Best Buy: We're No Longer The Authority in Electronics

[SinisterSalad]

The only time's that I've been in BB the last 4 yrs is when I've upgraded their servers or P.O.S. systems, lol. They paid ME to be there!

[citation][nom]cwp[/nom]Many of you have obviously never worked in retail before... and it shows.Here is what you WANT: to be able to go to a local store, blah blah blah...
They charge $129.99 for virus removal. I do this for a living, and a typical system takes 8-10 hours for a complete thorough cleaning without reinstalling the OS. That's $12-$15 per hour for them to do it, that is a quarter of what I make. How is that not good value?blah, blah, blah...[/citation]

I've worked retail plenty. I was commissioned, and that's a good motivator to know your stuff for your customers. So while commissioned people can be more pushy, they know the product better/care more than low hourly people will, generally.

8-10 hours for a virus removal? You must be doing it wrong... 3 hrs tops, depending on scan times.

 

[fatality1515]

Best Buy has nothing to worry about.. There are some things I will never purchase online, like a monitor for example.. http/www.youtube.com/watch?v=iIsfBBx0GOs (FedEx delivering a monitor)

 

[sykozis]

I don't even remotely feel sorry for BestBuy. I've lost track of how many times I've walked in there and had "sales associates" walk away from me to go BS with their "co-workers" instead of doing their jobs. I went in there about 10 years ago looking to buy my father a new computer for father's day. I had cash in hand and had full intent of buying the best spec'd system they sold at the time. I spent more than 30mins trying to find a "sales associate" that was willing to sell me a computer then finally gave up when I figured out that they didn't see me as a possible sale. I even walked past several "associates" counting out $100 bills hoping to get their attention. Since they didn't want to sell me a computer, the nice people at Walmart did instead.

Also, has anyone actually looked at the product selection at BestBuy? Every time I go in there, they seem to have more "Dynex" and "Insignia" branded garbage. Neither brand, to most consumers, signifies quality. They're BestBuy's "house brand"...and typically of considerably lower quality than similar products from major brands. In most cases, they aren't even price competitive to major brands. BestBuy, to most, just signifies higher prices.

I tried to pickup an HD4850 a few years back for Crossfire. The major etailers all had the XFX HD4850 512mb for $100USD. The local BestBuy wanted $250, trying to use "convenience" as a justification for being more than double the price. I don't see where driving several miles to a store vs ordering online and simply waiting for a package to arrive is "convenient".....Especially if you get there and find out that they don't stock what you're looking for...which for my local BestBuy is the case more times than not...

My local BestBuy was never "the authority in electronics".....just high prices, poor service, poor stock and extremely limited selection (unless you want a TV or laptop carrying bag).

[citation][nom]ahnilated[/nom]Best Buy was never an Authority on anything. 98% of their stuff is crap and 95% of their people don't know crap.[/citation]
I demand a recount. I doubt you could actually find that many BestBuy employees that actually know anything. 2% I could believe.....but definitely not 5%....

 

[sykozis]

[citation][nom]cwp[/nom]Many of you have obviously never worked in retail before...

Are you insane?

In order to have more knowledgeable staff, you have to pay employees more.

Best Buy has: 1. eliminated the 15% restocking fee, 2. given all products a 30-day return policy, and 3. close unprofitable stores in weak markets.

In recent years Best Buy has: 1. eliminated the 15% restocking fee, 2. given all products a 30-day return policy, and 3. close unprofitable stores in weak markets. They also continue to match BestBuy.com pricing, which every day changes pricing to compete with online vendors on popular products (note: not ALL products).

They charge $129.99 for virus removal. I do this for a living, and a typical system takes 8-10 hours for a complete thorough cleaning without reinstalling the OS. That's $12-$15 per hour for them to do it, that is a quarter of what I make. How is that not good value?
[/citation]

I have worked in retail....and know exactly what customers expect. Difference is, if customers filed the same complaints about me that I have against BestBuy employees....I'd have been fired before the customer managed to get out the door.

My local BestBuy does NOT price match at all. They won't even price match BestBuy.com.

My local shop charges $80 for virus removal....and it has never taken them " 8-10 hours for a complete thorough cleaning without reinstalling the OS."

My local shop even has a 90-day return policy on most products. They've never charged a restocking fee and on products with 2+ year warranties, they warranty "in house" for 1 year. They might not generate the profit that BestBuy does, but if they don't know something....they admit it and proceed to learn it. Also, if they don't carry it, they'll still order it for you. I walked in there 3 years ago looking for an Antec P180. They didn't carry it at that particular store but had no issue with getting one for me. That's true customer service. With BestBuy, if they don't carry it....they'll order it for you (if you have 10-14 days to wait on it) or tell you to drive to another store (which in my case is around 30 miles away)...

 

[u_hsen]

i used to work at best buy and i can definitely say:

in order to get better, they need to hire people with knowledge. they hire base on their personality but can careless about their technical knowledge.

also they like to hire younger people because they know more about technology and they're willing to work for less. however, they don't give a crap about working for $7.50 an hour, therefore they don't give crap about their customers or store performance.

 

[Guest]

I'll be pissed. It was the place I went to pricematch stuff and get 10% of the difference off. Like in the above example of some guy buying a 250 dollar video card at BB, if you PM it to $100, you get $15 off, which makes it $85. It was pretty sick, it works really well on memory cards especially, I remember a certain computer store had them for $5, but BB had it for $30, so I could get them for $2.50 LOL.

 

[amuffin]

Customers GO to best buy to test the product out and THEN buy it ONLINE!

 

[eddieroolz]

They are still a good place to check out things in person, as that's an important aspect for me.

 

[Antimatter79]

[citation][nom]XmortisX[/nom]Don't forget Microcenter, Newegg, Ebay....list goes on. Best Buy should've went out of biz a long...long time ago. Worst Customer Service, misleading/uniformed employees and"geek squad"is a joke within a joke.[/citation]

Finally, someone says "should've" instead of "should of". Now that I got that out of the way....I love MicroCenter. It's like Nerds R Us; I'm like a little kid when I go in there. The sales people are only an iota more intelligent than the ones in the big box stores, but at least they have hardware and component parts people actually want and need, not overpriced pre-built junk desktops. Best Buy was never the authority imho.

 

[dauntekong]

Best Buy price = TOO HIGH!
Best Buy Computers = Downgraded computers to the lowest
Best Buy Sales Rep = High School dummies
Best Buy Tech Support = Monkeys banging on computer

I never shop at Best Buy. All my electronics are Newegg, Amazon, and my favorite cheapest place, Craigslist. LOL

 

[lil_toms]

"Net income slid to $158 million"

Classic example of how going IPO is not necessarily a good thing.

If Best Buy were privately owned, void of any greedy shareholders, that statement of "Net income slid to $158 million" wouldn't sound so negative. It would be more like "Congratulations for turning a profit of $158 million".

I don't know about you, but $158 million is nothing to shy away from, it perfectly is enough to survive on, afterall it is "NET INCOME". Total earned after all paid expenses and taxes + interest. It is because of the greedy shareholders who make it look like a failure when in fact it is an achievement.

It's like a greedy parent who wants their kid to get "ALL A's" when in fact "three A's and five B's" sufficiently indicates higher than normal intellect.

TO THE SHAREHOLDERS: Think about all the unnecessary stress you are putting on the people and families who work and depend on Best Buy, only because YOU needed a higher dividend.

 

[zaznet]

[citation][nom]fazers_on_stun[/nom]Hmm, I was at the local BB just yesterday looking for a 50' ethernet cable. Passed by about a dozen salespeople, not one of whom asked me if I needed assistance finding anything. Even Home Depot salespeople will ask to help you nowadays..[/citation]

It's funny I've had a far better experience at Home Depot over the last two years than any other store I've visited. Even when visiting more than one location in my home town. I will drive past other stores that offer similar products to get what I need at a store I know has staff who will help me out. It's too bad Best Buy hasn't learned this yet.

 

[demonhorde665]

best buy never was an authority on electronics... hell , even back in 1998 I new to go to mwave for pc parts , (though since then ive discoverd newegg which is much cheaper in general).

I still remember walking into best buy back in 1998 knowing more about pc's than anyn employee at best buy.

though it is a bit sad to see them slipping. It doesn't help that walmart stills net about 80% of the lower income population even in electronics. Best buy to me was always a more .. upscale , middle class store, saddly into today's reccession the middle class is also receding. and what middle class is left is looking for the best deals they can get .. and that is not birck and mortar stores any more.

really though best buy , doesn't have to worry to much they are still a major chain in a market with few major chains left. It could be worse , Look at mom and pop stores.

 

[aethm]

The only reason I ever shopped at Best Buy was because of their no questions asked return policy. That changed a few years (unknown to me) and now when something breaks you have to get the "Geek Squad" clearance which is almost impossible. Then on top of that they make you wait a month while they ship you a "refurbished model." High prices, poor service, rip off geek squad services, and inability to return products destroyed them.

 

[shrapnel_indie]

[citation][nom]dauntekong[/nom]
Best Buy price = TOO HIGH!
Best Buy Computers = Downgraded computers to the lowest!
Best Buy Sales Rep = High School dummies
Best Buy Tech Support = Monkeys banging on computer
[/citation]

BEST BUY COMPUTERS = Downgraded computers to the lowest...
WRONG! That distinction belongs to Walmart and the special skimped models required for their (Walmart's) price point. Following your thoughts... they'd have to be #2 to Walmart in that distinction.

Best Buy tech support (geek squad)... too expensive, most things MUST be shipped out for repairs (where if you're lucky it really does get fixed and returned on time)... delegated to simple tasks and installs.

I remember talking to someone who was a Geek Squad tech at one store (in another city) and apparently was one of the exceptions on lack of knowledge... They moved to my city... (transferred) and was basically weaned out due to their pay rate... they wound up working for what is a now ho-hum to meh company known as McDonalds.

 

[Guest]

About the time people start complaining they can't buy a computer TV, Appliance or whatever else without going online. They we will realize what we have lost. I hate shopping online and I avoid it whenever possible. Maybe every one else doesn't mind waiting days if not weeks to get their product but not me. Online customer service is equally as bad as generally you are lucky to get any reply at all in a reasonable amount of time. Apple customer service is beyond bad and they half the time don't seem to know what the hell they are talking about. Amazon is even worse without having even basic tech support on the products you are buying. They generally refer you to the manufacturer. Best Buy is about the only place I can go to get my computer serviced without sending it in which I refuse to do. Do people really want to loose all this for the sake of a little convenience? I am not saying Best Buy hasn't made some missteps but once it's gone people will wish they had it back. When you live in places where Best Buy is the only choice other then Wal-Mart which would you choose? Yea I can see it now. Wal-Mart taking the place of Best Buy. What a joke that would be as they already know jack crap about most of the products they sell anyways. I mention I need a external hard drive with a seta-port and I get blank stares. At least Best Buy knows what the hell you are talking about. Keep complaining and someday you wish you would have taken that all back. Screw the internet as it is getting to be more trouble then it's worth.

 

[Guest]

I quit going to Best Buy because the damned music was too loud. I hate the thumping bass these stores entertain the morons with.

 

[freggo]

"Best Buy: We're No Longer The Authority in Electronics"

No longer ???? Good one.

Best Buy is/was to a Quality Electronics supplier what McDonalds is to Fine Dining