Kevin McKell, VP Sales & Marketing at Vetaphone, says there’s more to a company than just the products it supplies.
Vetaphone is proud of its global network of after sales support technicians who are backed up by a team of in-house specialists.
In today’s highly competitive market place, successful companies know how important it is to retain their customers. “There was a time when you were judged to be as good as your last order, and in terms of quality product, this is still the case – but a quality product is no longer enough to guarantee repeat business,” he says.
With its rich history of pioneering work in surface treatment that puts its products front and centre around the World, Vetaphone can justifiably claim its manufacturing quality and performance is second to none. But, in markets that are widely diverse, both in utilisation and geographical location, a quality product still needs quality support.
“This is an area in which we have worked very hard, and devoted a significant level of resources,” says McKell. “Many of our customers operate 24/7, and even those that don’t, work with very fine margins that can be seriously affected by downtime. In this production environment, reliability is essential.” The problem is, that all production lines are made up of many working parts from different manufacturers, and a chain is only as strong as its weakest link.
“All machines can break down – it’s a fact of life! But, it’s how a supplier responds to a breakdown that makes the difference between success and failure.” Vetaphone’s investment in after sales support is what sets the company ahead of its competitors, according to McKell. “Our global network of more than 65 agents are all factory trained to offer local support in their own markets. Added to which, we have a select team of in-house specialists who offer technical support.”
In some of the larger markets, Vetaphone provides a full after sales back-up of parts and service technicians via specialist companies. For example, in the US, The Works Corporation has worked successfully with Vetaphone and its customers for a number of years. “In a market that is highly sensitive to after sales performance, and with customers spread as far and wide as they are in America, Vetaphone needs to offer the security of local support, which it cannot do from Europe. Our working partnership with The Works has been a great success, and will be the foundation on which we build our business and market share in the US.”
Speaking for The Works Corporation, Rob Hopfensperger said: “We have been delivering high quality service and support to the printing industry since 2003, and now have more than 175 customers in 12 different countries who rely on us to keep their production lines running. We specialise in narrow web presses and are also familiar with today’s popular ancillary equipment including Vetaphone Corona Treaters, which our experience tells us are the best on the market.”
The proof of success is the number of satisfied customers, who return for repeat purchases. The Works is proud of its record for quick response and technical competence, which has drawn praise from Vetaphone customers across the US. “They’re a real solid company that customers know they can rely on,” concludes McKell.