Best Buy Is Thriving In the Age of Amazon (defenseone.com)

Best Buy is turning to in-home consultants to help distinguish it from Amazon. The advisors act as "personal chief technology officers," helping people make their homes smart or merely more functional. "Unlike the Geek Squad and blue shirts working in stores, they'll be paid an annual salary instead of an hourly wage," reports Bloomberg. "Their house calls are free and can last as long as 90 minutes. [...] They're supposed to establish long-term relationships with their customers rather than chase one-time transactions." From the report: With more than 1,000 big-box stores in North America and about 125,000 employees, Best Buy was supposed to have succumbed to the inevitable. "Everyone thought we were going to die," says Hubert Joly, who was hired as chief executive officer in August 2012 after profits shrunk about 90 percent in one quarter and his predecessor resigned amid an investigation into his relationship with an employee. Instead, Best Buy has become an improbable survivor led by an unlikely boss.

The in-home advisors went national in September. When one of the trainees at the session in Minneapolis asked Joly how big he hoped the program could become, he said: "I don't have a specific goal. I don't think it would be helpful. McKinsey never had a goal of how many clients. It was how good was the work." Another employee said: "This is why Amazon can't compete with us. They can't dispatch an army of in-home agents." Joly wasn't as sure. "Amazon is an amazing company," he replied. "They kill companies. Maybe they will do this. But we have an incredible opportunity. If someone wants to copy, that's fine." Amazon has started offering free smart-home consultations and installations. It doesn't have a chain of big-box stores in which to meet customers, but that didn't bother investors. Best Buy's stock dropped 6.3 percent when Amazon announced its plans a year ago.

Comments

Do they have sales targets? commission?

[Joe_Dragon]

Do they have sales targets?
Do they get commission?

Do they do tech work or just sell sell sell?

Re: Do they have sales targets? commission?

[youngone]

They have sales targets but don't work on commission.

That sounds like the worst of both worlds for the workers.
So when the boss wants to know why the team are not selling enough TV's (or whatever) they can honestly say "because you're not paying us enough to do that".

I shop Newegg.com only,

[Trax3001BBS]

they started charging me tax. I drive to Best Buy now; what I want is cheaper than online, even with tax.

Some people like physically seeing items.

[Anonymous Coward]

A lot of people like seeing big ticket items in person before purchasing. Best Buy is the only electronics store in the US (yes Walmart and target sell electronics but itâ(TM)s not the same) and they price match Amazon for any products they carry that are shipped and sold by Amazon. Iâ(TM)m honestly not surprised they are thriving.

Re:Some people like physically seeing items.

[arbiter1]

Other nice thing is since BB has locations usually near you, if you can order it from their site you have a LOCAL place you can take it to if you have problem's. No need to worry about boxing it back up after dealing with online support, can take it straight to a physical location.

Re:Some people like physically seeing items.

[b0s0z0ku]

Only electronics store? What about B&H, Fry's, and MicroCenter?

Re:Some people like physically seeing items.

[Anonymous Coward]

They should have said national electronics store. Fry's has 34 locations, Microcenter has 25, and B&H has only one that I know of. Most people will never see any of these, even if they live in a state where there may be one.

Re:Some people like physically seeing items.

[known_coward_69]

B&H is a camera museum in NYC. Last time I bought something there it was a 30 minute checkout process to buy a $30 USB flash drive. And their receipt was like DMV paperwork. I chose the drive from one guy, another station to pay and a third station to wait to pick up while everything travels in their tube system.

Never again. people only go there cause they have a good selection of DSLR's and other camera gear and people who know the products.

Re:Some people like physically seeing items.

[b0s0z0ku]

A lot of their stock isn't on display and has to be brought up from the basement via conveyor. Process is actually very efficient (as long as you don't go during peak shopping hours, it takes about five minutes). It also allows B&H to stock a huge amount of items in a brick-and-mortar store.

Re:Some people like physically seeing items.

[swb]

I keep wondering why MicroCenter doesn't open another store in town.

One a month I have to go by there to pick up something for a project and the fucking line is like 30 people deep, 30 minutes after opening. You don't even wanna go in there on the weekend.

Their shelves are kind of a mess, but they have a little bit of everything.

Best Buy's new business plan

[Anonymous Coward]

1. Survive long enough to be the bought by Amazon before the stock price craters.
2. ?
3. Profit! (Lay off all the employees, and give all the C*O's and board members 8 figure bonuses.)

Door-to-door sales and the FTC’s Cooling-Off

[Joe_Dragon]

Will they be ok with the Door-to-door sales and the FTC’s Cooling-Off Rules or say sorry your are stuck with the Restocking Fees and that 2 year directv contract

it seems elementary

[rmdingler]

It seems reasonable, after the death of Circuit City, Sears, Radio Shack, et al; that some brick and mortar competitors to the Bezos juggernaut would thrive... simply provide a level of service unprofitable and as yet unavailable from the online bookseller...

We've seen a dramatic shift to the remarkable ease online purchasing has provided customers, yet every volley is instigation for an improved return.

Re:it seems elementary

[snapsnap]

Spartanburg, SC? I was there for four months in the summer of 1995 doing contract work for Advantica after Transworld moved their headquarters to there. I remember when that happened since Best Buy was adamant in their denial of hiring convicted criminals and later proven that they did. Their security was right in killing him, but only with information they didn't have at the time.

Re:it seems elementary

[Slashdot Junky]

I don't remember this happening. I was among the crew that opened the new store and only store in Spartanburg in mid July 1995 and remained an employee through August 1997. I mostly worked in the computer department during my stay. This isn't something that could have been kept under wrap.

Re:it seems elementary

[Slashdot Junky]

Sure enough! The attempted theft and death did happen July 22, 1995. It has been a long time. Yet, I do remember some of the people referenced. Hmmm... I am surprised that I don't remember the event.

http://www.goupstate.com/artic...

Re: it seems elementary

[datavirtue]

Sounds close to my experience with BestBuy. After they broke my grandmother's iPad in the store while trying to jam it in the wrong case, and subsequently blaming her for it, I knew nothing had changed in twenty years. The fall in the same category as eBay or Pay-Pal.

and will best buy take the offers made or say the

[Joe_Dragon]

and will best buy take the offers made or say the rep give you the wrong price or some like install with stairs is X more on the install date.

Comcast door to door reps have made offers that where not honored.

I find this fascinating

[GerryGilmore]

In the era where "online sales will rule everything!" seems omniscient, I'm very pleased to see SOME level of creative thinking. Rather than just roll over, they're trying something different enough to distinguish themselves. Good on them! I hope it works.

Re:I find this fascinating

[Powercntrl]

In the era where "online sales will rule everything!" seems omniscient, I'm very pleased to see SOME level of creative thinking.

It's just a new spin on the "pushy salesmen" tactics. Ironically, Best Buy used to tout their non-commissioned sales associates as providing a more pleasant shopping experience, over competitors such as Circuit City, Radio Shack, Sears, and probably a few others I'm forgetting.

Re:I find this fascinating

[jbmartin6]

Very true. Best Buy used to complain that people used their store as a showroom then went home and ordered from Amazon. That blew my mind. A retailer complaining that people come into the store? That's half the battle already and Amazon was helping them do it! It is good to see them at least thinking about why someone would rather buy from Amazon than in the store. But there is still a lot of room for improvement. Recently, I needed some monitors quick so I tried their pick it up service since I was going to be in the vicinity of a store in an hour or so. After doing my other tasks for an hour, I went to the store figuring the stuff would be ready soon. I was wrong. There were plenty of blue shirts in the store not particularly busy, but I never got the email that my monitors were ready for pickup. I left after 30 minutes looking around, and had time to drive home and cancel the order online. I got new ones next day from Amazon. How long does it take to pull a couple monitors from the back? Five minutes? Sure I could have just gotten someone in the store to go get them, but the I was irked at that point.

Re:I find this fascinating

[Agripa]

Very true. Best Buy used to complain that people used their store as a showroom then went home and ordered from Amazon. That blew my mind. A retailer complaining that people come into the store? That's half the battle already and Amazon was helping them do it! It is good to see them at least thinking about why someone would rather buy from Amazon than in the store.

The last few times I visited Best Buy, it was to get something that I needed immediately but invariably, what they just showed examples of what I did *not* want so I would end up ordering online and waiting. Best Buy's selection was large but too uniform.

How does having 90 minute house calls scale?

[JoeyRox]

I don't see how Best Buy can compete in sales and esp profit against Amazon with that kind of time per sale stat.

Re:How does having 90 minute house calls scale?

[nwf]

Presumably it's the first meeting that's 90 minutes, then they keep selling stuff and installing it with shorter meetings. Many people will fall back on the established relationship because it's easier than going elsewhere. I'd never invite them into my home, but I'd guess readers of this site aren't their target audience.

Re: How does having 90 minute house calls scale?

[datavirtue]

Noting the infractions of the Geek Squad it will only be a matter of time before this squad blows the trust. You also have to carefully select who goes to what neigbirhood or it will not work as planned.

Brought to you by the FBI...

[Cornwallis]

The FBI will love having Best Buy develop "personal relationships" with people in their homes:
https://www.npr.org/sections/t...

Re:Brought to you by the FBI...

[Agripa]

The FBI has done that with cable ISP repair workers as well.

https://arstechnica.com/tech-p...

They're the last man standing

[rsilvergun]

for electronics stores. There's a few regionals, but only in the big cities. And somehow they've avoided getting Bain'd like Toys R Us did. So far anyway. If you don't know what Newegg is they're pretty much it for computers and if you want to buy something in town then yeah, they're it.

What do they call this? Survival Bias?

Re:They're the last man standing

[Powercntrl]

What do they call this? Survival Bias?

Seeing as how they've called it the "retail apocalypse", I guess that would make Best Buy a zombie.

Re: They're the last man standing

[datavirtue]

I would hit up costco, target, or wal-mart before shopping best buy. The others low ball the hell out of electronics because they can and no one snoops around asking if I need help.

Re:They're the last man standing

[evanh]

Amazon is the zombies.

Re: They're the last man standing

[HornWumpus]

This has to be a BB shil. Has anybody, ever had a similar experience?

Re: They're the last man standing

[desdinova 216]

I had a situation where I bought a TV from them, took it home and while setting it up noticed the screen was cracked. I wasn't sure if it was my fault or theirs, but they exchanged it for another of the same model with minimal difficulty.

Re: They're the last man standing

[LinuxIsGarbage]

Usually I know mare about whatever product I'm buying then they do. I'll research it online, compare pricing, and just go into the store to pick it up, not for advice. All I need them to do is locate items if they're not readily accessible, ring them through (without an extended warranty), and maybe help carry it out if it's a large item. Usually it's hard to find a blue shirt when you actually want one.

Much more convenient...

[Anonymous Coward]

Now you can have Best Buyers snoop through your computer without the hassle of having to take it to a store. Great for couch-bound millennials...

What about Cowboom?

[BenJeremy]

Those knobgobblers shut down CowBoom in order to flog their store-branded "outlet" which was crap and continues to be crap.

Screw Best Buy

Service

[JBMcB]

+1. Not everyone can figure out how to hook up a wifi network properly. They are getting easier, but still not there quite yet. That, along with every smart device under the sun and quirks setting them up, means there's a a great opportunity for a service like this.

Re: Service

[datavirtue]

While guzzling up any hope of a profit?

Exactly what I want as a worker

[raymorris]

This is exactly what I want as a worker. Also what I have.

For many years I owned the companies I worked for. I'm now enjoying a steady, predictable salary, like these employees have. If I wanted unpredictable pay (like commissions), I could make a lot more money working for myself, or working contracts. I also wouldn't like commissions because that puts my own interest (my pay) in direct opposition to the customer's interest in managing the budget. I much prefer to be able to serve the customer the best I can, rather than try to sell them as much as possible in order to pay my rent.

At my job, we also have metrics and goals - I know what's expected of me, and it's agreed to beforehand. My new boss and I didn't get along at first. My first performance review with him wasn't going so well until we started looking at the goals we had agreed to for the quarter and my actual performance. He saw that I got done what my boss had asked me to get done, so his attitude changed (an employee who gets it done is valuable to a boss).

Recently we came up with new metrics and goals for the team, to align with the company's new strategic goals. A co-worker pointed out a possible flaw - sometimes customer needs might not match up with one of our metrics. I pointed out that having goals doesn't mean we have to ignore the customer while chasing the metric with tunnel vision. The metric is ONE way we measure the value we deliver to the customer. It's not the only way. Since our pay is salary, not toed directly to a specific metric, we can serve the customer's needs from day to day, with the metric serving its proper purpose as but one measurement.

So that's exactly the work situation I like. Salaried, steady pay. Defined metrics and goals so I know what is expected of me and the bosses agree (in writing). But the metrics are but one thing we look at in reviews, one part of the story.

  Another important thing I do is recognized, but not measured. I really enjoy helping train and equip my teammates to better serve the customer and the team. Today I had two different people asking me for help at the same time. I love it, it improves the efficiency of the team by allowing their work to reflect my experience, and my boss appreciates the value - rather than having a less efficient and effective team because I'm selfishly chasing my own commissions.

Re:Exactly what I want as a worker

[GerryGilmore]

Too bad I commented on this thread and don't have mod points. Your post deserves them

Re:Exactly what I want as a worker

[trevc]

You sound like an MBA :-)

Re:Exactly what I want as a worker

[bondsbw]

Or maybe the company does meet expectations, because they don't treat their customers like shit.

Re:Exactly what I want as a worker

[lsatenstein]

This is exactly what I want as a worker. Also what I have.

For many years I owned the companies I worked for. I'm now enjoying a steady, predictable salary, like these employees have. If I wanted unpredictable pay (like commissions), I could make a lot more money working for myself, or working contracts. I also wouldn't like commissions because that puts my own interest (my pay) in direct opposition to the customer's interest in managing the budget. I much prefer to be able to serve the customer the best I can, rather than try to sell them as much as possible in order to pay my rent.

At my job, we also have metrics and goals - I know what's expected of me, and it's agreed to beforehand. My new boss and I didn't get along at first. My first performance review with him wasn't going so well until we started looking at the goals we had agreed to for the quarter and my actual performance. He saw that I got done what my boss had asked me to get done, so his attitude changed (an employee who gets it done is valuable to a boss).

Recently we came up with new metrics and goals for the team, to align with the company's new strategic goals. A co-worker pointed out a possible flaw - sometimes customer needs might not match up with one of our metrics. I pointed out that having goals doesn't mean we have to ignore the customer while chasing the metric with tunnel vision. The metric is ONE way we measure the value we deliver to the customer. It's not the only way. Since our pay is salary, not toed directly to a specific metric, we can serve the customer's needs from day to day, with the metric serving its proper purpose as but one measurement.

So that's exactly the work situation I like. Salaried, steady pay. Defined metrics and goals so I know what is expected of me and the bosses agree (in writing). But the metrics are but one thing we look at in reviews, one part of the story.

  Another important thing I do is recognized, but not measured. I really enjoy helping train and equip my teammates to better serve the customer and the team. Today I had two different people asking me for help at the same time. I love it, it improves the efficiency of the team by allowing their work to reflect my experience, and my boss appreciates the value - rather than having a less efficient and effective team because I'm selfishly chasing my own commissions.

Contratulations. Not everyone wants the stressful life of chasing the dollar. Your decision has probably added 20 years to your life, and to your familes wellbeing and happiness.

Re:Amazon will to

[nwf]

A number of "home service" companies hire local companies, including Home Depot. They all suck, because the large corporation can't vet the sub and people who are doing well won't take their crap jobs. They are no threat to BB of what they are doing takes off.

Thriving, no. Surviving, perhaps.

[RhettLivingston]

Because this article didn't match my observations of closing and aging Best Buy stores all around me, I looked the facts up.

Their profits are roughly the same as they were a decade ago - before inflation adjustment. And they have less stores than they did at their peak. Any retail operation that isn't even maintaining is well on the path to dying.

Perhaps this article announcing their first new store in seven years this past April justifies the "thriving" label.

Given the collapse in other competition such as Circuit City, Radio Shack, Sears, K-Mart, etc, it is apparent that they have succeeded in picking up no customers from competitors when those competitors collapsed.

This is "thriving"? Was this article written by Best Buy's investor relations folks?

Re:Thriving, no. Surviving, perhaps.

[dj245]

Because this article didn't match my observations of closing and aging Best Buy stores all around me, I looked the facts up.

Their profits are roughly the same as they were a decade ago - before inflation adjustment. And they have less stores than they did at their peak. Any retail operation that isn't even maintaining is well on the path to dying.

Perhaps this article announcing their first new store in seven years this past April justifies the "thriving" label.

Given the collapse in other competition such as Circuit City, Radio Shack, Sears, K-Mart, etc, it is apparent that they have succeeded in picking up no customers from competitors when those competitors collapsed.

This is "thriving"? Was this article written by Best Buy's investor relations folks?

I'm not buying a refrigerator from Amazon. Trying to return it would be a nightmare. Sears is done and my local Lowes/Home Depot don't carry all the refrigerator/washer/drier manufacturers or models. Best Buy has a surprisingly large selection of appliances. They also had the lowest price last time I was in the market. Costco sells appliances too but they don't have display models. Is there any other major national appliance store? All I see in Houston is mom-n-pops and local/regional chains.

Re:Thriving, no. Surviving, perhaps.

[known_coward_69]

The locations in NYC do more business in July than suburban locations in December.

Some of us don't mind taking a walk during lunch or after work and you can have your stuff the same day unlike amazon. And they don't play stupid games with inventory like suddenly no PS4's in stock like Amazon does. Or only buying through some shady small business instead of Amazon itself

Re:Thriving, no. Surviving, perhaps.

[HornWumpus]

Damn, those are some big joints. I want to party with you.

Re:Thriving, no. Surviving, perhaps.

[RhettLivingston]

I never said that Best Buy has no value. I would prefer shopping at a healthy local Best Buy over Amazon though ours is a bit of a dump in a not-so-great neighborhood. I just said that, by any reasonable definition, they are not thriving - "growing or developing in a vigorous way". Every measure I see clearly indicates that they have flatlined for a decade now despite many competitors going out of business (usually an event that allows growth as you pick up their customer base).

Re:Thriving, no. Surviving, perhaps.

[RhettLivingston]

As long as a company remains profitable they can operate indefinitely.

True - though that is not "thriving". Thriving explicitly means growing.

Also, if the resource difference is too great, they will eventually be swept up or put under by a competitor who is intent on growing - whether they want to be or not. This can happen by buyout, targeted undercutting, and/or use of purchasing power to arm-twist suppliers into better or exclusive deals. Business is war. Reducing this likelihood is one of the major reasons for growth.

I bought my little air floss thingy

[rsilvergun]

from best buy because the thing dies like clockwork every 6 months or so and with the extended warranty they just keep on replacing it. I keep expecting them to send me packing but they never do. Sometimes I have to pay $2 bucks because the cost of the warranty went up and I have to pay the difference.

I do the same with Costco & car batteries. I live the the southwest and they last about 2 years. Costco warranty is 3 years. Haven't bought a car battery in ages.

Re:I bought my little air floss thingy

[rikkards]

Here is a hint about Costco in general, the reason why their products tend to be cheaper is that they are built that way.
As an example the Optima batteries they carried were specifically manufactured for them. Granted Optima are not as good as they used to be since they moved their manufacturing to Mexico but even when they were still built in the US, the Costco ones were less reliable. My old Optima yellowtop lasted about 8 years and that involved some seriously heavy winching that would flatten it. People I know on my forum were lucky to get 2 years out of their Costco one.
I replaced it with a Northstar AGM 2 years ago and it runs like brand new

My experience

[WinstonWolfIT]

Their floor staff are exceptional. My parents refuse to listen to me, so when a guy comes over and suggests precisely the usb extender I had already selected, then they listen. You can go online and see precisely what's in stock before you go. What's in stock is a $32 'extender, what's not is a $7 extender only available by delivery.

Re:My experience

[Layth]

their floor staff doesn't know jack shit, the guy couldn't even tell me if oculus rift was wireless or not. when i asked if i needed accessories he said we'd have to look it up on the internet.

Coffee is for closers

[sjbe]

Best Buy used to complain that people used their store as a showroom then went home and ordered from Amazon. That blew my mind. A retailer complaining that people come into the store?

Exactly. If you can get people into the store and still can't close the deal then you are doing something wrong. Could be price, could be service, could be "shopping experience", or something else. But if they are standing in your building and you still cannot sell them the product then you have something wildly wrong with your business model.

Basically I go to a store for just a few reasons.
1) I want to touch and see and/or select the product prior to buying.
2) I want to talk to a product expert face to face. (and they had better actually be an expert)
3) I need something Right Now.
4) Going to the store is more convenient than shopping online (like directly on my commute to/from home)
5) The store offers a fun shopping experience I cannot get online

If you are going to offer a product then you need to either be price competitive or you need to offer more value in other ways. If a company cannot compete on price with Amazon or Walmart (and most cannot) then they need to offer something else extra. Give me a reason to come to your store and buy that isn't just a mediocre price on a product I can get elsewhere.

At least they are trying something ...

[cascadingstylesheet]

At least they are trying something, instead of just sitting around expecting everything to just work the old way.

Funny Definition Of "Thriving"

[WankerWeasel]

Best Buy has shut down stores, cut thousands of employees, cut services (like Geek Squad) substantially, pulled out of market categories, and much more. Seems their definition of "thriving" isn't what most would define it as. "Holding on" is a bit more like it.

FBI?

[andyring]

Will they look around your house and report back to the FBI, just like they do when you bring a computer into the store for them to fix?

Translation

[nospam007]

'They're supposed to establish long-term relationships with their customers rather than chase one-time transactions.'

IOW old people and stupid people who need them every other week.

Re:Translation

[HornWumpus]

Switching from fast to slow grift mode.

Not going to work, BB people are still the same clueless twats.

Re:I Hate Best Buy

[HornWumpus]

The average settlement for false accusations of shoplifting is $50k. You were so close...