Best Buy & Geek Squad Policies

[ArgoTech]

Here's the link: http://www.forbes.com/sites/ericjackson/2012/01/02/the-seven-habits-of-spectacularly-unsuccessful-ex... 

Your and your friend’s experience reminded me of my experience about 4 years ago. It had to do with Best Buy's extended warranty purchased for my 8-year-old's portableDVDplayer. Long story short: the manager (who was later reported to the corporate office) hid a stack of exact same DVD players (my daughter found them hidden behind Targus carrying cases stacked on the floor) where they were originally displayed so to exchange the defective unit with a cheaper model. The ordeal lasted over an hour. I was disgusted with their hateful treatment and predicted their eventual demise. My daughter told me as we were driving away "Dad, let's not come back here again". We never did. Instead we signed up for Amazon Prime and couldn’t be happier.

Don't forget BB’s Credit Card scams of the early 2000s, Racketeering Lawsuit of 2007/2008, fraudulent activities surrounding digital subscriptions without customer consent of the same time period, forceful and border-line fradulent pre-optimization packages for your laptops or desktops in 2010/2011. And don’t get me started on Geek Squad – their ineptitude is legendary. It is very true that Best Buy’s demise is self-inflicted. Their floor staff and their managers are trained to do what they do. But if the eroding acid is trickling down from the upper floors then the company's future is indeed bleak. A company who’s gleaming upper floors proclaim great customer service and great products ans services while having its foundation’s beams resting in the cesspool of deceit and atrocious customer service is doomed to collapse.

[AaronE]

Brian's response is worded better than mine would have been so I'll just link it.

http://www.bbycommunications.com/briandunn/index.php

[ArgoTech]

Aaron, thanks for the link, but it doesn't address the bigger issue. What happened to hundreds of customer orders this past holiday shopping season is a just another wart on the company's face. Not to be able to fulfill customer orders knowing it's the busiest and most profitable time of the year can only mean two things: 1. Your logistics, front and back ends are in total disarray or 2. You're beginning to consolidate / reduce your inventory, which if true can only mean one thing - restructuring. "...and I’m well aware we have some challenges", writes Mr. Dunn. "Some"? Read many and I can’t handle then all. Your main problem (or should I say Mr. Dunn's) is the fact that instead of crafting a company that center's on customer loyalty (because of great customer service and transparent business practices) you with your own hands drive us (your customers) away in massive waves with terrible customer service and deceitful practices. And please don't tell us that you really don't have a clue as what to what’s happening on your stores' floors. Reading some of the posts on your own site just makes me wonder - why are we even bothering to look in your direction. You won't change, not without a massive overhaul of your company's entire corporate structure starting from the top down. And even if you do survive the bone-twisting transformation you'll need to assume a different business name. Because frankly it reeks of hassling, deceit and the fine print of the promises you won't keep. It's been four years ago and my daughter still refers to your stores as "that store". Dunn and done.

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[Bagman]

Well Stated Argotech!!! If you are a Retail Store You HAVE to work harder @ Customer Service if you want to keep your customer base in a down economy not work harder to fleece them. Leaving so much discretion on the individual store Management is a recipe for disaster. For a Retail Manager to call customers Liars that spent thousands of dollars a year just shows the great Management Training the Comany provides!!

[Jimmienomam]

I see the main problem as consistency. Well I agree with Argo which was well worded.

There are times I receive top notch CS here and in store, but those are becoming fewer and fewer especially in my local stores. They seem to be driving away their good employees also as 2 gaming sups that actually cared about the customer are now leaving/have left. One was extremely irritated as he liked his job, but his managers go on him for "allowing too many PMs". This guy followed the PM policy to a T (I know since he wouldn't budge with me on multiple PMs). He also had multiple years in with a ton of great surveys, but yet stuck at sup.

I know that working up happens, but their replacements are horrible.

Couple that with some extremely bad management at these stores. Including my own horror story of a store manager calling the police when I came in to trade in games with multiples of different games. we have 2 xboxs and had 2 ps3 (one broke) and me and my wife buy cheap games to co-op through. Well i was later told by the officer that he was contacted on suspicion of theft. To shorten the story, she never asked me as I could have easily remedied the situation as multiple games were on my RZ account and I had some receipts in the car for others.

Then the DM called who was awesome and helped relieve the situation. Then at times I go in and everyone is helpful and spot on with PMs, preorders, correcting issues etc. while at times I go in with in store pickups or preorders and it takes them 30 minutes because they never pulled the orders, cashiers who can't ring up or listen to me on how to run up preorders or Gamers Club Unlocked etc.

It is just so hit and miss. Same as on these forums (see the RZ Gamers Club forum), especially for the 5 preorders for $100 in RZ points promo. some people are able to get a fix quickly and some have been due the points for over 30 days past when they were supposed to get them (65 days total as they were supposed to post 35 days after the last purchase).

[CrimsonRain]

Here's one from a guy who actually has some solid numbers to back it up instead of a random interaction with a DirecTV rep inside a Best Buy store.

[CrimsonRain]

I apologize for the double post but I should point out that the best quote from the article I just linked is, "I probably should make mention before I go further that Mr. Downes is an internet industry analyst and consultant (I am not quite sure what that means though)."

[afrothunder87]

I also would like to point out that complaints are louder than compliments. If you have a good experience at a store then you most likely won't say anything, but if you have a bad one then people are apt to raise heck.

I do agree that Best Buy could use some work in certain areas of customer service, but I know that there are still plenty of people out there who love there shopping experiences at Best Buy.

[ArgoTech]

Scott, just read the posts here on this site and google Best Buy complaints - enough reading for a month. Negative posts outweigh positive by a substantial percentage. "... Best Buy could use some work in certain areas of customer service" - that's precisely what's not gonna work. The reason the stores force the Crazzy Eddie type of tactics is because without them there's no way to sustain the sales / revenue model that's currently in place. And because the corporate has no clue on how to steer this behemouth. Possible expansion into Europe and China? Please not another Aztec will be popular wiht the masses flop. Fix the problems on our land first. And who would tolerate the practices we'are facing in the foreign markets? I have a few suggestions for Mr. Dunn, real practical suggestions. Corporate, if you reading this please have Mr. Dunn contact me.

[afrothunder87]

Argotech you are missing the point about positive comments. Of course negative posts are going to be higher because if you have a good experience you usually don't say anything. You only hear form people who have a bad experience. You can't use this site as an example for how bad things are because it is mainly intended for complaints and issues to be resolved.

And my comment on areas of customer service that need work was by no means the fix all for this company, but it was an example of where Best Buy needs help. Sure there is more to it than that, but that was just one example.

I stand by the fact that there are plenty of people who have great shopping experiences at Best Buy. I am one of them and I have personally witnessed way more positives than I have negatives.