BestBuy.Com

[btsloane]

Customer no service indeed.

The email I received this morning advertised a 2/8  midnight sale to start at 12 ET / 9 PT. I have been in the market for a new ipod dock and new computer monitor, so I thought I would stay up to see what was offered.  I jumped on the site around 11:10 central time (12:10 ET) and kept getting the same preview page as I had seen earlier in the day with the email blast.  By 12;25 ET, I decided to call customer service and see what the problem was and maybe to just get some information on what products were indeed on sale.  3 customer service reps and 20 minutes later, I was finally told that, although the email clearly stated 12 ET, the sale was not actually starting for those in the central time zone until 12 Central.  I thought that strange, but by this time it was already 11:45, and so I decided to wait 15 more minutes.  Well at 12:15 central time, there was still no change to the sale's website page - still only listing a preview to the upcoming sale.  Again I called customer no service and was told the wait time would be less than 10 minutes.  18 minutes later, my call was answered - I was promptly put on hold and then eventually was disconnected while being transferred.  I must say that I remember a time when Best Buy was my absolute favorite place to frequent - but the service and support has continually declined over the last 2-3 years.  I am extremely upset.  But, although I would like some explanations, I no longer feel that finding tonight's illusive midnight sale is worth it.  Chalk me up as one more lost customer to Amazon.

BTS

[Ryan-BBY Community Connector]

Hello btsloane -

Sean from our Social Media team, will be reaching out to you regarding your concern. Thank you for your continued patience!

[Sean-BBY Community Connector]

Hi btsloane,

I am so sorry to hear about the disappointment you experienced both online and over the phone when you tried to participate in the online Midnight Sale, which was on BestBuy.com.  I cannot imagine how upsetting it would have been to wait up online all night just to see the offers, only to see nothing change.

Although it is not very common, I am familiar that some customers were unable to refresh the page to participate in the online sale.  I am making sure that this feedback and concern is being address here in our corporate offices and with our online team.  It’s disappointing that you were unable to take part in the sale, because you weren’t able to view the offers.  It’s something that needs to be looked into for any future offers.

Thank you again for sharing some feedback and if you have any questions, please let me know.

Regards,

[btsloane]

So I guess case closed???  While I agree with you regarding the need for these problems to be fixed going forward, I feel that more than just a "we will look into it attitude" is warranted.  I do not believe, as you suggest, that what happen to me last night is uncommon.  All you need to do is bump around this very community forum to see that there have been many ongoing problems with these recent "Midnight Sales".  Of course you will get so much more if you just google "best buy midnight sale" along with words like "horrible, fake, hoax, and joke". Oh well, I wasted too much time last night to continue to spit in the wind today.  I, like many others who have posted prior to me, will most likely not shop in-store, nor online with Best Buy from this point further.

BTS

[btsloane]

I would furthermore like to suggest that others who have similar complaints go to The Consumerist website.  It is a good forum to raise issues that you have with select businesses that you feel need to be addressed.

www.consumerist.com

bts

[btsloane]

Just a follow up on the above situation.  I thought I would list the email chain that started shortly after I listed my complaints.  As you cans see, nothing was ever resolved - nor did the coupon they promised as a "fix" for my frustration ever arrive.  This continues to be a colossal mess.  How can Best Buy continue to survive with this level of customer no-service. 

Here is the entire email conversation:

February 18, 2012

Here it is 9 days after the first email was sent telling me that I would be receiving a coupon for my inconvenience with the midnight sale.  I still have not received this coupon in the email.  I have continually checked my spam mailbox as well as my inbox - and still nothing.  I am growing even more frustrated by the day.  I was particularly unhappy the night of the midnight sale, which was my original cause of frustration - but this so called customer service fix has only added to my level of dissatisfaction.  I am just not sure how Best Buy thinks it is going to continue to compete in this marketplace when it treats its customers this way.  Please feel free to review all of the below correspondence regarding this complaint - and I think you will see the reason for my frustration. 

BTS

Feb 14, 2012

OK - Thanks for the update.  I'll continue to check both my inbox and spam folder over the next few days.

BTS

Feb 14, 2012 at 12:19 PM, BestBuy.com Customer Care <onlinestore@bestbuy.com> wrote:

Hello Brian,

Thank you for your reply. Please allow another 3-5 business days. Then, check your email, and spam folder for it. Thank you for your patience while we work to resolve your inquiry.

Bestbuy Customer Care

Original Message Follows:
------------------------

I have yet to see this coupon. Do you have a status on its E.T.A. or know when I should expect to see it in my email?
BTS.
Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

Sat, 11 Feb 2012 21:37:51 -0600
To: BestBuy.com Customer Care<onlinestore@bestbuy.com>
Subject: Re: General Questions


I will keep an eye out for the coupon,  Hopefully with the coupon I can use to get the monitor I was hoping to get the night of the sale.

Thanks
BTS


Feb 11, 2012 at 10:38 AM, BestBuy.com Customer Care <onlinestore@bestbuy.com> wrote:


Brian,

I apologize that the level of service you received when you participated in the midnight sale did not meet your expectations. Your comments have been documented and are being looked into. Additionally, because of the inconvenience you experienced, I see that a digital coupon towards your future purchase on Bestbuy.com is in progress. I apologize for any inconvenience this has caused and thank you for your patience and understanding.

Sincerely,
Bestbuy Customer Care
Michelle
Case#{removed per forum guidelines}



Original Message Follows:
------------------------

Marlene,

Thanks for the response.  Looking around the Best Buy community forum and various other social media sites, including The Consumerist, it appears that I was not the only one who had problems with this sale last night. Nor does it appear like this is the only midnight sale that has had problems.  I truly used to love to go into a Best Buy and also loved the website for looking up information/reviews - but there has been a steady decline in what the company has to offer over the last year or two.  It would be great to receive some compensation for the frustration I did go through last night (because it was indeed maddening), but my ultimate hope is that Best Buy will eventually get back to the type of customer service that made it one of my favorite stores/website to frequent.  I'd love to say something positive about the company - but as of right now, I am just one of the many unhappy customers on the social media sites.

BTS


Feb 9, 2012 at 8:50 PM, BestBuy.com Customer Care <onlinestore@bestbuy.com> wrote:




Hello, Brian!



I hope that you are having a great day.  I am so sorry for all the issues you had with our website for the midnight sale.  I am not sure what the problem was as to why you were not able to access the sale as the central time zone started at 11pm.  However, I understand how frustrating this can be, I am going to put in a request for you to receive a digital coupon.  If approved you will receive it in your email.  Again, I apologize.  If you have any additional questions, or concerns let me know. Thanks for shopping with Best Buy!


Sincerely,
Marlene
Best Buy Customer Care
Case # {removed per forum guidelines}

P. S I am also going to forward this over to our Research Team.
Original Message Follows:
------------------------
This inquiry is related to: Web

 My inquiry is specifically related to: General Questions


 Questions or Comments: Ridiculous 2/8/12 midnight sale - what a colossal mess!The email I received this morning advertised a 2/8 midnight sale to start at 12 ET / 9 PT. I have been in the market for a new ipod dock and new computer monitor, so I thought I would stay up to see what was offered. I jumped on the site around 11:10 central time (12:10 ET) and kept getting the same preview page as I had seen earlier in the day with the email blast. By 12;25 ET, I decided to call customer service and see what the problem was and maybe to just get some information on what products were indeed on sale. 3 customer service reps and 20 minutes later, I was finally told that, although the email clearly stated 12 ET, the sale was not actually starting for those in the central time zone until 12 Central. I thought that strange, but by this time it was already 11:45, and so I decided to wait 15 more minutes. Well at 12:15 central time, there was still no change to the sale's website page - still only listing a preview to the upcoming sale. Again I called customer no service and was told the wait time would be less than 10 minutes. 18 minutes later, my call was answered - I was promptly put on hold and then eventually was disconnected while being transferred. I must say that I remember a time when Best Buy was my absolute favorite place to frequent - but the service and support has continually declined over the last 2-3 years. I am extremely upset. But, although I would like some explanations, I no longer feel that finding tonight's illusive midnight sale is worth it. Chalk me up as one more lost customer to Amazon.BTS

[Sean-BBY Community Connector]

Hi btsloane,

Thanks for following up with us and I am sorry to hear about what you have been going through when trying to get some resolution towards.  I was able to look into some cases that were made under the email address you registered with us and it looks like they did send out a gift card to you, however it appears that because there seemed to be issues sending it to your email, it has been mailed to your mailing address.  It can take up to 14 business days before you see it come in.

Again, I am sorry and if there anything else I can try to do, please let me know.  Feel free to send me a private message if you have any further details about this situation. 

Regards,