Ever feel like a "low dollar" customer that your dealer doesn't think worth their time?

I’ve been made to feel exactly that way.  I don’t have a big audio budget but I enjoy going to shops and engaging with salesman.  Just like you I’m a careful shopper and I expect that whether I’m spending $79 on a phono preamp, or thousands on a set of loud speakers, I want to be treated well.  I spend most of my time researching online well before I enter a brick and mortar to touch feel and listen and an engaging salesman will make the difference between me making my purchase in store or online.  If you don’t care about my $79 purchase then take the $79 merchandise out of your store.  There’s not many brick and mortar shops left so I’d think the owners would try to win more customers with great customer engagement.  

When you tell a store you are an interested buyer IF they carry something you like, you are not seen as a low dollar customer. You are seen as a waste of time. A dealer has a product line. If you are interested in one of those products -- and make it clear you are in the market for it -- you will get a much better response from that dealer. Even if you say I like the Wilson speakers you carry but I can't afford new do you have anything used, demo, blemished, etc., you will get just as an enthusiastic response.

Not just "Yes," but "HELL YES."

@wideload 
I know both of the Seattle area dealers you mentioned and I am not surprised at either of your experiences as mine were very similar. I used to get different service at my bank's drive-thru when I was on my Harley than when I was in my Lexus. No one wants to be treated as if they're doing you a favor by taking your money.

Never!

I only deal with Audio Concepts in Dallas Texas and Raven Audio in Texas as well as PS audio in Boulder CO. They all make me feel like I am their one and only customer and treat me right.

To bad. you should move on to another dealer that makes you feel special and treats you right.

@mitch2 -- I didn't get that tone at all from your comment. I was re-framing it that way because I found you saying something that I was kind of saying to myself! No worries!

@4krowme That's a great story. And I keep hearing about how much trouble the brick/mortar folks are in. But if the bookstore people are willing to walk me all over the store to find a paperback or talk to me about other books I might like, why is it so hard to do that with someone buying an amp? After all, the bookstore people are not going to sell me a $500 cable a month from now.

Sorry @hilde45 , my post wasn't meant as a "talking to" but more about my distaste of folks treating others poorly and a reminder that you have options.  Unfortunately, those people just don't get it and don't understand the power of relationships and networking as related to sales.

Wow, I thought that it was just me. I never really forgot about an experience in Phoenix, Az where a buddy and I visited a High end retailer or two. The visit that I remember most was at a place called Jerry's. We walked in with cash to spare. Wanted to at least look at some McIntosh equipment. Two pieces in a row that we asked about were taken off the shelf as if they had a place to go. I really can't make this up, and it was obvious to both of us that we were in the way. We walked out. Next shop was completely different, but not so good either. They seemed to want to show how damned good the Quad ESL speakers were and they right. Never heard anything like them since. But with nose high in the air, the salesman seemed just want and let us know. That was the end of that shop. Dam! So the 3rd shop was two guys who were making speakers that were quite impressive for the day. They were friendly, ready to advise, and finally we got the feeling that we could actually be customers in the future if there was a need. Drove 100 miles to just look and maybe buy some equipment. If there was a sale to be made that day it would have gone to the 3rd shop.
 Thing is, I probably made more money and had more knowledge than any of the sales people in those stores, except perhaps the two who built their own product. Take note, we are not chumps, so how is treating people like that going to make you a living?

Thanks for those stories. It makes me realize that it may wind up being necessary to support good brick/mortar dealers *somewhere* but necessarily down the road. I have heard numerous good things about John Rutan at Audioconnection. I'll go read about Advanced Audio, next.

I own a pair of Chapman audio loudspeakers that are my favorite by far. They are getting a little long in the tooth so I have been interested in hearing what more recent offerings sound like. They only have one dealer, located in Seattle. I am in Albuquerque. I contacted that dealer by email, text and phone to set a time to audition some new Chapmans, flew to Seattle, went to the store and nope the owner would not let me audition a pair unless I put money down with a commitment to purchase prior to hearing. Probably should’ve gotten on the ferry and headed over to Vashon Island and visited Stuart directly. Instead, I hopped in my rental and headed to Tacoma where a dealer let me sit for four hours listening to Vandersteen Quatro’s and Treo’s with no obligation whatsoever. Since that time, I’ve had a number of friends and acquaintances from Portland to San Juan Island ask me for component and full system recommendations. No guessing where I send them and who I tell them to avoid. They’ve spent thousands at Advanced Audio. 

Here in NYC, there are numerous dealers who 'size up' their clientele.
It got so bad, I never wanted to deal with another dealer(namely one with S and S in their name).
I felt that way until I met with John Rutan at Audioconnection.
Bob

@lwin Wow. That's interesting. I was really trying to avoid that conclusion, but I think we all know when we're being given "the bum's rush." I do sense that the people at my shop know their stuff and I do feel like they've dealt more than fairly on purchases. That's why I have some cognitive dissonance about this other kind of treatment. But people are complicated, and what I think folks here are saying they like about their longtime dealers is consistent respect over a long period of time. Not just one good deal.

@devilboy WTF, indeed.

@mitch2 -- You're giving me the "talking to" I probably deserve to hear -- and which I'm already telling myself, however quietly. What makes it hard is that there is such value in *hearing things* that it seems worth it to put up with some mistreatment. But you're right — it is demeaning.

No, I never do because I wouldn’t waste my time on people like that.
Any retail outfit can decide which customers they want to cater to and any customer can decide what type of people they want to deal with.
You are what you tolerate.  Go find a better dealer.

Years ago, something happened to me and I wrote in to The Absolute Sound and Stereophile and they both printed my story. Now, I share it with you...

I called a brick-and-mortar store and asked them to listen to a turntable that I was interested in purchasing. The turntable, tonearm and cartridge altogether retailed for around $2,500. The guy on the phone actually told me that he would not take the time to set up that combination. He would, however, set up something for me to listen to if I was spending around $10,000.

NO BS!!! TRUE STORY.

Needless to say this put a very bad taste in my mouth. But I guess karma is a b**** because he was associated with some shady business deals and had to close up shop shortly thereafter.

Still...WTF?

Good Service  should be expected when your putting down 30k.But I have never experienced that .I remember when I was a teenager I worked the summer .and now said let me get a nice pair of speakers. I saw in the paper a place on Madison Ave in NYC had a sale on Fisher Speakers.  XP something, buy one get one Free.$99 plus tax.I took the train in and bought them.I loved them,hey this was 1968 .Fisher made good stuff.LOL .I had them until I bought a pair of Bose 901s in 1973 .I gave the speakers to my brother in law he was 16 .Did I get good service ? well he put cord on the boxes so I could carry them on the train ,I remember. They were Heavy.

@stereo5 I know the store you are referring to & have purchased gear there in the past . The owner is a good & fair guy. One time I pulled into their parking lot at the same time as a guy in an arrest me red Ferrari. I was dressed in a suit & tie & he was dressed very casually.  When we went into the store the sales force obviously didn’t know who had the Ferrari so a couple sales people pounced on me until one got the nerve to ask if the Ferrari was mine. When I said no they quickly left to find the guy with the money.

oregonpapa

... never judge a prospect by their appearance. I’ve sold homes to millionaires who drive old cars, wear thrift-store ties, and who are late on their haircuts more than once.

That’s what most millionaires do; that’s how they acquired wealth. And that’s what Thomas J. Stanley learned while researching The Millionaire Next Door.

It happens. 

@oldhvymec Thanks for your story. The whole situation has a very weird vibe to it. In my story, a customer who spent $4k with you is asking about spending, potentially, another $4k and yet… And in your story, you still wind up supporting brick and mortar — but with the right kind of customer service.

@erik_squires I think they do care about the stuff they carry; it seems well-chosen. But there is, I think, a generational difference. These guys are not from a era of the knowledgeable owner and salesperson, someone much more like a trusted mechanic than a quick appliance sales guy. They are from a later era where you learn vocabulary and get a store up and running with good stuff, and then get bedazzled when a tech millionaire comes in and drops $100k on gear. Running a store and dealing with customers is pretty boring to this generation, so there better be a high payout or it just feels like *work.* (And maybe it’s just an *ethos* and not an age-thing, because I know younger people who really do care about their customers.)

@stereo5 I appreciate your story, too. Brick and mortar are becoming fewer and further between, so it’s hard to play hardball. But I know what you’re saying and wish I could emulate.

@oregonpapa I definitely come across like a middle class person; I was raised to be thrifty. I am not eager to buy something I don’t need or pay more than something is worth. That may seem to these guys like I’m cheap; what they don’t understand is that, so far, I have put together a $12k system — everything but the speakers — for $9k by buying used, open box, and demo. The money I have saved is going toward speakers and it will finally tap me out. But they have to be speakers I really believe are right for me.

There are certain things that successful salespeople learn early on in their careers, one of which, is to never judge a prospect by their appearance. I've sold homes to millionaires who drive old cars, wear thrift-store ties, and who are late on their haircuts more than once.

Frank

There was/is a particular store in Framingham, MA that treated me that way.  Thousands were spent in the store and always in cash, never asked for a discount and never got one.  Sometimes they went out of their way for me when I was buying something very expensive, but if I was spending a grand or less, the salespeople would walk right by me like I didn’t exist.   I don’t shop there any longer and now Audio Classics gets all my business. They treat everyone like gold weather you buy or not. 

Many dealers have survived by catering only to multi-million dollar installations and buyers who are not enthusiasts.

Their store front is mostly a joke, or the brands they rep force them to carry / show products they don't care about.

+ You and me both, I'm a Mac guy, and have been for 50 years. I'm sure my appearance, is a little deceiving. LOL But I've walked in ready to buy with 30,000.00 cash in my pocket, AND WALKED OUT... Got on a plane flew to Texas bought some gear, and shipped it back to California.

Went back to the dealer in 2 months with pictures of the new equipment
2 1.2k power amps, MX150, C2500, ect.. The whole thing.. He CRIED!!

He had my money but wouldn't even say hello on the showroom floor.

I got a Christmas card from the dealer in Texas for 15 years. He retired.

BTW, he paid for the plane ticket too.

Regards