So I went to Apple Store today to buy myself my NEW iBook

[Applespider]

Also do Apple sales employees make commision???? Because the kid i was talking to said they dont. Not only that he was trying to downsell me from a powerbook to an ibook. So i was under the impression they just had an hourly wage.

Nope... no commission but if the store meets its sales targets, there are bonuses. The reason for no commission is to make sure that the customer gets what they need without feeling they've bought more power than they needed. So you'll quite often hear them telling people that they might not really need the dual 2.7 Powermac to use iTunes.

 

[Reclaimer]

Was just in the Apple store the other day, and had two different employees really annoy me. First one came up to me while I was looking at a 15" Powerbook that I wanted. She asked me to explain why I wanted a Powerbook instead of an iBook. I gave her my well-informed opinion, and she simply looks back at me in disgust, as if I'm throwing my money out the window. She then shook her head and walked away.
I'm sorry, but not only was she rude, she was actually down-selling a product! I understand, after reading the posts above mine, that the sales staff are not paid on commission, and actually try to help you get what you need without too much power/money involved...this girl would not give up for a while, and once she did, I got such a nasty look. Bad move, even for downselling.

The other person, that same day, came up to me when I was ready to make the purchase. We walked over to one of the computers to finish the Apple Credit application, but he had the hardest time on the Apple site finding the credit link...which I promptly pointed out. He then had me enter my information, which was already approved, printed out the terms, and then told me I would have to wait for the credit card to come in the mail before I could order w/ the credit account.
Funny, after leaving the store and signing online, I was able to order my Powerbook with that credit account (no card involved) with no problem. It'll be here Wed.

 

[quagmire]

I also know about the Apple store you are talking about wacko. Every time I have been there they were personal. They would come and ask if I needed any help, and being the Mac geek that I am, I said no. So I can't really test their knowledge. One time though when the iMac G5 came out and I went to the store, they just got them and only had the 17" one running. While I was drooling over the iMac my mom looked around. When I was ready to leave, my mom was talking to a sales lady. My mom had questions and the lady responded kindly and correct. Then we talked about me working there. Have to be 18, etc. I am not. Then I talk about Tiger saying how it is going to be 64 bit compatible so it can take advantage of the G5 processor. Then I talked about how crappy the G4 is and that I wouldn't want to own a G4 machine ever again and that my parents are going to get a new Mac with the G5. No exceptions. The sales lady was impressed how much I knew about the G4 and G5, and tiger.

I must say though wacko, I know also go to the Bestbuy you work at. I went their with my older bro last March. He needs a new MP3 player. So my bro brings up the iPod. The salesmen there said, " The iPods battery lasts only 7 months, the warranty doesn't cover the battery, it will cost you $150 to replace it." He then started to brag about how your warranty is so good. How they will give you a new unit and transfer your songs over. Then he heavily recommended the huge Creative Nomad. He said if size is a factor get the iRiver you had, but it has been discontinued, etc. But no discount since it is the old model. Then another occasion this time with the new PS2, my mom asked if they could hold on to the last new slim PS2 you had in stock( for bro for xmas). We go up and meet him. He leads us to the PS2. It was only pushed to the very back of the shelf. If a customer bent over, he could of snatched the PS2. Absolutyly the worst service I have ever seen.

 

[wako]

...its WAKO, there is no C


As for the iPod thing, I agree, i know alot of people that tell that to customer. Pisses me off because Apple has replaced my iPod multiple times.


As for the PS2 thing, umm, BBY doesnt do rainchecks and doesnt hold items for customers. Same goes for Apple store. They don't hold things either for customers. If you don't buy it, tough.


And again, Im not really trying to compare two stores. I don't think half of you guys are really reading my first post. Im just using BBY as a EXAMPLE of how most retail stores sell things. You don't have to go through multiple people before you are able to make a purcahse, you definately don't have to wait in a line and tell the guy what you need, as if I was at McDonalds or something. Most retail stores make it personalized so you talk to one guy and can take you through the whole process. From questions to receipt.

 

[tsk]

Nope... no commission but if the store meets its sales targets, there are bonuses. The reason for no commission is to make sure that the customer gets what they need without feeling they've bought more power than they needed. So you'll quite often hear them telling people that they might not really need the dual 2.7 Powermac to use iTunes.

Are you sure there are no commissions? My guess is they get no commissions on the hardware but I'm guessing they get commissions or kickbacks on the add ons (like Applecare). When I bought my PB 1.5 years ago, I got an annoying salespitch on various add ons.

 

[tsk]

As far as the Apple Store vs Best Buy, my experiences have been roughly similar.

I went to my Apple Store the day before the update and was checking out the iBooks. I asked one of the employees about the quality of the iBooks since the 12" they had on display was beat to hell. He had a dumb look on his face as I asked him things. Then he suggested I look at the 12" PB to get a feel for quality. I was like WTF? Look at a 12" *PB* to get a feel for the quality on the 12" iBook. Looking at the 14" iBooks might be reasonable, but a whole other (higher quality) product line? Sheesh.

My only trip to the Genius bar involved too much waiting IMO as well. I had an appointment and felt ignored for most of the time I waited (one person helping a customer, another doing not much that I could tell). I would appreciate it if these guys would at least say, Hi, I'll be with you in a minute. All they did was ignore me.

At Best Buy, I'm sure I've had some bad experiences, but the last few have all been good. I went laptop shopping with my parents and got a helpful kid. Last trip there camera shopping, I ran into a college kid who had the model of camera I wanted and answered all my questions.