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January 18, 2009
Hooking this stuff up?
A couple of weeks ago, I met a friend for lunch. After lunch we decided to go to a consumer electronics store to see if there were any after Christmas deals we just couldn't pass up. We both drove, this is America, from the restaurant to the store.
I got all green lights and arrived before my friend, so I was standing in the parking lot waiting for her (it was 60 degrees!). A couple of cars down from me there were three guys with a pickup truck full of home theater stuff. I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but they were discussing how they were going to install this system. They didn't really have a clue on how to hook their stuff up.
Having a couple of minutes to spare, I went over to these guys, explaining that I was in the home theater business. I made some suggestions on how to hook up the system and answered a few questions. I also suggested some additional accessories, such as a universal remote control.
Well Bob, what is the point of this little story. A very simple one. This store sold these guys some fairly pricey equipment - a front projector, a nice Yamaha receiver and other quality components - it was easily a multi-thousand dollar sale. And they let these customers leave the store without even basic instructions on how to hook this stuff up. A diagram would have been nice and it would only take a few minutes to sketch.
Retailers are too often the weakest link in the chain. Consumer electronics continue to get better and cheaper, you don't have to be wealthy anymore to have a really nice home theater system. But if the retailer can't, or won't, offer the customer some basic help on how to hook up the system too many customers will be frustrated. Some will figure it out, some will end up with systems that work, but not that well, and some will return the products.
I do realize that all retailers are under constant pressure to keep their costs down. Often there is not enough staff on the floor, or they might have not received enough training. And I have have received excellent help at this very store in the past. But to let a customer leave the store without any direction is just wrong. A solution could be as simple as giving each customer buying a system a check list. For instance, such a document might include:
- do you have speaker wire?
- how many sources, such as cable boxes, satellite boxes, DVD players and game systems - are you planning on connecting to the system?
- Does the receiver you are buying have enough inputs for these sources? (the guys in the pickup bought a receiver with 2 HDMI inputs and wanted to connect 3 HDMI sources.)
- Do you have right cables?
- and then maybe a couple of generic connection diagrams.
For those of you that are still reading this blog entry, thanks for letting me rant. I feel much better. And FYI, both my friend and myself left the store empty handed, this year's the pre Christmas sales were better than the post Christmas sales at this store.
Comments. Am I off base?
Posted by Bob Gatton at January 18, 2009 7:22 AM
Comments
No, you're not off base. And what these bricks and mortar stores don't realize is that they're driving people like me right online. If I'm not getting any extras (pre-sale help in decision making, after sale support, clear instructions)then I have no incentive NOT to use online resources where the lack of a store front gets passed on to ME. AND, they deliver as part of the cost, I don't have to borrow/rent a van or use the family pickup and hope it doesn't rain. Big box stores with no support (either pre or post sale) are destroying the bricks and mortar concept entirely. Small wonder that Circuit City is bankrupt and closing its US doors. Wonder how long it'll take Best Buy to close theirs.
Of course, sometimes the "help" is worse than no help at all. It's almost laughable when the clerk tries to sell me something I KNOW to be inappropriate for my needs. Sales personnel who are on commission are the bane of consumers everywhere.
Bryan "I'd rather shop in my underwear" Paschke
Posted by: Bryan at February 5, 2009 6:38 PM
Crutchfield catalog to the rescue! I speak from experience!
Posted by: Heather at February 19, 2009 10:41 AM
Bob,
Like so many others I bought a fairly expensive 5.1 surround sound in home theater system. Needless to say it is now sitting in another room (not hooked up)I would have to call an installer to figure it all out. At one time I had cables running all over the floor, easily tripped on. Then I bought a new 50" Samsung tv and the store conveniently forgot to tell me that there was a $60.00 cable to hook up the tv to the new DVD player. I really hate going to brand name (starts with a B) stores and being totally ignored or told that they dont install those systems. So I wind up calling another store to come over and hook up my system.
Posted by: Doc at February 19, 2009 10:48 AM
i had these same isues with the big box store. lacking cables to hook up equipment was a hassel, which to use, ie usb, coaxeil, or what. i went to radio shack and they drew diagrams and provided the right cables and the store,s phone number so that i could call and be walked through the hard spots. i now buy all my cables from them.... the heck with the big box
Posted by: steve at February 19, 2009 7:25 PM
I agree with every comment, but I would also like to add another. Part of the problem I have found is with the products themselfs. I think they actually design these systems to be as difficult and non-logical as possible.
For example, I HAD a A/V receiver from Kenwood. I have 2 input, a DVD/VCR combo player and a playstation 3. And I have 1 output TV. Simple, logical, right? Not according to the world of Kenwood, no I have every type of input, (even Phono, does anyone really still have a record player anymore?) and 3 different DVD inputs. but no output to the TV, no I have something called "Monitor", that only outputs TV with sound and nothing else, otherwise I get sound and no video or vice-versa. It took me 3 days of button pushing, cursing, screaming, and almost crying with the manual to finally get it figurard out. But it is a "process" to switch from one input device to another, involving several putton presses (that are not on the expansive remote).
Does it really have to be that darn complex to go from watching TV to watching a DVD. I don't think so.
Thanks for letting me rant.
William
Posted by: William at March 10, 2009 11:27 PM
Hey, ok, I get it, I guess - but does this really work?
Posted by: Martin-Biering at August 27, 2009 12:04 PM
Hey, ok, I get it, I guess - but does this really work?
Posted by: Adam-Alfons at September 10, 2009 11:12 AM
