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Office Depot Workers Told To Lie To Customers?
- Thread starter HardOCP News
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About a week before the store opened to the public half of the stock employees walked out, including one of the managers. Customers weren't a huge problem there, it was the shift leaders that were a pain in the ass.
I like to count how many times I'm asked if I need help. Went to Best Buy a couple weeks ago. Was in there oh about 20 minutes, got five different people to ask if I needed help.
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Nor do I...I speak with my money....and your job is to get that out of my pocket and into the cash register.......try and sell me a bunch of crap I don't want , and you never will.....
if its store policy to sell me bunch of crap, Ill shop elsewhere..either way, you lose.
And if enough people do that the store will be forced to evaluate why its happening and change its policies. That is a good thing.
Management doesn't care how the employees feel, TRUST me on this, only people your pissing off is the ground level folk, and they arn't mad because of what you did, they're mad because as soon as you are out of sight they are gonna get in shit.
Don't like what your being told by the sales person? Don't like the store policy? Easy solution, go somewhere else. BUT NEVER should you EVER treat the frontline folk with disrespect or hold them accountable, NEVER, they have no control over it.
Trust me, treat them nice, and there are a few (and when I worked in retail I was one of them) who will bend the rules for you if they can get away with it. But if act like an arrogant prick, they will never bend ANY rules for you.
Thanks to my experience in retail I've been able to get some much great deals and extra stuff by getting employees to bend the rules for me. For example I fucked up one time and thought I changed my cellphone plan, but I didn't actually. I went 2 months with the assumption that my change went through. Boy was I in for a surprise when I got my bill, a $1300 bill.
When I called in the person on the other phone "technically" according to policy could do nothing to reverse the charges but I was nice with her. Lucky she was one of those people who are willing to bend the rules if your nice, I got around $1000 or phone charges which were ENTIRELY MY FAULT back dated and taken off my bill. If I was mad and pissed over the phone I would of gotten nothing, maybe if I bitched enoygh I migt of gotten a bit taken off and reduced.
But no I was nice and was able to convince her to bend the rules for me and backdate 2 months and $1000 of charges. I have a shit load of examples, but suffice to say thanks to my experience in retail allows me the insight to get them to bend the rules for me.
Yep, this is right, trust me the employees don't mind if you don't purchase from them, sometimes they are relived, sometimes thats exactly what they want you to do. They WANT their superiors to get the idea but they can't do it themselves(unless they want to be in the soup line), the customers must do it.
Think of it this way, sure the complainer may get what he wants in the end, but the customer who is savvy and nice enough (and with the right employee) will get the employee's to bend rules, move mountains, and typically get him or herself WAY more than the complainer ever would.
I know, because I hooked up(discounts, extras at highly discounted prices, free sometimes, etc) customers who I liked and made me feel good ALL THE TIME, and gave complainers, arrogant assholes, and arguer the bare minimum, if that.
heatlesssun
Extremely [H]
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How weird that this pops up today. I don't buy much from OD but I just got a universal laptop adapter there today during lunch. That's probably the last time I shop there for a while.
It's *exactly* because you have to go in and look for a way to have employees bend the rules for you that it discourages people from shopping in the first place. If a company (best buy, cc, etc) posts a good deal on a computer, you go there and plan to buy it. then, because you choose not to buy the accessories, you're denied buying said computer?
I will be nice to employees because I know it's not within their control, but upper management policies like that is what drove circuit city into bankruptcy.
Is it really that hard to put honest sales policy out there? There's no need for stores to use shady tactics to make their numbers look good. In these times of crisis, word of mouth spreads fast if a company has honest (or at the least, without having to completely rape you) policies.
Also, those of you defending the employees and calling people dickheads because they're pissed off, think about this: the hatred comes from association. you work there, you earn your cash by having to adopt the shady crap that comes from upper management, you're as guilty as the upper management people. the difference is, the employees that do the grunt work are the ones that will naturally have the shit rained on them. It sucks, but if you are willing to adopt that policy (regardless of your situation) you better be prepared to accept all the bad shit that comes with it.
I will be nice to employees because I know it's not within their control, but upper management policies like that is what drove circuit city into bankruptcy.
Is it really that hard to put honest sales policy out there? There's no need for stores to use shady tactics to make their numbers look good. In these times of crisis, word of mouth spreads fast if a company has honest (or at the least, without having to completely rape you) policies.
Also, those of you defending the employees and calling people dickheads because they're pissed off, think about this: the hatred comes from association. you work there, you earn your cash by having to adopt the shady crap that comes from upper management, you're as guilty as the upper management people. the difference is, the employees that do the grunt work are the ones that will naturally have the shit rained on them. It sucks, but if you are willing to adopt that policy (regardless of your situation) you better be prepared to accept all the bad shit that comes with it.
Yeah because people are going to want to quit their jobs in this economy. They're going to accept the policy because it means they've got a bloody job and can earn money.
Perhaps. But it's the shady tactics in all levels of business that got us in the crap we're all in, in the first place. Also, the more people realize the kind of policies these stores have, the less people will go there to buy. And the less people that buy there will mean the floor workers will be risking the jobs all the more.
Without making your customers happy, or at the least without being honest, there is no way any company will last long.
Enduring_Warrior
[H]ard|Gawd
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Same experience here with Best Crap...
Problem is, most people don't know and don't care about stuff like this. Ignorance is bliss as they say.
Yeah, but you can bet people will start caring pretty soon, if not already.
Zellio2009
[H]ard|Gawd
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Ignorance is bliss only if your life is bliss.
When I worked at Best Buy, we did not do this. My associates and I always sold the customer the product they were looking for, even if they did not get a PSP or accessories. Lying to customers in this type of economic situation is stupid anyway. No sales vs. sales because the customer is not getting any accessories is stupid anyway.
KaiserWarrior
Limp Gawd
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An employee has full control over their company policies: If they think their employer is having them use bullshit tactics, such as lying to customers to try to sell extra crap, they have two choices:
1) Be a man and quit. Don't support thieves.
2) Be a weasel and comply. Anything for the money.
If you choose to live like a weasel, don't be surprised when you get stomped on like a weasel.
Shit like this is why I do 90% of my shopping online. Databases don't try to bullshit you into buying extra crap you don't want.
heatlesssun
Extremely [H]
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One thing I do like about Best Buy, they have their in store inventory online and you can pay for it online and pick it, so this kind of trick simply can't happen at Best Buy (unless someone is cooking the system). All B&B stores need the same system.
fightingfi
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I used to be a salesman for Compusa before i went into there Tech Dept fixing the cpu's. It "WAS" a standard practice to "LIE" were out of stock (though we had 5 in the stock room). Manager to me--Are they buying"TAP" ( Technology Assurance Program) NO SIr there not, just the laptop or desktop whatever the case was. "WE" dont have the desk or laptop then have them come back next week was very common or MY Personal Favorite was " We dont need customers like that shopping here) Funny because Compusa is NO Longer in Business...Those damn customers if WE can only keep them out of our stores we'd be so much better attitude..Better yet as my Dad's says why not ADD the extended rip the customer off warranty included in the Price of the merchandise then..Same story i got written up at Circuit City for NOT selling enough "services" and i was a terrible salesman.Funny because they hired me for there Firedog PC repair. ( ive got 11 yrs exp with fixing,building pc's and lappie's) Geek Squad seasonal help i never once touched a laptop or desktop in store. I was on the floor "selling black tie geek squad services" I was hired for a PC Tech again to fix Pc's.Got threatened by many bosses saying if you dont sell services we cut your hrs because geek squad gets paid by however many black tie and other extended services get sold is how the "agents" hrs and work is decided by the week. Also for whoever read this post.Best buy does NO work in shop. THey geek squad logs onto a website called agentjohnnyutah.com i think cant remember logs in with employee ID and some dude in India and Pakistan actually work on the computer finish it up while you go back to selling services.1 customer had to wait 3 weeks for his broken dvdrw drive to be replaced under the black tie protection. Cant fix or touch the PC in store against Best Buy Policy and were NOT " trained" or "trusted" to do it..The guys dvdrw was the drive was stuck open and it needed a simple in store 5 replacement that any noob could have done...
What is wrong with you as a person? Is it the internet giving you the tough guy syndrome?
KaiserWarrior
Limp Gawd
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Seeing people defending lying scum (100% voluntary lying scum at that) saying "oh they can't help it!" disgusts me. Especially when the economy is collapsing as we speak exactly because of dishonest business practices such as this.
The economy isn't collapsing because best buy wants to sell you a warranty and laptop case when they sell you a laptop at 0 profit and possibly at a loss and it isn't even related to it in any way even through the faintest morality argument you might make. You are wrong.
NOT JUST BB, bust just about EVERY BIG BUSINESS OUT THERE pulls this kind of crap.. and even some small businesses pull this crap as well.
Anytime I go into a B&M store.. which isn't very often anymore thanks to crap like this and overpricing stuff like crazy, when a saleperson asks if I need help, I tell them no thanks unless I can't locate something that I am specifically looking for. No matter how many times you are asked if you need help.. just say no thanks. End of problem.
Oh.. and for those of you who don't want to deal with the salepeople.. you do know that you can order it online and pick it up at the store.. right?????
What you are saying is correct if you look at the small picture. But in the big picture, it's exactly crap like that, that made our economy as shitty as it is now. It's not the sole factor, but you can bet it's definitely contributing. If they don't want to sell a laptop at 0 profit, then just don't post it on the paper at 0 profit. That's what markup is for.
I'd much rather have a floor worker tell me "yeah, it's more expensive than [x], but at least we don't make you buy extended warranties and accessories."
People like you make me laugh. You're so out of touch with reality. I mean its not like the economy is an shambles and you can't find a fucking job anywhere. Oh wait, thats exactly what its like out in the real world. Why don't you join it with the rest of us. Anyone stupid enough to quit a job in this economy deserves what they get.
WTF does it matter? I could care less what the salesperson is trying to sell me. I'm there to buy whatever I feel like and could really care less about anyones quotas. I'm surely not going to buy add-on's I have no need for just to appease an employee.
While all of that is true, Office Depot has nothing to do with why the economy is in the shitter right now.
WTF does it matter? I could care less what the salesperson is trying to sell me. I'm there to buy whatever I feel like and could really care less about anyones quotas. I'm surely not going to buy add-on's I have no need for just to appease an employee.
Please read the entire fucking argument before making asinine posts.
KaiserWarrior
Limp Gawd
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You believe that deliberately misrepresenting products/sales/numbers/etc. and lying to people to make a sale -- that "more profit at any cost" attitude -- has nothing to do with the present problems?
Okay.
I did. I understand it's not the employee's policy. However, it doesn't make me feel any more obligated to appease a salesperson.
And you seem to think its the ONLY reason.
Obviously you didn't. My point wasn't to buy it to appease the salesperson. I really don't care if you buy the shit or not, but my point was not to take it out on the salesperson who is only doing their job.
Again: The economy isn't collapsing because best buy wants to sell you a warranty and laptop case when they sell you a laptop at 0 profit and possibly at a loss.
Not wanting to sell at a loss and wanting to make some sort of profit on something that isn't profitable has absolutely nothing to do with what the bankers, wall street, and corrupt politicians did to this country, no matter how much you try to pretend it does.
In fact, the act of you knowing they are selling at a loss and wanting to take advantage and cause them to lose money for your own personal gain is more akin to why this economy is fucked. The whole, "Fuck you I gots mines, AND IM GOING TO SHIT IN YOUR CHEERIOS BEFORE I'M DONE" attitude. They sell these computers at low prices in hopes that people will come in and buy other shit with them so they have no remorse over you crying and pouting about them trying to be a viable business, that employs people, on an internet forum.
SamuraiInBlack
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So i guess this is where I get to play storytime.
A long time ago when I worked at Best Buy in Michigan, I got wrote up. Why? Because I gave the customer what he wanted.
This guy and his girlfriend literally walk in, make a beeline for the camcorders and come straight to me. The guy tells me flat out how much money in cash he's spending and that's it. He doesn't do cards because he works at Olive Garden and apparently they don't pay enough to afford payments, according to him. I'm thinking whatever, cash is legal tender as long as its legit.
This guy tells me he's buying a camcorder, some tapes for it, and nothing more. If I mention one word of a warranty or another accessory, or even the BB card, he's taking his business to Circuit just up the way. He flat out tells me this, and two managers are not even ten feet from me and hear this. He even mentions and I quote "I don't give a damn about RewardZone so don't mention it unless you want me to go elsewhere and reward them with my money. I shop here once every three years at most, and don't give a shit."
So now I'm sweating bullets here thinking I'm basically choosing how I'm going to get my ass chewed in a minute. Neither manager is helping me even when I look to them for assistance. I'm in a spot where I'm going to lose either way and neither one of them is willing to intervene. If I do my job the way I was trained to, the way I am supposed to, the way I'm expected to, which means offering the full potential attachment, I'm losing a sale. If I do right by this guy, I get a sale, but I still get hell for not fulfilling my duties as a BB employee.
I chose to do right by this guy because like the rest of you, I don't like dealing with having every accessory, warranty, and attachment shoved into my face either and this guy made it clear to me he wasn't having it from the get go. The least I could do, I figured, was honor his wishes.
I get him his camcorder, I get him his tapes, he pays for it and he leaves.
I literally just took my hand off my register after closing it and the two managers who listened in got on either side of me and escorted me to the office. They wrote me up for failing to meet company expectations and made it clear that further instances of it would result in higher disciplinary action. I pleaded my case with them, even told them flat out they heard the guy. They agreed, but they still said that I had a job to do and they'd rather take the loss of one guy going elsewhere because he isn't getting his way rather than me just simply giving them what they want. I told them that if I did that, I would've driven away a customer and I simply would've been written up for that instead. And they conceded to that fact! They agreed that I would have been written up for giving a negative shopping experience to a customer. I asked which carried more weight and they of course said driving the customer away, because good business is repeated business, and you don't get repeat business with people who have bad impressions.
But they still said to me "That guy would've bought it even if you said anything he didn't want you to mention. Every retailer goes through this same thing in their own way. If he honestly didn't want to deal with it, he should've bought it online."
I said, "I can't think of a single online website that you can give cash to over the internet."
To which one of them retorted, "That's his problem."
So yes, it does happen. Yes it has happened. And yes it happens even under the rooftops of your favorite B&M. Employees get screwed in one direction or another - they shove all these things in your face or they lose their jobs. It may not happen everywhere or at every store, but there's more than enough of it going on and many of you have seen it for yourselves, whether you're willing to admit it or not.
Working at Best Buy in Michigan is a literal 180 of how the BB's out here in IL are. In Michigan it was CONTACT EVERY CUSTOMER CONTACT EVERY CUSTOMER! CARE PLUS CARE PLUS CARE PLUS! ATTACH ATTACH ATTACH, BB CARDS BB CARDS REWARDZONE ANYTHING!
At the BB's by me, I can walk through a store from front to back to front again and the only person who says anything to me at all is the LP guy in the yellow shirt, unless I do buy something. Then its the cashier asking me if I have a BB card or a Rewardzone card. And sometimes I don't even get that.
At the store I was at, cashiers had to ask customers if they'd like to get a PSP or PRP with their item if it had one available. It was required at every applicable purchase. At one point they even had to write down how many times they were told no or yes to one. They even had to offer whatever free magazine sub or other freebie deal we were running for shopping at the store.
For me to come to a BB out here and not hear any of that, and a cashier to not even blink when I plunk down $130 in DVDs or even say anything about RewardZone because of how much I'm purchasing, just blew my fucking MIND. I got wrote up and yelled at and accused of giving less than desirable effort and these pricks are doing NOTHING compared to what I did and not ONE manager is saying anything! I felt like I endured what I did for nothing.
Needless to say I'm rather bitter and the only reason why I go there is to say hi to a buddy of mine who works there, and occasionally see if they have a CD or movie I can't find anywhere else. But even then I still try Amazon first, as it seems to be a rather big archive of crap that's hard to find.
All in all - let the retail guy do his job. Of course you don't have to buy any of the other shit. Don't do it unless YOU think you need it. If he keeps pushing and pushing some more, don't get in his face - get in his manager's. That's the asshole who's putting that kind of pressure on him in the first place.
A long time ago when I worked at Best Buy in Michigan, I got wrote up. Why? Because I gave the customer what he wanted.
This guy and his girlfriend literally walk in, make a beeline for the camcorders and come straight to me. The guy tells me flat out how much money in cash he's spending and that's it. He doesn't do cards because he works at Olive Garden and apparently they don't pay enough to afford payments, according to him. I'm thinking whatever, cash is legal tender as long as its legit.
This guy tells me he's buying a camcorder, some tapes for it, and nothing more. If I mention one word of a warranty or another accessory, or even the BB card, he's taking his business to Circuit just up the way. He flat out tells me this, and two managers are not even ten feet from me and hear this. He even mentions and I quote "I don't give a damn about RewardZone so don't mention it unless you want me to go elsewhere and reward them with my money. I shop here once every three years at most, and don't give a shit."
So now I'm sweating bullets here thinking I'm basically choosing how I'm going to get my ass chewed in a minute. Neither manager is helping me even when I look to them for assistance. I'm in a spot where I'm going to lose either way and neither one of them is willing to intervene. If I do my job the way I was trained to, the way I am supposed to, the way I'm expected to, which means offering the full potential attachment, I'm losing a sale. If I do right by this guy, I get a sale, but I still get hell for not fulfilling my duties as a BB employee.
I chose to do right by this guy because like the rest of you, I don't like dealing with having every accessory, warranty, and attachment shoved into my face either and this guy made it clear to me he wasn't having it from the get go. The least I could do, I figured, was honor his wishes.
I get him his camcorder, I get him his tapes, he pays for it and he leaves.
I literally just took my hand off my register after closing it and the two managers who listened in got on either side of me and escorted me to the office. They wrote me up for failing to meet company expectations and made it clear that further instances of it would result in higher disciplinary action. I pleaded my case with them, even told them flat out they heard the guy. They agreed, but they still said that I had a job to do and they'd rather take the loss of one guy going elsewhere because he isn't getting his way rather than me just simply giving them what they want. I told them that if I did that, I would've driven away a customer and I simply would've been written up for that instead. And they conceded to that fact! They agreed that I would have been written up for giving a negative shopping experience to a customer. I asked which carried more weight and they of course said driving the customer away, because good business is repeated business, and you don't get repeat business with people who have bad impressions.
But they still said to me "That guy would've bought it even if you said anything he didn't want you to mention. Every retailer goes through this same thing in their own way. If he honestly didn't want to deal with it, he should've bought it online."
I said, "I can't think of a single online website that you can give cash to over the internet."
To which one of them retorted, "That's his problem."
So yes, it does happen. Yes it has happened. And yes it happens even under the rooftops of your favorite B&M. Employees get screwed in one direction or another - they shove all these things in your face or they lose their jobs. It may not happen everywhere or at every store, but there's more than enough of it going on and many of you have seen it for yourselves, whether you're willing to admit it or not.
Working at Best Buy in Michigan is a literal 180 of how the BB's out here in IL are. In Michigan it was CONTACT EVERY CUSTOMER CONTACT EVERY CUSTOMER! CARE PLUS CARE PLUS CARE PLUS! ATTACH ATTACH ATTACH, BB CARDS BB CARDS REWARDZONE ANYTHING!
At the BB's by me, I can walk through a store from front to back to front again and the only person who says anything to me at all is the LP guy in the yellow shirt, unless I do buy something. Then its the cashier asking me if I have a BB card or a Rewardzone card. And sometimes I don't even get that.
At the store I was at, cashiers had to ask customers if they'd like to get a PSP or PRP with their item if it had one available. It was required at every applicable purchase. At one point they even had to write down how many times they were told no or yes to one. They even had to offer whatever free magazine sub or other freebie deal we were running for shopping at the store.
For me to come to a BB out here and not hear any of that, and a cashier to not even blink when I plunk down $130 in DVDs or even say anything about RewardZone because of how much I'm purchasing, just blew my fucking MIND. I got wrote up and yelled at and accused of giving less than desirable effort and these pricks are doing NOTHING compared to what I did and not ONE manager is saying anything! I felt like I endured what I did for nothing.
Needless to say I'm rather bitter and the only reason why I go there is to say hi to a buddy of mine who works there, and occasionally see if they have a CD or movie I can't find anywhere else. But even then I still try Amazon first, as it seems to be a rather big archive of crap that's hard to find.
All in all - let the retail guy do his job. Of course you don't have to buy any of the other shit. Don't do it unless YOU think you need it. If he keeps pushing and pushing some more, don't get in his face - get in his manager's. That's the asshole who's putting that kind of pressure on him in the first place.
Why should I buy crap that I don't need? Because your sorry ass needs to make a commision? Try getting a second job then.
Way to make baseless assumptions when the rest of the mother fucking argument proves them wrong.
Sigh.
These businesses doing it isn't what screwed up the company alone, no.
It's the ATTITUDE that the higher ups have - whether it's in politics, retail, real estate, banking, you name it - it's that attitude across the board that it's OK to enforce shady policies and / or be sleazy bastards -- that has this economy in the shitter.
People are angry and depressed. Of course people will be angry here when we're given the chance to talk about companies screwing us out of things.
Seriously, if the companies don't want to sell things at 0 profit, then don't. Just mark it up and don't annoy people with extended warranties and accessories. Don't go to the extremes like Monster Cable too, though. >_>
The idea of capitalism is great and all, but it's gone unchecked for far too long, and it sucks people are reacting to some of the practices companies employ, but it had to happen sometime. The floor workers are easier to lash out to. It may not be ENTIRELY their fault, but the fact that they DO IT makes them just as guilty. Regardless of their situation. If you gotta do anything you can to make a buck, don't be crying when people get mad at you. It's just part of the job, right?
These businesses doing it isn't what screwed up the company alone, no.
It's the ATTITUDE that the higher ups have - whether it's in politics, retail, real estate, banking, you name it - it's that attitude across the board that it's OK to enforce shady policies and / or be sleazy bastards -- that has this economy in the shitter.
People are angry and depressed. Of course people will be angry here when we're given the chance to talk about companies screwing us out of things.
Seriously, if the companies don't want to sell things at 0 profit, then don't. Just mark it up and don't annoy people with extended warranties and accessories. Don't go to the extremes like Monster Cable too, though. >_>
The idea of capitalism is great and all, but it's gone unchecked for far too long, and it sucks people are reacting to some of the practices companies employ, but it had to happen sometime. The floor workers are easier to lash out to. It may not be ENTIRELY their fault, but the fact that they DO IT makes them just as guilty. Regardless of their situation. If you gotta do anything you can to make a buck, don't be crying when people get mad at you. It's just part of the job, right?
Yes lets all get mad at these big "evil" companies out to screw us all. Lets ignore that its also the fault of the people who didn't do shit about it and let this shit continue despite YEARS of warning.
I give you that point.
But, there -were- people that tried to do something about it, only to be met with "it's CAPITALISM, gtfo you commie". It's not like no one tried... It does suck that it takes an economic collapse to wake people the fuck up though.
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