Best Buy is Crazy! (1 Viewer)

[Eric Samonte]

Good for u Craig. I hope more people like u start working in these places coz its kinda sad when u overhear salesguys feeding customers erroneous facts and figures like..." Oh DTS?....yeah Dolby bought them out years ago...."
While I haven't bought big ticket items from them yet (since all my stuff I got online), all in all, I think the staff has improved quite a bit with lesser hilarious stories being told here.

 

[craigDeguz]

Yea in my store we are trying to focus on product knowledge and helping out the customer and less focus on "selling of profitable items". the bad part is the pay and treatment of employees can be poor and thats why we have the type of people working at most of the best buys.

my best buy in particular though is getting the magnolia addition so we will see what that entails.

 

[RyanJM]

I used to work at Best Buy selling computers. The problem with best buy is that they REALLY push selling accessories because they get a huge profit on them. For instance, that $50 cable you buy costs them $7. There is an immense markup.

I knew computers better than everyone there including the manager of my department. The only thing they knew how to do was sell service plans and hustle anyone that wasn't more knowledgable than themselves. As for the other departments, the only time you get someone that knows their stuff is if they learn about it on their own time. Best Buy provides almost zero specialized training, meaning everyone that works from dvds, to tvs, to computers gets the same training. It's really just a store that provides a convenient and nice looking display for electronics. If you happen to get good service then you are lucky.

 

[Adam Bluhm]

I see we have a fella from Mountaintop, PA (speaking in ebonics? ). I live about an hour away from there and the Dickson City Best Buy is well staffed, IMO. I've never really heard someone outright lie.
That said, I was in a Maryland BB and I love eaves dropping on conversations when a salesperson is talking to someone who looks like they're not technically saavy.
I overheard a fella tell an older couple that he recommends buying their (expensive) warranty plan because the bulbs in DLP televisions blow "all the time."
Wow. He won't sell them the warranty plan that way, but he'll certainly NOT sell them the television either. It's almost like he was trying to sell them a warranty and then the television.
All in all, though, I've spoken to people at BB about digicams, software and other random things and they were knowledgable for the most part. No one has really tried to swindle me into anything more than, "Do you want our extended service plan with that?" I say no. They say okay.
CC seems no different in my area.

 

[dan fritzen]

How many times have you guys wanted to go up to a customer and help them out when you seem them not getting the right advice?

I always want to help customers even though i am shopping.

 

[DustinPizarro]

OMG!!! That happens to me alot. Everytime I hear a salesperson trying to convince someone to buy BOSE equipment or buy a movie in full screen.

 

[Joel...Lane]

I've never had any "bad" experiences at BB that I can remember. Over the years I've bought a computer, camera, software, tv, HTIB, flash drive, tv antennas (all of which never worked and had no problem returning them), and lots of DVD's. Everyone seemed generally helpful. And I LOVED walking in the front doors and being surrounded by all of that STUFF!!!

Unfortunately now that I've moved overseas, I don't think there are any BB's over here.

Are there any UK HTF members out there who could tell me what and where the good electronic stores are over here? Specifically in Northern Ireland?

 

[Lee Distad]

I just left the retail business this month. We're living in an age of giants, where low margin box pushers like BB, FS, and non-traditional competitors like Canadian Tire, Walmart, even frickin' SuperStore have horned in on the traditional AV B&M bizness. When big box retailers operate at an overall 11% GP, that makes it tough for smaller dealers with higher overhead/net income %'ages to play in the same sandbox.
My former fearless leaders at the new and improved A&B Sound think that they can go toe to toe with Best Buy and win. I disagreed. Hence, I have gone into the specialty custom home business, dealing primarily with builders and developers, and specializing in true high-end custom home gear, where $20K for a system is a good start.

 

[SteveBro]

I used to work at Best Buy selling computers. The problem with best buy is that they REALLY push selling accessories because they get a huge profit on them. For instance, that $50 cable you buy costs them $7. There is an immense markup.

They have to make money somehow, since there is there is almost no profit margin on computers themselves. And it's not like BBY's prices for accessories are any worse than their competitors. The markup on accessories is a market problem, not a BBY problem.

 

[Gralen]

I buy most of my big ticket items from either circuit city, tweeter or myer emco. Best buy I brought my computer and dvd player. I almost bought my t.v there 2 years ago until the saleman told me that composite was better than compontent. I tried to tell him no but he insist. I end up walking away. I buy only dvds and cds from there. I have fun when customer ask advice and I end up answering the question better than the sales. There is one person I go to at best buy and he is pretty good.

 

[Adam Gregorich]

Another self proclaimed "High end" store, Magnolia HiFi, is a joke with untrained and unhelpful staff. No surprise though since Best Buy owns them.

That's too bad. In Seattle Mag Hi-Fi is a great place to shop. The salesperson I use has been there over 20 years, and has always been strait with me. If I have a question she can answer she will take the time to find the answer even if it means going to the manufacture's rep.

 

[RomanSohor]

Not true. The markup is higher on the other A/V accessories BBY carries, and very few of those, if any, are that high.

80% might be a little high, but Employee price is Cost+5% and Monster cables are generally half price (or cheaper) for Employees

 

[SteveBro]

Yes, I'm an employee too. That's how I know the figure. Even at half off, that's not 80%. I can't thing of a single Monster product that has 80% margin, and I used to manage the audio half of the business for the entire chain. Monster has the worst margin of all the A/V accessories BBY carries.

 

[Adam Gregorich]

Monster has the worst margin of all the A/V accessories BBY carries

Not from Monsters point of view It is very true that you make very little money selling Monster products while Monster makes a killing.

 

[SteveBro]

No, that's not true. You make a lot of margin on Monster products. You just make more on the other guys' products. But yeah, Monster probably makes more off of us than we make off of them.

 

[Mike Boniferro]

The margin %'s would be less on monster, but the margin $$$'s are much more.

As a business, i would rather sell a $150 cable at 50% ($75 profit) as opposed to a $15 recoton or whatever brand at 80% ($12 profit)... %'s don't tell the whole story if one product costs 10x what another does....
that being said.. they would likely make more or about the same on a $15 cheapo cable than on a $25 monster

 

[Chris_Estrada]

I just came back from BB trying to test out some TV's. They didn't have any DVD players hooked up to the ones I wanted, and the ones that had them would only let me play the start of a movie. Just as well, I could tell that the PQ was horrible on their setup. If they would hire some knowledgeable people (like us HTF'ers) then maybe they would sctually sell some tvs. Also, while the plasmas looked nice, it seemed that they didn't properly set up the tube tvs. It's as if they don't want us to buy them at all.

 

[Lee Distad]

If they would hire some knowledgeable people (like us HTF'ers) then maybe they would sctually sell some tvs.

So you're okay with earning minimum wage Chris? I know that I have better things to do.
Fact is, Best Buy hardly ever sends their staff to product training sessions hosted by the suppliers at local hotels, because they have to pay their staff for the time. With that kind of attitude, do you think they would give you the dosh that an individual certified to do ISF-calibrations is accustomed to?

 

[Brad_c_g]

I have a positive comment about one of the BB workers I ran into a couple years ago. I wish I remembered his name.

I was looking into Surround sound and didn't know much about it (before I found this site). I was looking at receivers and the person working in that department actually told me that he wouldn't recommend a single receiver in there store. He steered me towards Denon, Harmon Kardon and I actually ended up buying a Denon. Without his help I probably would have some crappy sony theater in a box.

 

[Dave Lipscomb]

I'm curious why people bother to price match. If the other store had the item in stock, you would have bought there, no?

Fortunately I work in an environment where that game playing rarely pokes through.