Finally leaving Apple Retail!

[iboost79]

I have totally lost faith in the direction Apple is going. So, I'm finally leaving the company that I so loved working for. But, I'm not falling in love with the direction of Apple Retail. Recently, Apple has changed. They're targeting to gain control of the computer, mobile phone, and personal media player market-share. I remember when Steve Jobs said that he wasn't interested in gaining market share. That the customer loyalty and quality of products was more important to him. But, now seeing Apple Computers at Best Buy, or iPhones at Wal-Mart, things have been getting worse in the quality control department and Apple doesn't care about it. I'm not against Apple, but I am against the direction they are going in retail.

BTW, please don't ask me which store I worked at. I won't disclose that information.

 

[iBecks]

I have totally lost faith in the direction Apple is going. So, I'm finally leaving the company that I so loved working for. But, I'm not falling in love with the direction of Apple Retail. Recently, Apple has changed. They're targeting to gain control of the computer, mobile phone, and personal media player market-share. I remember when Steve Jobs said that he wasn't interested in gaining market share. That the customer loyalty and quality of products was more important to him. But, now seeing Apple Computers at Best Buy, or iPhones at Wal-Mart, things have been getting worse in the quality control department and Apple doesn't care about it. I'm not against Apple, but I am against the direction they are going in retail.

BTW, please don't ask me which store I worked at. I won't disclose that information.

Good Luck.

 

[dalvin200]

.. things have been getting worse in the quality control department and Apple doesn't care about it. ...

i'd tend to agree with that statement

and good luck with your future career

 

[iboost79]

Good Luck.

Thanks. I had another job lined up before I left.

 

[iBecks]

Thanks. I had another job lined up before I left.

That's always the best way.

 

[GimmeSlack12]

BTW, please don't ask me which store I worked at. I won't disclose that information.

Darn, cause I'm dying to know.

Aside from that, Apple is still the underdog. That isn't changing anytime soon.
Apple is Awesome at the moment. They got their **** together and are mowing down competition. Right now is the time to be as loyal as ever. Steve remains about making great products and if more people want to get on board because of this then more power to Apple.

 

[iboost79]

One reason I left was the financial/loyalty goal of Apple.

Every Publicly-Traded company has some kind of financial goal. Apple has more than just a financial goal. They have loyalty goals. For those goals to be acheived, you have to sell certain products or services, such as:

1. Applecare
2. MobileMe
3. One-2-One
4. Procare

If a customer is purchasing a computer (i.e., iMac), then all 4 of those services will cost a minimum of $400 over here in the US on top of the computer price. And we're all aware of the "Apple Tax." Out of those 4 services, only 1 is actually worth it and it's easily available on Craigslist or eBay for far less than the retail price or discounted price. And most people know this. In fact, I've never had a customer who was completelt satisfied with ProCare. I've never had a customer who fell in love with MobileMe. Sure, they liked MobileMe if they had multiple computers/iPhones, but they could live without it because of all the free web-based services out there.

 

[dwsolberg]

When I bought a used SE/30 about 13-14 years ago, I remember that guy telling me how Apple's products had gone downhill since the SE/30. The objective truth (based on data) is that Apple's products have consistently become more and more reliable.

People always think things get worse. The real change is that they learn more of the pitfalls of the system as they become more familiar with it. Also, everyone hates change.

 

[diemos]

^ I totally agree

 

[mscriv]

One reason I left was the financial/loyalty goal of Apple. Every Publicly-Traded company has some kind of financial goal. Apple has more than just a financial goal. They have loyalty goals.

I'm not sure I understand what you mean by "loyalty goals." Are you speaking about how you are rated as an employee based on selling these products or are you talking about something else? If you just didn't like pushing these products then you will be hard pressed to find another retail job that doesn't have something similar. Almost everyone I know that has worked in retail electronics is pressured by management and even evaluated in their job performance on their sales of things like extended warranties, service plans, etc. From what I hear it's just part of the job.

As far as the products themselves. To each his own. Some people find them extremely useful and others find that they don't use or need them and never purchase again after the first time. My father-in-law loves his ProCare membership. He was an early adopter and had the original plan when ProCare and One 2 One were a single membership and not split into different services. He's found it to be very useful for what he does personally and professionally. But like I said it depends on the person. Best of luck in your new job! Are you making a career change or just an employer change?

 

[Cromulent]

One reason I left was the financial/loyalty goal of Apple.

Every Publicly-Traded company has some kind of financial goal. Apple has more than just a financial goal. They have loyalty goals. For those goals to be acheived, you have to sell certain products or services, such as:

1. Applecare
2. MobileMe
3. One-2-One
4. Procare

If a customer is purchasing a computer (i.e., iMac), then all 4 of those services will cost a minimum of $400 over here in the US on top of the computer price. And we're all aware of the "Apple Tax." Out of those 4 services, only 1 is actually worth it and it's easily available on Craigslist or eBay for far less than the retail price or discounted price. And most people know this. In fact, I've never had a customer who was completelt satisfied with ProCare. I've never had a customer who fell in love with MobileMe. Sure, they liked MobileMe if they had multiple computers/iPhones, but they could live without it because of all the free web-based services out there.

All companies do that. It is standard fare. Try working in a mobile phone shop.

With every mobile phone sale you are encouraged to sell insurance, a case, a memory card (if applicable) and as many other accessories as you possibly can. Obviously they are all sold at hugely inflated prices.

 

[iboost79]

I'm not sure I understand what you mean by "loyalty goals." Are you speaking about how you are rated as an employee based on selling these products or are you talking about something else? If you just didn't like pushing these products then you will be hard pressed to find another retail job that doesn't have something similar. Almost everyone I know that has worked in retail electronics is pressured by management and even evaluated in their job performance on their sales of things like extended warranties, service plans, etc. From what I hear it's just part of the job.

As far as the products themselves. To each his own. Some people find them extremely useful and others find that they don't use or need them and never purchase again after the first time. My father-in-law loves his ProCare membership. He was an early adopter and had the original plan when ProCare and One 2 One were a single membership and not split into different services. He's found it to be very useful for what he does personally and professionally. But like I said it depends on the person. Best of luck in your new job! Are you making a career change or just an employer change?

This is why I left retail and moved into the federal sector.

The ProCare does absolutely nothing for you, at least the store I used to work at. ProCare is supposed to give business owners faster service times and priority on stand-by genius bar appointments. This was not the case in several of the stores in our region. The only time ProCare was helpful is when a customer wanted to do a full, customized data-transfer because that alone is $99. And it's too bad that Apple split ProCare and One-2-One services, which now cost $200 if you wanted both. We pushed One-2-One and sold it to customers, but Apple has a very strict policy on how many Creatives were allowed to be hired based on the revenue of the store. Our store didn't have that revenue, so the Creatives were very limited. A customer could only squeeze about 1 appointment every 3 weeks due no availability. I've seen a handful of customers complaining about the availability and nothing was ever done about it except grab non-Creatives in the store to "wing it."

 

[clevin]

When I bought a used SE/30 about 13-14 years ago, I remember that guy telling me how Apple's products had gone downhill since the SE/30. The objective truth (based on data) is that Apple's products have consistently become more and more reliable.

lol, you dont think apple was on downhill in 1995-1996?

I know in some mac loyalists' mind, apple never fail in its history! But we do have objective standard in this world, and there is no need to rewrite the history.

 

[miles01110]

This is why I left retail and moved into the federal sector.

Yeah, you won't find any hidden agendas, power struggles, or forgotten promises working for the government.

 

[clevin]

Yeah, you won't find any hidden agendas, power struggles, or forgotten promises working for the government.

lol, its not everybody in government are senators or governors, there are thousand of other jobs in government.

 

[Grimbo]

Good luck to whatever you may do in the future, dude.

 

[britboyj]

Out of those 4 services, only 1 is actually worth it and it's easily available on Craigslist or eBay for far less than the retail price or discounted price. And most people know this.

OnetoOne is FANTASTIC for people who don't know what they're doing, older people or even people who feel less than awesome about technology get a lot out of it.

It's certainly not for everyone, but it IS very useful for those that it is for.

Procare is pretty pointless, I will agree.

 

[iboost79]

OnetoOne is FANTASTIC for people who don't know what they're doing, older people or even people who feel less than awesome about technology get a lot out of it.

It's certainly not for everyone, but it IS very useful for those that it is for.

Procare is pretty pointless, I will agree.

Well, One-to-One is worth it for some, but only if you live near an Apple Store that can support the number of One-to-One customers. The problem is, unless you have a flagship store or high-profile store near you, then you will be frustrated by the lack of available appointments.

 

[nick9191]

How are they trying to increase marketshare with the Mac? Apple's marketshare has shrunk this year.

 

[iboost79]

How are they trying to increase marketshare with the Mac? Apple's marketshare has shrunk this year.

I'm talking in general. iPhones gaining incredible market share in the PDA/Smartphone market. iPods have dominated the portable media player market and continue to do so.