I need to vent.

[Professor.Ham.Slap]

I know some people look down on the employees at

stores like Best Buy (and in a few cases they are correct -- some of

the A/V employees aren't very well trained on the equipment they sell)

but there are some customers that are worse than the least intelligent

employee. Today I was working with a customer that wanted a 50" plasma

screen. After talking with them a while we settled on the Panasonic

set. After that, they whip out an ad from an Internet site that of

course is several hundred less than our price. So far so good, and

since I like to help out my customers, I talked to my manager and got

it down (set + shipping). This however was not good enough. They wanted

the set at Internet cost

despite the $250 shipping it would cost them to get it from there.

Alright, I'll humor them and try to bring the price down by another

100. Now on top of that they

want free delivery and when I could not give that to them, they have

the nerve to very literally curse me out for being similar to a "used

car salesman." At this point I'm fuming, but none the less apologize

that we couldn't do any better only to have them ask to speak to the

store manager to complain about my "customer service." Of course since

I did no wrong I did not get reprimanded in any form, but man if I

wasn't jacked. I mean I'm all for saving money, but that's just

ridiculous. When will it become acceptable to beat idiotic customers

over the head with a cricket bat? Although on the other hand, I

would've loved to be able to sell them the TV. I would've pushed every

last overpriced Monster product down their throats (something I rarely

ever sell to my customers).

[Speedball]

No doubt there are some greedy people out there trying to get everything in life for free.

Good luck with your sales/electronic career.

[ricktate]

When you got down to same as cost plus shipping and they said no you should have said well thank you for comming in and have a nice day.Because when they get the set shipped to them who is going to set it up or where are they going to take it when its not working right?Alot of people come into bike shop to find out what size they need in bike shoes then they mail order them or they will buy a bike somewhere else and want our exp. mechanics to fix it for them.You cant really win with those type of people other than to say we only fix what we sell... have a nice day...and walk away.I think you did all you could and still got a bad deal... sometimes you just got say....good luck with your purchase over the internet and walk away.Rick

[ZAKO]

A friend of mine who has a audio store, would just throw those type of customers out of the store. He was noted for this, If you where,nt civil to him you got band. He,s since moved his audio operation to the east coast & is doing nicely.

[MrMcGoo]

Some folks do not know how to negotiate. BB makes very little on the plasma unless there is a hidden dealer rebate.

When the customer wants more discount, you tell them that BB isn't making enough to bother with the transaction and that the cutomer should grab the better deal. Let the customer learn the hard way. That is the only way some folks learn.

Bill

[Daddy Dee]

Professor,

The customer was a genuine horses arse.

OTOH, I would be pleased to do business with you any time. I have never met a sales person anywhere who was as willing to work with a customer as you have mentioned in your account of this sorry episode.

[Tom Adams]

Yeah....in hindsight what you should've done is to call their bluff so-to-speak by (enthusiastically) saying something like, "How much?? Wow!!? No way!! Gimme that ad. Holy moly!! Listen, I KNOW what BB pays for these things and there's NO WAY we could touch that price. You guys better pounce on that deal. Hell, I might go home an order one myself!"

This results in them having no power and no control. You can tell this by the deer-in-the-headlights look they'll have followed by, "But, but.....but we were wanting...."

To which you interrupt saying, "I know, I know.....I'd feel the same. But that's a deal you can't pass up. You really need to jump on that."

Then you get to watch them walk away completely befuddled.

Tom

[oscarsear]

I've been guilty of doing this very thing but not with stereo gear. I do it when I buy cars. Nobody will go shopping for new cars with me because it's too embarrassing. I've been escorted off of lots before. Why do I do this? Well it's probably my lack of understanding about the product. I assume that there's "X" amount of profit in a sale and I work to get the best possible deal. I can pay cash and my credit is excellent so I feel I'm in the best possible bargaining position. I do not ever complain about salespeople though. I'm usually with the sales manager anyway when I get declined and dismissed. I do respect what auto salespeople go through to make a sale and a living. I just don't rollover and take any deal offered and they feel that the vehicle will find a buyer at their price. I do eventually find the car close to what I expected to pay but it's typically a sour transaction.

Maybe these people felt the same way and assumed they could obtain product at a steal. They had no business bad mouthing anyone though. They should expect to be declined at least twice before they shift or someones desperate enough to accept their terms.

I would add that one major advantage of buying high tech gear from a local vendor is product support. If they buy it at discount from a remote vendor they better know what they're doing and how to address service issues. Many web product sources sell "B" grade items and work on an "as is" basis.

Frontline sales is an art. For long term business you work to befriend the client/customer. They must trust your knowledge and they must trust your business ethic. Stoke their ego by complimenting their product choice and be admirable about their dealing endeavor. Tell them nicely to please "shop around" for the best deal but that your offer (now in writing) will stand for only so long. "It's the best you can do and it's the best they can get". Give a card and get a tele number and follow up. When they learn you were right they will buy the product and they will come back to you again.

[jagangjee]

Professor.Ham.Slap,

First off Congrats on the big Orange Bowl win, one of the best college games I have seen ever.

In regard to your post, I do see your point and what you are saying. From my knowledge, employees at BB do not make any commission, however they have thier goals that they have to meet. Based on that, you are just trying to help out a potential customer. The local BB here, they will match local prices. If I take an ad in from J&R, One Call, etc...they pretty much do not hesitate to say "you are better off buying from them, we can't touch those prices". Which is true. What the online guys rely on, is a quick sale and they don't have to worry about you ever coming back, plus you already know what you want because you have already seen it at BB. What BB rely's on is, we have it in stock today, and we are here for you if anything happens. IMO, when making a purchase on a $5,000 TV set, that is a level of comfort that I personally would like to have for a few hundred dollars.

What the customer has to understand, is that they came into your store, and talked to you as a knowledgable source on the subject matter. You obviously did everything that you could, and if that isn't good enough then simply inform them of the situation. They have two options, thank you for your effort and move ahead with the sale. Or why and complain, they can easily walk out just as easy as they walked in. Bottom line is that major retail stores do not negotiate. BB understands that the prices on these things change quickly, and they need to keep the customer coming back. That is why they have the 30 day price match gurantee.

Could an option be, alright I see that you purchased a $5,000 TV, plus the wallmount stand say $500, plus delivery and installation $250 and some of those monster cables. So we are at $6,000 plus tax. And there are no coupons this weekend, (otherwise as we all know the price would then be 10% higher). Is an option of giving him 10% the total price of everything before tax possible?

[Indyjeep]

I've been in your shoes numerous times....working at BB for the past 4 years and in HT, I feel your pain. Its stupid how some customers think that we will match every price under the sun. Even when our price match policy says " Local competitors only". We will still of course see what we can do to help them out. But sometimes they want the impossible. As for discounts we usually will give 10%-15% off any accy they need, including stand, cables, power centers and such. We will try to take care of our customers, because the H.H. Greggs down the street from what we hear does not, and we are not exactly on the best side of town.

[Colin]

Did you get an solid agreement that if you can reduce the price by $250 that they will buy today BEFORE you went to the manager? Why go to the manager anyway, that is a car gimmick. Don't you know how low you can go?

After that, they whip out an ad from an Internet site that of course is several hundred less than our price.

<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

You realize of course that there is no way that I can compete with an online store, but if I can come as close as possible, and deliver it this week and set it up for you, wouldnt you really rather get this monster at a local store? [with a sincere smile]

If so, if I come as close as possible, and deliver it this week and set it up for you, are you ready to buy today?

Since you like to close customers, ask them:

If I bring the price down another 100, would that really tempt them so much that they have to say yes!, well take it today!?

When is it acceptable to ask idiotic customers the hard questions that lead to a sale.

Dont try selling them, help them to buy.

Study Tom Hopkins. Rewrite his material in your own words. Your frustration will go down, your professionalism will go up and your commissions will increase.[]

[Duke Spinner]

Nobody will go shopping for new cars with me because it's too embarrassing. I can pay cash and my credit is excellent so I feel I'm in the best possible bargaining position.

you and Me , too, Oscar..

ya have ta wonder ...just how much mark-up is in a car ....

i just bought a new pick-em-up ....

Sticker ..$22846

Purchase price $15616.....????????????????????????????????????????????????????

where'd ALL that discount come from ...??

[ottscay]

You certainly did nothing wrong, and the customer(s) certainly sound like a-holes. That said, in my personal experience you are the exception at Best Buy. I don't know how much it varies by region, but I have recieved such shoddy service from BB that I catagorically refuse to buy any large ticket item there, regardless of price.

As far as I'm concerned your customers didn't know how lucky they were!

[MrMcGoo]

Nobody will go shopping for new cars with me because it's too embarrassing. I can pay cash and my credit is excellent so I feel I'm in the best possible bargaining position.

you and Me , too, Oscar..

ya have ta wonder ...just how much mark-up is in a car ....

i just bought a new pick-em-up ....

Sticker ..$22846

Purchase price $15616.....????????????????????????????????????????????????????

where'd ALL that discount come from ...??

Auto manufacturers have hidden discounts that go to the dealer. When a model with such a discount has been on the lot too long, the dealer is willing to pass the hidden discount on to the customer.

Bill

[kev313]

Nobody will go shopping for new cars with me because it's too embarrassing. I can pay cash and my credit is excellent so I feel I'm in the best possible bargaining position.

you and Me , too, Oscar..

ya have ta wonder ...just how much mark-up is in a car ....

i just bought a new pick-em-up ....

Sticker ..$22846

Purchase price $15616.....????????????????????????????????????????????????????

where'd ALL that discount come from ...??

Was it a GM? I think you did it by tapping the "anticipated pension gut set-aside".

[Fish]

You gotta feel for anybody that deals with the general public.Sure,as a

rule most of try to be decent but there's that X%.I'd freak if my local

anybody would consider gettin close to the lowest price on the

internet.I'll give ya credit for not gettin fired,I prolly would have.

[Professor.Ham.Slap]

Heh, honestly I can't blame you for not (in general) wanting to shop

there. Our store honestly is one of the exceptions to the rule.

Everyone I work with actually knows what they are talking about and can

tell you without hesitation everything you wanted to know about any HD

and audio technology. It is actually somewhat humorous. On several

occasions I've just been generally BSing with my sales leader about

visits to other BB stores. One he went to actually didn't have the rear

surrounds connected in their demo unit and basically said saving money

by buying a HD capable set was a waste. What a shame. Methinks KenRat,

my department, a handful of others and myself are the only ones in the

company that actually know what we're talking about.

But yeah, as to why I spent time bouncing back to the manager and

whatnot mid-sale, basically I'm relatively new to the store so I don't

have a 100% grip on what kind of play I have on prices. The last thing

I'd want to do is say "yeah we can do that" only to catch myself with

my foot in my mouth when I go to complete their order.

And on a closing note, this really was the exception (thank goodness)

to the rule as well as far as transactions go. My best one to date was

a woman in her 30's who was absolutely extatic about moving into HT. I

sold her the complete package to get her going (JVC HD-ILA, DirecTV,

DVD player and a Klipsch F-2 system) and she was so happy she came back

into the store about an hour after she left with a $25 gift card to the

Olive Garden. That was a truely great feeling. [H]

[Jay481985]

proffesor ham slap you did everything you could. I doubt they would have brought it anyways at bestbuy...

Also when my parents brought a car, the sticker was 29,000 but we paid

21,000 and the color we ordered wasn't available till three weeks

because it was still in the pacific. Then the dealer calls us and then

says that car actually has the optional 6 cd changer under the

passenger seat (no trunk for me!) but said we'll throw it in for free.

This was a 499 usually dealer installed option (which means big $$$

profit to the dealer) but no they gave it to us. Also to get that price

we visited about 3 dealers and the best was 22500. Even the manager was

like I dunno how that dealership offered that to you, and you SHOULD

JUMP AT THE OPPERTUNITY. And so we did [] no hassle, we were a repeat

customer though, but we called ahead to tell them, they greeted us and

we brought the car at their 21,000 offer no more haggling we were a bit

tired. We were offered any color and the trim we wanted. Though we

chose midnight blue because we had the same car in the same color so we

wanted a change in color which incurred a 3 week wait but well worth it

for a free 6 cd changer. The reason the car was cheaper was it was an

infiniti G20 2002, which was the last year model when the new G35 came

in. My dad has a thing about gas prices and he said what do you want a

v6 for to get a speeding ticket? It came with leather and all that. We

were looking at a honda accord ex 4 cylinder and for about the same

thing it would have came to ~26000. And people always say that a nice

car how much did you spend 35k? I just smile when I tell them the price

we brought it at.

[Jay481985]

oh I forgot. Retail is one of the most cutthroat, demanding,

aggrivating jobs in america! well atleast to my eyes. Customers,

Corporate, managers, sometimes co workers who don't work, etc etc....

But there always good things that happened. To mirror your event, I

once delivered a computer to a man in an Audi A8 [] and our policy

was not to accept tips. He handed me a twenty I refused then he like

just take it... and literally prepared to throw it down on the floor to

make me take it...

[Remotia]

I work for a store like BB (I wont say the same) I try extremely hard, and I am almost always rewarded. Last week I kid you not, I got a 500 dollar tip for helping someone out with some home theater questions. Yes, 500 bucks! I do get customers like you said but I dont waste my time. I say the same thing every time: Does you're internet store have to pay for this building or my time? No. Does your internet store provide in person customer service? no. Does your internet store have a full credit no question return policy with free shipping? no. Can you buy something from the internet store today and have it in your hand in less than 10 minutes? no.