While real customers have passed that gun by.

allan450

Plus one on the post above.How much is this how much is that id be pissed off to lads coming in picking up guns handling them ect with no intention of buying.The dealer i use now sends me down clothing ect to try dont pay for it unless i like it or it fits.If im in the shop lets me brings gear and i pay him an other time.[hiding it from the women] iv 1000s spent since last year.i cant spend anymore lol but im looking at the beretta 692 sporter thinking of going for it.:eek:

kammallow1984

hehe, I understand your frustration, but the beauty of the internet is that you can buy from all over the internet.
And Irish market is a bit underdeveloped when it comes to the online presence.

According to Fora.ie, just 42% can take sales orders online, while only 35% can process payments.

There is more interesting research on that subject on businessworld.ie

IEDR's “IE Digital Health Index”, compiled in three waves of research in May 2014, December 2014 and September 2015, measures the health of Irish SMEs’ digital presence by analysing the number of digital assets (like websites, apps and social media accounts) owned by them, and their perceived quality. Its findings highlight an alarming number of SMEs lagging behind in the digital space.

As many as 1 in 4 Irish SMEs still do not have a website, or any online presence whatsoever, to list products or conduct e-commerce transactions with their customers.

Three in four of these respondents said they did not intend to build a website, with a majority saying that there is “no need” within their industry.

Furthermore, almost half of SMEs surveyed (46%) don't advertise their services at all. Of those that do, 1 in 4 use traditional advertising media, while 1 in 6 use digital advertising. The latter figure is expected to grow, with 1 in 4 saying that they are spending more on digital advertising now than in the past.

Chief Executive of IEDR, David Curtin said, "In 2014, Irish consumers spent almost €6 billion in e-commerce transactions. At the moment, only a tiny amount of this is spent in Ireland, with most consumers purchasing products from stores in the UK and Europe where digital marketplaces are more commonplace and accessible.

"By 2020, the value of Ireland’s digital economy is expected to more than double to 10% of GDP, or €21 billion. Our own SMEs risk being left out of this commercial revolution if investment in their online capabilities remains low."

He added, "Solving this digital crisis in the long term requires a combined effort from the Government, industry organisations and Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs) and business leaders.

"There is a dire need for SMEs to receive support for web design and e-commerce education initiatives, mentoring services, enterprise funds and improvement of Ireland’s broadband infrastructure."

It seems to me that there just a low awareness of the size of the market among different industries, low competition and a trend for buying locally and supporting national produce.

But will it win with the digital revolution and human inborn laziness so the convenience of buying online?

Doubtful.

So let's hope the Irish businesses cop on soon and start catching up with international trends.

hedzball

kammallow1984 wrote: »

hehe, I understand your frustration, but the beauty of the internet is that you can buy from all over the internet.

But you can't really.. Try importing ammunition from anywhere outside of Ireland..

Easier to get a fag off the pope!



'hdz

123shooter

It's another job they have to do and most shopkeepers havent got time or do not have the ability to do so.

Take a few pics - go to pc - get into back office of website and load up with a bit of info and price.

Trouble is most people cant manage a decent pic of their kids never mind proper product pics that are good enough for website. Then they have to type info and be able to manage their website.

Some do employ people to do such work but of course that is extra cost and that goes on to products which you then complain about.

The nature of the business means that a gun shops potential customers are just a few tens of thousands because of restrictions to selling outside Ireland so their potential online business is tiny compared to other businesses so the money aint there.

Wadi14

So they have a small customer base, so you would think when you text or ring them about buying a product they have that they would at least be interested in contacting you again with the price and details of payment after you texting and ringing numerous times. Nah now that would be just too business savvy for them. Its way better it sitting in the shop.