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[tedtropy]

Analyzing Customers, Best Buy
Decides Not All Are Welcome
Retailer Aims to Outsmart
Dogged Bargain-Hunters,
And Coddle Big Spenders
Looking for 'Barrys' and 'Jills'

By GARY MCWILLIAMS
Staff Reporter of THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
November 8, 2004; Page A1

Brad Anderson, chief executive officer of Best Buy Co., is embracing a heretical notion for a retailer. He wants to separate the "angels" among his 1.5 million daily customers from the "devils."

Best Buy's angels are customers who boost profits at the consumer-electronics giant by snapping up high-definition televisions, portable electronics, and newly released DVDs without waiting for markdowns or rebates.

The devils are its worst customers. They buy products, apply for rebates, return the purchases, then buy them back at returned-merchandise discounts. They load up on "loss leaders," severely discounted merchandise designed to boost store traffic, then flip the goods at a profit on eBay. They slap down rock-bottom price quotes from Web sites and demand that Best Buy make good on its lowest-price pledge. "They can wreak enormous economic havoc," says Mr. Anderson.

Best Buy estimates that as many as 100 million of its 500 million customer visits each year are undesirable. And the 54-year-old chief executive wants to be rid of these customers.


The rest of the article can be found on this forum post - http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview.aspx?catid=38&threadid=1437633

And Dell has provided a smarky response to this statement with their own new ad - http://latimes.p2ionline.com/shoppingchannel/rop/index.aspx?area=ROP&type=cat&webstoryid=7401544 :lol

 

[Tritroid]

That's really really stupid...not to mention nearly impossible.

You can't come out and say you're going to attempt to shun a particular consumer group my god. The idea is to get as many customers IN the store not push a good chunk OUT. :lol

And kudos to Dell for making Best Buy look ignorant.

 

[Idle Will Kill]

So how exactly are they going to "shun" these people?

 

[Ned Flanders]

I've heard of concepts like this before with regard to consumer sales tracking etc. It's really the future of sales...tracking and targeting the kind of consumers you want and catering to their needs while discouraging those who are bad for business. They talked about scannable cards, and even in-store detection devices that could even track the sales of items types and track the movement patterns of certain customers in the store, so as to better arrange it's layout to promote sales.

Best Buy seems keen to this kind of new approach already, but I wonder if this public statement means that they'll embrace the new technological side of consumer tracking..

 

[Phoenix]

Classic

 

[tedtropy]

The general public doesn't typically like to be TOLD they're not an idea consumer. This was an incredibly stupid statement on Best Buy's behalf. What happened to that silly little maxim "The customer first"?. Has it now been modified to "The customer first...unless the fucker's got a rebate coupon with him."?

 

[MetatronM]

As a former Best Buy employee, I COMPLETELY believe this news.

I just can't believe corporate had the balls to let this get out in the open.

 

[Mike]

Holy shit, Flynn was right!

 

[Dan]

The general public doesn't typically like to be TOLD they're not an idea consumer. This was an incredibly stupid statement on Best Buy's behalf. What happened to that silly little maxim "The customer first"?. Has it now been modified to "The customer first...unless the fucker's got a rebate coupon with him."?

Because it's all about profit. A lot of it makes incredible sense in economic theory, it's just highly questionable whether more harm than good can come of it in reality. I'd lean towards 'no' in the long run. There seem to be many logistical problems related to this, not to mention the simple awful PR.

 

[MetatronM]

The general public doesn't typically like to be TOLD they're not an idea consumer. This was an incredibly stupid statement on Best Buy's behalf. What happened to that silly little maxim "The customer first"?. Has it now been modified to "The customer first...unless the fucker's got a rebate coupon with him."?

The customer was never "first" when I was there. The General Manager and corporate were always first, and if you wanted to help out a customer and they didn't like it, then you had to march your ass back to the customer and explain to them why making a bargain with them isn't in the best interests of Best Buy.

 

[Nerevar]

So what, they want to get the customers who they can lure in with high-rebates but don't send those rebates in? :lol Fucking morons. If they dont' want people coming in who price-match, then don't offer price-match! If they don't want customers who turn rebates in, don't give rebates! They just realize that doing things like that will price them out of existence, especially now that they compete with low-cost internet shops.

 

[duderon]

I want to shop at best buy and be incredibly cheapass, just to spite this douchebag.

 

[tedtropy]

Because it's all about profit. A lot of it makes incredible sense in economic theory, it's just highly questionable whether more harm than good can come of it in reality. I'd lean towards 'no' in the long run. There seem to be many logistical problems related to this, not to mention the simple awful PR.

I never fool myself into thinking a store's looking out for my best interest. They're trying to move product. I understand and appreciate that, but man, what a crap PR move on Best Buy's behalf. They gotta do the dance just like everyone else. Look at Wal-mart, a finer example of a wolf in sheep's clothing you'll never find...

 

[Echoes of Pink]

It might sound like PR suicide except when you realize that the only people who will stop shopping there because of this are the people who the CEO was addressing and thus he will have completed his goal.

 

[theo]

hey best buy, retail = customer service. if you cant deal with that, close your stores and go online-only.

 

[Shogmaster]

I sometimes go to Best Buy just to cost them money by buying their Gamer's gift cards for a penny, and then charging for them. :lol

You see, everytime you use a credit card, it costs them couple of bucks or more to process the transaction. I have so many of these cards (the ones that gives you $5 off on games $19.99 and up), it's not even funny. And I never had a cashier say no to the transaction yet! :lol

 

[SteveMeister]

Remember, this is the same company that a few years back kicked people out of the store who were writing down prices so they could comparison shop.

 

[BigJonsson]

Hmmm

I'm still going to shop at Futureshop and Best Buy though (Same company)

Because they have the lowest prices here

 

[joshschw]

I guess I must be a bad customer since I wanted them to price match there own damn website.

 

[human5892]

That's nothing shocking -- they've been fucking around with customers who have returns and other customer service issues for years now.

 

[Miguel]

I go to Best Buy like every 2 weeks just to walk around and get people to follow me. :lol

No one's ever told me anything, but I swear this guy was following me throughout the store for a while. I walked in between aisles for a few minutes, even circling one section for about a minute while he started to follow then realized I knew he was following me and stopped. :lol

I usually just go in to play whatever games they have in the kiosks and make the employees paranoid.

 

[Matlock]

If they want to mess with me, then there's only one solution!

From here on out, I sign everything as Raoul Duke.

I go to Best Buy like every 2 weeks just to walk around and get people to follow me. :lol

No one's ever told me anything, but I swear this guy was following me throughout the store for a while. I walked in between aisles for a few minutes, even circling one section for about a minute while he started to follow then realized I knew he was following me and stopped. :lol

I usually just go in to play whatever games they have in the kiosks and make the employees paranoid.

CODE BROWN, CODE BROWN. MEXICANS ON THE PREMISES

 

[J2 Cool]

hehe, I remember playing Wario Ware for an hour straight and the dude was getting pissed at best buy. Me and my friend kept switching back and forth until he started questioning us if we were almost done. I treated him like my mom telling me it was bedtime when I was younger and said "yeah, just have to finish this one course" and continued to play for another half hour. Also when they had Virtua Tennis on HDTV, a lot of times I went there just to play that competitively with friends. Good times.

 

[Manabanana]

I used to like Best Buy, but the more I shop there the more they piss me off. They used to have the best prices, but now Target even beats them at electronics. It's sad, really. Best Buy stocks so much more of one product than Target does, but Target somehow has the better price. Best Buy is slowly losing their selection, too.

 

[cvxfreak]

My mother is guilty of being a devil customer at Best Buy.

 

[Spiritreaver]

Ugh, and I was so pleased that a Best Buy had opened here. I was about give them my business! Maybe next time.

 

[Willco]

Target now carries LCD and plasma TVs too. Target > Best Buy.

 

[belgurdo]

If they want to mess with me, then there's only one solution!

From here on out, I sign everything as Raoul Duke.



CODE BROWN, CODE BROWN. MEXICANS ON THE PREMISES

The Circuit City close to me has a customer population that is about 35% Mexican and black. Not surprisingly they have store people and "secret shoppers" EVERYWHERE in the store, even though customers don't cause problems. Life in the midwest :lol

 

[White Man]

So, how long until this Brad Anderson character steps down?

 

[luxsol]

Secret shoppers are pretty normal. In the bigger clothing stores their secruity wears normal clothes, even those in the room with all the monitors.

 

[Jim Bowie]

 

[Incognito]

Excellent news. Anyway, Best Buy is my personal heaven. It's where I buy EVERYTHING concerning electronics, dvds, videogames, cameras, etc. I don't even shop anywhere else.

 

[TheGreenGiant]

I believe shops have a right to refuse any customers. Some people can be asswads and they should not be allowed in stores.

 

[Pachinko]

I can think of only one way to shun those customers who shop intelligently and bargain hunt or take advantage of store policy- You get rid of the price matching , if its cheaper at store X go there to buy it(chances are the person with the coupon / flyer allready went to the cheaper store and found them to be sold out of the product). So With price matching gone you then have bargain bin sales to try and attract people to the store, you make it so that you have to have a store club card to get these bargain items and make them rewards for people that buy those 3000 dollar TV's and such. For the 1 in 5 customers that go in hoping to sell all the games on ebay, you have a limit of one copy of each game with no more then 5 games total or something, if they want more they have to buy something full priced . In other words turn away these apparent devil customers and also force some devils to become angels.


To be honest though, I tend to just buy stuff online now.

 

[Flynn]

Holy shit, Flynn was right!

The war is on. I'm only buying loss leaders from those fuckers from now on.

 

[Jim Bowie]

The next time I go in, I'm going to ask what loss leaders they have and see them cringe.

 

[belgurdo]

I believe shops have a right to refuse any customers. Some people can be asswads and they should not be allowed in stores.

Paying customers that just happen to take advantage of store policy deserve to be banned from the store?

Glad you don't own a business

 

[0wn3d]

I knew someone wh used to do that Gamer Gift Card trick for every game he bought... I think you could get an extra five dollards off or something, and he shopped their deals whenever he wanted. They kept track of it on the computers I guess and asked him not to shop there anymore.

 

[Archaix]

Do they have the gamers gift cards anymore? I was there and they only had xbox specific cards, plus the minimum price was $30 instead of $20 like the old ones. Not cool, Best Buy! I deserve a free 5$ coupon!

 

[MrparisSM]

So what, they want to get the customers who they can lure in with high-rebates but don't send those rebates in? :lol Fucking morons. If they dont' want people coming in who price-match, then don't offer price-match! If they don't want customers who turn rebates in, don't give rebates! They just realize that doing things like that will price them out of existence, especially now that they compete with low-cost internet shops.

I don't know what that article is talking about, but we don't price match internet ads. There's no way we would stay in business. Also, we don't mind people mailing in Rebates. The problem arises when they mail in for a Rebate and THEN bring the damn thing back for a return... And even THEN waiting for the Open Box item to go out on the floor(we usually discount all opened items if they still work). So they are pretty much hustling best buy. I work in customer service and it's ridiculous what people do to try and get over!

 

[MetatronM]

Do they have the gamers gift cards anymore? I was there and they only had xbox specific cards, plus the minimum price was $30 instead of $20 like the old ones. Not cool, Best Buy! I deserve a free 5$ coupon!

Yeah, they still have them.

 

[MetatronM]

I don't know what that article is talking about, but we don't price match internet ads. There's no way we would stay in business. Also, we don't mind people mailing in Rebates. The problem arises when they mail in for a Rebate and THEN bring the damn thing back for a return... And even THEN waiting for the Open Box item to go out on the floor(we usually discount all opened items if they still work). So they are pretty much hustling best buy. I work in customer service and it's ridiculous what people do to try and get over!

It's so true.

You guys have no idea how many people would attempt to change labels or move games around to try and claim that they were marked down to absurd prices and try to get us to honor it. So while I'm harsh on Best Buy since I have axes to grind with certain people there (none of whom I directly worked with, in fact I saw my old supervisor there yesterday and we just hung out chatting it up for a little while), but really, some of the customers they have to deal with are insane/assholes.

 

[G4life98]

Honestly who the fuck needs best buy , when you have the internet.

the only thing i get from brick&mortar stores now is food.

 

[Celicar]

I HATE Best Buy. HATE HATE HATE

It used to be my favorite store, but then as I became wiser, they started to piss me off for various reasons. You can't price match AND get the rebate. How fucked up is that? Every other store I know of will allow for a pm and mir.

My friend always seems to drag me to Best Buy against my will, and just the other day I was there with him and he was going to buy Halo 2. I told him about the gamer's gift card and how you could save $5 so he took one of them up to the register with the Halo 2 game. He first purchased the card, putting $5 on there and then when he tried to use the $5 off coupon, the cashier looked confused and called a manager over. The dipshit manager said he couldn't use the coupon on the same day that he bought the gift card. WTF??? Needless to say, we went to Circuit City and he spent the extra $5 for the game.

Fuck you, Best Buy!!!

 

[teiresias]

Also, we don't mind people mailing in Rebates. The problem arises when they mail in for a Rebate and THEN bring the damn thing back for a return... And even THEN waiting for the Open Box item to go out on the floor(we usually discount all opened items if they still work). So they are pretty much hustling best buy. I work in customer service and it's ridiculous what people do to try and get over!

But don't the majority of rebates require you to send the ORIGINAL barcode off the packaging? And don't most stores indicate that an item isn't returnable if said barcode has been removed from the packaging? That's why I never thought the scenario you're describing is possible - unless management is a bunch of sissies and caves whenever someone tries to do it and complains when they're told they can't.

In any case, would I get arrested if I printed out about a hundred of those Dell flyers and some friends and I went and taped them outside a Best Buy??? :lol

 

[Nerevar]

the only thing i get from brick&mortar stores now is food.

www.peapod.com

 

[levious]

In any case, would I get arrested if I printed out about a hundred of those Dell flyers and some friends and I went and taped them outside a Best Buy??? :lol

Awesome idea... but first I gotta have them price match this photo printer I saw on sale.

 

[Teddman]

My friend always seems to drag me to Best Buy against my will, and just the other day I was there with him and he was going to buy Halo 2. I told him about the gamer's gift card and how you could save $5 so he took one of them up to the register with the Halo 2 game. He first purchased the card, putting $5 on there and then when he tried to use the $5 off coupon, the cashier looked confused and called a manager over. The dipshit manager said he couldn't use the coupon on the same day that he bought the gift card. WTF??? Needless to say, we went to Circuit City and he spent the extra $5 for the game.

Fuck you, Best Buy!!!

Just to be on the safe side, I always make two transactions out of the gamer's gift card and its $5 coupon, at two different cashiers, precisely to avoid an uncomfortable situation like the one you just described.

But if you were thinking on your feet, you would have just had your friend give you the card and the money for Halo 2 on the spot, then bought the game for him. It's a gift card after all, no way could the manager refuse to let you use it in a separate transaction. If you went to another cashier, nobody would have even noticed.

Also, Best Buy seems to be phazing out the Gamer's Gift Card. At least at the location I went to this week. They are replacing it with an 'EA Gamer Gift Card' that has a $5 coupon on EA games $29.99 and up, not any game at $19.99 and up as with the regular gamer's card.

I had to look all over the store to find one last regular gamer's gift card, everywhere else they had EA gift cards. And the expiration date on that card's coupon was 12/31/04, which leads me to believe that after that date, this promotion will be over indefinitely.

 

[RevenantKioku]

unless management is a bunch of sissies and caves whenever someone tries to do it and complains when they're told they can't.

That's pretty much every retail management.

I'm not exactly sure what the hell happened at my job yesterday, but I saw one of my co-workers trying to sell a cd player, I think he slipped up on maybe one word, and all of a sudden the customer starts yelling "You said that! You said that! Get me a manager I want this player for $20! You said it!" and it was a $50 player.
Then the same guy was yelling at us for not giving him a rain-check on a dvd player sale price, despite the clearly labeled "While supplies last." on pretty much everything.

Oh, and yeah, he got it all. Man that pisses me off. We're told the policies, we tell the customers the policies, customer whines, and manager goes back on it.

 

[Cauliflower of Love]

But don't the majority of rebates require you to send the ORIGINAL barcode off the packaging? And don't most stores indicate that an item isn't returnable if said barcode has been removed from the packaging? That's why I never thought the scenario you're describing is possible - unless management is a bunch of sissies and caves whenever someone tries to do it and complains when they're told they can't.

That's what I figured. Most stores around here will give you a kick in the ass if you try and return something without the upc. If the store takes back shit like that, they deserve to get double pumped like that.



Side note- What's a gamer card?