Message:
July 16, 2001 President Winnebago Industries, Inc. 605 West Crystal Lake Road Forest City, IA 50436 Dear Sir or Madam: My husband and I were in the process of purchasing a new Winnebago motor home from a dealer in Missouri when I read the enclosed account of another customer’s experience with your organization. As a result, not only did we not follow through with the pending contract for the 2001 Winnebago, we have ruled out purchasing a motor home from Winnebago altogether. The customer service described in the enclosed account is despicable. It seems that Winnebago wanted no relationship with the customer after the sale, and Volkswagen was reluctant to do the agreed warranty work or had to wait an unreasonable period of time for Winnebago to approve the warranty work. The bottom line is that the customer suffered because of the strategic alliance forged between Winnebago and Volkswagen. You should either choose your business partners more carefully or be willing to stand by your customers. Your customers most certainly purchase Winnebago motor homes based on the Winnebago brand name and all that it represents—and not based on the engine manufacturer. I understand that there will always be some problems when purchasing and selling recreational vehicles; however, excellent customer service can remedy unavoidable problems and ameliorate situations like the one described. I wanted you to know that your customer service failure in this instance has definitely cost you a sale as well as potential customers. Sincerely, Jennifer M. Sowden Encl: Winnebago Rialta “Horror Story”