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IWC doesn't have a (warranty) registration process?

  • forum 4 replies
  • last reply by stvn66 28 Feb 2012
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    Insider
    12 Jan 2012, 7:44 p.m.
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    I recently bought my first "timepiece", Portuguese 7 day automatic, and have fallen in love with IWC (and this forum)!

    My question is: how come IWC doesn't have a (warranty) registration process, either online or via mail, to capture customer's contact info? Maybe there is and I just missed it, when I opened the (gorgeous) box, I didn't see any info about it.

    Some might ask, we already get these registration forms from buying a vacuum cleaner to shoes and everything in between. Why would you want to fill out another form?

    What led me to the thought was... as a proud IWC owner now, wouldn't it be cool if/when IWC is releasing a new Portuguese, they could drop me an email and let me know? Granted, someone like me, who is on forums and follow events like SIHH, I would know, but there would be others out there who would benefit from this.

    Just a thought...

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    Moderator
    12 Jan 2012, 9:09 p.m.
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    Yes, they don't have a formal process. That probably should be changed.

    I believe that the problem is historical: for many years, IWC (like most watch companies) believed that its customers were its dealers, who bought the watch from the factory or a distributor. The end-users who bought from the dealers were considered the dealer's customers! And there was some reluctance to change or interfer with that relationship.

    In many ways, still, when you buy a watch from the dealer you should be on the "dealer's list". Some are better than others in record-keeping and contacting customers. Also there's been a huge change in the past 15+ years withe growth of e-mail, the Internet and data-based marketing.

    Moreover, the customer relationship is undergoing transformation. There is a growing emphasis on boutique sales, many of which are factory-owned and direct to customer. When you buy at a boutique I can pretty much assure you that you're on a short list.

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    Insider
    12 Jan 2012, 9:37 p.m.
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    Hi Michael - as always, thanks for the quick and clear response, good to understand the (historical) reasons why there isn't one. Make sense.

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    Master
    12 Jan 2012, 11:49 p.m.
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    I agree Michael - This is another opportunity for engaging in a stronger relationship with the client and concomitantly offering an increased perception of value of the warranty. It may also help with the fight agai st counterfeiting.

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    Insider
    28 Feb 2012, 6 p.m.
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    I was told many years ago that Cartier register your watch on an international database and if stolen are 'flagged' as such.
    I don't know if this is true or not but it does seem a good idea considering the expense of these timepieces.