Dunno Know but it is a Worry

Gee, why would anyone who doesn't speak German be interested in Marklin trains? Can't image why they would want to take care of their international customers, can you?

Well - let's be fair to MARKLIN, friends
Our own maker LIONEL doesn't any better: English only (not even Spanish!) ... www.lionel.com

Also true, Ron. But let's not forget 3-rail is a darn small market ... [xx(]
And then M runs their product data base in various languages, at least

I'm the very first telling them what's wrong with a product [}:)] - but I do also honor their efforts
BTW, I've seen L trains all over the world, even at places I'd never thought ...

Just glad I've learned German (among a few other languages) many moons back.
And of course your little bit of grumbling is o.k. - we have a right to do so ...

Guess we won't miss a lot w/o that tiny marketplace. We got ebay ...

To be honest, I took a lot of German in college so like some of you I don't mind (if I'm not in a hurry) working through German text.

I just think vital information like FAQs are essential and should be available to customers especially since these are fairly expensive items and technologically sophisticated.

I think it is the most natural thing in the world that the FAQ's on the German website Maerklin.de are in German as this is the language of those people.

Likewise I'd not expect to see any text on the DHS department website in the U.S. be in German (http://www.dhs.gov/index.shtm).

One might wonder why Märklin customers from continental Europe don't seem to have a problem with this - or is it just another cultural diversity?

Its never bothered me too much,theres not to many questions I can't find answers too between this forum,some technical friends and an email/phone call to my repair guy

It is all a matter of customer service.

Rather than comparisons to Homeland Security being in German which is clearly inappropriate, I'd make a comparison to Mercedes, Porsche and the international software companies in the state of B-W. I'm going to check but I believe they do produce, and must produce, FAQs in at least some of the languages other than German. Yes, a real Porsche is a quantum level more expensive than the Marklin Porsche Taurus I bought. However, for what I have bought in Marklin I could have bought one of these automobiles! [:0]

Now for another model railroad company also located in B-W, Bemo, I am, in fact, surprised when I find anything in English. What is different about Bemo is that everyone knows they are small, they are German and, unlike Marklin, do not express an interest in having the world within their distribution network.

Lutz, I am amused at your reference to "those people" (Germans).[:0] Do citizens of B-W no longer consider themselves included in "those people"?

Yes, outside of Germany and the European continent we're all a bunch of mixed up, self-centered, uncultured bumpkins who have no appreciation of the value of diversity.[B)] If we collect Marklin we're also all German wannabees.[:(] With that in mind, we are truly blessed that Marklin would even consider allowing us to purchase their products.[8)] I am writing this "tongue in cheek" but much of the Marklin literature has exactly that tone. However, that is all part of the Marklin mystic, mythology and part of the fascination with Marklin.

This is about customer service, plain and simple, and what separates those companies that provide it and those that are less concerned about it especially to those beyond its borders (and Europe).

What has happened to Marklin is that with more of their products being bought outside of Germany it is only appropriate that they reconsider things such as having FAQs in a language other than German. I certainly get enough worthless and irrelevant news in English from the Insider and Marklin Magazine, maybe it is time to consider putting things of a more substantive nature in other languages.

My suggestion is that Marklin consider putting the FAQs in several different languages such as Australian, Scottish, British, Canadian and English! Woops, that just confirmed what Lutz wrote.

David,

the tax department here never speaks my language and still takes my cash every year!

PS: VfB Stuttgart as well 2:0 - and still in a very good position for the double German championship! [:p]

Hi Larry,

agreed! Maybe your problem is just an issue of split responsibilities between Märklin Germany and Märklin Inc. As an U.S. customer you'd like being serviced in your language, for cost reasons likely from within the U.S - but are you also (willing to) pay/ing for it?

There is a dedicated web page marklin.com which includes a "Technical Resource Center", but I can as well understand that not much will be invested there as long as still too many people in your country decide to purchases their stuff from German dealers; which means deserving no different service like any other German customer.

Märklin in other countries, like NL for example provide as well dedicated services for their customers (http://www.maerklin.nl/support/support.html); seems to work to their satisfaction.

So, why don't you simply get in contact with the Märklin people in your country and share your issue with them?

PS: I did mention the DHS on purpose, since they apparently don't care about the correct understanding by and negative impact of their actions/decisions upon brave people from other countries, who might be interested to visit once as well this wonderful part of our all world. Consequently those will likely refrain from doing so, which I personally think is very sad for everyone. [xx(] But that's another topic and has probably as little to with model railroads as your "funny" Mercedes quality example, so I'll leave it with that.

As far as I remember, a topic very simular to this was up some months ago.

Again I have to speak for myself.
As pointed out earlier in this topic, Märklin is a German product. For the international markets Märklin relies on national importers/sellers.
In my opinion, it's the national importers/distributors/dealers job/responsibility to supply his national market with the nessecary/excpected/wanted services.

Of course, if the manufactorer start selling diretly to the international market, the information duties changes drastically.

On the other hand, if the manufactorer wants to expand also abroad (which in many cases is the biggest market), he should provide services also to his abroad customers.

And - not to forgett - the manufactorer should have a good importer/distributor/dealers in each country, so the customer gets his support in his/her own country and language, not from the far away manufactorer.

Great American Diplomacy is an oxymonon like "honest Polititian"

I fully agree - at least here in Germany we're way too open to just assume any "nickname" that accidentally swaps over the ocean and don't think enough about the proper German word (our French neighbors are much more stringent about this!).



Your keyboard setting apparently misses some update for German Umlaute! [}:)][}:)][}:)]



Oh YEAH! This world and especially the U.S.A. can barely have more important problems to resolve these days!!

FYI. I've even bought the light metal wheels for our BMW convertible from an authorized BMW dealer in the U.S. since they were way cheaper than here. However, I didn't really expect him to provide me also with a "list of FAQ's" for this product in German.



If that's the "right place", why not? So, what have YOU done or plan to do to make it happen?

As you can easily see already on the Märklin service page, they changed already the description according to your response! It reads now: "Häufig gestellte Fragen und Antworten"



You're probably a little bit "outdated" there. The text of the German anthem actually is the following:

Einigkeit und Recht und Freiheit
für das deutsche Vaterland!
Danach lasst uns alle streben
brüderlich mit Herz und Hand!
Einigkeit und Recht und Freiheit
sind des Glückes Unterpfand;
|:Blüh im Glanze dieses Glückes,
blühe, deutsches Vaterland!:|

The translation into English is approx. this:

Unity and justice and freedom
For the German fatherland;
For these let us all strive,
Brotherly with heart and hand.
Unity and justice and freedom
Are the pledge of happiness.
|: flourish in this fortune's blessing,
flourish, German fatherland. :|

Lutz, you Germans are way too funny and smart for an American bumpkin like me.

The umlauts come out just perfectly on my end. In order for the umlauts to come out correctly in the language of Schwabian on your end, you must have American print files and an American keyboard (made in China). Only then can you see that they were correct. Of course, I am not sure how they come out in the languages of British, Australianish, New Zealanderish, Scottish and Canadianish.

Thanks for the current words to the German national antheum. However, I'll admit that I did mean to purposely refer to the old song for obvious reasons thinking about German nationalism and how we should all (jokingly) learn German to read the HGF. Similiarly, I was also infering that Maerklin is all over the world so why not do the German thing and forget having "HGF" in English as "FAQ".

Of course, I know that this is also an incorrect inference from a historical standpoint to the original song as it was written. As you know, when the original words of the song were written in 1841 they meant that the German states and people should unify and not that Germany should conquer the world. I do understand that since 1989 that B-W has since tried to opt out.

However, if Germany would conquer the world, I'd like to see a Maerklin "Insider" model in every house!

Frieden (peace)!

That's what I think too.



And it provides a lot more of fun here (mostly)!