Hello from Crossroads!

[Loneoak]

I agree with Mike that quality control is very important. I spoke with a number of people, including a friend who is retired from management in one of the U.S. auto makers about it and compiled a complete document with various suggestions for QC. I sent it to Andy Cripe and he thanked me for it.

I agree that using the QC methods used by the auto industry would be good to follow in building RVs. The U.S. automakers learned from the Japanese and they have increased the quality of their product a huge amount over the years. Most people are too young to remember the poor quality of the American made cars, but we are not. Once the Japanese entered the market, the Americans either had to improve theirs or go under.

[ChristianM]

Originally Posted by Chateau Duke To Go

Welcome ladies. This forum and your other social media presence will provide a wealth of business intelligence to management.

One common theme you will see is that most dealers do not have the best business acumen and do not hold dear the values of service and integrity. RV Manufacturers across the board will say the dealers are independent and they have no control over them. However, the dealer is the face and voice of Crossroads. They are brand ambassadors. As such you MUST do something to insure they represent your brand well in all areas to include service after the sale. Without competent dealers who have the highest commitment to honesty and integrity, your efforts to build and strengthen the Crossroads brand will be for naught.

An excellent point! We are working on doing some VASTLY DIFFERENT things in the way that we address service issues as a whole, especially from a dealer standpoint. Thank you for your support and feedback!

[seabee]

welcome girls. QUALITY CONTROL is the key word. I know that there are production problems. However, I feel that there is no quality inspection before the units go out the door to the dealer. the byword seems to be "let the dealer deal with the problems".
I bought a new unit and had it back for repairs 6 times for problems that could have been rectified before leaving the factory, if quality control was in place.

[Tim D]

Originally Posted by ChristianM

An excellent point! We are working on doing some VASTLY DIFFERENT things in the way that we address service issues as a whole, especially from a dealer standpoint. Thank you for your support and feedback!

I hate to be the suspicious one, but seems like you would have a little more input?

[ChristianM]

Originally Posted by Tim D

I hate to be the suspicious one, but seems like you would have a little more input?

Tim,
We would love to have more input, and love to have more answers for the hundreds of people that have contacted us since we have been trying to be more of a presence on social media. However, in all honesty, we are VERY new to our jobs and are really trying to do right by everyone that we respond to or come in contact with. Not only is this branch of customer service totally new to Crossroads, but Taylor and I are relatively new to the industry as well. Know that over this past week, we have relayed countless concerns and questions from this forum to our management and customer service counterparts.
We want to be able to serve the Crossroads family to the best of our ability, it might just take us a little bit to perfect the system. Please be patient with us as many times we are having to look for answers for many of your questions/comments because we simply don't have the answers!
Thanks!
Christian

[Loneoak]

I am aware that the level of quality in the building process does come down to money. There is a certain percentage of the cost built-in for warranty work. If that cost is too high, then they have to do a better job of quality control. I don't know what that percentage is, but the bean counters would know.

The problem is, even if the warranty returns are within budgeted amounts, what you cannot put a cost to is lost business due to poor quality. If too many customers leave your product and go elsewhere, then you don't know about it until it is too late. Not only are those potential repeat customers gone, but unhappy customers are usually vocal customers, and can sway other people they talk to.

[ttroup]

Nope! No relation. Its just that after only meeting a small percentage of the 1,000 employees, its hard not to want to tell their story. The energy and effort they put into their daily tasks is quite impressive.

[anaro]

Welcome to the forum ladies. I am a former Zinger owner that still hangs with the friends made through these forums. You will find campers to be of a different culture. We can hang around a campfire for a few nights and make friendships that last a lifetime. A good example of that is the mason Dixon group that doubles as the northeast crossroads rally group. This is essentially the same bunch of people that meet up twice a year to catch up and swap stories. They started as all crossroads owners (all cruisers I believe) and have continued to welcome newcomers to the group. This group has grown and several members, including myself have moved on to some other brand (SOB) trailer/motor home but still show their face at these meetups/rallies. A show of crossroads support at these rallies would be great. ie some merchandise like t-shirts or something.

A great model for owner participation that you could look to is FROG. This is the forest river owners group. It is run by a person hired by forest river. His job is to organize Forest River rallies throughout the year. He also works with members to organize local get togethers. Their factory rally has grown huge in the four or five years it's been running. It is so big this year, they had to cut off registration at somewhere around 750 rigs. part of why it is so big is the fee covers most of your dinners, and your camping fees as well as factory tours, rv seminars, and get this, FREE repairs to rigs of any age on issues that would have been covered under warranty if it was still in warranty. I have heard they even replaced a roof during the last year's rally. This is the kind of stuff that helps draw owner loyalty.

Yes QC needs drastic improvement across the board of all manufacturers, but customer care goes a long way. Two year warranty, a list on crossroads website of warranty reps, parts contacts etc to contact at the factory (with good follow up from them) will help customers bypass problematic dealers and make them feel like they care.

[ChristianM]

Originally Posted by anaro

Welcome to the forum ladies. I am a former Zinger owner that still hangs with the friends made through these forums. You will find campers to be of a different culture. We can hang around a campfire for a few nights and make friendships that last a lifetime. A good example of that is the mason Dixon group that doubles as the northeast crossroads rally group. This is essentially the same bunch of people that meet up twice a year to catch up and swap stories. They started as all crossroads owners (all cruisers I believe) and have continued to welcome newcomers to the group. This group has grown and several members, including myself have moved on to some other brand (SOB) trailer/motor home but still show their face at these meetups/rallies. A show of crossroads support at these rallies would be great. ie some merchandise like t-shirts or something.

A great model for owner participation that you could look to is FROG. This is the forest river owners group. It is run by a person hired by forest river. His job is to organize Forest River rallies throughout the year. He also works with members to organize local get togethers. Their factory rally has grown huge in the four or five years it's been running. It is so big this year, they had to cut off registration at somewhere around 750 rigs. part of why it is so big is the fee covers most of your dinners, and your camping fees as well as factory tours, rv seminars, and get this, FREE repairs to rigs of any age on issues that would have been covered under warranty if it was still in warranty. I have heard they even replaced a roof during the last year's rally. This is the kind of stuff that helps draw owner loyalty.

Yes QC needs drastic improvement across the board of all manufacturers, but customer care goes a long way. Two year warranty, a list on crossroads website of warranty reps, parts contacts etc to contact at the factory (with good follow up from them) will help customers bypass problematic dealers and make them feel like they care.

Thank you for the kind welcome AND the good advice.
You will be excited to know that as of this last month, Crossroads brought on a team of new faces SPECIFICALLY to expand the Crossroads events nationwide, including rallies and events that are easier for families in all corners of the country to attend. We are also drastically expanding our merchandising line as well- I think you're gonna be excited to see all of the changes made this year. Keep a weather eye out for updates on all of our social media outlets and these forums! (and please keep those ideas for us coming... you have no idea how helpful that is to us!)

Thanks!
Christian

[Bert]

Originally Posted by ChristianM

Tim,
We would love to have more input, and love to have more answers for the hundreds of people that have contacted us since we have been trying to be more of a presence on social media. However, in all honesty, we are VERY new to our jobs and are really trying to do right by everyone that we respond to or come in contact with. Not only is this branch of customer service totally new to Crossroads, but Taylor and I are relatively new to the industry as well. Know that over this past week, we have relayed countless concerns and questions from this forum to our management and customer service counterparts.
We want to be able to serve the Crossroads family to the best of our ability, it might just take us a little bit to perfect the system. Please be patient with us as many times we are having to look for answers for many of your questions/comments because we simply don't have the answers!
Thanks!
Christian

I appreciate your honesty. This looks like Crossroads is taking a step in the right direction. Crossroads can learn a lot on this forum. Constructive criticism and honest knowledgeable opinions can be found here. Many of the forum members have experience and ideas that would be beneficial to Crossroads. Again welcome!

[Jase]

I'd like to chime in and add to anaro's comments about FROG being a good example of a way to boost owner participation and loyalty. The rallies, the forums, and all the other perks are a pretty strong draw. We bought a Crossroads because we liked it better than the Forest River in the same price range, but if it had been a close decision, something like FROG may have swayed our choice. An active, supported community is a big perk.

I'll also admit to a little jealousy over the swag available for purchase on the FROG site. I'm not normally a big one for flashing brands and logos, but I'd gladly buy a Crossroads jacket or hat or t-shirt to wear occasionally when out camping. If the Harley folks can build their wardrobes around a logo, I'd throw on a Crossroads logo from time to time.

Finally, because there's no easy way to thank someone at Crossroads for a specific feature, I'd like to offer up a HUGE thanks to whoever decided to put steps in the bunkroom of the 301bh. That little feature was a major factor in our purchase. Both of my sons (9 and 5 years old) can get to the top bunks on their own. It's pretty important for the 5 year old to be able to do what his big brother can, and the steps help with that. Almost none of the bunkhouses we saw had that feature. Major plus for us!

Thanks, and best of luck in the new role!

[mark5w]

Check out Crossroads apparel https://commerce.c-g-s.com/cgi-bin/X...ome&s=ycg8y682

[Loneoak]

If we are going to thank Crossroads designers, I would like to thank whoever put the hall closet in the slide of our 5th wheel. It is the perfect spot for the cat's litter box. I just took one of the doors off so the cat can go in and out.

[Jase]

Originally Posted by mark5w

Check out Crossroads apparel https://commerce.c-g-s.com/cgi-bin/X...ome&s=ycg8y682

Thanks! I haven't seen that before. I appreciate it!

[sleepyT]

Originally Posted by mark5w

Check out Crossroads apparel https://commerce.c-g-s.com/cgi-bin/X...ome&s=ycg8y682

Only thing wrong is you need a magnifying glass to see the logo... If your going to say it, say it LOUD AND PROUD>>>

[Loneoak]

You can also go to the rally and they give you a really nice shirt. The one I got last year is my favorite shirt - nice color, light weight and breathable fabric.

[Chateau Duke To Go]

Bill54, if you can't get to Mike Antal, perhaps one of these ladies can point you in the right direction.

[ttroup]

Originally Posted by Chateau Duke To Go

Bill54, if you can't get to Mike Antal, perhaps one of these ladies can point you in the right direction.

Bill54, I am having a hard time finding your oringial post. If you could please Private Message me I would be glad to help you and get this taken care of. Thank you!

[sleepyT]

Originally Posted by ttroup

Bill54, I am having a hard time finding your oringial post. If you could please Private Message me I would be glad to help you and get this taken care of. Thank you!

His original message is on the cruiser thread under "Warranty manager for cruiser"

[PARTS GUY]

Welcome to the forum