Just a quick question for charter guys...

[tunatamer4]

Does anyone beside me ever wonder if some of the charter groups look at these web pages?

Alot of the reports that I have read, groups are ripped apart for just being googans. Isn't that why they charter? I know if I were to charter someone and happen to be surfing the net and came across a report that was undoubtedly about my group in a less than ok review(not that it would ever happen), I'd never bother with that boat again.

It's one thing to bash them at the docks among your dockmates, but to put it out for the world to see can't be good for business, can it?

I don't know, maybe I'm just F-d up.

[gottaflylee]

tunatamer4, As frustrating as it is sometimes, if you bash your charters on the net, It will come back to bite you in the butt. I have never understood why Capts. or mates would want to do that other than vent but doing it on the net is a bad place to do it. Now I do tease my guys about "Drum Fever" in my reports but I tease them about it on the boat so they all ready know about it.

I know that a lot of my charter people read my reports as I sometimes email them the link as well as tell them where I post my reports so they see the pictures and read about their day through my eyes. Even though we think our day stunk, a lot of times for the charter, its the best day of fishing that they have ever had.

When ever we post something on the net, it is like writing it down in a history book. Its always their and search engines are like elephants...they never forget...years later, something you posted on the web could come back to haunt you...

I'm with you, as I have read the same thing and make a mental note not to recommend or book a charter for my self with that Capt. that bash the crowd on the boat.

[nautiduck]

What in Gods holy name is a Googan?

[reelreturn]

I don't charter and I don't bash the people I fish with. Everyone can't be a pro- if they improve their fishing skills that's all I can ask. I get to fish with a lot of people during the year and sometimes it is the only fishing trip the person gets to go on all year. I do bite my tongue a lot, but I try to remember that if that person wasn't on board - I probably wouldn't get to go fishing that day.

[Bert Rodgers]

I have not seen much of that here.

Bert

[sportfishingusa]

Does anyone beside me ever wonder if some of the charter groups look at these web pages?

Alot of the reports that I have read, groups are ripped apart for just being googans. Isn't that why they charter? I know if I were to charter someone and happen to be surfing the net and came across a report that was undoubtedly about my group in a less than ok review(not that it would ever happen), I'd never bother with that boat again.

It's one thing to bash them at the docks among your dockmates, but to put it out for the world to see can't be good for business, can it?

I don't know, maybe I'm just F-d up.

you are 150 percent right.. the problem is that some people dont care and dont want the group back.. i look at it this way.. if they are a pain in the butt, but they pay and fish and want to come back and fish with you why not take the business.

to air out your dirty laundry to the public about other people that you dont really know from adam is horrible and unlikely to get you positive feedback or positive advertisement.. not to mention karma is a biotch for real...

it will always come back to bite you in the behind expecially if it is something very harse. charters are not meant to be professionals and i bet charter can come up with more complaints about their captain, crew, and boat than the captain can about the crew with some of these guys who decide to degrade their charters..
i remember working on a boat years back that these guys couldnt catch a fish... they wouldnt let me help them and hook fish and they couldnt get a fish to stay hooked on the chunk in nj as they kept giving them way to much slack and it was unbelievable.. i tried to hook fish and they wouldnt let me they wanted to do it all for themselves...

they finally got so fed up and frustrated that they all went to sleep.. i caught numerous larger yellowfin and filled the boxes without telling anyone at all.. no one heard me as they were all shut down in the cabin snoozing away..

we got up the next morning on the troll and they actually allowed me to pick up a rod and give it to them and they got one fish...

when we got back to the dock they went up to the captain and they compained about how they didnt catch anything and about how it was a horrible trip and how they would never be back.. while they wereup on the dock i began to sling fish all over..

they looked down in awww and they couldnt believe what they saw... i boated 12 yellowfin up to 110lbs by myself overnight and they quickly turned their frowns upside down and lets say that my tip was accordingly taken care of!!!

now that could have turned into a complete horror story but we made them happy as all charter crews should.. some people truly do suck and they are unhappy no matter what you do.. but let me tell you i will spend 10 hours of my day poking and prodding to make them smile and laugh and have a good time even if i have to eat a fish head, or make them drinks, serve them, and cook them lunch..

i will get my pay dirt no matter what and i would never bash them because i wont let anyone get off my boat unhappy.

THANKS

[knot for shore]

SportfishingUSA..............

just my long winded stupid thought of the day. lol hahah

Don't knock your opinions bro. You need to give yourself more credit. When people end their thoughts with statements like, "just my 2 cents" or the verbiage you used, it negates your thoughts. This is a good post and your reply has merrit.


I think bashing any previous client in any way, shape or form is bad for future business. Why would I chance booking a guy that has a reputation for doing this to his clients? Answer is, I wouldn't. If he can bash joeschmo for whatever, he can surely do it to me for maybe messing up in some way.

[bigfish4me]

Its just bad business and a poor way of advertising, had a well known charter out of south jersey hint around in a report for a trip we were on for overnight tuna....didnt come out and say it but implied we could have boated more fish than we did,left me feeling funny about spending the cash we do to fish with them...and they are expensive. We boated some big fish with them in the past, that trip the bite was tough and in order to get the bite going we had to drop down to 40 lb floro leaders, run of the mill 60-75 lb yellow fins..had a few chew through,pulled one or two and had on get in the running gear.Its tough to controll a fish on a light drag, hey shit happens....could have just said we had our cracks, but more or less implied angler error.....chewin through 40 is not too hard to believe, we didnt set the drags, hell we were not even upset with the outcome....as a matter of fact we had a great time. This coincidentally is the trip that he capt. called us up to let us know the $450 tip we gave the mate was sub-standard. Keep in mind this was 3 years ago, and the trip was 3k to go. So we fished with them 5 times before that, and have not booked them since. All the trips were overnighters, but i guess when you get as big as them...you dont care too much about loosing one set of repeat guys.

[SeaBiscuit]

Many good fishermen are opinionated and strong willed. Most have huge egos driving them to prove they are the best. It's a tradition for "old salts" to be grumpy. Unfortunately running one's own commercial fishing business is no longer possible for a lot of folks in a lot of areas. Many such folks end up in the "guiding" business, sharing what they thought was theirs alone in the past, with every Tom, Dick and Harry who can afford their rate.
"The customer is always right" in the service business, however, and those who fail to learn that lesson will not be successful.

I could never run a charter operation and have tremendous respect for those who can. Some of the best captains I have fished with leave a lot to be desired in the personality or entertainment areas, but can fish like hell, so I tolerate them.

SeaBiscuit

[Water Damage]

man, how true it is. I cannot imagine bashing my clients, ESPECIALLY not in a public format - what an assinine thing to do that would be.

a little off topic but along the same line of thinking - why do many charter captains choose to talk crap about their party on the vhf!?!?!?!? Sure, I have told a friend that one of my party was sick or something - but I mean I have sat and listened to some of my local competitors just pure trash talk their guests!!!! Do they think the guests on other boats can't hear that???? I know they often hear it on our boat - I have a vhf in the salon and it is often on repeating what I hear up top. If its calm enough they can likely hear my radios too - I could not imagine being arrogant enough to do things like that and not care what others within earshot think!!!

times are hard for us all. Hell, if nothing else, I was taught to always treat folks like you would want to be treated yourself. And especially a guest - treat them with all due respect - they are paying you to take them FISHING!!!!!

good topic tunatamer!