How do you pick which vendor to shop with??

[TopShelfAquatics]

Today we are very lucky to have so many choices when it comes to fish and coral vendors.

But with so many options out there, what are the biggest things you as a consumer look for when deciding where you are going to spend your hard earned money?

We would love to hear what you look for both for retail and online vendors!

 

[cdw79]

People and pictures I can trust.

If I buy a few pieces, even if they aren't top of the line, all I ask is that the photo reasonably represents how they will look in my tank under the same spectrum, within reason of course. If they do, I'm going to keep coming back. And on top of that, if a seller checks in, offers advice, and otherwise goes the extra mile / shows they really care both about my buying experience and the animals themselves, then you've got a lifetime customer!

 

[TopShelfAquatics]

People and pictures I can trust.

If I buy a few pieces, even if they aren't top of the line, all I ask is that the photo reasonably represents how they will look in my tank under the same spectrum, within reason of course. If they do, I'm going to keep coming back. And on top of that, if a seller checks in, offers advice, and otherwise goes the extra mile / shows they really care both about my buying experience and the animals themselves, then you've got a lifetime customer!

All great points! Support after the sale is very important!

 

[Will_W]

I look for quality in the products and the service. For online I look at the reviews of the company and try to see a background on their website. To see how long they've been I'm business and I try to email them about how they pack and ship their livestock. If I got to a brick and mortar store I look at the fish first. Look for any sickness or parasites, does everyone look well fed and if they're suppose to be active how active are they. I look at the frag tanks for an abundance of what I call muck on the bottom of the tanks. I look at the frags to see if the colors are vibrant and everything is open. I then like to ask the store about their quarantine process. I'm very lucky here in South florida to have found a LFS that does a 30 day quarantine on everything that comes in. If there's an issue or suspected issue they treat the issue and quarantine starts all over. They take alot of pride in only offering the best and healthy corals and fish.

 

[vtecintegra]

Online: If the photos are outrageously photo shopped, I avoid the company. Sick of being scammed with the over saturation, blacked out background, and fake colors. It seems the bigger the company or higher the popularity, the more they are manipulating the photos to scam the customer. Second, I avoid any company charging more than $30 for shipping.

 

[TopShelfAquatics]

I look for quality in the products and the service. For online I look at the reviews of the company and try to see a background on their website. To see how long they've been I'm business and I try to email them about how they pack and ship their livestock. If I got to a brick and mortar store I look at the fish first. Look for any sickness or parasites, does everyone look well fed and if they're suppose to be active how active are they. I look at the frag tanks for an abundance of what I call muck on the bottom of the tanks. I look at the frags to see if the colors are vibrant and everything is open. I then like to ask the store about their quarantine process. I'm very lucky here in South florida to have found a LFS that does a 30 day quarantine on everything that comes in. If there's an issue or suspected issue they treat the issue and quarantine starts all over. They take alot of pride in only offering the best and healthy corals and fish.

Thank you for sharing. All very good things to look for in online and retail vendors!

 

[TopShelfAquatics]

Online: If the photos are outrageously photo shopped, I avoid the company. Sick of being scammed with the over saturation, blacked out background, and fake colors. It seems the bigger the company or higher the popularity, the more they are manipulating the photos to scam the customer. Second, I avoid any company charging more than $30 for shipping.

We have seen some photos that look a bit "radioactive" out there lol. Thank you for sharing.

 

[spsick]

A reputation for strict coral quarantine process and not mixing with established growout stock. Assurance of pest free corals is my greatest concern above price/pictures/even customer service.

I don’t have a quarantine setup suitable for monitoring acros for months so I am happy to pay a premium for trusted vendors to take these steps.

 

[TopShelfAquatics]

A reputation for strict coral quarantine process and not mixing with established growout stock. Assurance of pest free corals is my greatest concern above price/pictures/even customer service.

I don’t have a quarantine setup suitable for monitoring acros for months so I am happy to pay a premium for trusted vendors to take these steps.

We definitely have a lot of customers that their number one priority is getting pest free corals. Definitely understandable as some pests can truly be a pain to deal with!

 

[BlueDamselReef]

Good quality Coral/ livestock, true to wysiwyg photos, good quality shipping that shows care was taken into getting animals shipped, and very important to me, is minimal pests/hitchhikers!! Great pricing is a great bonus too, but I don't mind paying for quality any day!!

 

[BirdFish5000]

What I look for:

1. Good reputation
2. Frag size reasonable for price
3. Prices at or below market averages for a particular coral
4. Ready willingness to answer questions about animal quarantine, parameters, etc

What I avoid:

1. Heavy marketing/branding
2. Frequent live sales
3. No stay alive for x days policies, or short (2 hour) DOA policies

 

[Auquanut]

Today we are very lucky to have so many choices when it comes to fish and coral vendors.

But with so many options out there, what are the biggest things you as a consumer look for when deciding where you are going to spend your hard earned money?

We would love to hear what you look for both for retail and online vendors!

Looks like you're getting a lot of good feedback. I'm not going to add specifics except to say that I tend to gravitate to a vendor who is in touch with the expectations of the customer and use those expectations in general to build best business practices. There's no way to meet everyone's expectations, but I think that a business that tries to gage their performance and what customers reasonably want will rise above the rest. From what I've seen, you guys have, and continue to do just that.

Keep on keeping on!

 

[BossChief]

I only buy my corals from TSA because they are first class every step of the way!

(I’ll pm you the address for the 250 hg for the plug)

 

[Ashish Patel]

One that follows good QT procedure, pest free, decent size frags and prices. Also only buy from companies that there livestock is cared for by seasoned hobbyist!

 

[AdamD76]

Pictures I can trust.
Prices I like.
Good feedback here on R2R.

 

[Roli's Reef Ranch]

Online: If the photos are outrageously photo shopped, I avoid the company. Sick of being scammed with the over saturation, blacked out background, and fake colors. It seems the bigger the company or higher the popularity, the more they are manipulating the photos to scam the customer. Second, I avoid any company charging more than $30 for shipping.

Agreed. Having been to ReefStock Denver last year, I can attest to the fact that all the "big boy" coral vendor's corals looked nothing like the over-saturated, photoshopped pics you are referring to on their websites. We all know why they do it; to stay competitive with other vendors who also lack picture integrity. I prefer Tidal Gardens approach which shows pictures of the coral under different Kelvin scales. I bought from those guys when I was a noob and didn't know any better, but now I prefer to buy from reputable hobbyists such as Abe from Coral Euphoria, or Keith *ReefBum because their stuff is better and less marked up if I can't get something from a reefer buddy. I also like to support people with a passion for the hobby, rather than encourage the over-commercialization of the hobby.

 

[tautog83]

Honestly , I look at cheap corals , if you sell a green slimer or like a purple stylo for over $30and have some wacky name on it then I know to hit the back button .

 

[mrpontiac80]

I’m still a newer reefer at almost two years in and last year I was fortunate enough to vacation in Orlando. Our hotel for the week turned out to be 2 min away from WWC superstore. Needless to say I was excited and amazed at the store and wanted to see who else was close by. I found your location and decided to stop with the false impression the coral prices were more expensive just having seen some high end stuff online.
I was blown away by amount of quality dry goods, tanks, fish, and of course corals in your retail store!! Coming from northwest AR I have nothing that compares. The help that I received in the store while asking questions and such was amazing. From that point on I am a TSA fan. Most of my corals come from you guys.

I do feel like some corals I can get local for a much better price, but I also do not trust the health of the livestock as much.
I understand shipping costs have increased but I am not spending $40-$60 to ship. I understand shipping can be stressful and I just do not want to pay that amount and then receive corals that may require replacement or refunds that are hard to get. A store credit? That’s cool but I don’t want to have to pay shipping again for that also. So a good guarantee goes a long way.

And lastly is knowledge. Sharing how to care for these corals and informing the customer of what to expect. If I buy a cool looking coral, I need to know how it grows for placement… does it encrust, grow upward, plate or etc? Is it going to pop up off spring on the other side of the tank like Xenia? I wish every coral from every vender had a colony picture with it. Even better if it is the same colony as the frag with all of its new growth colors that only tend to stay on the areas of new growth! Those rainbow colored flags may not be so multi colored when they are big. It’s amazing how different they look as they grow out.

 

[TopShelfAquatics]

Looks like you're getting a lot of good feedback. I'm not going to add specifics except to say that I tend to gravitate to a vendor who is in touch with the expectations of the customer and use those expectations in general to build best business practices. There's no way to meet everyone's expectations, but I think that a business that tries to gage their performance and what customers reasonably want will rise above the rest. From what I've seen, you guys have, and continue to do just that.

Keep on keeping on!

Thank you for the kind words. We definitely strive to help our customers as much as we can!