Bobus Varghese, State Chairman for Complaint cell, All Kerala Information Technology Dealers Association (AKITDA), in an exclusive chat with B Swaminathan of Channel Times elaborates on the problems facing fellow dealers in the state.
What are the problems facing vendors in the state?
I cannot generalize all the vendors. However, it changes from place to place and time to time. For example, we had post-sale support issues on motherboard with Asus and Digilite recently. We are trying to sort out the issues at the earliest.
On an average, how many complaints are you receiving and how are you solving it?
As a state chairman, I receive the complaints that are unresolved in the district level. On an average, I get 10 to 15 complaints. The state cell not only deals with the vendor-related or distributor-related complaints, but also the complaints related to the government policies and any political pressures faced by a dealer.
What type of complaints you are dealing?
Most of the complaints are on the service-issues related to laptop. Other than those problems in toll-free number, local language support, service-contracts also arise from time to time.
How can a vendor approach your association when there are issues?
My suggestion would be to approach the complaint cell in each district which will know the issues well. If both the parties cannot come to a conclusion, they can reach me anytime and I can assure a solid solution with the help of AKITDA.
What are the initiatives you are taking for tackling the service-related issues?
Escalation is the only way out. Many of our members are stuck at the state-level heads. We are educating them on the levels of escalation of the issue and how to fight till the end.
What you want to convey to the vendors through this interview?
My message for every vendor reading this interview is, please have your support system equipped. I do not want any vendor to sell my comrades, a product without proper service. Obviously having service issue is a headache for all the stakeholders.