Hi fi salesforce

[magiccarpetride]

I'm helping a friend build his first serious hi fi, and so I'm spending some time shopping around, auditioning equipment.

After visiting pretty much all the high-end hi fi stores in the city, I've noticed a repeating pattern: pretty much most of the sales personnel I had to deal with seemed unusually soured, even bitter. To the point of them exhibiting positively annoyed behavior when asked to demo some components, or to offer their feedback. I've even experienced unheard of behavioral patterns when a few of the edgier sales reps simply snapped at me and appeared very angry and upset. One sales rep actually yelled at me how they can't be expected to carry all this inventory I was enquiring about!

This came as a surprise to me, because I remember quite fondly how cheery and enthused many of the sales people used to be only 10 years ago (that was the period when I was building my serious hi fi system, and was spending a lot of hours auditioning, purchasing, swapping, etc.)

What happened in the meantime? Is this only characteristic of my area, or is this phenomenon more widespread?

[John]

dSINO6MKtco Enjoy

[MartinT]

There was a phase when purist hi-fi shops started selling surround sound, TVs and other components that took them away from selling essentially stereo components. They either made the move or died - mostly the grumpy ones. Now we seem to have fewer, but better, dealers that have returned to their core business of selling music systems.

All of the dealers I have used in the past few years have been courteous, given me plenty of demo time and supported me well after the sale. Then again, I wouldn't tolerate a rude dealer for 30 seconds. So my experience doesn't really match yours.

[magiccarpetride]

All of the dealers I have used in the past few years have been courteous, given me plenty of demo time and supported me well after the sale. Then again, I wouldn't tolerate a rude dealer for 30 seconds. So my experience doesn't really match yours.

I wouldn't tolerate rude dealers either, but the problem is I'm running out of decent dealers, period.

[Effem]

Practically every salesperson in every industry is permanently under the cosh to sell more, more, more and never mind what it is they are selling, it is the highest markups and profit margins they have to push onto the punters.

All that matters to businesses is today and now, so if a prospect isn't sold to immediately, the salesperson gets hauled over the coals and a big lump missing from their pay packet.

The days of personal service and long term loyalty from either party are long gone.

Too many people know the price of everything and the value of nothing these days

[Lodgesound]

Well said Sir......

Good products sell themselves.................putting customers under ANY kind of pressure will do one thing and one thing only DESPITE what sales training says - it will drive your customers away!

The ONLY thing you have to do is to make your customer feel welcome in your shop and COMPLETELY at ease - if you make it a hobby dealing with them they will warm to you and you are far more likely to make a sale..............and if not don't worry.............they will be back or their friends will having been given a hearty recommendation.....

[Reid Malenfant]

Well said Stewart, the good salesman sells themselves & not the product ;)

I guess it's a trust thing at the end of the day...

[Trickie_Dickie]

A sign of the times. Don't ya know they only want your money. :cool:

[Welder]

Don’t buy gear in Hi Fi shops. It doesn’t matter how “up market” they are, they still just want to sell what they stock and it’s almost impossible to get a meaningful demo in a shop anyway.

Go to a Hi Fi consultant or specialist like Radlett Audio here in England.
They’ll let you take your own kit to a demo session usually.
Leave you in peace while you listen.
Let you hear your music.
And if you cant find what you want, some will even try to get it for you and arrange another listening session.

If a Hi Fi store or consultant wont let you leave a deposit and take the gear home to listen; don’t do business with them.

Simples ;)

[Reid Malenfant]

If a Hi Fi store or consultant wont let you leave a deposit and take the gear home to listen; don’t do business with them.

Simples ;)
Deposit :scratch: What's that?

If they don't let you have stuff on home demonstration once they know you with no deposit then obviously they don't want to sell it. If they know where you live then what is the problem...

I have never had to do that, though admittedly i wouldn't object to it in principle. Just never occured :hmm:

[Welder]

If I saw me walking into a HI Fi shop wanting to take stuff home to demo I would want a deposit :eek::lolsign:

[selfaddict]

I think this is the case. When you feel comfortable and TRUST the salesperson the product will sell itself. If the salesperson is trying to "sell" the product I usually go to another shop :rolleyes:. Only thing with trust is that it needs to be earned first and it can be lost in a half a second. It is sort of balancing act between pushing the product to the punter and giving them what they are after, weather it is feeding their big ego :lol: or sharing information about the products in offer generally.


Well said Stewart, the good salesman sells themselves & not the product ;)

I guess it's a trust thing at the end of the day...

[magiccarpetride]

A sign of the times. Don't ya know they only want your money. :cool:

Was there ever a time when they didn't want my money?

[markf]

"One sales rep actually yelled at me how they can't be expected to carry all this inventory I was enquiring about!"

That might be the problem,maybe you just wanted to hear too many things,you
have to do some homework yourself and narrow things down a bit.

[MartinT]

Ultimately, you have to hear a component within the context of your own system. The dealer should have demo stock and loan it to you so that you can properly assess it. This is how I've purchased virtually all of my system with the exception of the speakers, which are understandably too big for a home loan :)

[AlanS]

"One sales rep actually yelled at me how they can't be expected to carry all this inventory I was enquiring about!"

That might be the problem,maybe you just wanted to hear too many things,you
have to do some homework yourself and narrow things down a bit.

Im glad someone raised the possibility the customer was the problem not the sales people.

[magiccarpetride]

"One sales rep actually yelled at me how they can't be expected to carry all this inventory I was enquiring about!"

That might be the problem,maybe you just wanted to hear too many things,you
have to do some homework yourself and narrow things down a bit.

Really? You're saying I deserve to be yelled at by the sales people if, god forbid, I didn't do proper homework and due diligence before I dared set foot on their retail premises?

Give me a fcuking break!

[hifinutt]

sorry to hear of your experience in canada , my only experience of a hi fi dealer/manufactrurer in canada has been brilliant
magnum dynalab and virtual dynamics

the only rude dealer i have come across is in the lower london area apart from that they have all been very good altho my last one was so busy i barley pinned them down !!! frank harvey in coventry

[magiccarpetride]

Ultimately, you have to hear a component within the context of your own system. The dealer should have demo stock and loan it to you so that you can properly assess it.

I agree. But I'm not gonna waste my time like that, until I first get an initial impression in the showroom. If I were to always ask for an equipment on loan to take it home, I'd have to quit my job and dedicate my time to all these experiments. It's much easier/quicker/cheaper for me to first walk into a retail outlet, chat with 'knowledgeable' staff, ask for an in-house demo, and then, if sufficiently intrigued, negotiate a loaner to take home and do more focused auditioning.


This is how I've purchased virtually all of my system with the exception of the speakers, which are understandably too big for a home loan :)

You mean the bank wouldn't give you a home loan if your speakers are too big? Knowing how banks operate, that wouldn't surprise me:rolleyes:

[Reid Malenfant]

You mean the bank wouldn't give you a home loan if your speakers are too big? Knowing how banks operate, that wouldn't surprise me:rolleyes:
Actually Alex i think it's more to do with logistics. Transporting & uncrating a quarter of a metric tonne (250Kg) of loudspeakers & setting them up correctly with the possibility of having to do the same in reverse is a tad overwhelming for just about anyone :lolsign:

[magiccarpetride]

Im glad someone raised the possibility the customer was the problem not the sales people.

The customer is ALWAYS the problem. Hence the old adage "the sales people are ALWAYS right!"

[MartinT]

Transporting & uncrating a quarter of a metric tonne (250Kg) of loudspeakers & setting them up correctly with the possibility of having to do the same in reverse is a tad overwhelming for just about anyone :lolsign:

Exactly. When I did have the speakers delivered it took four of us to manhandle them into position. By the way, now that I have filled the compartments with lead shot they weigh about 160kg each :eek: