My Best Buy Concern

I'll be the first to admit: I love going to Best Buy (BBY). I could spend hours in there looking at computers, video games, speakers, CDs, DVDs-you name it. Even the car-stereo stuff looks pretty sweet. For someone like me that loves gadgets and anything else you plug in, this place rocks.

But there's one other thing I enjoy going to Best Buy for: the entertainment. For those of us with above-average knowledge of technology (do you know what a modem is? Boom - welcome to the club), listening to the stuff coming out of Best Buy sales employees is astounding.

From a recent visit I heard these gems:

"Macs never break. EVER."

"You need this HDMI wire because without it your TV is useless."

Seriously, after I get bored of playing Guitar Hero on the Xbox 360 setup, I casually wander over to the TV area or, even better, where they sell the Macs, and just pretend I'm gonna buy a copy of Mahjong 3D or something. The Mac section is where the real gold is because so many people are coming in thinking about switching from PCs to Macs, and they have no clue what that really means.

Am I alone here in my criticisms of the advice these guys give out? I always feel like walking up to people before they get to the checkout counter and try to whisper to them: "You don't need to pay $60 for an HDMI wire! Go online-they cost 10 bucks!"

But this is the way things have always been, right? That's one of the reasons why Best Buy has grown so much in the past few years - the hard sell to newbie consumers. Why should any of this change?

Two words: the economy.

People need to find better deals in this economy, and that means researching a purchase before they head over to the store. If word starts to get out that doing a little research can save you some major moolah, wouldn't Best Buy eventually suffer?

Don't get me wrong, Best Buy has its strengths - it's organized, it has lots to choose from, and it has people that can, ahem, help you out. Sure beats the competition.

My concern if I was a shareholder of Best Buy is that consumers that want to save money will do their homework before visiting the store. They'll read up on what they want and what they need and by so doing will know just about as much as the friendly Best Buy employees. Which is OK, but that means they can't use the same hard sell they were using before. Consumers won't fall for it.

Or will they?

Disclosure: none

Comments

[irishsooner:]

i agree and i work for BEST BUY also. problem is that we are supposed to work all the depts even if we don't have the product knowledge. we are given instructions to just offer financing, black tie protection, reward zone, services but given basically no training on the actual products. it seems most employees just bluff their way through sales or are given false info from higher ups so their numbers are met. really think B.B. needs to go back and look at what is going on or i see the company failing within 5-10 years or even sooner. as to hdmi cables at least the prices we sell them for have dropped and you can get a 3 foot for 29.99. yes, buy online but quality does matter somewhat depending on your tv quality and size. i did hear a story about someone at wal-mart saying a plasma screen consisted of liquid water!

Feb 01 11:14 PM

[Mike Kayes,...:]

Despite the difficult economy there are still a lot of consumers who have more money than time, so there is a need for some level of in-store expertise to help these people make purchase decisions. While opportunities do exist to find cheaper solutions on-line, the time and potential confusion related to doing on-line research into consumer electronics purchases makes the in-store Best Buy experience much more palatable in many instances. My sense is that customer satisfaction at Best Buy is relatively high.

Feb 02 09:16 AM

[dfordtheman:]

I,m a Best Buy employee also having come over from Circuit City (thank
goodness!) As an ex- electronic technician who prefers working retail, all
I can say is that it's more enjoyable doing this line of work. The challenge
of helping people make informed decisions and doing it without cleaning out their wallet is much more satisfying than circuit board repair. My specialty is Home Theater where I've sold everything from esoteric audio / video (Pioneer Elite / Martin Logan) to $20 DVD players. Because of this past experience and training, it's helped me become a better salesperson as it enables me to ask the questions needed to maximize the sale for both the company and the customer. When we get a referral or a positive comment from customer feedback, it makes our
job of providing the best customer service easier, despite the hard times. Carlos, if you come down to S.C., stop by and I'll show and demo some neat, affordable audio / video devices for you. A good article!

Feb 02 10:24 AM

[Carlos Port...:]

Thanks for the feedback! Interesting to hear back from some former BB employees. I'm all for saving time when I don't want to research the heck out of something I don't quite understand, but never if I'm going to get bamboozled by the company selling me the product!

I guess there isn't anything terribly "wrong" about it, it's just a time saver for some people that don't want to get bogged down in the details. Which I can understand.

Feb 02 10:48 AM

[billddrummer:]

I too work at BBY, and while I'm assigned to appliances & car audio, I get involved in helping customers in media, home theater, digital imaging (cameras/camcorders), printers and computer accessories. I stay away from computers and gaming systems because I'm not well trained in those areas, and my store has extremely strong people in those departments.

The changing face of retail requires that all of us get familiar with virtually everything sold. It's true that sometimes I have less knowledge than customers, but I'm not afraid to say 'I don't know, but I'll find someone who does.'

You can save money shopping online, but I think there's still a place for retailers who allow customers to touch and feel their products before purchase. With knowledgeable staff, it's possible to help customers make the best choice based on their needs.

Feb 02 11:05 AM

[Carlos Port...:]

I totally agree with billdrummer. When I bought my new TV, I was tempted to do it online, but the thought of buying a TV without seeing it in front of me was scary. I went and saw it at Best Buy then considered buying that very TV online, but I knew if there was a problem the whole shipping issue would be a hassle.

At least you're honest about not knowing. I know a lot of people would feel tons of pressure to play it off like they do know what they're talking about when they really don't.

Feb 02 11:42 AM

[technozero:]

i'm no technogeek, but i can tell you that the lot of em at best buy know absolutely nothing. spend 30 minutes on the web researching the product or service you're interested in and you might qualify as a store manager. the geek squad is even more of a disappointment...tell me, do any of them really look like geeks to you? any hood can wear a pocket protector. i have bought tens of thousands of $$ of consumer electronics over the past 10 years from home theaters to pcs and peripherals, typically beginning my search at a best buy or circuit city (rip), now i only go there to see or touch the actual equipment before buying. not only can you explore, compare and contrast any item from an HDMI cable to a mainframe online, but you can order direct from a lot of these online retailers, save a lot of money and talk to someone who's incredibly knowledgable, patient, and actually speaks proper english - it's amazing.... unfortunately, the most knowledgable sales associates out there - if any - remain employed by radioshack, and they're only good for telephones and accessories, but still overpriced.... wal-mart and the web (amazon, et. al) will be best buy's undoing (at least in the US) over the long run if they don't get their act together. in the meantime, they can savor the death of circuit city, which despite all the industry pricing pressure from its liquidation and the attrition of the remaining mom & pops, will extend best buy's lifeline for the time being

Feb 02 01:41 PM

[Jerry S:]

It's hit or miss at Best Buy. You can get tremendously helpful, professional grade support from some very knowledgeable people there. Or you can get unknowing associates "faking it" when asked for technical info. I do wish Best Buy would pay attention to this problem and fix it. If you are savvy consumer though (and caveat emptor does, indeed, apply, whether you're fixing your home, picking a restaurant, or buying electronics), you can find some very good, knowledgeable folks at Best Buy who can help you. I know I certainly have. The only real problems I've had with less-than-ethical, hard sale tactics in recent years actually came from representatives from Best Buy's competitors (such as, indeed, Circuit City). My two cents as a consumer in Best Buy's home town of Minneapolis.

Feb 02 02:00 PM

[BingoB:]

I too work at Best Buy, and I can tell you, it all depends on what store you go into. At my store, we try as hard as we can to give accurate information...and you won't find anyone telling you that your HDTV "won't work" without and HDMI cable.

Some stores are more numbers driven and some are more customer driven...this depends a lot on the management crew of the the store and what they're trying to achieve.

As for the price of our accessories, they are expensive...believe me, the employees know. It's definitely an area where Best Buy could improve. We'll see what happens there with our CEO changing in June.

I just wanted to clarify the situation and let you know that Best Buy, as a company, does not instruct us to "bamboozle" or lie, not ever. If someone does lie or stretch a truth, that is because that employee is probably being pushed hard by his/her management team to hit their revenue/service numbers. Or they're just jerks. That's the problem with operating over 900 stores in the US...you're bound to get some unsavory types working for you.

It's also important to remember that employees are people too. A lot of customers expect us to know the absolute nitty-gritty...weird, peculiar details that someone would ask about every 100 years. Instead of doing their own research, customers think we're information gods, able to command even the most minute detail about every product. Often times, if we don't know, customers get huffy or downright insulting, for no reason other than they didn't feel like researching it themselves and we, the employees, don't know exactly how loud in decibels this phone handset is when used on a rainy Tuesday morning. ( I exaggerate...but not by much.)

Anywho, fun article! I hope some of the Corporate types end up reading it and see what others have to say about some of our more numbers driven team members. (My store is definitely more customer driven.)

Feb 02 11:34 PM

[watchingthe...:]

One thing that people have to remember is that the concept is about an overall margin. Wall Street and this country have insane concepts of what kind of margin a CE company should be able to run today. With the comodity prices in flat panel tv's and the fact that we all know that computers these days minus gaming rigs are sold at a loss if a store like Best Buy or anyone like it didn't have margin acc. or services or something they would go bankrupt. I don't think anyone here does anything including their job for no profit. Also is anyone that posts on sites like Clark Howard for an example not a share holder of any stock? I am sure they are and they like when the companies that they own turn a profit. Oddly enough they just don't want them to turn a profit with them or anyone they know. Just some food for thought


On Feb 02 10:48 AM Carlos Portocarrero wrote:

> Thanks for the feedback! Interesting to hear back from some former
> BB employees. I'm all for saving time when I don't want to research
> the heck out of something I don't quite understand, but never if
> I'm going to get bamboozled by the company selling me the product!
>
>
> I guess there isn't anything terribly "wrong" about it, it's just
> a time saver for some people that don't want to get bogged down in
> the details. Which I can understand.

Feb 03 10:26 AM

[menhab:]

It's no different if you go to McDonalds, Do you want to Upsize? would you like fries with that? Would you like to try our 2 for a dollar pastry? Heck even the post offices are asking you if you need envelopes or extra stamps. As for HDMI cables, I agree it can be purchased on line cheaper, so can a lot of things. It is your job no matter where you work to offer the necessary accessories or add ons that you recommend. because heck if you don't and they do need it they will buy it at the nearest location and would not make a trip back to where they made their main purchase. Again thats the nature of the business...RETAIL SALES...how many of you have purchased a car? Seen it advertised $20,000...you go in you look at it and all of a sudden you are spending $5000+ more, Why? Lets see you wanted that xm radio, remote start, the fancy wheels, the moon roof, the GPS, etc. GET THE PICTURE? Yet no one complains...that car salesperson for sure will be offering you extras....No one is in the business to loose money. DO YOU WORK FOR FREE?
When you purchase a HT system and you spend time and money you want to have the best HT experience and the necessary accessories to fullfill that experience. What is the famous cop out from a customer? No one told me so. Again it is your job to cover the bases and offer the neccesary add ons. It is the customers ultimate decision to buy or not to buy and at the end of the sale at least you know you did your job.
And yes I too work at BESTBUY 23+ years and counting.

Feb 06 10:39 AM