Slashdot Mirror
Apple Stores Demonstrate That Retail Still Lives
WheezyJoe writes "Maybe OS X Leopard has its problems, but the New York Times seems to think Apple has designed the ideal techie retail store. A policy that encourages lingering, with dozens of fully functioning computers, iPods and iPhones for visitors to try, even for hours on end (one patron wrote a manuscript entirely at the store) has 'given some stores, especially those in urban neighborhoods, the feel of a community center ... Meanwhile, the Sony flagship store on West 56th Street, a few blocks from Apple's Fifth Avenue store, has the hush of a mausoleum. And being inside the long and narrow blue-toned Nokia store on 57th Street feels a bit like being inside an aquarium. The high-end Samsung Experience showroom, its nuevo tech music on full blast one recent morning, was nearly empty.'"
Seriously, that is a lame run-on. If you can't think of a good one to put in the summary, don't.
the New York Times seems to think Apple has designed the ideal techie retail store.
These people have never been to a Fry's. If you've never been to one, picture this: they sell porn and energy drinks within 20 feet of each other.
The theory of relativity doesn't work right in Arkansas.
I swear to god, it is a store that sells nothing. Its, instead, a showcase of the current samsung products available at any store that sells electronics in New York City. I went there once trying to buy a wireless adaptor for my sasmung DVD receiver, and I couldn't buy it there. Why would i waste my time going there?
------- Oh damn.... the Sigfile escaped... -Great OM
"...given some stores, especially those in urban neighborhoods, the feel of a community center ..."
It's true. It's a great place to hang out. I know lots of guys that met their boyfriends at the Apple Store.
If I were going to buy a computer, the first thing I would do once I got it is open it up and see what I could improve down the road. This is probably why I've never been inside an Apple store. I think the NYT is using the word techie the same way they'd use the word "foodie." Foodies aren't cooks, don't necessarily know anything about cooking, but they do know what they like. And they'll tell you why.
I think the appeal of Apple computers is different (but related) to the appeal of the computers themselves.
When the axe came to the forest, the trees said, "Look out - the handle was once one of us."
When I can get the same Wacom tablet for $40 less at Office Depot, it isn't ideal for anyone but Steve Jobs and people who, if Apple charged for the service, would already spend $40 to use the Genius Bar to learn how to plug a USB device into a USB port. Notably, the actual article never says Apple Stores are ideal for techies --actually, it's pretty specific in how it caters to people who need their hands held every step of the way. Those markups are service charges, money shoppers spend for good, in-person customer service. People with any sense of doing things themselves will never go for that, and I'd toss most techies into that group. That said, like most everything else Apple, the stores execute many things so well that, even though they only make a miniscule-to-medium dent on the actual marketplace, others will imitate them mercilessly. I can't wait to see wireless checkouts everywhere, and the open-access model to their hardware makes so much sense. (That's particularly well described on TFA's second page, where a writer who couldn't afford a computer wrote a 300-page manuscript on Apple Store computers and was accommodated by the staff.) Still, shoot me if you catch me buying something there at their markups of non-Apple products. Theirs are the worst I've ever seen retail, and that's saying a lot.
to me, it's like walking into a very feminine beauty parlor, or a lingerie department as a man. It's very alien and uncomfortable
That's not a bug, it's a feature. They know their target demographic.
Isobella Jade was down on her luck, living on a friend's couch and struggling to make it as a fashion model when she had the idea of writing a book...
Ms. Jade spent hours at a stretch standing in a discreet corner of the store, typing. Within a few months, she had written nearly 300 pages.
Hmmm, I wonder how many guys struggling to make it as say, I dunno... a farmer, they let use their computers everyday for months?
Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got some idea balls to remove from a manatee tank.
Yes, "Genius Bar" is a stupid name. We all agree on that.
But I brought in a malfunctioning iBook 14" to the Apple Store.
1) They looked up the service history, saw it'd been brought in before (once for the same problem, once because I tripped with the ethernet cord plugged in and broke the port).
2) Instantly declared the computer a lemon before the lemon clause of the warranty was involved.
3) Instantly told me they're replace the iBook at no charge.
4) (Here's the part that sets them above every other computer makers, and most retailers) Walked into the back of the store, brought out a brand new 14" iBook with a faster processor and more RAM than mine had, and gave it to me.
5) Then he noticed that the one from the back didn't have a wireless card, so he pulled it from my older iBook, put it in the new one, and verified it all worked before giving it to me.
Boom. Done. Instant new laptop, no charge. Sadly, I'm no longer an Apple customer, but their retail/service experience is beyond compare. Imagine getting that level of service from Dell or HP-- you're lucky if the guy on the phone even speaks English!
Comment of the year
1. Organized, predictable, uniform. This means things are easy to find in the store, services are reliable, and the shopping experience is consistent from store to store.
2. Open, bright. Stores are well-lit, spacious, have an inviting entrance, and allow visitors to browse.
3. Products sell themselves. Rather than relying on salespeople to pressure customers to purchase goods, the stores consistently showcase the products and let the customer try it in order to make the purchasing decision on their own terms. Salespeople are there to answer questions, not push visitors into buying.
4. Availability of customer service. The customer-oriented services (Genius Bar, Studio, kids' area, demos) demonstrate that Apple is interested in making the shopping experience comfortable.
Now, bear in mind, Apple is in it to make money. That's just the reality. But the company's philosophy is that money is made by creating the best possible product and the best possible consumer experience. They don't do these things out of the goodness of their hearts; rather, these things are the consequence of the particular business model they have chosen. That their motives are sometimes misunderstood is unfortunate, not because of how it reflects upon Apple, but rather, how it is symptomatic of the fact that we as a society of consumers have become so jaded by the way the rest of corporate America approaches profitability in a free-market system that we DO get confused when a company DOESN'T believe that the easiest way to make money is to rape us for every last penny they can lie, cheat, and steal from us.
So, to be certain, the Apple Retail Stores are a classic example of retail design through careful analysis and re-evaluation of consumer behavior. They don't do these things because they make you feel good; they do them because, as a way of increasing profitability, it just plain WORKS. For instance, in-store cameras do not merely monitor visitors for security purposes--these are used to analyze traffic flow patterns, how long people spend in the various sections of the store, and so forth. This data is then used in research towards redesigning the stores or figuring out how marketing efforts should be distributed.
Finally, regarding those who have missed the point.... Every time I've been to Fry's I feel like I want to scream. Customer service is HORRIBLE; the crowds are rude; dealing with exchanges/returns is downright insane; and most of all, the whole place reeks of cheapness. I feel like I can't trust whatever I buy there, and even if I were to, I don't feel like I've saved much if anything at all. I'd rather buy online. And the whole "techie" thing--let's be honest, Apple isn't interested in marketing to the uber-nerd DIY hacker, whose "can I take it apart and customize the crap out of it" mentality runs counter to Apple's "we want to make everything work together seamlessly, including the shopping experience" philosophy. You may take great pride in those hacker skills, and that's great, but the article isn't about you. It's about the consumer who would've gotten a cheap-ass Dell not because they wanted to spend as little as possible and put Ubuntu on it, but because they just don't know any better. After all, this is the age of consumer electronics.
Why is a company replacing a product that they shouldn't have let out the door in the first place news?
Yes, why would you ever expect someone to fix their mistake? The nerve of these people, setting the customer right after something went wrong! They're going out of business in no time if they keep up this level of customer satisfaction.
Mikey-San
Karma: +Eleventy billion (mostly affected by watching Celebrity Jeopardy)