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Overheard at BestBuy...

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Mofongo

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Today I was at BestBuy for something so while I was there I stopped to check out the new Nikon D5000 with the articulating flipdown LCD...

A young couple had just bought a Sony DSLR that also has a flipdown LCD.

The young lady asked the "salesperson" "How come the screen flips down like this"?...

The "salespersons" answer was that it angles down like that to prevent glare...

Hahaha...I thought I had heard it all at these stores. I privately took the couple aside and told them that the real reason for the flip screen was for composing low and high angle shots without having your face to the viewfinder or for composing self portraits...

What funny/lame things have you heard sales people tell customers at these big box stores...(not just picking on BestBuy)...

Please share your stories...

Bob

--
Photography is more about depth of feeling than depth of field
http://www.pbase.com/mofongo
 
Thats part of life, most of the people that work in that department have no clue about photography. And the ones that do still cant really help out customers because they are pushed to make as much money for the company as possible, not actually getting the customer a camera they really need.

The funniest thing I saw though was at Circuit City, a salesman trying to tell a lady that any Nikon lens would autofocus with a D40 (or was it a D60?).

--
http://www.CherishtheMomentPhotography.net

 
JoeyBowman said:
Thats part of life, most of the people that work in that department
have no clue about photography. And the ones that do still cant
really help out customers because they are pushed to make as much
money for the company as possible, not actually getting the customer
a camera they really need.

The funniest thing I saw though was at Circuit City, a salesman
trying to tell a lady that any Nikon lens would autofocus with a D40
(or was it a D60?).
Click to expand...
I guess that boy never saw a manual focus lens (never mind the AF lenses that won't work on a D40). I mean, my AI lenses won't even autofocus on my D300. And I paid good money for that thing.

--
Leonard Migliore
 
This was not at a BestBuy, but a similar store. A man was complaining that his point-and-shoot was using up too many AA batteries. So the clerk sold him a package of twenty-four disposable AA alkaline batteries. "These should hold you for a while".
 
well,you know the last people you want to ask an opinion on any product are actually the sales people

and those that still do ask are either to naive or lazy to do their homework,it's of utmost importance these days to do a personal research of any product you wish to purchase,sales representatives are full of it just like bankers or insurance agents

the other day I went to a local Walmart a the fellow in the paint department didn't have a clue when I pointed out to him the difference between latex and oil paint,his pants were hanging very low,I could see more than they show on MTV,and this is somebody who gives professional advice to customers,what a joke
--
Berghof G.C.
 
I was at a Ritz Camera once and overheard a salesperson telling someone the reason they didn't have very many lenses for sale was because there was a bad batch of glass which contaminated all the lenses and they had to be recalled.

Oddly, it didn't seem to affect the availability of lenses anywhere else, including other Ritz stores.
 
Mofongo said:
Please share your stories...
Click to expand...
As a pro, I actually do this for fun; I'll go in like a no-nothing consumer and start asking really obvious of dumb questions, or sometimes much more intricate questions framed in "my friend told me that ... yada yada yada ... I had no idea what he was talking about. Can you explain it to me?"

Some of the questions I ask:

Beginner Questions:

How big of a lens can I use?
How big can I print?
  • A fave: What's a pixel? What makes them into Mega pixels? Is there a switch that does that?
What does resolution mean?
  • Another fave: If I buy one of these expensive professional cameras, will I be able to take professional photos right out of the box? How about if I set it on Automatic, will that make it take better pictures?
On the higher end:

Is there a difference in the sensor between these cameras and the pro cameras?

Is this a pro camera? What makes something 'professional'? like a lens or a camera?

Is there a difference between the pixel quality on this camera vs the pixel quality on the pro camera?

I just love hearing some of the babble answers that they come up with. It's almost like a comedy relief hour.

--
Gary Crabbe
Enlightened Images
http://www.enlightphoto.com
http://www.enlightphoto.com/views/ (Weblog)
 
Berghof said:
well,you know the last people you want to ask an opinion on any
product are actually the sales people
Click to expand...
Then why were you amazed by:
Berghof said:
the other day I went to a local Walmart a the fellow in the paint
department didn't have a clue when I pointed out to him the
difference between latex and oil paint,his pants were hanging very
low,I could see more than they show on MTV
Click to expand...
Berghof said:
this is somebody who gives professional advice to customers,what a joke
Click to expand...
Well, you clearly understand that their position is -not- to give "professional advice" to anyone, but rather to stock the shelves and keep things neat. Why remark on something which is not their job?
 
...I have said quite a number of stupid, ignorant, or purposely confusing things while working at all manner of retail locations. I am only human, and I was never being paid or treated well enough by my employers and the customers that came into my store to care one diddly.

In more realistic terms, while there may be a certain expectation of knowledge on the part of a salesperson, assuming their job is to do research and pick out the best product for you is lazy and naive.

Do your own homework. The only thing I expect a store employee to know anymore is where something is located. From experience, I know that any other answer I may receive is suspect at best. Tonight, I went to six different stores looking for something, and in half of them I didn't even get a good answer to the "where is..." query.

Sales people suck, because their job sucks, which is part of the larger problem of "life sucks".

Get over it, and make up for it by being a more informed consumer. Whining about it on the internet will change nothing.
 
Seconded. As an ex-CE-retail drone, I have said some awfully dumb things to customers in my time. I often told customers looking at digital compacts that price = value, and just let them do their own damned work. It's not that I didn't know what I was talking about. No, I did -- I was more than capable of explaining to them that the Sony DSC-W50 suffered from awful noise in low light (read: indoors, when you're taking pictures of friends), and when customers came in as they ought to, having done some reading themselves and being nice, I'd tell them as much. If they came in being rude, and simply said, "Tell me about cameras," I'd give them a brief overview of digicams and just leave them. 90% of the customers asking me, "Is this a good camera?" would receive a "yes" answer, because, you know, it's a dumb $%^@ing question.

Beyond this, though, and beyond what MPCat posted, there is another crucial reason that big box stores are known for a lack of knowledge: They run on what are essentially skeleton crews, and their employees are not trained in product knowledge. They are trained in how to ask, "Do you want a warranty?" and they are told to work in every department of the store. They are not allowed time on the clock to do product research. When you walk into a big box store and an employee actually knows their product, that means they genuinely enjoy learning about it, because they're doing that on their free time. They are not being paid to know a darned thing, and expecting otherwise is just dumb.

(Oh, you say that staying up to date in your free time is part of every job? Really? You do know that most big-box jobs pay maybe a dollar over minimum wage, right?)
 
LOLOL, FUNNY

Hey, just for kicks, can you tell me the difference between an x64 instruction set and an x86-64 instruction set? Or, heck, can you explain why 32-bit and 64-bit are different?

(What? That's not part of your job? I've got news for you: Product knowledge isn't part of their job.)
 
The biggest irritant for me is when folks try to sell something and then claim that it's the best . I want to remind them that they are brainwashed and illinformed......

Leswick
 
I am in the lucky position to live near Cologne in Germany where I know of at least two good camera stores where the guys are knowlegeable and give good advice and further more admit to not knowing if they do not. But the downside of that is these stores are not cheap. I am prepared to pay the price. The one time I went to B&H I also found the person serving me extremely helpful and knowleable. We do not have WallMart any more in Germany - no loss - but we do have discount stores. Are you actually aware what the guys in these stores earn? If they have to keep a family on these pittances then they are most likely not able to afford some of the more expensive cameras they are selling.

I find that most of these guys are trying their best and I am frequently pleasantly surprised how helpful they are despite the condition they work in.

So give these guys a break! They are not the people who make the system, they are the ones on the end of the food chain. If we all had been prepared to pay for good service in the past then we would still be getting it makeing everbody happier: Us the consumer and them the sales people. What was the saying: "you pays your money and you gets your choice" We paid and we got wat we paid for.

regards
Andreas
 
First off I don't consider the reason for a flip screen to be product knowledge but more in the realm of basic common sense...

I find it just as funny that a customer with no clue about basic common sense things would walk into a store and buy a DSLR without doing any research at all. These people probably are not even aware that you can change the lens...

Yes, it is up to the customer to do their homework before they buy an item like this...

In this age of the internet there is no reason to not learn a bit at home about what you are looking to purchase...

Also it's not like digital cameras with flip screens are something new. I would think that most people would be able to figure out there reason for use on their own...

I think this was a case of lack of common sense more than a lack of training. The sales kid was not being asked a very technical question here...

Bob

--
Photography is more about depth of feeling than depth of field
http://www.pbase.com/mofongo
 
MPCat said:
Well, you clearly understand that their position is -not- to give
"professional advice" to anyone, but rather to stock the shelves and
keep things neat. Why remark on something which is not their job?
Click to expand...
If it is not the store employees job to know about that product they SHOULD go get some body that does know about that product. I worked at a Walmart for a year, if I didnt know something I wouldnt I try talking as if I did, I would do as we were trained to do and would try to find some body that did know about that product/area.

--
http://www.CherishtheMomentPhotography.net

 
Andreas Stuebs said:
I am in the lucky position to live near Cologne in Germany where I
know of at least two good camera stores where the guys are
knowlegeable and give good advice and further more admit to not
knowing if they do not. But the downside of that is these stores are
not cheap. I am prepared to pay the price. The one time I went to B&H
I also found the person serving me extremely helpful and knowleable.
We do not have WallMart any more in Germany - no loss - but we do
have discount stores. Are you actually aware what the guys in these
stores earn? If they have to keep a family on these pittances then
they are most likely not able to afford some of the more expensive
cameras they are selling.
I find that most of these guys are trying their best and I am
frequently pleasantly surprised how helpful they are despite the
condition they work in.

So give these guys a break! They are not the people who make the
system, they are the ones on the end of the food chain. If we all had
been prepared to pay for good service in the past then we would still
be getting it makeing everbody happier: Us the consumer and them the
sales people. What was the saying: "you pays your money and you gets
your choice" We paid and we got wat we paid for.

regards
Andreas
Click to expand...
Good post...

May I point out that it's a hell of a lot more fun making jokes at the ignorance of sales people, then the policy of the store?

The recent demise of the unlamented "Circuit City," was due in large part to their decision to fire every one of their knowledgible sales people and replace them with near minumum wage employee's. What did these new hires know? Not a damn thing - Just people deperate for work.

I work at trouble shooting heating systems. So my company paid my way to a two day seminar on new controls in another State. Cost em a few bucks... :)

But then again, as we all know, everything there is to learn about photography can be taught in a half hour... :)

Dave
 
James Westbury said:
Seconded. As an ex-CE-retail drone, I have said some awfully dumb
things to customers in my time. I often told customers looking at
digital compacts that price = value, and just let them do their own
damned work. It's not that I didn't know what I was talking about.
No, I did -- I was more than capable of explaining to them that the
Sony DSC-W50 suffered from awful noise in low light (read: indoors,
when you're taking pictures of friends), and when customers came in
as they ought to, having done some reading themselves and being nice,
I'd tell them as much. If they came in being rude, and simply said,
"Tell me about cameras," I'd give them a brief overview of digicams
and just leave them. 90% of the customers asking me, "Is this a good
camera?" would receive a "yes" answer, because, you know, it's a dumb
$%^@ing question.

Beyond this, though, and beyond what MPCat posted, there is another
crucial reason that big box stores are known for a lack of knowledge:
They run on what are essentially skeleton crews, and their employees
are not trained in product knowledge. They are trained in how to
ask, "Do you want a warranty?" and they are told to work in every
department of the store. They are not allowed time on the clock to
do product research. When you walk into a big box store and an
employee actually knows their product, that means they genuinely
enjoy learning about it, because they're doing that on their free
time. They are not being paid to know a darned thing, and expecting
otherwise is just dumb.

(Oh, you say that staying up to date in your free time is part of
every job? Really? You do know that most big-box jobs pay maybe a
dollar over minimum wage, right?)
Click to expand...
Someone being paid these wages has more pressing concerns then learning about a subject they will never have the money to indulge in. Things like paying the rent, putting food on the table, and that second job they have in order to make ends meet... :(

Dave
 
enlightphoto said:
As a pro, I actually do this for fun; I'll go in like a no-nothing
consumer and start asking really obvious of dumb questions, or
sometimes much more intricate questions framed in "my friend told me
that ... yada yada yada ... I had no idea what he was talking about.
Can you explain it to me?"
Click to expand...
Although it's not the worst thing in the world, what does being a "pro" have to do with having a "good laugh" at the expense of others?

I'm sure that this working (pro) salesperson has lots of time to provide you with your entertainment.

--
Don
http://www.pbase.com/dond
 
At my store (a real camera store) we have over 150 new camera models in stock and on display.

I try to know as much as possible about all of them, but it is completely impossible for me to know every single thing about every single one of them.

And with new models coming out every two or three months, that makes it much harder to keep up with them.

Of course, I'm sure that everyone here at DPR knows every single thing about every single one of them . . .

And, of course, I'm sure that everyone here is probably the very best person on the face of the earth at whatever job they hold themselves . . .

--
J. D.
Colorado



Remember . . . always keep your receipt, the box, and EVERYTHING that came in it!
 
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