Krozi

I never said that giving a form of gratuity is inappropriate. Did you even read what I wrote in that whole reply?

I just meant that giving someone with a career a tip in the form of cash is inappropriate. Especially if the SA is a genuinely nice person.

Gene

how or why is cash inappropriate for a career person or even if he/she is genuinely a nice person? wine, cash, food, gc: it's still a form of gratuity. Like I said, which do you prefer: cash/gc or a pack of underwear for xmas? And sometimes something more than a pat on the back is in order.

how is donuts for the dealership better/more appropriate than cash to your SA/tech? if your SA is as good as you know he is, he'll take care of his techs. As he should know his techs make him look good. As in my reply regarding using the gratuity I receive from time to time to get something for my entire staff. I'm not thanking the dealership, I'm thanking my SA and the tech/s.

so you are telling me that if you were to detail a car or do a photoshoot for someone's car you won't except a cash tip but rather ask for donuts for your family?

the point is, we all want to say "thank you". how you go about doing it is up to you and what you are comfortable with. it's obvious you don't want to walk away feeling bad for how you say thank you, if you do, perhaps you need to rethink how you are going about it.

my rule: "Do onto other's...."

and watch your tone

Krozi

Since he gets a good amount of money already, its not like he's looking to scratch up money where he can. It's not about the money, it about the act of showing gratuity. Cash just isn't very personal.

Your business is much smaller than a dealership I assume. If a dealer employs 50 techs/low level employees, what is he going to do? Give each of them $2? I also like to thank the techs and my SA but who doesn't like that one dude that brings donuts for everyone?

Also I wouldn't tip the techs with money either, at least not in my position, because I am very close friends with a lot of them...it's weird to give people cash when they are your friends and hang out at your house every other day

That's very different. With the cost of the car, comes the service of a dealership. The service is included in the price of the car. If I offer goods or services to someone, I expect a profit (or at least a cover cost if they are a good friend) in return. I would gladly except any form of gratuity OVER the cost of the detail/photoshoot, whether it be money or donuts.

Working in a dealership with a stable job and stable income is different than detailing a car or shooting a car. I don't think you can compare the two because they are very different lines of work.

Didn't realize I was using a tone? Whatchu talking about ninja?


EDIT: BTW, with the $100 per visit example, I was referring to C.

flyingpuck

Anyone else think Krozi's dad might be in donut production?? LOL

Krozi

skeeter

Donuts or doughnuts?

Krozi

Pine nuts. I tip my SA with 5 pounds of pine nuts every month.

luigi524td

They probably squirrel them away for the winter months

Gene

well I have the same tech work on my car each time, so that somewhat negates the "$2 per tech" analogy. I'm fortunate enough to be able to do that as my SA knows I prefer a specific tech to perform any work on my car as is able to accommodate this.

to say cash is "in personal" is a personal opinion. To me, it's more impersonal to give someone a gift he/she doesn't like or need. yes, if you know someone well enough that should not happen. But if it's a one time experience or even first time experience, it's kind of hard to gauge what to get, and generic gift like a bottle of wine of box or donuts can be viewed just as impersonal. In cases like this I've included cash or a GC in a thank you card explaining my gratitude, hopes of using my small gift for something they would enjoy, and hopes of continued positive experiences with him/her in the future. Like I said earlier, my SA is a family friend, and still don't feel awkward giving him cash. At one point he wanted to take me to lunch with the gift i gave him, while this somewhat negated my point of giving him something, its how he wanted to spend it, which in the end, was the point....

"Service is included with the price of the car". But the quality of service can and does vary. So if it's better than average/expected, why not give a little extra. Whether it be a BMW SA or photog, exceptional service/work has been provided and has compelled someone to show some sort of monetary gratitude, we should all be working as hard and receiving that level of service, unfortunately we do not,but should take notice when we do.

Working in a steady job or not, you are still having to provide a service. That service should be exceptional and capture your customer(s) to further repeat business. So whether or not it's a high paying job or not, one is working hard to earn and keep your business. Without gestures of appreciation all everyone would do is just clock in and out, not caring about anyone who comes thru the door, which in fact is a problem in a lot of industries/companies right now IMO, a bunch of 9-5'ers who don't care about their job, the quality of their work, and it shows in their service. Bonuses/Tips/perks, whatever you want to call it, it's the small incentives that motivate us to do better. We are far to quick to flame the bad/lazy SA/tech/dealership, but when we get good service you can't tell me "well, that's what they should be doing anyway". Technically yes, but it's that which sets him/her/the dealership apart from others and keeps us coming back.

IMO: just get your SA/tech, whomever whatever you are comfortable with. You should walk away knowing you let him/her know you appreciate their work and thank them for it.

C's Bimmer

Well paying? Are you aware what a service advisor makes? I wouldn't classify it as well-paying. Wait a second -- you don't even work for a living, so you probably can't relate.