Sales People

I'll have a look at that now Daveskater mate. Could be very useful. lol

Sorry to hear you have an headache mate. :(

Have a good night sleep. lol

I have submitted my concern. lol

Hopefully they will investigate.

Regards Jase :)
 
apparently it helps if you have "copies of correspondence", photographs or videos so maybe someone should go in and ask a sales rep about a pc like rik did ;)

cheers mate, hopefully it'll be gone in the morning :)
 
Yes, we need someone of here to get videos and that. Then we can do a full investigation. I am willing to go into Pc World, doing secret filming. lol

No worries mate.

Regards Jase :)
 
Sale Advisors!

Hello all,

There has been a thread on about Sale Advisors. We have had a good chat in that thread. (especially me and Daveskater)

So Daveskater kindly got a link to BBC Watchdog.
I Have now contacted them on about Sale Advisors, how they are not very knowledgeable on computers and other electronics goods. So people who don't have a good knowledge on computers ect... are being told to buy hardware/software that they don't need and will barely improve thier system.
So i want to put an end to this, and i believe all staff working at places like Pc World should go through short training before they are employed.

We need Secret filming from inside places like Pc world when they are giving someone advice. This would be very useful in getting noticed by Watchdog.

So if anyone wants to join me and Daveskater in the fight against sale advisors, then please post any suggestions into this thread.

Regards Jase :)
 
i'd be up for going into comet or pc world and testing their shop assistants ;)

i don't have any super small cameras though but could probably sort something out :p
 
i've been meaning to post in this thing for ages...

it's kind of died off in here since Jase got banned (however i don't know for what reason)

anybody else have any experiences they would like to share or opinions they'd like to voice?
 
Well I read the first and last posts so I dont know peoples comments inbetween but I can comment from my own experience.

I AM A COMPUTER SALESMAN IN A RETAIL STORE.

Personally, I give the customer the whole truth, nothing less. Yes this machine can run Vista Basic, but its honestly not that good. For me the only way to make a legit sale is with the whole truth. I see plenty of other co-workers talking up laptops and giving a customer complete BS, they get the sale and within a week or two the customer is back complaining.

When I approach a potential customer, I find EXACTLY what they will be using the machine for and then suggest a few so that the customer is also involved in the process, not just being given something. This way they have a sense of satisfaction knowing they have whats right for them.

Moreover, I tell the customer if there is any problems come back to see me ANYTIME. For me the service does not stop once money has been exchanged.

I know I my approach is very different to many stops, I dont really care if I make the required sales target (though I do anyway), its all about the level of customer satisfaction.

Just my 2 cents.

BTW happybirthday to myself :p
 
if i was in australia i'd come to your store any time :D

it's just unfortunate that al sales reps aren't as honest as you :(
 
Hah, I actually find it interesing to read what people think about sales people, Obviously it would be different in other countries, but it would be nice to see if any other aussieshave opinions, and whats stores they like and dislike.
 
i must say i surf online and ask friends opinion before going to the stores, because i don't really trust sales people. i know there are people like Ph30nIX, but the most majority of them don't look competent for me. i'm talking about computers and gadgets. i study computing myself so in most cases i know what i'm looking for and what i can expect, but if i need to buy let's say printer and i got no clue what is good one, i'd rather do a long reading online and consult with my friends. because guys at store seem to be there for packing the good and not for helping to choose one. and if you ask them which brand to choose they will usually say something like 'this one is more expensive and let me see, yeah these have more functions so pick this'.
i'm not against sales people, cos i've met several that were really helpful, but you never know if you'll find a helpful one, so i choose to trust other sources.
 
I myself would also prefer to check online and ask others opinions. It is true that sales people will try and sell you a more expensive product, but this is often the company policy, not that of the sales person. There are a lot of policies in place that I do not agree with and try to bend around them as much as possible.

I can certainly say I dont know everything about certain products, and thats exactly what I tell my customers. However when it comes to Network/Internet gear I am probably the most competent sales person in the store, and know a lot about computers in general. But when you have laptops and desktops coming in and out all the time it is nearly impossible to know all the specs.
 
upselling techniques, and add-ons sure.. some sales guys do use it, but sometimes there is also a reason behind it. Namely customers wanting those extra features (ok, example: Fellows shredder. the cheap $40 one, does the job for some people, but more than likely they will break down sooner than one bought at $120. i can actually testify to this.. the amount of returns for the cheap one is unbelievable.) and others is due to the opinion of the salesman himself, and/or from personal experience. But you are right in a general sense.. add-ons = pure profits, upsells only an extra. and company themselves may run staff competitions to encourage such things.

ph30nix, what shop you work for? or would you rather not say out loud? :D

i don't think many of us guys working in sales claim to know everything.. rather that there is a common ground for certian items that you remember and that in a way makes life easier for you. New guys are the worse at product knowledge. Especially if its a new branch opening, and everyone (maybe one or two only comming from a more established shop has experience) is a newb. I still hate calling those new shops that just opened for resolving some of my customer issues if i don't have stock and they do...

as for what stores i've liked and disliked, the more establised ones, like msy and harris tech the people know what they're on about, and true with online shops when you shoot an email to them asking stuff.. those i don't particularly like is stubborn or unfriendly shops, especially those who don't give a damn. You'd rather take your buisness elsewhere where thats the case. I'm not to worried about going to shops that the sales guys don't know what they're on about (since you can take care of yourself), but you do get stuck if you don't do enough research on the product yourself and need to ask someone something..
 
Add-ons for a sure are a huge thing we are suppose to do. Indeed, the idea is to provide a customer with the whole solution.

I dont really mind saying, but I work at a Dicksmith store in the ACT, but will soon be moving to Queensland so it isnt really relevant. I'm sure if you went to a Dicksmith they would be different to how I work, but that to be expected from the individuality of each staff member
 
N3051M said:
New guys are the worse at product knowledge. Especially if its a new branch opening, and everyone (maybe one or two only comming from a more established shop has experience) is a newb.

that's a good point, really, they need to give their staff at least some product knowledge, i expect most of the guys at electronics stores still just think of it as "shop work" and that people know what they want to buy. shopping at an electrical store isn't the same as doing your grocery shopping and that's probably what they don't realize, some people just don't know a thing when it comes to pc's and electronics

you could say that it would be like asking somebody in a food store to remember all the nutritional information on as many products as they can, but it doesn't need to be that in depth, the sales guys at these electrical shops just need a basic knowledge, even if that is just "don't sell norton", even though that is probably most of their commission ;)

Ph30nIX raises a good point that not all sales reps are the same though, it's just the amount of untrained people out there that are doing no good without realizing it

it could also be said that some people just want a pc for internet and word processing so it's fair enough for them to get sold a cheap pc that wouldn't be up to hard core gaming etc, but there's buying a cheap "every day" pc and there's buying an eMachines ;)
 
Yo.., The Emachines are Junk Thread is Locked

Daveskater said:
it could also be said that some people just want a pc for internet and word processing so it's fair enough for them to get sold a cheap pc that wouldn't be up to hard core gaming etc, but there's buying a cheap "every day" pc and there's buying an eMachines ;)

A Salesman's job is to sell. So, if this person wants to keep his job and the store he's working for sells Emachines and the customer wants to buy an Emachines in spite of any personal opinion on the staff's part then his/her job is to ring it up. Anything else is dereliction of duty.

Selling computers is a difficult undertaking from the onset, since you would have to be a whizz in so many different aspects of software and hardware issues that just really don't fall into the same area of endeavor.

To be sure, the average gamer thinks that he or she knows all there is to know about hardware specifications, but who knows what would relevance his or her answer might have when confronted by a question about Adobe Premier or Mac OS 10.

I believe a salesperson's motivation for accepting the job in the first place will have a great deal of effect on the performance of the job. I'll cite one hypothetical example, "I wanted to work here because it's easier and cleaner than McDonalds". How do you think this would work out?

BTW, my Emachines T-5026 is still kickin' and it will be three in FEB 2008. If it makes it, maybe we could give it a birthday thread.
 
captaincranky said:
I believe a salesperson's motivation for accepting the job in the first place will have a great deal of effect on the performance of the job. I'll cite one hypothetical example, "I wanted to work here because it's easier and cleaner than McDonalds". How do you think this would work out?

Funny you brang this up, I actually moved from Macdonald's in the food plaza to the Dicksmith Electronics I work at now for pretty much that exact reason. I wouldnt says its "easier", but considering I already have a fairly decent knowledge in that area it makes me feel more at home and more comfortable working, which I guess could be seen as easier.
 
Like others I haven't read all of the replys.

But I talk to people like yourself Ph30nix all the time, the only difference is, you're not a total ***** salemen and the other staff members tend to be.

Just today I had a women who was refered!!! (nothing to do with sales) to me for advice on what laptop would suit her, the poor women only want a laptop for her kid so he could pay WoW.

It took 10 minutes, I found her a cheap, semi reliable laptop within her very limited price range and she was grateful that she wasn't talking to a smarmy salesmen trying to flog her everything way above her budget.

Why can't the sales staff be trained in the basics? It would take half a day to learn what a computer does.

PS - surprise surprise, it was currys.
 
BRANG....? Really.......? Silly Post Alert..! Brace yourselves...!

Ph30nIX said:
Funny you brang this up, I actually moved from Macdonald's in the food plaza to the Dicksmith Electronics I work at now for pretty much that exact reason. I wouldnt says its "easier", but considering I already have a fairly decent knowledge in that area it makes me feel more at home and more comfortable working, which I guess could be seen as easier.

Brang? Is that the future past pluperfect tense of "bringed"? Would the past progressive then be "branging"?

A salesman should know that the past tense of "bring" would be "brought", which after all is "bought", without the "r". "Bring" (the infinitive), should also be familiar, since it's "ring" with an "b" in front, as in, "Shall I ring that up for you"? This is known as a "presumptive close". To be sure, you could also use "should I bring that to the register for you"?

This thread is based on the premise that the salesman should pretty much be answer every question posed to them by the customer fairly, completely, and honestly. THAT'S NOT THEIR JOB. That's like saying, to get the truth you should mute the TV news, and believe all the commercials. In the public's perception, sales people, occupy the same social status (give or take a rung) that lawyers do.

Sometimes the quickest way to lose a sale is to swamp a customer with an overabundance of technical information. The buyer must suddenly change hats from consumer to technical analyst. He's now faced with multiple decisions and evaluations. No longer is it a simple yes or no.

Matching the customer to a product that fulfills his/her need isn't exactly doing them a favor, it's doing yourself a favor as well, since a satisfied customer means they'll keep what you sold them, and probably return to buy more. Juxtapose this with returns, repacking, and commission deductions for getting it wrong.

When you deal with acquiring a product that requires as much knowledge and research as a computer, it doesn't seem very prudent at all to simply throw yourself at the mercy of a big box retailer without doing a lot of homework.

As this thread progresses it seems that we all know more than any given sales staff. It's sort of circular logic that goes like this; I know more than him because the answer to that is "X" and he said it's "Y". A fair question here would be, why are you asking questions to which you already know the answer? I have several possible motives, which I'll withhold for the sake of brevity.

Once, (and if a person decides to transition to "enthusiast"), and joins a forum such as this, they will find a great many "salesmen" eager to assist in and suggest avenues of purchases. If you think that we're always right, and haven't been tainted by personal opinion and outside advertising, guess again. It may be as simple as should I buy an AMD or Intel CPU. Unless I walk a mile in your shoes, I can't really know now can I?

cosmos100 said:
Like others I haven't read all of the replys.
Why can't the sales staff be trained in the basics? It would take half a day to learn what a computer does.

I would think quite a bit longer than that if you factor in which computer does what in relation which computer doesn't.
 
At the very minumum they should know atleast something about what they are selling tho. A few years ago i went into a PC World shop, looked at a pc, asked the salesman what bios make it had. He replied with something along the lines of "I don't think it needs one". Surely the proper reply should have been "I don't know but i will find out". I had to show him that it did indeed have a bios and that it was an award one.
 
captaincranky said:
I would think quite a bit longer than that if you factor in which computer does what in relation which computer doesn't.

With the spelling mistake, you're knit picking. Learning the very basics as Ric says shouldn't take a long amount of time.

Customers want to know what a computer does and why it does certain things. I meet people like it all the time in my job, it's human curiosity.

Again having experience in sales customers will ask questions and will want answers and especially if a customer has a specific need on a computer.
 
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