Originally Posted By onlyme >>My first comment: Why go to Circuit City? Unless it's the only store in town, you can buy everthing that Circuit City provides elsewhere. I like Best Buy for printers, TVs, heck even cell phons. DVDs and CDs I get at Target. *shrug*<< Well, a good shopper, shops around. In the past 5 months I have purchased a 5.1 surround system and an SACD player. CC beat BB's price both times, so that's why I shop there...or, at least check out their prices.
Originally Posted By TALL Disney Guy <CC beat BB's price both times> So shouldn't they switch their names? Or prices, anyway.
Originally Posted By mrichmondj ^^ I've never found anything at CC or BB that I couldn't get a better price online.
Originally Posted By SingleParkPassholder FWIW, there's a Best Buy near me that has matched whatever price I've found elsewhere, not that I'm always buying big ticket items, though.
Originally Posted By onlyme Yea, I, also, usually find cheaper prices online. I just got lucky these two times, I guess.
Originally Posted By RoadTrip <<I've never found anything at CC or BB that I couldn't get a better price online.>> Really? Even including heavy items like a 50" Plasma TV? Even if you get it shipped to your front door for less than CC or BB would charge, do they help you drag the beast in to the room where you want it? I don't have a plasma TV, but we have a 36" conventional tube flat screen TV that weighs about 180 pounds. Having someone take that sucker down to my family room and set it on the TV stand means something to me!! Some things are OK to buy on line, but not appliances as far as I'm concerned. Of course those who purchase based solely on price probably get what they deserve.
Originally Posted By Jim in Merced CA I agree with you Roadtrip. [shocking, I know]. In that, if I go to a store, and encounter a good person who knows his stuff, it's fun to buy the plasma TV from that person. Live and upclose. Especially if it's in your community. It seems to be one of those situations where it always comes down to 'saving as much money as possible.' For me, if I go to BestBuy and the price is $20.00-$50.00 more on an item than what I found online, I'm going to go to BestBuy. If I have a problem, I can pack it up, and take it right back to BestBuy.
Originally Posted By SuperDry <<< "Buy this $200 HDMI cable. It will make your system sound so much better." Actually, for a HDDVD player, by using an HDMI cable instead of optical out, you can get "TrueHD" sound which is a lot higher quality. >>> I think you miss the point, which I'm almost certain is that a $20 HDMI cable which is easy to find online will work just as well as the $200 Monster (or similar) HDMI cable that the big boxers will try to foist upon you.
Originally Posted By Mr X That, plus I would also think that the salesperson Peeaanuut was amalgamizing (is that a word?) would not bother explaining it the way Jon did, explaining that you need a system that can handle it in the first place, nor would they really care or maybe even understand. But, as with any situation, some are more knowledgable, some more savvy, some more honest, and then there's the rest of the group (most). Do they work on commission at Circuit City? I've found that, in general, someone who works on commission is typically more aggressive BUT they really know what they're talking about.
Originally Posted By SuperDry At many of the big box retailers, the salespeople are very up-front in pointing out that "I don't work on commission" when trying to sell you the extended warranty or whatever other nonsense they are required to push because that's where the store makes their money. In situations like the extended warranty, what often happens is that although there is no direct commission involved, the salespeople are individually measured as to how many they are able to sell as a percentage of their sales, and their promotions (if not job retention) are based on their ability to keep this number above a certain point.
Originally Posted By jonvn I have generally found that by doing research on the web, i will know more than the person at the store does. i have also noticed that consumer reports, when they do an article on something I do know about generally does an abysmal job. I have kind of stopped trusting CR too.
Originally Posted By mrichmondj << In that, if I go to a store, and encounter a good person who knows his stuff, it's fun to buy the plasma TV from that person. Live and upclose. Especially if it's in your community. >> Jim, we're totally in agreement. The problem I find is that I never find that person who "knows his stuff." I get so frustrated when I go shopping that usually just end up leaving the store without buying anything.
Originally Posted By mrichmondj When I do find a store that has great staff, I don't even bother to shop around or look for better deals. When I was busy filling my house up with furniture a couple of years ago, I elected to shop with a furniture store that was a bit on the pricy side but had outstanding sales staff and folks who would sit down with you for hours until they figured out what you wanted. The alternative was a store where the help didn't even know what they had on the floor to sell and was completely against special ordering any products whatsoever. I've also been trying to get a shoe store to special order me a pair of Allen Edmonds shoes for the past year. I've yet to find a store that will do that for me. When I ask about special orders, the sales staff grimaces and encourages me to look elsewhere. So much for the legendary service that Nordstrom and other upscale stores are supposed to have.
Originally Posted By JeffG >> "Really? Even including heavy items like a 50" Plasma TV? Even if you get it shipped to your front door for less than CC or BB would charge, do they help you drag the beast in to the room where you want it? " << For really large items like that, the major online retailers generally contract with the same delivery companies that the big box stores use, which means you get essentially the same level of service. The big chains like Circuit City and Best Buy sub-contract out deliveries and you might very well end up with the same delivery person regardless of whether you buy from either of those stores or from Amazon.com. As far as the original story go, I really dislike reading about this kind of thing, but it is pretty likely that Circuit City really didn't have much of a choice here. These big box appliance/electronics stores have had to resort to an incredibly thin profit margin in order to compete with one another and, particularly, with the increasing dominance of online sales. In this respect, they really aren't very comparable to very high-margin chains like In 'n Out Burger or Starbucks, which are generally able to get away with charging premium prices that are well over their product costs. I think it is a safe bet that the decision-makers at Circuit City were well aware that this move was going to end up in the press and generally be a public-relations nightmare. I doubt very much that they would have done this unless they really didn't see a better option. It was probably either this or suffer a fate similar to CompUSA, which closed 2/3 of its stores last month, or Tower Records, which shut down the entire chain in January. -Jeff
Originally Posted By Jim in Merced CA <Jim, we're totally in agreement. The problem I find is that I never find that person who "knows his stuff." I get so frustrated when I go shopping that usually just end up leaving the store without buying anything.> Totally agree mrichmondj. It is definitely about capturing the right people who work in the store. And those knowledgeable staff members are harder to find. On the plus side, I did have a computer issue earlier this year, and the on-the-phone Geek Squad [owned by BestBuy] was superb. The total cost was $99, and the phone rep was with me troubleshooting my computer for probably 3 hours. It was a heckuva long time, but they fixed a problem that I couldn't fix myself. Here in Merced, we recently discovered a locally owned and operated -- great selection of plants, shrubs, trees, garden accessories. The owner took time with us to walk through her nursery and help us choose which plants we should get. Her plants are priced a bit higher than Lowe's -- but for that kind of service, it's totally worth it to me. And while Lowe's may be less expensieve, I can rarely get an opinion from anyone at Lowe's let along a knowledgeable comment about what grows best where.
Originally Posted By ecdc Great post as always, Jeff. The only thing I would take possible exception to is >>I think it is a safe bet that the decision-makers at Circuit City were well aware that this move was going to end up in the press and generally be a public-relations nightmare. I doubt very much that they would have done this unless they really didn't see a better option.<< You're probably right. But I've also seen plenty of examples of sheer idiocy involving large, public organizations or high profile individuals in how they do things that apparently make perfect sense in a board room, but once it hits the public, looks absolutely absurd. Again, I'm not saying that's necessarily the case here. But we often assume that big decisions by big organizations have been well thought out after days, weeks, or even months of planning and thinking. But history has shown that this isn't always the case. These organizations are run by people who are often highly insulated, and who are so focused on their own company and its problems they lose a bit of touch with how their actions might be perceived.
Originally Posted By onlyme Well, since we've changed gears a bit, I would absolutely purchase an item for a higher price, and, in fact have, when the customer service/knowledge/friendliness outweighs the 'other guys'. It's worth the extra money. And, to add my two cents about CC; I really don't know a whole lot about electronics, but when looking for a SACD(super audio compact disc) player, I got the blank stares from two CC guys. I know it's not the most widely known item, but it is something that they should know about. Anyway, the price was so low that I just bought it anyway. But, yea, my experience with these guys has not been good. Although, with 20,000 people cramming into our BB store on Saturdays, I can't even get someone to help me. So, it's a toss-up.
Originally Posted By peeaanuut <<Actually, for a HDDVD player, by using an HDMI cable instead of optical out, you can get "TrueHD" sound which is a lot higher quality.>> Oh Im not arguing the inportance of an HDMI cable over optical, but a $200 cable performs no better than a $50 cable. Even in v1.3 land.
Originally Posted By peeaanuut oops didnt get to MrX or Superdry's Comments when I responded here. You guys summed it right up. thx! Onlyme: How are you liking your SACD player? I got in on it at the beginnig and purchased a SACD and a DVD-A playey seperately and now I wish I held out for a unit that plays both. I have no complaints about my Sony SACD player though. Excellent sound. Get Darks Side of the Moon if you get the chance, the surround seperation is amazing.
