Or it was just a long weekend with too many variables outside of Apple’s control. Dropped off Thursday night, federal holiday on Monday. I will give Apple credit for shipping with FedEx Overnight on Monday. I would have been ok with 2 day shipping.
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Incredibly Bad Shopping Experience...
- Thread starter eRondeau
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Depends on the time, I don’t get bothered by crowd. I am not there for fine dining in a fancy restaurant. I am usually there to get my stuff fixed or buy a new device. I don’t want to deal with shipping devices for Apple care replacement or trade in online and take risk of shipping. Once I trade in or give device in store, it becomes apples responsibility.
I had an appointment and it took approx 45 mins to see someone. The entire experience was a giant clusterf***. There was absolutely no organization to their operation. When I saw the 15 people around the waiting table with more showing up, it looked like the betting floor of the NY Stock Exchange as people were trying to get the attention of the two Apple employees at the table.
I'm glad you are happy visiting your Apple Store. My experience was 'horrible' and it's the last time I step foot in their overrated Stores again.
It winds me up when the “experts” know less than me and/or patronise you with things they assume you want to know but already do.
I know everyone’s not as geeky as me but damn it’s annoying 🤣
I know everyone’s not as geeky as me but damn it’s annoying 🤣
Yeah sure but no retail staffer is paid to be an expert in anything
The thing is they don't know how much you know; and I bet most customers that come in from help need to start at the basics. If they started at a more technical level they'd confuse and upset those; it's not like they deliberately try to annoy you.
Yikes! Is that Apple Store in a mall. I remember the one near me was in a mall around 2009, it used to take me 30-40 mins every time I walked in there to be taken care. Apple moved out of the mall and the new store was 2-3 times bigger with more staff. I guess it just depends on the location and the crowds.
Back when Circuit City existed (and the sales people were still on commission) people would come there over Best Buy constantly because the sales people had to know their stuff inside and out (because returns = lost sales commission). We had people from hours away all the time coming to the store and telling us how "The Best Buy guys don't know anything."
Well, that's because the Best Buy employees are paid low and have no incentive to know that stuff. Usually they just grab some person to be the "expert" in an area and that's it. (I used to work at a Best Buy too I'm familiar with it.) The training employees get are extremely minimal.
Well, that's because the Best Buy employees are paid low and have no incentive to know that stuff. Usually they just grab some person to be the "expert" in an area and that's it. (I used to work at a Best Buy too I'm familiar with it.) The training employees get are extremely minimal.
They are not experts, they are level one or sales guys. You don’t get expert support unless you get to level 3 personnel. But they are paid much higher.
Same goes for their geek squad, I used to like Fry’s back in the day 15 years ago.
I worked for Geek Squad! I was a "double agent" (aka the person who drove the bug around). Best Buy takes that position way too seriously. I drove around setting up peoples computers, the only reason I got the job was because I was in school for a degree in computer science which they expected me to finish within two years for me to keep the job. If I wasn't in school for that degree, I wouldn't have gotten the job (despite doing the EXACT same thing for Circuit City previously).
I just dont get why they think anyone with a completed degree would work for Geek Squad setting up computers for $18 an hour. (Granted $18 an hour was a lot better back in 2003.)
It wasn’t bad for 2003. I believe they get paid around 20-25 bucks an hour now.
No waste of time all since this is becoming a common issue everywhere you buy something. This is why I do all my research on my own and buy online for in-store pickup. I've come to the conclusion that companies either don't offer the proper training or they don't do enough vetting to qualify the individual should be on the sales floor.
I'm sorry you had that type of experience. For the record, I did purchase the Mini Pro M4 and it's amazing. And for what's worth, my wife says it's cute.
Fry’s was nice and had everything under the sun; but you really needed to know what you wanted becasue most of teh staff were not all that technical. Very good, though, at helping you find things. The decor was neat; I used to make it a point to visit a Fry’s whenever I traveled if there was one nearby.
It’s a shame they folded.
At least you've been served. I went to the Apple Store a couple of days ago. I needed to buy a case for my phone. The employees were discussing some papers near the counter where they pack the goods - there were 3 employees in the store. I asked several times a question - deep ignoring, as if they are not employees, but mannequins. They did the same with another customer who stood in a live queue. Spit and left. So, it seems that everything depends on the employees - somewhere they are polite, and somewhere they ignore everything and everyone.
I agree with you. I didn't expect this from Apple. I thought that this is the fate of smaller and official stores, when you can write everything off to inexperience and lack of staff, but from such a company - for the first time. It left an unpleasant residue.
I've given up on "my local yellow-and-blue Big Box electronics retailer" outside of online ordering for in-store pickup. A long while back I needed a new power supply for a desktop PC, so figured I'd pop in there and pick one up. Couldn't find power supplies anywhere I looked, and eventually I got accosted by one of the employees and risked asking where to find a power supply.
First they took me to extension cords. So I clarified with a physical description of a power supply.
They took me to power adapters. Closer, but still no power supplies in sight. So I pulled it up on my phone.
"I've never seen that, what's it do?" 😖
Wound up ordering off the site for pickup and had it in an hour, which is what I should have done to start with. So much for trying to save time by just picking one up off a shelf.
First they took me to extension cords. So I clarified with a physical description of a power supply.
They took me to power adapters. Closer, but still no power supplies in sight. So I pulled it up on my phone.
"I've never seen that, what's it do?" 😖
Wound up ordering off the site for pickup and had it in an hour, which is what I should have done to start with. So much for trying to save time by just picking one up off a shelf.
That is bad haha. I am fairly lucky with mine in Midwest USA. They are really pretty good with PC stuff—just not Apple stuff. I even got a RTX 3050 there for my wife’s PC during the shortage. (She was having problems with the AMD card and Photoshop a couple of years back…)
That sounds a lot like the commercial Newegg did several years ago and used the Blue/Yellow store without saying it was Best Buy.
The commercial basically has a customer asking a BB employee what's the difference between the two laptops on display?
BB Employee: Looks at the display tag and says, "this one has the internet annnnnnd Wiff-EEE" and "this one also hasssssssss the internet and Wiff-EEE". Then he asks a fellow employee what's Wiff-EEE? The other employee informs him it's pronounced WiFi to his embarrassment.
As the OP I wanted to circle-back. This thread really took off and I want to thank everyone for your contributions.
It appears frustration with poorly-trained sales reps is universal. I've never done retail sales but I spent several years in Corporate Training and I think that's where the problem lies. It's incredible to me that a sales rep would be handed any section of the store without comprehensive training on the products they sell. His not knowing what a Mac Mini is was his manager's fault even more than his own. (And to be clear, the store I visited did in fact have an M4 Mac Mini on display.) I fear for all the "normal" shoppers who are not MacRumors.com experts and the questionable buying advice they'll receive at this store. I expect better from Apple.
To follow-up my own purchase, on the weekend I visited my nearest Apple Store (apx 90-mins away) and bought a 16GB/512GB M4 Mac Mini. The rep there was friendly and knowledgeable and the transaction only took about five minutes. It looks great, it's working perfectly, and I'm 100% thrilled with it. This is my fifth Mac Mini and I'm looking forward to many years of happy use ahead.
It appears frustration with poorly-trained sales reps is universal. I've never done retail sales but I spent several years in Corporate Training and I think that's where the problem lies. It's incredible to me that a sales rep would be handed any section of the store without comprehensive training on the products they sell. His not knowing what a Mac Mini is was his manager's fault even more than his own. (And to be clear, the store I visited did in fact have an M4 Mac Mini on display.) I fear for all the "normal" shoppers who are not MacRumors.com experts and the questionable buying advice they'll receive at this store. I expect better from Apple.
To follow-up my own purchase, on the weekend I visited my nearest Apple Store (apx 90-mins away) and bought a 16GB/512GB M4 Mac Mini. The rep there was friendly and knowledgeable and the transaction only took about five minutes. It looks great, it's working perfectly, and I'm 100% thrilled with it. This is my fifth Mac Mini and I'm looking forward to many years of happy use ahead.
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I love Best Buy if I want a PC or ChromeBook. I would only buy online as the staff are clueless. The deals at certain times from Best Buy are very good.
I have bought Apple products from Best Buy and returned them. Same with Amazon. At this point for Apple products I only order from Apple and generally online.
Almost all store employees are not trained in the same way even 10 years ago. Customers services has morphed into how can the manufacturer get out of warranty claims, and is only there to push the customer up the price ladder. Doesn't matter the company, they have all become the same. They put true customer service aside and do the very least to keep a customer and if pushed seem to rather let the customer go instead of try to make them happy. I don't know why customers have not pushed back enough to change this practice.
Apple at least tries mostly to help and there are more good tech agents in Apple than other retailers. However, just like all stores the variability between employees can be massive and can lead to poor results for the customer and inconsistent treatment.
Hopefully these trends in basically telling the customer to eat sand or buy something else will go away and retailers will return to at least trying to care about the customer experience. It seems the customer is always right became a very costly policy and it shifted to the opposite and I think somewhere in the middle is better for everyone.
I am glad in the end you got what you wanted and are happy. Personally I think it is just a better experience over all even if it is more costly to buy direct from Apple.
Enjoy that M4 Mac mini! An excellent choice and incredible value. Honestly unless you are a serious gamer I don't see why anyone would buy any other desktop? For most desktop users a M4 Mac mini is going to be faster, use less power and just be a better experience over all for a lower price than PC desktops with similar performance.
I have bought Apple products from Best Buy and returned them. Same with Amazon. At this point for Apple products I only order from Apple and generally online.
Almost all store employees are not trained in the same way even 10 years ago. Customers services has morphed into how can the manufacturer get out of warranty claims, and is only there to push the customer up the price ladder. Doesn't matter the company, they have all become the same. They put true customer service aside and do the very least to keep a customer and if pushed seem to rather let the customer go instead of try to make them happy. I don't know why customers have not pushed back enough to change this practice.
Apple at least tries mostly to help and there are more good tech agents in Apple than other retailers. However, just like all stores the variability between employees can be massive and can lead to poor results for the customer and inconsistent treatment.
Hopefully these trends in basically telling the customer to eat sand or buy something else will go away and retailers will return to at least trying to care about the customer experience. It seems the customer is always right became a very costly policy and it shifted to the opposite and I think somewhere in the middle is better for everyone.
I am glad in the end you got what you wanted and are happy. Personally I think it is just a better experience over all even if it is more costly to buy direct from Apple.
Enjoy that M4 Mac mini! An excellent choice and incredible value. Honestly unless you are a serious gamer I don't see why anyone would buy any other desktop? For most desktop users a M4 Mac mini is going to be faster, use less power and just be a better experience over all for a lower price than PC desktops with similar performance.