Why do dealers do this?


I'm an old fashioned guy. I like to make my audio purchases from a store and have a person I deal with, establish a relationship, and know that I have someone I can call when I need things. That is why I went into one of the larger stores in my area the other day, ready to audition a couple of things and buy my system. I had a very clear idea of what I wanted, asked to listen to a component with a view to buying it.
The dealer had a completely wrong approach from the start, and it is not a unique situation. I know many good folks in the business are on these forums, so I want to ask why this happens.
From the moment I set foot in the store he created an atmosphere of fairly intense pressure. He started with "you know, I only demo for buying customers". Throughout the visit, I felt continuously pressured to buy on the spot. I was forced to cut my visit short and I was unable to fully appreciate the component I was auditioning. I went from wanting to buy to wanting to run away - who feels comfortable buying something when pressured and rushed to do so right away? So I left the store unsure that I would want to do business with him. Had I had a good experience, and a knowledge that I can go to the store any time and have a good experience rather than have to find a way to "escape" the pressure I would not only have been happy to buy what I wanted, but would have been back often for other purchases. I cannot for the life of me understand where this comes from. One argument I heard is that store owners don't want to have people audition things and then buy online. Well, first off short of refusing to have a show room I don't see how you can make completely sure of that. So, wouldn't making the customer feel comfortable in your store be a better strategy? For me, I now want to shop online rather than go back. And here is one more twist. All online dealers for the product I was looking at make it clear they will not sell to anyone who has a dealer in their area. So I could not buy that online anyway!!
Can anyone enlighten me? Why can I not go to a local store and have that be a pleasant experience any more?
roc_doc

Showing 1 response by markphd

My three favourite personal stories/experiences:

1. I go to a store to buy a TV. A salesperson is at the counter reading an audio magazine. There are no other customers in the store. I walk over and say: "I'm looking for a new TV for my home theatre. Without even looking up from his magazine, he say: "When are you going to buy?". I say: "When I can find someone who will help me", and walk out of the store.

2. I go to a store to buy a new cartridge. My old one could not be repaired at a reasonable cost due to the nature of the damage. I confirmed with the manufacturer that it couldn't be repaired before going to the store. I tell the salesperson: "I'm looking for a new ". He asks what was wrong and then says: "We can fix that". I said: "The manufacturer says it can't be repaired". The salesguy says: "I know more about that cartridge than the manufacturer does". I walk out of the store.

3. I go to a store to audition a peice of equipment. The salesperson says: "We charge a deposit to audition equipment. If you buy, the deposit goes towards the purchase price. If you don't buy, the deposit is non-refundable since we can't sell the item as new once the box is opened." I say: "I don't pay to audition equipment." I walk out of the store.

Needless to say, none of these stores ever received any business from me.