Extended warranty programs by Falcon Direct and save you money! 1-800.489.2611.

Still doing things
the same old way?

Back in the 40's the milkman came to your home. In the 50's the radio and TV repairman came to your home. In the 60's electronic service technicians came to your business, along with IBM, NCR, and Xerox. That was great! Gas was 30 cents a gallon, a good service van was around $3,500 and a labor rate of $10 per hour was right on up there. Test equipment and parts inventory costs were minimal. Insurance wasn't a problem and small business was rarely involved in a law suit. That was then. Let's talk about NOW!

Today, we have to carry a minimum of $2 million dollars in liability insurance just to get on the premises of most of our customers. A properly equipped service van can cost up to $50 thousand dollars, and a qualified technician with benefits will have a cost to the customer ranging from $75 to over $100 per hour. Guess who pays for all that? YOU do!

The fact is that good old days service just doesn't work anymore. Not only is it expensive, it isn't efficient! On-Site service is limited by parts availability and test equipment available in the service vehicle. This often results in the equipment being returned to the shop where parts have to be ordered, or in some cases the equipment has to be returned to the manufacturer. Shop service is equally inefficient. A reasonably stocked service shop can easily carry a half million dollar inventory in parts and test equipment. Add the cost of overhead for the building, insurance, taxes, technicians, support staff, employee benefits, and outside services. Rarely do you find shop service cost at less than $75 per hour with many shops charging a one hour minimum for changing a fuse!

The traditional response to increased cost has been to spread it over a period of time. We call this a service contract. Presumably this assures you of more efficient maintenance at less cost in return for guaranteed monthly payment to the service shop. In reality, you may get better service, but there is not way you can pay less and get more. Only Alan Greenspan can do that! Most customers pay for service as needed. This is called Time and Materials Service. It is by far the most expensive form of service if service is required outside the warranty period. And that brings up Warranty Service.

In general, depending on warranty service is like playing Russian Roulette with five bullets instead of one. Your chances of winning are typically slim to none. The average communications equipment warranty is one to two years with repairs performed at the manufacturer's service center. The customer pays shipping to the manufacturer and the manufacturer pays for return shipping. There is no guarantee relating to how long it will take to return the defective product - maybe a week, maybe a month, maybe MUCH longer!

So now that we have told you what is wrong, you may be wondering what we would suggest for cost effective service in the 21st century. Actually, we weren't the ones who figured it out. It took someone a lot larger with a much greater overall view of the importance of service. They gave us the tools to better serve you and then left the decision as to whether we wanted to use them or continue operating in the traditional way. The reason for this is that some channel partners (we used to call them dealers) rely on service as a significant part of their income. This is particularly true in rural areas or in major metropolitan areas where large investments have been made in service facilities. Since we fall into neither of these categories, we are free to elect the service programs that offer the greatest benefit to YOU!

Getting the best service.......

is a matter of first selecting a good supplier. The best supplier, at least in the minds of most of us is one that is committed to serving their customers and they have been around long enough to prove that they can honor that commitment. You can't stay in business for over a quarter century without providing good customer service. You know that. What you may not know is that not all communications products dealers are alike. Some are still doing business the same way they did in 1960. Others, like USA Radio are working with key manufacturers to give you the latest improvements both in terms of products and service. This allows us to provide the maximum operating efficiency coupled with the lowest cost of operation. We call this the Advantage program!

It all starts when you make your initial equipment purchase. Most handheld and mobile radios sold by USA Radio have a minimum two year service plan. Some people use the term warranty to describe post sale services and for some manufacturers that term may apply. We know of one manufacturer who offers what we call The Big Three warranty. You get a three year warranty, three month turnaround time, and the repair successfully made on the third attempt! Aside from the cost of returning the product (they pay return shipping by what appears to be a camel caravan), the downtime, and the sheer frustration of dealing with these people, you wouldn't know at the beginning what you were getting into. If you use the term warranty as applied to Ritron and this other manufacturer, your first conclusion would be that the one offering a three year warranty is a better value than the one offering a one or two year warranty (in this case, Ritron). Unfortunately, that is a WRONG conclusion.

A second wrong conclusion is that a local dealer generally offers the best repair capability. Most of us define repair as a non-warranty related service where a defective product is fixed. Our choice of the one doing the "fixing" is generally based on physical proximity and little else. We know of a golf course who has a service contract with a local dealer in their area. They pay about six dollars a month per radio for maintenance service. The dealer picks up the defective radio (generally within two days after being called), keeps it about a week and returns it on his next trip to the general area. The average turnaround time is about ten days, and this service is provided by a good local dealer. Of course there are exceptions. Sometimes the portable radio technician is sick or on vacation. Sometimes parts have to be ordered, but it's still better than paying an average of $195 per portable radio repair.

We think there is a better way to provide service and that is why we offer the Advantage program. It all starts with determining your needs. We think this includes minimum downtime and low cost. To meet this objective, you start with a service facility that has technicians specifically trained to repair their products and nothing else. Then, to give that hometown service feeling, we provide a means of getting the defective radio to the repair center the very next day. The Ritron quality assurance program defines as their goal, a repair turnaround within 72 hours (many repairs are made within 24 hours and some the same day received!). Finally, the product is returned to you prepaid. Rarely will you be out of service from more than 10 working days. It makes no difference where you are in the USA. You get hometown service with repairs made correctly the FIRST time.

If you are purchasing a new Ritron radio for USA Radio, this service is included for the first year. You can extend this service period at minimal cost. This optional extended service period is ALWAYS recommended. The cost for adding extended service for the most popular Ritron radios is available by clicking here.

Thus far, we have talked only about new radios. What about existing radios? For starters, you may want to consider trading in your old radios. We have a complete information package to help you make the decision as to whether it would be best to keep what you have or consider trading. For additional information, give us a call locally at 1.800.489.2611. Better yet, send us an email to sales@falcondirect.com. Ask for your copy of the TradeEm document. You'll be glad you did!

If you choose to keep your existing radios, there is also an Advantage program for you. You can pay just $49 per year or $5 per month for full service maintenance (excluding abuse, accessories, antennas, or batteries) including overnight shipping to and from Carmel, Indiana.

If you wish, we can set you up on a scheduled battery replacement program with guaranteed lowest prices on genuine Ritron batteries. We also offer accessories (speaker microphones, cases, etc.) for our Advantage customers at guaranteed lowest prices.

Lastly, as an Advantage customer, we will review the status of your current FCC license. We will verify that your authorization is current and in compliance with mandatory filing requirements. We will send you a reminder notice when it is time to renew and keep you apprised of changing requirements relating to narrow band standards and other topics of importance. This is a FREE service to our Advantage customers.

Should YOU be enjoying the benefits of the Advantage Program from Falcon Direct? Getting started is as easy as telling us what you are now using (age, brand, quantity and models currently used). Send your equipment listing to sales@falcondirect.com. We'll prepare a recommendation at no charge or obligation.

American quality at prices below the imports!
36 - 20th Avenue NW - Birmingham, AL 35215
Phone Toll Free - 1.800.489.2611