Went to Colders

[Michelle Wiedemann]

I went furniture shopping at Colders, there was a huge HDTV inside of a cabinet with no stb!! I asked the guy "Where is the box?" He had no clue!! I told him that if he was showing the TV he should show it the right way in the true HIGH DEF!! He shrugged...He asked what was the difference? I said, you don't even know!!! So I said that my husband and I were in the MHDTV user group for awareness around the state, I asked him if we could put business cards out for naive people that were interested in the HDTV but didn't know exactly what it was.  I told him if he knew more he would be able to make more profits than selling the cabinet!! It all just flew out of my mouth!! I guess Todd's bug just caught me!! We have to get cards made!! I will even push them off everywhere!!  It was remarkable that the guy didn't really have a clue....most people think that it autmatically comes with the special tv, then they get mad when they have to buy the stb.  These sales people are the ones to blame for the lack of knowledge!!

[tenth_t2]

Hi Michelle!

Well there are certainly clueless salespeople out there, but there also are very knowledgeable people also-- probably the minority though.  I'd bet most are somewhere in between.  I wonder if you would have asked to speak to the department manager if they would have been a, umm, "bit" more informed??

I also didn't have a very positive learning experience at similar outlets, and ended up buying at a HiFi specialist where I did feel they did a better job from a technical perspective.

Can't wait to see the cards, thanks for your help!

So, did you let Todd get the STB yet??

Greg O.

[Todd Wiedemann]

Oh, yeah, Greg. We have the STB. Got it almost two weeks ago; a Panny TU-HDS20.

I'd recommend it to anyone. Works great.

We both *love* watching the Olympics in HD !

[Tom Snyder]

It's been a loooooong time since I've expected sales people to be the experts on anything!  

I actually bought my Toshiba from Colder's. I don't know who was worse, them or Time Warner. According to both of them, all I need to do was plug my TW "digital" cable into the back of the set, and VOILA... I'd have HDTV.

That was almost two years ago.. and I doubt that it's gotten any better!

[SteveMiller]

Hey, lets not get on one of these "No salesperson knows anything" trips, there are some salesmen amoung you! All I can say is thats what you get for shopping at Colders....


 Steve Miller

[Matt Heebner]

I agree. I've had both bad and good salespersons. I got my TV from American, and the salesguy did know what was talking about. ( I had done some major research before I bought!)
I like the business card idea also. So many times already I've wished I had cards to hand out to people.
Another idea I've seen from other HD sites that might work good on this site would be to get some screen shots at full resolution HD and compare to similiar standard programming.  That way people never exposed to HD can see examples of the depth of detail, color, and sharpness. Then they can compare to washed out, crummy looking analog that we see.
And Todd, consider yourself a lucky man to have a wife as "into" HD as she is. My wife "appreciates" HD and the home theater thing...but she said that she would be just as happy watching a movie on a b&w 19" tv.
Oh well....at least my kids are into it!  

Matt
 

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My wife looked at the new STB sitting on the rack and she asked me,"This is never going to end, is it?"

[This message has been edited by Matt Heebner (edited 02-20-2002).]

[RickNeff]

Personally, I avoided salesmen completely until I actually bought the box. (Which ironically was from Colder's -- The shipping charge was cheaper than American)  I did a lot of research on the Web (and via forums like this one) about various models and ended up with a Toshiba TW56x81.  I know that most salespeople couldn't give any straight answer about what HDTV programming was even available and they certainly didn't know the difference between a digital broadcast and HDTV.

I do know that salespeople can differ in knowledge considerably since I recall working at Radio Shack back in my college days (about 10 years ago.)  The technical "training" that these people actually receive is minimal at best.  So, unless that person actually uses the equipment at home and spends a lot of time educating himself/herself, the information isn't likely to be accurate.

Fortunately, with the Web becoming so commonplace, it's much easier than it used to be to get decent information.  Of course, with something as visual as television, it's always a good idea to actually see as many sets as possible since many places use different input sources and calibration is almost never done on sets sitting on the showroom floor.
 

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Richard Neff
Proud Toshiba 56x81 owner!

[RickNeff]

Oh, I just wanted to add that I agree about the cards! It would be cool to have business cards or the like to hand out, especially if local stores could be convinced to hand them out/display them in the appropriate areas.

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Richard Neff
Proud Toshiba 56x81 owner!

[Tom Snyder]

I have to mention that I found the guys at Flanner's particularly helpful and knowledgeable.

However, it was only after I learned everything I needed to know from an online forum like this one that I went to Flanner's to get my oval dish. I got my DTC-100 and my Component/VGA Cable online.

Another reason for this Web site... The FAQ: What do I need to get HDTV!

[Michelle Wiedemann]

This is in response to the gentleman that posted about not all sales people are bad...I should have double checked on the correct name, sorry, but please don't take it personally hon, I just feel that alot of the salespeople should be more trained...after all they are there to sell I am sure you are a wonderful salesperson especially since you are into HDTV!!! There should be more qualified people out there like you!!  Being a woman, most sales people down play our feelings, such as car guys, and furniture store guys, and of course electronics.  It seems that there is a stigma about women purchasing items or having car work done.  I started the thread simply because of one salesperson at one store...we were all just venting on our personal experiences.

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Resistance is futile!

[mcneguy]

True, not all salespeople are idiots but, as long as we are bringing this up and I know that some of them are among us let me say this...Please, please, please leave me alone about after market service plans...remember, not all customers are idiots either.

[SteveMiller]

Look I am not going to get into this battle, First off, I never push it. Okay I offer it, it is the customers choice. I guess it depends on the product... All I am going to say is that if some one offered me warranty for $150 on some thing that I was paying $3500 for, I would at least want to know I had the option to buy it, and then I could make up my own mind.... I work at American not, Best Buy!

 - Steve

[Tom Snyder]

I've been told by a factory rep that the Extended Warranty plans are the ONLY thing that Best Buy employees make commission on. If that's the case, that's the reason why they "encourage" you so vigorously to buy them.

If a salesman has done a great job of giving me correct information to help me make an intelligent buying choice, I don't let it bother me when he asks me if I want one... he's just making me aware of another aspect of the purchase. I usually respectfully decline, and they're usually OK with that.

If it's just a slug salesguy trying to make an extra buck I just say no and if he pushes back, then I have to become a little more forceful (and sometimes rude).

It's not fair to paint ALL sales people with the same brush, because there ARE some good ones out there. Therefore I think it's an obligation of this group to find them, and send people there.

[drgingras]

On Topic:

Hey Michelle - I toy shop with the best of 'em and would love to help promote the group and site. The business card idea is great !

Off topic:

Mits from Flanners(had to ask for extended warranty), audio stuff from American, Dish6000 from HTS group buy, etc ,etc.

 Note the lack of big-box retailers(BB,CC)and the lack of problems. As is said, older but wiser

Every store has a mixture of sales rep. types - sometimes "just browsing" and listening to various presentations will help in finding a good one. As Rick & Tom said, knowing exactly what you want before even talking to a sales person is the best bet.

Dave  

[Tom Snyder]

My vote is for a fairly visible counter card, with a stack of smaller take-along cards or an attached pad of tear-off sheets with the URL.

But this discussion probably deserves its own topic.