Wisper Who was just awarded the Which? magazine Best Buy award?

[guerney]

Actually it wasn't you I was thinking of David ! I'd stuck a "flecc" nametag on my shirt to get as many Pedelec members contacts as possible, but those few who did all had, shall we say, a substantial presence.

It was them my brother was thinking of, as he explained his comment by saying their cycling wasn't doing much for them.
.

Your brother's observation was astute - already two stones overweight, I gained two more after converting my unused bike to electric. Reducing assistance would result in my arriving at work sweaty in need of a shower. I've managed to shed a little over three stones since. This final 11 pounds is proving very stubborn, I fear it's been superglued into position somehow by my mortal enemies The Illuminati.

 

[Wisper Bikes]

Trustpilot score for Which? is 1.7
Trustpilot score for Wisper is 4.7
Trustpilot score for Trustpilot is 4.3

Hi sjpt,

Reviews are a great point of contention, they are very powerful and people know this. We have had several customers leave bad reviews and then demand payment in parts or cash to get them taken down. They have learned not to do this by mail as with enough proof it is possible to get these removed.

We are diligent with both customer service and responding to all reviews good or bad. We have never paid for reviews and apart from one or two experimental reviews when we first started with TP we have never written our own reviews or asked others to do so. Out 4.7/5 (one of the best for bike manufacturers in the UK) is 100% correct.

It is almost impossible to have bad reviews taken down unless they are openly and provably blackmailing or threatening. We have a few one star reviews, not one is called for, one for people not being able to get a full throttle bike as fast as they wanted despite telling them how long it would take, and another because the free safety check has to be carried out by the dealer who sold the bike. So in my opinion Trust Pilot is as good as it gets with reviews. Of course some people will try and abuse the system but they are normally quite easy to spot. If a company has fewer than 300 reviews I would be less trusting. One with 1000 I would trust.

Re Which? they have two problems, neither are to do with their review quality.

A couple of examples over the last few days...

Don't house over 200 asylum seekers in…
Don't house over 200 asylum seekers in your hotel it's not a hostel. who haven't been vetted into our small town and ruining our small already struggling community and put our young girls and women at risk of sexual harassment or assault.

Date of experience: 06 June 2023

Which, independent reviews, or just making profits . I review company that charge for their…
I review company that charge for their reviews!!! WHAT A JOKE!! The whole point of a review company is to get some independent advice….. But you are charging for the privilege! Try taking the money off the business that’s trying to prove themselves, rather than the common people who are looking for sound independent advice, that probably can’t afford nearly £100 a year…. Which is why they’ve turned to which in the first place to make sure they’re getting value for money…… Which, seriously what are you doing????!!!!

Date of experience: 02 May 2023

Condeming hard working Seaside Communities....
Which decide to survey Seaside towns and publish a report claiming the towns at the top are the best Towns in the UK while the towns at the bottom are the "Worst" No credibility as to who they surveyed and the towns at the top are wealthy towns and the towns at the bottom are underprivileged. And the one page report condemning these towns has 119 links to the Booking.com website!! A company using their name to produce click bait rubbish to impact on the local economies of hard working seaside communities

Date of experience: 05 May 2023

So... all the bad reviews I have read are either completely inaccurate, "Dont house 200 asylum seekers in your hotel!!" People who are unhappy because the review of their business wasn't to their liking. People who are unhappy with the service reviewed by Which or the fact that Which's service isn't free.

Every singe review is answered respectfully and in full. I am very happy that Which chose to look at one of our bikes. I hope they review more.

I also wish there was a site where the reviewed could review the reviewer or is that going too far?!

All the best, David

 

[Bonzo Banana]

Thanks BB, we were absolutely delighted. I was very impressed by the way the whole exercise was conducted. Which? purchased completely anonymously 14 of the best selling folding ebikes from dealers, their team of four bike testers, tested them independently. They included bikes from Brompton, Raleigh, Mycle, Volt, EVolt, MiRider, B'Twin as well as bikes from Halfords, Argos etc.

I liked their warts and all approach and we had absolutely no knowledge or say in the process. Of course they are not infallible but I know their test procedure was rigorous and without any bias. We know we are not without fault but all the bikes were tested under the same conditions by the same team. Brompton and Wisper were considered the best.

All said a very good result for a small, independent firm like Wisper! And yes we have seen a spike in purchases.

All the best, David

I've not seen the review so can't comment on that, it could be very good. I remember in the past they didn't factor in the slow repair process and huge cost of repair for Miele products. They also did vacuum cleaner reviews where the cost of bags was not factored in but sound levels of vacuum cleaners was given high importance. However the underlying criticism I have of Which is long term use of many products and factoring in how something actually works over the long term. I watch ebay a lot and see many brompton hub motors appear on their listing page as faulty/unknown and that is surely a product that sells in lower volumes due to its high price. I question the long term reliability of that hub motor. Reviews how the operate when new is not a realistic viewpoint over the long term. Also when you factor in reliability of a product you must factor in how easy to repair and the typical cost. Some products have specific repair procedures with no 3rd party repairs possible. This means its a non-competitive environment and costs can be huge. A huge amount of Miele owners are dis-satisfied with their products due to long wait times and excessive repair charges when they need servicing and repair especially outside warranty when they often become throwaway products because of excessive charges. I only mention Miele as its often a brand Which champions. A LG washing machine of similar reliability has tiny repair charges in comparison and can be widely repaired by third party repairers who have access to spares. This means quick, simple and reasonable repairs. A Brompton ebike is highly proprietary which can cause many issues for end users over the long term.

Miele is rated "Bad" with 1.6 / 5 on Trustpilot

Do you agree with Miele's TrustScore? Voice your opinion today and hear what 2,189 customers have already said.

uk.trustpilot.com

 

[Wisper Bikes]

I've not seen the review so can't comment on that, it could be very good. I remember in the past they didn't factor in the slow repair process and huge cost of repair for Miele products. They also did vacuum cleaner reviews where the cost of bags was not factored in but sound levels of vacuum cleaners was given high importance. However the underlying criticism I have of Which is long term use of many products and factoring in how something actually works over the long term. I watch ebay a lot and see many brompton hub motors appear on their listing page as faulty/unknown and that is surely a product that sells in lower volumes due to its high price. I question the long term reliability of that hub motor. Reviews how the operate when new is not a realistic viewpoint over the long term. Also when you factor in reliability of a product you must factor in how easy to repair and the typical cost. Some products have specific repair procedures with no 3rd party repairs possible. This means its a non-competitive environment and costs can be huge. A huge amount of Miele owners are dis-satisfied with their products due to long wait times and excessive repair charges when they need servicing and repair especially outside warranty when they often become throwaway products because of excessive charges. I only mention Miele as its often a brand Which champions. A LG washing machine of similar reliability has tiny repair charges in comparison and can be widely repaired by third party repairers who have access to spares. This means quick, simple and reasonable repairs. A Brompton ebike is highly proprietary which can cause many issues for end users over the long term.

Miele is rated "Bad" with 1.6 / 5 on Trustpilot

Do you agree with Miele's TrustScore? Voice your opinion today and hear what 2,189 customers have already said.

uk.trustpilot.com

I suppose most of the people leaving reviews for washing machines and dryers etc will only do so if they go wrong, why would you if the appliances are working perfectly? This is definitely a problem with reviews. It's a great place to have a go at a company but I for one would not leave a review unless I was dissatisfied or prompted to do so. Again Miele answer every review politely and constructively. That alone would give me a great deal of confidence. Reviews are only a guide and like using sat nav we have to use our grey matter to make a choice, we should not expect the ""machine" to make decisions for us.

I have tried to regress the balance by leaving my five star review for Miele based on my experience...

FIVE STAR

Highly Recommended!

We bought our Miele Tumble Dryer and Washing M/C 11 years ago this year. They have performed almost perfectly and the few problems we have had were due to user error. Parts were available within a couple of days.

All the best, David

 

[Wisper Bikes]

We’ll deserved even for an older bike David.
and the old video is great - looks like the original 905?

Thanks Simon, as you can imagine I find the video rather embarrassing! Yes that’s the original 905! 16 years on from when the first original the current 905 is in its last year as the Tailwind models take over let’s hope the Tailwinds are still about in another 16 years!

As a matter of interest, we are still getting original models in for servicing, we now offer a complete electronics upgrade to breathe new life!

All the best, David

 

[guerney]

as you can imagine I find the video rather embarrassing!

Sorry about that. It's too late for me to delete it now, and it'd still be on Youtube even if I could. I don't see what's wrong with it TBH, seems a good interview and promo video spot.

I'd like to see the Whiches review and compare a group of conversion kits, but I suppose the permutations of bikes, parts, kits and options are too many...

 

[Wisper Bikes]

Sorry about that. It's too late for me to delete it now, and it'd still be on Youtube even if I did. I don't see what's wrong with it TBH, seems a good interview and promo video spot.

I'd like to see the Whiches review conversion kits, but I suppose the permutations of bikes, parts, kits and options are too many...

No worries at all Guerney! I’ve understood it’ll be there for ever!

I should worry! Meet Tim who’s worked at Wisper for a few years now looking after marketing and stock requirements amongst a thousand other jobs.



He’s also a serious top male model, this is one of the less embarrassing shots that will follow him for life! I’ve learned a lot from Tim regarding how to handle those who poke fun!

All the best, David

 

[guerney]

The video in the context of this thread, sortof indicates the arc of your story from smallish beginnings to Which award. You could flag the video as inapproriate, for Youtube's consideration. Tom has dug himself into a hole from which there is no escape lol.

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