ARGH! Stupid electronics salespeople feeding my dad wrong information! (1 Viewer)

[NickSo]

[rant]
Argh, i hate these stupid salespeople at electronic stores.. First of all, they act like they know everything, and that i know nothign, im okay with that to an extent, but SECONDLY, they are giving my dad FALSE information.
Like today, i was discussing with him about new RPTV's coz i wanna get one to replace my 13+ year old Mistubishi 37" DirectView. I was telling him how one store will sell at the same price as others BUT it gives free ISF calibration. He replies saying that a salesperson at store X told him that calibration is unneccessary, and that the TV's are calbirated at the factory to look perefect.. i mean COM EON! :rolleyes
And then a couple weeks ago, i had just recieved an SVS driver to swap with my cheap (bought it for $150) existing sub. The guy tells my dad that it won't amke much difference, and that a new sub would be better. No difference?! The sales guy didnt even HEAR it and he's already judging how it sounds! With the SVS Driver, even though I hve a small enclosure, I can finally FEEL the bass rather than just hearing it from my old driver. I mean, if the sub is $150, the driers gotta be like worth $70. Comapre that to the driver from SVS, COME ON!
These are the same guys that didnt know the answer when i asked them if the toshiba SD3750 did 3:2 pulldown or was simply a line doubler (I know it does 3:2 pulldown, i was just testing them.. I like to screw around with salespeople, knowing i know more than them... mwahahaha)
[/end rant]
Just had to get that out...

 

[Rain]

Nick,
You are coming shopping with me when I upgrade my system.

 

[Max Leung]

I hope your dad didn't believe the sales guy! They're all clueless f**ks!
I employ a new strategy when I shop for HT equipment (for myself or friends):
1) Research the crap out of the product. Visit the HTF, AVS forums, good review sites, etc.
2) Drive to store.
3) Ask if they have the product in question.
4) If so, haggle about price. If price is good, buy it. Avoid extended warranties, except when buying RPTVs (they are flakey!)
5) If not, walk out, find other store.

 

[Adil M]

I couldn't agree more w/ you guys. Sometimes I like to go just screw around w/ the salesman b/c shit I'm better than they are. I mean that salesman may go to med school, but Geez how could he possibly not know what an SVS driver is and what would motivate him to sell only from his store?

If I know more than you do about your own job well... you must suck. Gees salespeople...

 

[Jeffrey Noel]

Hahaha, I just went to Circuit City with my friend when he was returning his 27" Wega, which had a loud noise and horrible geometry problems. So I started spouting all of this info about HDTV and other stuff that I've learned here to the salesman and blew him away, not because I knew more than he did, but because of how much I knew compared to everyone else that shops there. He actually told my friend that I should work there! I love sounding smart!!

 

[teapot2001]

Whatever happened to you wanting to work in an electronics store?

~T

 

[NickSo]

Thi: Yeah, that didnt turn out as planned. I did however got unpaid (:frowning work there at their CD/DVD/Video Game department a few months ago coz I needed work experience for a class at school... They said they'd call back if they ever needed anybody, but so far, no calls :frowning:
Anyways, to work there you gotta go through a couple seminars or something, and I dont think they're gonna hire a 16 year old...
Whatever, but im in need of money BAD! (well who doesnt :p))

 

[Chris Tsutsui]

My worst experience (I should have reported to management) was when I walked into good guys and started listening to their Klipsch reference speakers playing a DVD near reference level.

A sales rep walked in and asked me if I needed help. I said "No thanks, I'm just listening". He stayed there for a few minutes and then turned the volume down and asked "Would you like to buy a pair they are $800." I felt insulted and said "No, but I'd like to hear some music on it".

Then the sales rep stopped the DVD and started playing some music at a very low volume, he locked the terminal and left the room.

The switchboard was stuck playing easy listening at 60dbls. I couldn't believe how rude he was by locking me from controlling the volume and walking out. I may be just a "teenager" to his eye but I should be able to audition speakers there.

 

[NickSo]

That sucks...
one time me and two other friends were auditioning speakers, the guy there was nice, and just left us screw aroun with the equipment and put in our own CDs...
I figured out, in liek 10 minutes how to work the electornic speaker swithcer doohickey, so i had access to all the speakers that my friends wantedto listen to

 

[James_A]

[rant]I hate broad generalization... I worked in Electronic's retail, and I can't tell you how much a pain in the ass some people were as customers. They came in to where I try to make a living. They took up 2 hrs of my time, listening to me explain EVERYTHING about a DVD player/ Home Theater in a Box/ TV/ Satellite System. Then they turned around and loudly exclaimed, "Thanks, Just looking", and came back in a week later to buy cables for their Sat/HTinaBox/TV systems that they had bought at another store[/rant]

That's true, and I was on commission.. it's part of the job, and I accept that, but know that there are people in that line of work that care, and have the technical aptitude for it. Realize that it is a fairly low paying job, and many of the people there are likely there just to earn a few bucks for spending $$. It's not their fault. I think (and this is just my opinion as a shopper and as a seller) that the drive for low prices has cut out the service. If you want to pay a bit more, then by cracky you'll get someone who can answer your questions, but if you insist on getting the lowest price, don't expect much more than the clerk to speak english, and be able to take your $$. When I had a previous job, I was able to "learn" all that I needed by reading a short booklet on the subject (say cable) and then was certified. YEAH.. I got news for you... I learned about it by doing research on the net, and going to DBS webforums, by buying it myself and trying it out.

Thanks, post like this get me a bit steamed because of the general attitude toward people who get enough shit to deal with in their everyday work week.

Jim

 

[Adil M]

James, in case you were wondering, my post was given in the most sarcastic tone possible (condescending actually), b/c when I wrote it I had just finished a "Rant: On Customers" post.

 

[James_A]

Sorry... that's what happens when I read this board at 2:00AM. My brain misses subtitles and just looses context!
Whoops, M'I bad!
Jim

 

[Michael St. Clair]

I have to say that in my experience, 90% of the salespeople who sell consumer products, whether toasters, stereos, HDTVs, or automobiles, are completely full of shit. They either lie their ass off to be deceptive, or lie their asses off because they don't want to admit that they don't know something.

So you sales guys in this thread are in the 10%. We commend you, and please don't think we are talking about you, because we are not.

 

[Jack Briggs]

If I go to a mass-market chainstore, I do so already knowing full well what I intend to buy. I do my own research. If I go to a high-end boutique, I'm willing to listen to what a salesperson might have to say. But, more often than not, I'm already committed to what I want to purchase. Most people here at HTF are probably the same way.

 

[Adil M]

I doubt it. I think there are many forum members looking for info and they are looking in as many places as possible including straight from the salesman's mouth. I believe that is the majority of members. Some are more experienced and can relate their experiences w/ past equipment, but this forum is here to help us cope w/ the everchanging electronics area. W/ one or two simple questions, one can divide that so-called "10%" from the "90%." Does that still make it ok to ridicule the other "90%?"

 

[Bill Catherall]

Does that still make it ok to ridicule the other "90%?"

As long as they think it's ok to lie to customers to either make a sale or cover their own ineptitude...then yes.

 

[Jeffrey Forner]

And then a couple weeks ago, i had just recieved an SVS driver to swap with my cheap (bought it for $150) existing sub. The guy tells my dad that it won't amke much difference, and that a new sub would be better.

Bastard! I'm glad you didn't talk to this guy before you bought the driver!

 

[NickSo]

yeah i know eh?

 

[Peter Kline]

Know-it-all customers are also a pain at times. The best thing is to be nice when purchasing, do all your research beforehand as Jack mentions and get in and out of the discounter as soon as possible. You're not going to get, generally, a knowledgeable salesperson when he's 18 or 19 years old. (People that age think they know everything, but that's another story). I once was told to get an extended warranty on a Sony tabletop stereo system because the laser on the CD player would not work after a year. When I told the salesman that this didn't seem right because Sony wouldn't still be in business if this was the case. He shrugged, went to a woman also shopping for a similar machine (she heard my conversation and I rolled my eyes as I passed her). I told the salesguy, "I'm going down the street to another place. They charge $20 more but they don't hassle and make untrue comments." Oh yes the store I was in was Best Buy in Minnetonka, Minneapolis.

 

[Jack Briggs]

The laser "wears out" in a year? That's a good one.

True story: There was a thread here almost three years ago wherein the gentleman posting mentioned that a saleswoman at a chainstore told him to be careful as he was pulling a DVD off the shelf too quickly: "You might jumble up the data," she said to him.

I swear.