Apple vs Dealers?

[mustang_dvs]

Re: Re: Re: Bad News from ThinkSecret

Originally posted by The Shadow
Sony would sink quicker than HMAS Hood (10 minutes from the time it engaged Bismarck - if your'e wondering )

The Hood was an Australian ship? I always thought it was British (HMS)...

As for the topic, I think that both sides have their hand in these failures. Some resellers absolutely suck, most shuck and jive over warranty service and a few are shining examples of retail-y goodness. Apple is not the Beast of Redmond, they are not evil, they are running a business, in which Apple comes first -- sometimes thats a bad thing for their business partners.

 

[RBR2]

Apple's Plan...

is to squeeze out all other retail outlets as they grow the Apple Store model. They have already done this to existing resellers in areas where the company stores have been opened. A fine thank you to people who have kept Apple alive over the years.

Apple probably will not treat customers much better.

 

[JGowan]

MACMALL: GET WITH IT!

I called my local Apple store and was peeved at APPLE when the associate there said they had two 17" PBs in stock... I was peeved because I pre-ordered mine from MacMall in mid-Feb and they still hadn't sent me mine. Seemed to me that Apple should get the other stores product first.

Then I called MacMall only to find out that they've had 400 PBs for a while now and the holdup is getting the free 512MB ram chip into them all. I wouldn't care if they just charged the obligatory $30 install charge and just shipped all the crap to me... I'll put my on ram chip in.

Dang, MACMALL... get with it!

 

[jlambert]

A lot of people are saying I souldnt have made the comparison of Apples to Oranges..but let me tell you. I'm a soon to be switcher. Why? because microsofts licensing agreements and future copy protection built directly into the next version of windows is TOO MUCH. I want to own a computer when I buy it, not have it under control of some company.

I think apple is doing the right thing with these stores. Weeding out bad resellers and setting up Apple stores to attract new customers. When the next version of windows hits in 2k4 people will start getting pissed about not being able to control the OS they bought.

I still say, GO APPLE!

 

[iJon]

Originally posted by guerro
Well, I haven't had the oppurtunity to travel the entire country to visit every reseller location. I live in the central valley in CA, near the mother ship. Here, where I am, reseller locations are crap. As the previous poster stated, MacAdam in a crap hole. I went there twice and it was crap. I think most people are the same as me and can't visit every reseller location in the country. We have to develop an opinion of resellers based on those in our area. Well, in my area, resellers are CRAP. Sorry, but that's just the way customer perception is. I never said all resellers are crap. What I did say is,"The only resellers that are pissed at Apple and the contract Apple offered are those resellers that are close to Apple stores." This is why Tom is pissed. He sees the Apple stores as a threat to take customers away from his landfill/dump of a store. Once a person sees they can shop in a clean, new, ORGANIZED, brightly lit store they will wonder why they ever went to MacAdam and stores like it.

But then again, what the hell do I know ? I'm not the almighty iJon amd I??

i was jut making sure, i wasnt trying to make you feel stupid or mad or something. im sorry your resellers are like that, i just wanted to make sure you didnt think all resellers are like that, didnt intend for you to give me the rolleyes.

iJon

 

[daRAT]

Originally posted by nero007
How many people actually buy from the small time resellers anyway? Just curious. Hey that should be a MacPoll!

I do. A local Apple retailer/service place. I'd rather talk to a non-brain washed Apple person.

 

[guerro]

Originally posted by iJon
i was jut making sure, i wasnt trying to make you feel stupid or mad or something. im sorry your resellers are like that, i just wanted to make sure you didnt think all resellers are like that, didnt intend for you to give me the rolleyes.

iJon

That is just the point I was trying to make. Not all resellers are crap. And, NOT ALL RESELLERS ARE COMPLAINING ABOUT APPLE. A few crap stores get pissed and all of a sudden everyone runs to conclusions and thinks all Apple resellers are pissed. It's simply not the case.

 

[VIREBEL661]

Originally posted by jlambert
One thing everyone is missing by making comparisons to PC manufactures is the fact that yes...they would die if they only ran there own stores, but that is because people would just by a different branded PC.

Apple is apple, its the only place that makes macs. So if you want a mac then your going to get it on their website or at one of their stores which will soon be everywhere.

Think of the PC market as an Orange and Apple as well, Apples. you cant compare them.

Apple has no competitors therefore YES they can survive doing this. If you want a mac you'll get it. Keeping everything in their stores allows them to keep tight control of their products. If they want to know how many iPods are still out there before they make an update they would know easily. If they are all at different retailers they have no control over it. It's not like apple can log onto best buys inventory control and see it.

It's a very smart move.

I agree to some extent - however - Apple probably isn't going to win many more new customers! It seems like most people (not us) buy PC's because they need a computer - or want to get on the internet, or whatever... A computer is a computer - they really don't put much thought into the purchase... Time and time again, friends, relatives, etc go out and buy some piece of crap without a second thought (even after my advice to get a Mac, which really p*sses me off!), and I end up having to fix it for them at some point...

ALSO - I have an Apple store in my city, however, Comp USA is closer - and they actually have a really cool Mac section (unlike others, say in Burbank CA, maybe they fixed it!)... It's important for consumers to be wowed by the product, in person! Even some PC's look cool nowadays (Alienware), however, nobody matches Apple's elegance of design - it's apparant just by seeing it in person! It's far more impressive...

 

[jlambert]

I know its better to see it in person and thats what I'm saying. Their plan may not look good now but just wait until they get stores EVERYWHERE. Businees takes time. Starbucks didnt just go and put a store on every corner. They build up slowly until they are on every corner.

 

[iJon]

Originally posted by jlambert
I know its better to see it in person and thats what I'm saying. Their plan may not look good now but just wait until they get stores EVERYWHERE. Businees takes time. Starbucks didnt just go and put a store on every corner. They build up slowly until they are on every corner.

apple wont put a apple store everywhere, they put way to much money into these stores for them to have one everywhere. computers are a whole lot more expensive than coffee, good point made though. thats just my opinion.

iJon

 

[jlambert]

lmao, I didnt mean it to THAT extreme, I just mean at least one in every major city. for instance, I live near sacramento and there isnt a apple store within a 2hr drive of me.

 

[iJon]

Originally posted by jlambert
lmao, I didnt mean it to THAT extreme, I just mean at least one in every major city. for instance, I live near sacramento and there isnt a apple store within a 2hr drive of me.

oh ok, i get you know, that makes more sense.

iJon

 

[redeye]

DUMB
This very thing put Radius belly up.
Salesmen refused to sell their stuff.