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Child Item

Curry's Sales Staff Advice

ForestFire

Posting in here, as its really just so laughable, I doubt anyone in consumer issues would take it seriously:D

Was in local Currys store to find a new washing machine replacement, when I was privy to 2 incredible pieces of sales "information"

The first was a conversation I overhear.

Elderly lady looking to get a new TV, Asks the sales guy about what looked like about a 32in TV for about 300ish Euro. So the sales guy starts into his advice....

Sales:-
There are three types of TV, the latest 4k which has 4000 Pixels Per Inch Full HD with 1000 pixles per Inch and 10 years old and HD ready TVs....

Completely wrong but at least he kept the same mistake across 4K/FHD/HD Ready, so the comparison was somewhat okay :rolleyes:, but his first question should be, what is she planning to watch on the TV?

Anyway, I didn't have time to hear anymore as it was time for my own Sales "Info"...

Me:-
These washing machines come with 2yr parts and labor and 10 year parts only warranty?
Sale:-
Yes
Me:-
What happens after 2 years if the washing machine breaks and there is no cover for Labor?
Sales:-
I guess they send you the parts by Post
Me:-

But how do they know what parts I need?
Sales:-
Not sure
Me:-
When I receive the parts who is going to install them in the machine??
Sales:-
eh not really sure
Me:-
Do you not have to send out a engineer?
Sales:-
I'll have to check with someone else
Me:-
Its okay I have to leave now

So on ringing the washing machine supplier directly, it turns out there is a fixed charge of 80euro per call-out plus labour time, so to expect it to be around 150 euro at least.

This was on a washing machine valued at about 350euro so I think i would prefer to save the 150 and just buy a new machine for 350 with full 2 yr warranty again, because I am sure there would be another failure as the machine gets older and more fees to keep it going.

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exaisle

selwyn froggitt wrote: »

<snip>

'Apropos...it's Latin'.

You got to have a basic grasp of Latin if you're working in........Curry's.

More recently from 17th century French actually...à propos (to the purpose).

ForestFire

At no point did I say I expect them to know everything, but I do not think it is acceptable to make stuff up, as I said 'I don't know' or 'I need to check' are reasonable responses.

There is a clear difference between Tesco packers and sales assistance, but if I did ask a question, I would still not expect lies, I mean 'the parts will be posted to you' seriously!

If you don't know the technical details of 4k, HD, and HD ready in a shop that sells tv's, stick to general terms, better quality, more resolution, better detail, don't go making stuff up if you don't know.

As for low wages, I don't see why people think this is a valid reason not to fulfil you responsibilities. As I said dose a deli work ignore food safety, does a lollipop person not pay attention while school children crossing.

You are heading over 400euro, I do no expect false information for a shop when doing this. I'll repeat, just say I don't know.

And just to reassure everyone, I always do my own research before buying products and buy most of my electronics online, but the average person shopping in Currys I can't be expected to have the knowledge or ability to do this.

Finally I would like to thank the grammar correction, it is so helpful and as I have never seen such helpful correction before on the internet.

P.s. typing on phone so please excuse any further typos in advance.

Take care all

TerrorFirmer

I agree that sales staff cannot be expected to know everything but they should be honest when they're not sure about something and offer to find out or check with someone else rather than try and bluff their way through a sales pitch.

Most shops usually have assigned departments, so that particular staff members are expected to know the basics of a particular department (eg washing machines and fridges, TV and audio, laptops and tablets etc.) Most large retail stores have staff that are geared towards certain areas of knowledge, they don't expect staff to know everything about everything.

mikeoneilly

They used to be brutal for selling warranties and insurance you didn't need.

Breakdown cover in case you crashed on the way home with the vacuum or the TV fell off the wall and that sort of thing.

magicbastarder

ForestFire wrote: »

As for low wages, I don't see why people think this is a valid reason not to fulfil you responsibilities.

i don't see this issue as the responsibility of the staff, i see it as a responsibility of their employer.

FizzleSticks

This post has been deleted.

Glenster

magicbastarder wrote: »

i don't see this issue as the responsibility of the staff, i see it as a responsibility of their employer.

agreed. the issue isn't that the staff don't know, it's that you have the gall to ask them technical specs of a newly released electronic device beyond the facts that are on the box.

they're just lads....

magicbastarder

i think my favourite interaction with a staff member after a commission was years ago when my dad asked me to help him buy a new TV - CRTs were still the standard at the time. the guy in the shop was hell bent on selling us a 25" widescreen trinitron, for i think IR£750, but we had our eye on a normal aspect 29" trinitron (from the exact same range) for IR£650. he genuinely could not understand my point that even viewing a show letterboxed, as the screen was wider on the normal aspect TV, you'd still get a bigger picture. it was a real 'but, but... these go to 11' moment.

ForestFire

Glenster wrote: »

agreed. the issue isn't that the staff don't know, it's that you have the gall to ask them technical specs of a newly released electronic device beyond the facts that are on the box.

they're just lads....

It's the management responsibility to train the staff to a suffient level to do there job.

It's there individual responsibility not to lie to customers.

Gall to ask the sales staff a question!!

The elderly lady never ask about technical spec, she was looking at a 32inch tv. Nothing new about it. It was the sales guy that just started giving her incorrect info and proably trying to convice her to buy a more expensive model that she did not neec. I can see her at home now with her new 50inch 4k smart tv connected to soarview now watching pat Kenny and out of pocket.

Asking about product warranty, yes the gall of some if us

_Brian

Was walking about curries years ago looking at pcs and stuff.

One lad started pushing stuff on me and I was really only passing the time.

So I played along and kept asking questions, his knowledge of the computers was awful, he absolutely insisted that AMD was a company that Intel had set up so it could sell its chips cheap and they were all made in the same factories in China.

ForestFire

magicbastarder wrote: »

. it was a real 'but, but... these go to 11' moment.

But if it goes to 11, you can rock much harder.;)

Glenster

ForestFire wrote: »

It's the management responsibility to train the staff to a suffient level to do there job.

It's there individual responsibility not to lie to customers.

Gall to ask the sales staff a question!!

The elderly lady never ask about technical spec, she was looking at a 32inch tv. Nothing new about it. It was the sales guy that just started giving her incorrect info and proably trying to convice her to buy a more expensive model that she did not neec. I can see her at home now with her new 50inch 4k smart tv connected to soarview now watching pat Kenny and out of pocket.

Asking about product warranty, yes the gall of some if us

I dont ask the shelf stackers in tesco if the tuna in this can is ethically sourced.

me_right_one

Glenster wrote: »

I dont ask the shelf stackers in tesco if the tuna in this can is ethically sourced.

The shelf stackers are not actively trying to sell you the tuna, or any other product. Curry's reps are.

thelad95

I absolutely despise Currys and the sales staff are always slimy and annoying, always trying to upsell and give you insurance and warranties which only add very minimally to your consumer rights if at all.

Thankfully, there's two independent family run electronic stores near me where they give a good level service and aren't too bothered about pushing insurance at you if you're buying a speaker that costs €30.

Funnily enough, I bought a speaker in Currys that was on sale for €30, nothing special but good enough to play music from my phone when I'm at home. So at the till, it's the usual rhetoric:

Staff: would you like to add lifetime insurance on this product?
Me: ehm how much is it?
Staff: €39
Me: so that's more than what the speaker actually costs?
Staff: yes but it's good value because it's for life.......
Me: ehm I think I'll leave it...

She was probably just quoting what the insurance would have been at the original price but it's baffling how she still tried to wrangle a sale out of it anyway!

ForestFire

Glenster wrote: »

I dont ask the shelf stackers in tesco if the tuna in this can is ethically sourced.

Taken direct from their own website:

....Every day, we use our people’s expertise to reach out and help new customers......

...we can offer our customers the most comprehensive service....

Robsweezie

ForestFire wrote:

...we can offer our customers the most comprehensive service....

*Lip service

BailMeOut

bought a new washing machine at Harvey Normans yesterday and the very young guy we dealt with knew everything about every model they sold. He could do mastermind with washing machines as his specialist subject! Very impressive young lad and very positive experience.

Victor

Beyondgone wrote: »

a Kerry lad mixing up inches and centimeters on a cheap telly sale?

While printers are specified by 'dots per inch' (DPI), screen size is for the width of the screen - it's 4000 pixels across the width of the screen.

cml387

thelad95 wrote: »

Staff: would you like to add lifetime insurance on this product?
Me: ehm how much is it?
Staff: €39
Me: so that's more than what the speaker actually costs?
Staff: yes but it's good value because it's for life.......
Me: ehm I think I'll leave it...

She was probably just quoting what the insurance would have been at the original price but it's baffling how she still tried to wrangle a sale out of it anyway!

I believe staff are graded on how much useless insurance they sell so I would always decline gracefully because I know they know it's all pants.

Given that all this stuff is available to buy directly from Amazon we still choose to go to a store and interact with people to buy something, so maybe we should cut the shops a little slack or one day they'll be gone.

Eire Go Brach

I work for an electrical retailer but not for sales. Some of the bigger suppliers provide training for the items they sell us. Mainly white goods though.

magicbastarder

thelad95 wrote: »

always trying to upsell and give you insurance and warranties which only add very minimally to your consumer rights if at all.

i was buying a birthday present of an electric shaver for my brother years ago, and was offered the insurance on it for €15 (it was €75 for the shaver iirc). i managed to bargain the chap down - he was the manager, i imagine most staff don't have the authority to bargain - to €2.50 for it, which shows how much it's making for them.

chicorytip

TerrorFirmer wrote:

Most shops usually have assigned departments, so that particular staff members are expected to know the basics of a particular department (eg washing machines and fridges, TV and audio, laptops and tablets etc.) Most large retail stores have staff that are geared towards certain areas of knowledge, they don't expect staff to know everything about everything.

This is no longer the case in many large retailers, as far as I can tell. In Curry's, for example, there is just one centrally located checkout/information area in the store where general sales staff are deployed rather than "specialists" for each department.

murpho999

I wish people would learn he shop name is Currys not Curry's.

Grayson

ForestFire wrote: »

Taken direct from their own website:

....Every day, we use our people’s expertise to reach out and help new customers......

...we can offer our customers the most comprehensive service....

When I worked in M&S years ago the number of people who would ask for wine suggestions was ridiculous.

Grayson

magicbastarder wrote: »

i was buying a birthday present of an electric shaver for my brother years ago, and was offered the insurance on it for €15 (it was €75 for the shaver iirc). i managed to bargain the chap down - he was the manager, i imagine most staff don't have the authority to bargain - to €2.50 for it, which shows how much it's making for them.

I worked in a computer store and we had the authority to offer accessories at cost as long as it came with something. So if you bought a laptop then the sales person could discount mice, bags etc...

LordSutch

BailMeOut wrote: »

bought a new washing machine at Harvey Normans yesterday and the very young guy we dealt with knew everything about every model they sold. He could do mastermind with washing machines as his specialist subject! Very impressive young lad and very positive experience.

Its wonderful when that happens, not just in Hardly Normal, but whatever retail shop you happen to be in. Getting a knowledgeable & honest salesperson is very reassuring, but but you can be lucky in any store, even Currys.

I wouldn't personally single out Currys as a bad retailer, as over the decades I have come across all kinds of sales people in many different retail chains, from McKennas (remember them)? to Power City, to PC World to whatever ... good & bad in all.

Was in Hickeys fabric shop last week and got a very snooty & unhelpful sales assistant (very off putting), so I came back later in the week & found another more helpful & eager to sell assistant, made my purchase, job done.

ssmith6287

LordSutch wrote: »

Its wonderful when that happens, not just in Hardly Normal, but whatever retail shop you happen to be in. Getting a knowledgeable & honest salesperson is very reassuring, but but you can be lucky in any store, even Currys.

I wouldn't personally single out Currys as a bad retailer, as over the decades I have come across all kinds of sales people in many different retail chains, from McKennas (remember them)? to Power City, to PC World to whatever ... good & bad in all.

Was in Hickeys fabric shop last week and got a very snooty & unhelpful sales assistant (very off putting), so I came back later in the week & found another more helpful & eager to sell assistant, made my purchase, job done.

Id imagine it's extremely difficult to remain honest and ethical when you are judged on these hard sales products. Personal experience of being an honest salesperson, it causes more harm then good because you don't agree with customers points of view. then all of a sudden you've gone from being honest to offering poor customer service. so in this day n age my conclusion in general is good customer service is lying to get the goods out the door, poor customer service is being honest and truthfull

witchgirl26

ForestFire wrote: »

At no point did I say I expect them to know everything, but I do not think it is acceptable to make stuff up, as I said 'I don't know' or 'I need to check' are reasonable responses.

Somewhat contradicting yourself there - from your OP it looks like the sales guy did say they'd have to check with someone and you walked away.

ForestFire wrote: »

Sales:-
I'll have to check with someone else
Me:-
Its okay I have to leave now

Look I agree that sometimes the sales guys are less then great. I've had mixed experiences but have to say my last one in Currys was great. The guy went out of his way to get me the best price possible for what I was buying and when he couldn't get it down any lower, threw in some extra bits for free which was much appreciated.

On the other hand in Harvey Norman who advertise that they are willing to haggle, when I asked if that was the best price they could do, the guy just looked at me & said "Whatever's on the tag, that's what it is & that's the price". I left at that point. Had another one try to sell me a fitbit with the large strap coz "ah sure it'll fit you, you'll just have to put it to the tightest bit".

Wildcard7

cml387 wrote: »

Given that all this stuff is available to buy directly from Amazon we still choose to go to a store and interact with people to buy something, so maybe we should cut the shops a little slack or one day they'll be gone.

The reason people still go to physical shops is because they are happy to pay a little extra for help buying the right product. Sadly that's not what happens sometimes. Shops like Currys will be gone soon if they don't provide that extra service, and that might take paying their people a little more than minimum wage to get people who are somewhat motivated and knowledgable.

I wouldn't buy anything in a shop like Currys, because I know my way around computers and electronics. On the other hand I would have to rely on sales staff in places like woodies, as I don't really have a clue about DIY. I'm happy driving all the way to a physical store for being able to look at the items, touch them and talk to someone. If they can't give me answers or outright make stuff up then there is literally no point in having a physical shop at all.

magicbastarder

i have on two occasions cost shops sales by butting in and letting the people getting the pitch that they are being lied to. in one instance i was then followed round the shop by security until i left.