Why is it that that something as simple and basic to good business, customer satisfaction, no longer matters? How is it that awareness of its importance to business success is lost on those who run these large companies? With the Wal-Mart’ing of America and the death of Main street mom and pop shops and the demise of Sears and Penneys as viable appliance stores, the box stores are our last resort. The electronics box store, Best Buy, was my source for electronic doodads ever since Circuit City fired all its senior and experienced sales staff in favor of high-school kids who work cheap. Some of us can remember from way back when Circuit City was a new outfit but populated by a surly staff of non-native english speakers. It was painful and tedious to be harangued about purchasing those “service contracts” for your appliance. We all knew it was a rip-off and detested the hi-pressure tactics that were applied. But then, somebody in the Circuit City corporate management got the message and transitioned to knowledgeable and helpful staff. For a few years Circuit City was a pleasant place to shop. Then the bean counters got control again, they fired all the good sales staff and now we have children, mostly, it seems, still with pimples…. and then Comp-USA abandoned the DC market . So it was to Best Buy, the only competition left that I turned to for toys.Best Buy was “friendly” enough even if they suffer from being constantly out of stock and I will admit I had a very nice experience there two weeks ago buying a Blu-ray disc player. But that is done now, over, forgotten and erased by some corporate stupidity silliness that really fries me. Apparently, Best Buy only likes customers who buy things and not those who need to return or exchange some items.Case in point: I was given a movie in HD-DVD format for Christmas and I have a Blu-ray player. Without any technical jargon the bottom line is that the Blu-ray player will not play the HD-DVD format. The movie was purchased at Best Buy online and shipped to me because my daughter-in-law lives too far away down deep in the South. So I went into Best Buy in Germantown Maryland yesterday to exchange the HD-DVD for a Blu-ray version. Same movie, same price, same company, easy thing to do right?. Nope, no deal. Best Buy will not exchange a like for like item if it is purchased through the on-line store. They prefer to refund the sale to the buyer of record and lose the revenue, piss off two sets of customers and embarrass one. The reason for this stupidity? Corporate Policy. It even says so on the website. Where is the sense in this? Are they trying to mitigate credit card fraud? no, they run the same risk in the store of that as on-line. Does it cost them money to make the exchange? no, the items are the same price and nothing changes in inventory. They even make a little bit more with the on-line sale because they get some piece of the shipping fees and the on-line operation is likely more profitable than the brick and mortar store. Is it because they think I bought or stole it somewhere else? no, they have a record of the sale to my daughter and shipping to me.So where’s the harm? Here’s the harm: they have lost three good customers, they lost $80 in revenue, because I WILL return it and I WILL walk next door to Borders and buy it there and I am telling you this so you might think about this next time you climb in your truck to go buy something electronic.
Choice, it is the only right we seem to have left as consumers and I plan to exercise it and I hope you will too.
POSTSCRIPT – 1-21-2008
After the kind offer from Hollywood Video (see comments) Marti decided to first try her hand at flimflamming the management at Best Buy. Being a former retail manager at Sears (decades ago) she knows a thing or two and so yesterday we ventured up to the Best Buy in Frederick. While she made me wait in the parking lot ( she knew my temper might be a problem) she walked in and gave them a story. To use a football analogy, she found a seam in their defense, (for a cash sale they don’t keep a name record) and she lied. A little white lie but it worked. 15 minutes later she walked out of the store with the right copy and off we went home very much feeling the wrong kind of customer satisfaction. By the way, the movie, Planet Earth is in a word, simply extraordinary. I know, that’s two words…..
January 20, 2008
Best Buy?….. Bye-bye
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Hey there, it is sad they lose customers over a poorly written return policy. In an age where there are so many options for consumers they should do everything possible to keep them. I work for the corporate office of Hollywood Video. If you still have the DVD I would be happy to facilitate an exchange for whatever title you like provided we have it. I think we have a store in Germantown and I could facilitate the exchange there or another location.
Comment by aaronhermenswr122 — January 20, 2008 @ 1:39 pm |
And a second note, Lowes Home Improvement stores have the right policy. 90 days Customer Satisfaction guaranteed. With a receipt they will take back anything, no questions asked. So they are not all bad….
Comment by Ed Kirkpatrick — January 21, 2008 @ 8:41 am |
As lame it may sound, I suggest you write a letter of complaint to Best Buy corporate. You may get a response. I’ve done that with a company before and somebody reads those things.
But, yes, Best Buy is not my ideal place to shop. I try to avoid it but it is getting harder and harder–same with a store like Home Depot. Sigh.
Comment by Jaime K. — January 21, 2008 @ 9:53 am |
Way to go Ed and Marti. Corporate Management is to blame for a lot of things these days. Take a smaller Corporation like Pier 1 Imports. They cut good Associates hours and Benefits because they can’t manage their funds properly. They say they aren’t productive enough. Bull! They can’t afford to pay for their inventory and have to borrow so they cut hours to hire part-timers. They don’t have to provide benefits to part-timers.
Comment by Clare — January 21, 2008 @ 10:21 am |
This is news we can use.
“It was a gift, but I really need that one over there. There is no receipt because the kind of people who are willing to furnish receits give cash instead. I’ll take that one as well. No, I do not need a service contract on a ten-dollar iron. I haven’t yet decided whether I will ever use it. Thank you very much. See you next time.”
This has been my script for 88 years. The important point is whether a store could have sold the item, not whether it actually did.
I am not going to ask someone where he bought something. It was probably regifted in any case. Forget the packaging. I still send gifts in Woodward and Lothrop boxes.
Is there anyone else out there who thinks there is something wrong with producing incompatible formatting technologies?
Bobby
Comment by Robert Featherstone — January 21, 2008 @ 11:49 am |
Much of these types of issues can be blamed on the government’s reckless capital gains and small business tax policies. Taxing the mom and pop stores out of oblivion, and make it harder and harder to start a new business has given rise to the big bog oligopolies that exist today. Service isn’t paramount anymore, it’s all about shareholders.
Both private and public sectors need an overhaul, and I don’t think that either political party is up to the task.
Politicians don’t want to lose their cushy jobs either so special interest, earmarks, and pork barrel spending rules the day. The Simpson’s episode “Citizen Kang” (one of the greats) which has one of the best quotes ever. “Abortions for some, miniature American flags for others!”
Until we get some people in there who aren’t hapless ideologues (be right or left wing), and haven’t been corrupted by the disease of the beltway, no real change will come about in our lifetimes. This is best represented in one of the greatest films ever made, Gladiator:
“Maximus: What would you have me do Caesar?
Marcus: I will empower you, to one end alone; to give power back to the people of Rome, and end the corruption that has crippled it.
Will you accept this great honor that I have offered you?
Maximus: With all my heart no.
Marcus: Maximus, that is why it must be you.
Maximus: but surely a prefect, a senator, someone who understands her politics.
Marcus: But you have not been corrupted by her politics…”
As far as corporate America, I’m part of it and I do believe the free market and capitalism are good things, as socialism and communism have been shown to fail time and time again. With that said, the income disparity between executives and worker bees like me is very disparaging, and the irresponsibility of certain sectors (home lending) is dragging the entire market down. So what is the solution? It’s definitely not a “tax handout” or a “rate cut,” we never should have gone off the gold standard, or decided to ship 70% of our manufacturing overseas.
Comment by Myles — January 21, 2008 @ 2:47 pm |
One additional comment, this is why many friends of mine call the place “worst-buy.”
Take care Mr. Kirkpatrick, I hope you and your family are well.
Comment by Myles — January 21, 2008 @ 8:18 pm |
I loved your description of purchasing products from Best Buy is hilarious as well as disgusting.
In a response to your opinion of Planet Earth… in a word (or two)… YOU’RE RIGHT! (Actually ” YOU’RE” is a contraction which makes it three words)
I received the series as a Christmas gift from my daughter and have watched it repeatedly.
Comment by Donna Wallace — February 12, 2008 @ 10:55 am |
I am a general manager at best buy in Germantown, first of all you are not allowed to say anything inappropriate about the company in public, secound thing you should had called me i might had helped u out
thanks
Dustin
Editor: I thought this comment was just hilarious, and when there we did call for the manager and some young lady came out and told us she was the manager.
Comment by Dustin Morre — April 13, 2008 @ 9:14 pm |
“I am a general manager at best buy in Germantown, first of all you are not allowed to say anything inappropriate about the company in public, secound thing you should had called me i might had helped u out
thanks
Dustin
Comment by Dustin Morre — April 13, 2008 @ 9:14 pm”
Dustin,
That is absolute nonsense, and you know it. The first ammendment is the first ammendment, and consumers need to know when they are going to get crapped on. I don’t know how you don’t get that your business is reliant on “REPEAT CUSTOMERS.”
I worked as a retail manager for many years so I know how it is, of course I chose to go to college and then graduate school so I could get a job that doesn’t make me work horrible hours for a barely livable wage.
I have had SEVERAL problems with Best Buy’s inept management, overpriced and unexplicable warranties, undertrained (not one had any formal education or certifications) and overpriced “geek squad,” and just a total lack of overall service in comparison with other retail businesses. Hence the nick name “Worst Buy” given to it by many of your former customers.
Don’t attack Mr. Kirkpatrick because he had issues that undoubtedly millions of other consumers have encountered with the company, and he chose to express them here.
http://abcnews.go.com/Business/IndustryInfo/story?id=3209776
http://www.consumeraffairs.com/retail/best_buy_lap.html
Comment by Myles — April 25, 2008 @ 3:29 pm |