wobbie said:
Just my 2 cents worth and if Dish is monoriting this, then maybe even better. I personally think that Dish should let the local retailers get more work and do away with the RSP's I feel the customer would be happier dealing with someone local and if there was a problem they could call the local installer. Reading alot of the posts on here it looks like you call Dish, they send a "tech" out and you never know who or what company they were with. I know if I buy something and have problems, I go back to where I bought it. That was also the case with DirecTV when I was with them. I've been happier since I switched to Dish though.
They actually do that right now, its called retailer referal which they basically send us closed work orders and let us do the installation and get full commission minus $50.
The program has some pro's and cons. Don't get me wrong, its nice to get an installation and not have to generate our own sale, but at the same time they charge us back when the customers don't pay or disconnect.
Perfect example is that we did their program for 4 months, and got a fair number of sales out of it. I pre-screened every single customer they sent to me, and rejected all the "crappy" customers who we know wouldn't pay their bills, or only wanted the service for a few months and then would cancel.
My churn rate on the customers Dish sends me is 4 times as high as the sales I generate on my own. Again, thats after screening them first, if I didn't screen them I would probably guess it would be 10 times higher than average.
I don't know if they purposely send us all the bad customers in my area or what! I don't mind the chargebacks as much, as the fact they count these customers towards our CRP (Customer Retention Program) when we where not the ones to pre-screen them and sell them from the beginning.
But to ansewer your question, I think this is the direction Dish is going!
The only thing that needs improvement is the pay. I'll gladly take a 50% reduction in commission so we can do the Job as a contractor and not a retailer. This way the customer can disconnect, or do whatever they want and its not going to effect me.