Seasonal staff, sales prices, honoring prices

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zaffo oxnard

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There is a earlier topic about best buy, getting black Friday sales prices later and stores honoring the prices and advice their staff.



Please guys - remember - these are bog box retailers whose goal is to attract price shoppers. The only way they can do this is to lower their greatest expense - labor. They hire folks that get paid much lower wages than they techs at a high end home entertainment shops. You have to assume that this grade of staff - to a large degree - are not as familiar with either the equipment or the store policies as the guys at a high end store. This kind of bickering over price or bad advice is one of the things you have to expect to deal with at stores like this. Many of the sales people are seasonal and will likely be on the job for less than 60 days. At stores like this the first source for explanations of their policies should be the fine print and store / floor managers, not the staff or the check out help.



Black Friday sales are just that - one day sales. You do not get to shop early and beat the system, regardless of what the guy at checkout said.



Think about this...

Do you take your Tracs to Jiffy Lube and expect speed / performance shop quality/pricing?

Do you really expect the pit guy to quote you the price of service properly?



Todd.. If you grow your business, and I hope that you do, hold on tight when you have to hire employees. You can't believe what your people will tell customers that you are going to be expected to honor. This is a lesson on the owner standing firm and saying "no way" when they should.



People make mistakes. Retailers or any service providers are only bound by a quote. Heck, even the price in the paper is not binding if it is a mis-print!



Be thankful that you still can return items, that warranties do work, and that you have a choice. Screw over the retailers / shop owners too many times and you end up with higher prices and no choice. Ever lived in Europe?



We have it great. Be thankful and take a deal when one comes along, but don't expect the world for a super discount every time.



This is not fraud (they did not intend to defraud you - you can return it)

This is not bait and switch - they told you what the price would be on Friday and that the stock is limited.



tony

 
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Then maybe large companies will learn to hire smarter employees, which will be an incentive for people to stay in school and go to college. I work for Advance Auto Parts, and I had to take 6+ hours of tests, around 65 tests in total, to verify I had basic working knowledge of an automobile, and about the product lines. I enjoy my job. I worked at a Best Buy during high school for less than a week. My first week there they scheduled me to work during my finals IN HIGH SCHOOL and when I said I couldn't work because I was in school, even though I clearly stated on my application that I still had school and couldn't start working days until XXX date, they said it was too bad and let me go. If companies like that would stop screwing over their employees, they wouldn't have such a high turnover.



If we quote someone a price, it will be honored, unless the person was asking for something different. For example, last night a guy called and asked for a price for pads. I told him something around $30, our middle of the line set. When he got there, he wanted calipers, rotors, and pads, for $30, and I could see my manager holding in his laughter as he explained that only the pads cost $30. Guy ended up buying everything he needed for around $300.



If you're not supposed to take their word on their products, what are they doing working there? What is the point if you have to go ask a manager anyways? Why don't they just have the dumb guys come in on truck day and after closing to straighten up and leave everything to the managers? They're supposed to be trained according to corporate standards, and if a store is cutting corners, then they pay the price. If it's so obvious to you about the "black friday" sales, why was it not obvious to the buyer, or the guy on the floor?
 
Tony, I have been on both sides of the retail fence.... I have owned stores, hired, fired, people, found sellers, dealt with suppliers, you name it......



The reason big stores don't hire qualified people is they have to pay them more.... plain and simple..



All I can say is I think everyone should be forced to work retail for 2 years just to see how they treat the person on the other end just doing their job.....

people when they are stressed only hear what they want to hear.. and want to save a ton of money....

Also most stores do know what the sales are going to be and I would always tell the customer where to find the coupon or tell them to come back on the sale day....

I did great at retail, just got sick and tired of the pissed off customers and the ones that had family fights and took their crap out on me...

Todd Z

 
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ToddZ, I don't know about the "2 years" thing. Most retail is a joke, especially Best Buy. There, it is all about selling extended warranties, and not much else. Everything is a means to that end. Most of the managers are jokes, and every sales associate is rated on how many extended warranties they sell.



Yes, many customers can be a-holes, but I think more than anything its frustration and escalation...they are frustrated because the experience sucks, and the experience sucks in part because of frustrated customers.



I say I don't know about your "2 year" thing because I don't think anyone should have to work retail the way most retail is run today. I think EVERYONE should have the experience of working with customers and the public, but at the same time, I think that those serving customers and the public should have the power and ability to tell abusive and unruley customers to GET THE F OUT OF THEIR STORE (restaurant, etc).



My folks owned a small restaurant, and one day when I was waiting tables one of our most frequent customers "went off on me" because he didn't get his 3rd refill of coffee quickly enough. My Dad told him:



"You've been a good customer, we have appreciated the business, but we are in business to make money, not get abused by our customers and kiss their asses! You can leave now, and don't plan on coming back unless you can treat my employees with respect!"



Most people working retail, and most retail outlets can't get away with dressing down a customer like that. Store managers are too gutless to do it, because they report to someone, and sales associates are even lower on the totem pole.



So, no, I don't think that it's the service alone that is the problem. The customers, especially most of the yahoos that would even venture out on Black Friday are guilty of bad manners.



I watched all the news recaps 11pm on Friday, watching store opening after store opening of people LITERALLY falling over each other in stampedes as doors opened...all to do what, save $100 here or there. WTF!



What is WRONG with us? When did several hours in line, and pushing and shoving other people start to be worth $100?



TJR
 
My parents saw this guy pushing to get in the store. They happen to see him inline later holding a X-Men 3 (dvd) only, in line at the registers. New for $19.99. Sale $8.98. I can get this at Family Video previously viewed for $7.98. :lol::lol:
 
Tom, I 100% agree, but even if not "2 years" like you said people should be forced to work with people,,,,,



It was just an example i used and a number I picked...



This IS why I stay to posting in the Sport Trac posts......

Todd Z
 
Exactly what I am talking about Stu. All to save about $10 on an item.



I think people should have to put little cards on each of the gifts that go under the tree, cards that read things like:



"I cared enough about you that I ripped this package out of some old ladies hand and stepped on the back of the neck of a fallen down person in order to get it for you for $15 less than retail!"
Click to expand...
 
I don't concern myself with sales employees. I treat them with respect and purchase my item. Their only usefulness to me is to take my cash and maybe help to get my item in the truck if it is too large for me by myself. I have never purchased an item regardless of value unless I have researched it from top to bottom either by internet or shopping store to store or both. I will know far more about my purchase and its features than any salesman could ever dream of knowing. Not a knock on the salesman as they have a difficult job dealing with the public and they earn their money and probably deserve more. Its just how I shop. I don't need to 'compare features' or be 'up sold'.
 
I remember when I bought my new dishwasher this past summer. I wanted the one for $200 (college kid, don't need nuthin fancy) and the guy says, well if you get this one, it's free in home delivery, installation, and removal of the old unit, and it's a better model ($300). So I say, fine, get the nicer one and I plan to let them deal with all the plumbing stuff. I go pay for it, and the salesman says, okay, lemme go get it, is your truck ready out front? I say "excuse me?" he says the deal on free in home delivery and installation is only good on models they have to order from the factory, not on stuff that's in stock on the shelf. I ask him "why do you think I upgraded?" and he said it had more features, and kept selling me and selling me on it. I flat out told him that I wanted a refund and I wanted the cheaper model, as I have no problems installing or getting it home, I was just wanting to be lazy and let someone else do it. I finally talked with the manager and explained what happened, and he gave me the $300 unit at $250, and we compromised, and they delivered for free, and got rid of the old unit, and I installed it. Yeah, it was kind of a hassle, but in the end, I felt it was worth it.



It was because of this service that I always use Home Depot over Lowes or Ace (which are both closer). I told this to the manager and he seemed glad to hear it.
 
TJR mentioned wait staff. Now this is a profession that earns and gets my respect. If my server/bartender has a good attitude, attentive, efficient considering how busy the establishment is then my normal tip for the pleasant experience is 50% on an average bill. My pet peeves in this type of service is not being dressed properly including piercings, long hair not secured and the biggest one of all standing around talking and partying with the other employees while customers wait for their service.
 
LOL. I worked retail back in high school long enough to know I didn't want to make a career out of it.

I do feel for the young people that work retail and take all kinds of abuse from customers. Last week I was in line at a retail store and this lady in front of me was just tearing up this poor girl at the counter. I knew she wasn't able to defend herself so I asked the lady if she was a bitch all the time or just being one today. Needless to say she shut up and left in a huff. I just have no respect for people that treat others like crap.
 
I was, unfortunately, in retail sales/management for many years. Thankfully, I left my retail "career" before it physically and mentally killed me( or more importantly, before I killed some of you:eek:). No disrespect to any members that do that for a living, but you would have to be an idiot to stay in an occupation that is as stressful and non-fufilling as retail. A few of my "observations" from the trenches...



1. There has been a dramatic decline in civil behavior in this country over the last decade and it is really visible in how service workers(i.e., retail salespeople/restaurant wait staff) and customers interact with each other. Customers become verbally abusive and/or hostile extremely quickly if they aren't getting their way or getting what they want. Large retail chains are partially responsible for this. They emphasized customer service to a ridiculous point with policies like..."the customer is always right". The customer is not always right and any reasonable person knows this but a certain percentage of us have discovered that being unreasonable, aggressive, or loud at a store/restaurant sometimes gets you a "better deal". It's just the retail version of "the squeaky wheel gets the grease". Acting ignorant to a sales person may make you feel better and keep you from going home and beating your dog but it still makes you an asshole. Conversely, we have raised an entire generation of children who work in these stores at minimum wage. Let's just say their work ethic isn't quite what their parents is and real customer service is not something they understand, want to do, or have any personal experience with. Given this volatile mix of customers and sales people, it's not too hard to figure out what's going to happen.



2. Americans want to pay the lowest possible price but want the highest level of customer service. I'll let you do the math on this one but simple economics dictates that this is not possible.



3. Ah, the internet, the wonderful internet. Here's the deal. You go on line for a zillion hours researching something you want to buy. Or better yet, you go to a bunch of sales people in local stores to get educated about the product and ask them them a lot of questions because the guy on the internet doesn't seem to know a whole lot about it. Next, you find out the absolute cheapest price someone would sell it at on the internet. Now this cheapest price may or may not be for a new unopened box, may or may not have been obtained by the seller in a legal manner, may or may not be returned if you have an issue, and may or may not have someone to talk to about a problem you have with it, but you don't really give a crap one way or another because you want the cheapest price. Next, armed with this "cheapest price", you march into your local store and immediately start giving them shit if they are not willing to sell it to you at this price. Now folks, I want to pay the lowest price too. Who doesn't? But like all things in life, there has to be a balance. If you want to buy it on the internet, then buy it on the internet. Just quit being shitty about it by using up a local sales person's time by pretending you might buy it from them and then buying on the internet at a cheaper price after you learn all about it. And quit going into local stores demanding they give it to you at the same price as you can buy it on the internet. Again, if you want to buy it on the internet, do so, just quit being an asshole about it.



3. I'm sure it gives some of you a great deal of pleasure to think you out-smarted the sales person by giving smart-ass answers to questions and asking sales people questions you already know the answer to see if you can trip them up. And gee, making sure you get the salesperson as confused as possible by not being clear about what you want sure is fun, isn't it? I'm sure the zillion hours you spent on the internet to become more knowl
 
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