Best Buy IdeaX

[#1]

Elite Plus Members should get some sort of incentive towards the TotalTech Membership. Whether it's a complementary 6 months to a year or a discount towards it. Spending the large sum of money every year to hit Elite Plus for points banking and 2 day shipping gets trounced by the 200/yr membership that the TotalTech Membership offers and you also get the benefits of special access to items in stock. As an ex employee and a frequent customer, I feel that the discrepancies between the two are too large to ignore. I can spend less but have more. Whereas I spend more and someone that wants to can just skip the line and get things before me plus extra warranty services.

[#2]

I would be surprised if we have not considered this already, and who knows what the future will bring. Thanks for the suggestion. Would anyone else like to see this happen? Make sure to vote for an idea if you like it.

[#3]

I absolutely would like to see this happen. As someone who *just* got elite plus as I made the purchase and found out about the total tech Monday deals, I made the same comment to the employee helping me who echoed the sentiment. The people making elite plus are providing significantly more profit to best buy as an individual than other customers. The fact that the new total tech literally trounced every category (special deals, matched same day delivery, adds protection, etc) and the fact elite plus rewards are in significantly higher than elite, it has created a gap where no one will find the elite plus a worthwhile "side goal". Having paid $3500+ vs someone coming in the first day, buying very little, and paying $200 for the same benefits makes it less of a fun elite status. Not to mention the elite plus spenders are more likely to take advantage of the Monday deals, etc and spend more anyway. Total tech seems like an odd place to add the member deals. I don't mind best buy bringing in revenue, but I think having that incentive part of the elite plus program would have made more sense. In fact, I purchased stuff from best buy I may not have because of the elite plus seeming like an incentive. With total tech, I'm just as likely to get on amazon for main entertainment purchases next year without regard to whether I can spend enough to hit the tier.

I'll still get from best buy if a deal is a steal, but from marketing perspective, I've actually become deincentivized to make all my premium purchases at best buy (for example, this year I'd go out of my way to get it from best buy and find a price match - without the elite plus - why go to the store with a price match when I can just buy at the lower price online?)

[#4]

My thoughts exactly. This was the point of my visit to this forum today, and being that there's already a thread, I just wanted to add that I would love to see this happen.

But I also wonder why it wasn't originally included? It's a major slap in the face to realize that after how much money I've spent to maintain Elite+ status for so many years, that anyone can just spend a paltry $200 and gain similar (and better) incentives compared to spending $3500 in a calendar year to achieve Elite+. And speaking of which, I already hit that targe oncet again earlier this year. So maybe if Best Buy doesn't want to think about some its more loyal customers, then perhaps Amazon will get all my holiday spending this year.

Call me salty. I'll be the first to agree.

[#5]

Yes! Shocked that this wasn’t considered from the beginning.

This is especially genius when you consider that the people most likely to willingly pay a $200/year price are those who already give you $3500+ a year.

[#6]

The elite plus member should have been smart and gotten Totat Tech on their path to elite plus because they would have saved a lot more that the membership cost in the first place.

I got TT for the first time last August and it has saved me a little over $350 since then. 

It would be folly of BB to give you a discount on the one thing that gives you the biggest discount.

Also, TT will get you exclusive access to hard to get items on occasion 

I am not an employee of Best Buy. All opinions and comments are my own.

[#7]

@bobberuchi 

The TT came out after Elite Plus. So if you're in my boat, I saved 0 because I was Elite Plus before TT came out. So your comment, while valid now, is not valid for existing Elite Plus Members who keep their status throughout the years. Saves me nothing towards Elite Plus unless a new year starts and I'm trying to keep it.

[#8]

@bobberuchi 

The "Super" know-it-all should be smart enough to realize that TT was a recent option, so people who achieved Elite or Elite+ status 10 years running could not have over the years purchased a TT membership on their path to expensive and neglected obsoletion.

@UnyinEXACTLY!

[#9]

So I expressed my disdain above on this topic, but I recently purchased a new TV from Best Buy and decided to buy into TotalTrash TotalTech in order to get extended service protection.

Then it occurred to me, for a measley $199 (notice how they didn't just price it at $200 to try to psyche you into thinking $199 isn't that bad, it's under $200 after all), I no longer have to spend all my money at Best Buy just to keep Elite or Elite+ status. In which case, I've already spent elsewhere roughly half of what would get me to Elite status, and a this rate I'll easly spend enough to what would be the equivalent of Elite+ again before the year is up. BUT, I no longer have to make my purchases at Best Buy. Yeah, I realize TotatTrash TotalTech has other benefits, but do I really care, especially for smaller purchases or items that I never would have bought protection on in the first place? Not really. I much prefer the option to shop where I want, when I want, and not feel obligated to Best Buy like I used to when I was tryng to achieve Elite or Elite+.

Thank you, Best Buy, for helping me come to my senses. While I'm sure Best Buy can care less about my predicament, I'm still more than happy to take my business elsewhere.

[#10]

Being an Best Buy Elite Plus member for the past 3 years, I was shocked to learn that I will be losing of all the benefits that came with being a loyal customer and spending $3,500+ a year on their products.

It's not like their benefits were anything special - just standard things you'd expect for being a loyal customer (free shipping, a couple extra days to return something, etc.), but for Best Buy to have the audacity to tell me that if I purchase a total tech subscription for $200/year, I can get my loyalty perks back - that was just insulting, thus becoming the moment I decided it was best to unsubscribe from Best Buy altogether. 

The total tech subscription service just feels completely disengenous at this point. No Thanks.

[#11]

It's probably too late, but I really don't like how this change went down.

The complete elimination of Elite Plus with the move to TotalTech must have been conceived in some min/max financial model where it was assumed the big spenders (Elite Plus for years) would continue to spend and eventually "cave" and get TotalTech because it does somewhat "pay for itself" if you buy a few big ticket items and need install help.

However, the way BB went about it was heavy-handed and clumsy, at best. 

It probably would have cost them nothing to let the Elite Plus members continue with their benefits for another year in addition to the "grace period" that was there.  It probably would have showed some good faith to their best customers.  Instead, they aren't even offered a discount!

They could have "gifted" TotalTech for 1 year to the top Elite Plus members and still been fine.

Now, more than ever, we have options when we buy tech and rewards were definitely a reason (though small, TBH) to shop at Best Buy.  Besides, who doesn't love a little status badge?

Now, there's less simply another reason to reconsider shopping at Best Buy.