All the Wrong Decisions

It is more likely that you will offend the said person should you offer your advise. It is probable that he doesn't really care how much he spends because he's got enough money to blow.

Example.. I was in a Walmart one time and I saw one of the crappy 20 dollar fake fender stratocaster electric guitars. In my head, I thought, "wow, what a piece of crap", I wonder how it sounds. So I picked it up, started tuning it, and this girl walked up to me, obviously part of the whole music 'scene', and says, "you know that's a piece of crap right?".

uh, really? I ... nevermind.

A little different situation, but same idea. Maybe convenience was worth the price him.

I'm thinking along the lines of Doc Occ on this one. The guy probably had the money to blow. To some of the people in H'ville, sinking the time into the research on a purchase as small as that doesn't make fiscal sense. Time is money. Also, some people would rather pull their hair out than do R&D on HD issues. Do you realize how friggin confusing the manufacturers have made it?

I suppose you're right. I place a high value on my time, but I am inclined to learn about tech items before purchase. Perhaps that guy is simply different. I could care less what ballpoint pens I use, but perhaps he is an afficionado that knows where to get the best pens for the cheapest price.

I always just imagine myself in the situation, and it hurts.

Oculus, I have had similar situations when scouting TVs and a salesman comes up and gives me HDTV 101. I usually just tune him out and let him talk because I'd rather not take the time to tell him what I already know about it.

Another thing that just occured to me....

You said he was about 50. That dates him to my parents generation. My father is computer savvy. He uses the Internet for research, and he buys stuff online.

My father-in-law has no use for computers and has trouble figuring out how to open his e-mail. My grandparents have no use for a computer beyond it being a convenient ways to get pictures of great-grandkids scattered across the southeast.

Depending on which side of the digital divide this guy came from, the internet may not have been considered a viable research tool for shopping.

Good point Brick, I hadn't thought of the "time is money" argument. 1-2 hours of some peoples time could probably pay for the difference itself, so, therefore, they probably are making more money through the quick buy than if they had researched it.

Personally, I find some enjoyment out of learning the new technologies. I also get enjoyment out of knowing that I have the best of whatever item for whatever price. My dad, however, couldn't care less. If it gets the job done and it's not exorbitantly priced, then it's good for him. I suppose he'd rather use his free time to do other things. If some random person came up to him and offered him some advice, chances are he'd most likely get irritated.

The problem with sharing insight is you want to find people that want it. I figured this out A LONG time ago. For me the problem is being the talker or the thinker. Either way, people like us that want the info have no problem finding it because of the work the like-minded. As for the rest, unless by chance they catch something on a medium that is more relative to them, they never know the difference. case in point: helping people is for those who want to help people help themselves. Helping those who do not want to be helped is a lost cause, even for the relegious (not taking the topic on this course.)

So, we have some theories on WHY that person was so comfortable spending that kind of money on those kinds of items. Uninformed. Informed but in a hurry. Simplicity. Don't care.

But, Midnight's question was "do I help him?". Regardless of WHY the guy was buying the stuff, should we step out and spend a few minutes educating the consumer?

What if you were a CSR and saw these transactions taking place every day?

Regardless of the source, reason, or circumstances that caused this man's buying decisions, the fact remains that he made some very poor decisions based on performance for the dollar.

If I was a CSR and got a commission, it would be a sad, sad day for consumers who step into my shop.

Mintz as CSR would be pushing some knobs.

http://www.referenceaudiomods.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Code=NOB_C37_C&Category_Code=VOLUME&Product_Count=2

I worked at Circuit City for a while and can honestly say 90% of the people who came in had no clue about MP3 players, HDTV, computers, etc. Heck when I started working I didnt know much about HDTV's either but I learned fast. Even 15 minutes of research online would help people save some money, or at least compare crappy brands. I didn't get paid on commission and made sure to point out things I didn't like with certain TV's.

it's not a great setup but here's what I bargain-binned for my "manzone" setup:

$540 - 32" Westinghouse 720p LCD (8ms response, kind of slow for me) (BB open box)

$145 - Sony 800-watt 5.1 surround sound with Dolby PL II (BB open box)

$ retail with Circuit City Discount - Xbox360 with accessories and games

$ FREE - recliner couch & cooler beside courtesy of an old roomate.

I don't think it's too bad for right at $1000 total.

That's a pretty sweet setup for $1000. However, I'm not sure why you listed that your receiver does Prologic II. What can't do Prologic these days?

Circuit City seems to be pretty bad about pushing it's customers. At least in my experience. Almost every time my dad or I have gone in there, we have gotten a huge sales pitch, and then pushed pretty hard to buy certain items. It is a little annoying.

I don't know if this still holds, but a couple of years back while researching a purchase I found out that the local Circuit City employees work on commission while the Best Buy employees do not.

The sales people in either store are largely irrelevant to me. If I go into either store I am either looking for something that is cheap enough it doesn’t matter, or I am targeting a specific item and already know the relevant stats and price. The sales person just acts as a handy walking map of the store.

If I go into a big box store and I don't know more about the products I'm looking at than the salesman then I have already failed.

Yeah, when I bought my computer, I knew what I wanted. I had researched online and had a printout of Circuit City's specs and price. I told the guy I wanted to buy that specific computer. He still tried to steer me to another computer. I didn't budge, but it was just annoying that I had to deal with it. It made me want to go somewhere else.

When I worked at Circuit City we had just switched from commision, but all the managers still pushed the associates to make sales just because they had quotas to meet. I hated it, and never pushed anyone towards a tv I usually just answered any questions they had and honestly tried to get them to buy the TV's we had a good deal on. I don't work there anymore for the specific reason of how the managers wanted us to act towards customers, and I know a lot of people who told me specifically that they wouldn't come back because of how my coworkers pushed them towards a sale. (specifically trying to add on accessories and no interest bullcrap!)

You sound like a decent person, and I'm glad you decided to quit when your managers pulled that stuff.