Part of the solution---if you shop at Guitar Center, read this

[dasmetre]

Originally Posted by bunnerabb

You ever notice how the lone voice defending something which, empirically, the majority has declared indefensible always go straight for the ad hominem smirk and baseless condescenscion?

It's hard to tell if GC employees want to be like G.W. Bush or Bush wants to be a GC hack.

Or if they're both just aspiring to be internet preachers.

It's worth an extra 5% to me to get my gear without the motormouth f*ck selling horseshit souffle with every purchase cause he's gotta make his margin.

I'm curious to know what happened that upset you. If it was something in our stores, let me know and I will do what I can to make it right.
Eli

[dasmetre]

Originally Posted by freestyle tromb

wow, guys. classy thread.

To the original poster: I don't think you will find any help here that you, personally, can realistically implement at your store. Maybe a few small things, like setting up the instruments... but as a few have mentioned, most of the problems with Guitar Center stem from much deeper places then how one man manages his store.

If your company, however, is really interested in being a great retail experience, I suggest you ask Apple.

although they probably won't tell you anything. Hahaha.

Any input at all is help enough for me to set an example. I consider Apple and Disneyland (not the stores) to be good examples of places to emulate. Apple in that everything in that store is hip and "vibey," and it's all smiles and helpful people (and gear that is always plugged in and working) and Disneyland int hat everything a guest sees has their perspective in mind and no detail is left untouched in that regard.

Lofty ideals, but I'm dedicated.

[dasmetre]

Originally Posted by lowfreq33

When I wrote that I was on beer #3. I'm now on #6.

I guess I picked the wrong day to quit...


I appreciate all the input I've gotten here. Kep the suggestions coming!
Eli

[bunnerabb]

Originally Posted by dasmetre

I'm curious to know what happened that upset you. If it was something in our stores, let me know and I will do what I can to make it right.
Eli

No, actually, you came here and courteously and civilly requested information from a market share of your customer base.

I applaud this.

I offered my opinions in earnest and hope it was of some value.

all the sudden I got some snarky **** going off about how "well, if you don't know how to get what you want, that must be why you're not married!"

"Ha.

I made an ad hominem attack out of a false and sarcastically implied assumption to insult you when I couldn't offer anything but a load of pompous twaddle."

And I told him where to stick it.

Any ill will I may have expressed was directed at the poster who proffered his, first, towards me.

I do not suffer cheap behaviour well.

I apologise if this exchange offended or offered the opportunity for you to infer that it was concerning you or your posts.

I simply found it necessary to relate the fact to this ill-bred little man that getting snotty with me is a great way to get your ass installed up around your clavicles.

Any and all response to your inquiry was stated in my initial reply to your questions.

Thank you.

[lowfreq33]

Originally Posted by dasmetre

I'm curious to know what happened that upset you. If it was something in our stores, let me know and I will do what I can to make it right.
Eli

Have you read the "stupidest things you ever heard in guitar center" thread? Even if 50% of those stories are true, that's a lot of unhappy customers. I think the worst thing GC does is hire idiots. Of course, you play the hand you're dealt. I considered working there for the discount until I found out about the pay structure.

I'll draw a comparison. When I was younger and still in school I worked for an Italian restaurant. The concept was a fine dining experience at Applebee's prices. Sounds good, right? The problem was, to deliver that fine dining experience the server's had to spend a lot more time with each table than they would have at Applebee's, explaining the specials in great detail, making wine recommendations, fresh parmesan cheese, etc. But the check was still the size of an Applebee's check, and as we all know, servers are tipped based on a percentage of the check. Then, because they had to spend more time at each table, they couldn't turn their tables as fast, meaning fewer guests per night = less money. As a result, they couldn't keep good help. The servers who were capable of giving great service would soon get tired of making $80 a night instead of $120, and they would leave. Thus, a new server would be hired who couldn't tell a Chicken Carciofi from a Spaghetti Bolognese, and he'd inflict his brand of service on the guests, who would promptly find somewhere else to spend their money.

Make sense?

If you take good care of your employees, and allow them to take good care of your customers, your sales volume will grow by 100% in the next year. You have to make happy customers = happy employees. Don't do it the Walmart way.

[lowfreq33]

Originally Posted by bunnerabb

all the sudden I got some snarky **** going off about how "well, if you don't know how to get what you want, that must be why you're not married!"

Yeah, what was that all about?

[w_stylz]

First and foremost, I will say that in general, my experience with Guitar center has been very positive. I live in Chicago and the couple people that I deal with are very good with competitive pricing and taking care of any needs at all. I can't say enough good things about this store and as a result, I have spent about 50-60K there on used and new gear in the past 2 years I have lived in Chicago.

My main issue is when I go online and start dealing with other stores with their used gear list that is online. I do a bit of audio consulting and am always looking for well priced used equipment for my home studio, my commercial room, and my client base (which is expanding). I do them (my clients) the favor of finding the equipment for them and I do GC the favor of locating buyers for their equipment. Some stores treat me well but about 40-50% of the time, I am hung up on, told I will get called back within 20-30 minutes and never called back, placed on infinite hold listening to the entire playlist of Guitar Center Radio, or I get someone who doesn't seem to know what planet he/she is on. Many of the times when someone doesn't call back and I finally call back, I get the response, "I'm sorry, someone just bought the item" or even worse, "someone else is buying it right now." which upsets me to no end since I called about it 3 hours ago with credit card in hand. When you tell someone that you are going to call them back about their inquiry, it should be done soon - within 20-30 minutes at most - even to say - "I am still tied up but I am checking on so and so for you", or better yet, pass it to a coworker and have him split the sale with you. I think that GC is about 75% good and I will say that I certainly do get professional treatment from the salespeople and managers that I have been able to cultivate a working relationship with but as with any business, there is always room for improvement. Oh yeah, one more thing. The shipping dept should be properly trained on packing equipment. About 7 out of the 100 or so items I bought last year were damaged from overly optimistic and underly cautious packing jobs. Another 7 or 8 should have been damaged but survived luckily. UPS should have to pull an ace ventura to destroy a package.
That is all!!!

[dasmetre]

Originally Posted by bunnerabb

No, actually, you came here and courteously and civilly requested information from a market share of your customer base.

I applaud this.

I offered my opinions in earnest and hope it was of some value.

all the sudden I got some snarky **** going off about how "well, if you don't know how to get what you want, that must be why you're not married!"

"Ha.

I made an ad hominem attack out of a false and sarcastically implied assumption to insult you when I couldn't offer anything but a load of pompous twaddle."

And I told him where to stick it.

Any ill will I may have expressed was directed at the poster who proffered his, first, towards me.

I do not suffer cheap behaviour well.

I apologise if this exchange offended or offered the opportunity for you to infer that it was concerning you or your posts.

I simply found it necessary to relate the fact to this ill-bred little man that getting snotty with me is a great way to get your ass installed up around your clavicles.

Any and all response to your inquiry was stated in my initial reply to your questions.

Thank you.

It's all good, and I'm glad you're contributing--I do find value in your contributions.

[dasmetre]

Originally Posted by lowfreq33

Have you read the "stupidest things you ever heard in guitar center" thread? Even if 50% of those stories are true, that's a lot of unhappy customers. I think the worst thing GC does is hire idiots. Of course, you play the hand you're dealt. I considered working there for the discount until I found out about the pay structure.

I'll draw a comparison. When I was younger and still in school I worked for an Italian restaurant. The concept was a fine dining experience at Applebee's prices. Sounds good, right? The problem was, to deliver that fine dining experience the server's had to spend a lot more time with each table than they would have at Applebee's, explaining the specials in great detail, making wine recommendations, fresh parmesan cheese, etc. But the check was still the size of an Applebee's check, and as we all know, servers are tipped based on a percentage of the check. Then, because they had to spend more time at each table, they couldn't turn their tables as fast, meaning fewer guests per night = less money. As a result, they couldn't keep good help. The servers who were capable of giving great service would soon get tired of making $80 a night instead of $120, and they would leave. Thus, a new server would be hired who couldn't tell a Chicken Carciofi from a Spaghetti Bolognese, and he'd inflict his brand of service on the guests, who would promptly find somewhere else to spend their money.

Make sense?

If you take good care of your employees, and allow them to take good care of your customers, your sales volume will grow by 100% in the next year. You have to make happy customers = happy employees. Don't do it the Walmart way.

I have read the thread--I laugh and cringe, laugh and cringe...

And it makes perfect sense. thanks for the input.

[A LaMere]

Wow... This thread is a strange one... ??

I'll say... that I've been treated great by Guitar Center...
Bought my last guitar purchase there (an EJ strat at the Nashville store) and the guys there were absolutely great. I think I tried out 5 or 6 of the exact same strat before purchasing mine...and of course was able to just pick the one I liked the best.

Now that I live here in the Portland, OR area I frequent the Clackamas, OR store and the guys there have been great.

That being said, I'm not the kind of guy who goes in attempting to buy pro audio gear at what really is a consumer oriented store, or asking questions that I already know I can better research the answers to myself. I'll buck against the trend here and say that I usually get a great discount, have bought a load of gear there, and the guys are always hospitable...

THAT being said... I don't ask a lot of questions, get out of the constant background music as quickly as possible and shop other places for 'other' gear purchases also.

I do think that training at these types of stores is a constant issue, and that there should be a constant regimen of product training and "soft skills" training in this type of customer service environment. Someone early simply said "SERVICE" and I agree with that.

I'm certainly well aware of the fact that service matters to me MUCH more than price... and I'll certainly pay more from a place I know is going to give great service.

Mercenary Audio is a great example of this type of service ((( Yes... a shout out ))))
They're prices aren't high necassarily but.. I can sometimes beat thier price online and prefer to shop at Mercenary because they kick ass at service. Everytime I've called or emailed them I thought afterwards... "God... was that easy!"

It's funny to me how many times the answer to providing great customer service really is to learn to possess humility in your dealings with people.

Great customer service is about providing your customers with a positive experience when they purchase from you...

In a sense, great customer service is about providing an environment in which your customers feel as if they are more important than the company or person that they are purchasing from...

[w_stylz]

Actually, I will add, if you are a pro, you can contact the GC pro guys. They know their stuff better than the average joe and can help to meet the needs of professionals a bit better. The couple I have dealt with, Ryan Lessam in Orlando, and Niyi Adelekan in NY know their equipment quite well and will work with you to make you happy. If you have to go into the store, I hope you know exactly what you need or have your GC pro guy hold it for you!!

[andygomez]

I never thaught people actually took list price seriously. I always thaught of it as an imaginary number. I dont get it are you buying cause its on sale or cause you actually want it. if it just sold for the sale price and noone ever put SALE! on it would you not buy it then?.. why cant we go back to :

" hey how much you want for them peanuts?"

"me?... Oh 50 cents a bag"

" ok"

"... ill take 12"

[lowfreq33]

That's just it, list price doesn't mean anything.

[mdme_sadie]

I honestly quite like guitar center, but certain things would be good to change, the first two are to do with the product itself

1) Take better care of the products, I've had boxed products that were damaged through clearly having been dropped or hit quite hard (the outside of the box showed only minor folding in a corner, the metal device therein bent out of shape).

2) Don't attempt to resell opened goods as unopened. It's this sort of thing that undermines the trust relationship with the customer and stops repeat custom, I've only had this happen to me once, I know others that have also experienced this.

Now onto the whole customer experience -

3) Please get people to use the isolation rooms and don't have them playing guitar at 11 for ten minutes at a time. A lot of people going into GC value their hearing, also it's really hard to hear whatever instrument or piece of kit you're interested in over that stuff, and if you can't hear it you can't really make the call on buying it.

4) Have one of the specialists in each area be the main phone guy for the day and have them be the only person in that area to answer the phone. Make sure that sales representatives see the sale through before answering any calls and that they really do call customers back when they call them.

One of my pet peeves with GC is how the person you're dealing with will just wander off, start answering the phone, dealing with other people in the middle of a transaction with you. The thing is it's not good business sense, the more time you give people to mull over a purchase the greater the chance that they'll decide against it or start feeling buyers remorse, I'm not saying be brusque with people and rush them through like at a take out, quite the opposite they need a lot of reassurance and care on their way out, but don't test their patience once they've made a decision.

[andygomez]

Originally Posted by lowfreq33

That's just it, list price doesn't mean anything.

Exactly... MSRP what part of SUGGESTED dont people understand

[Wes Kuhnley]

Isn't anyone going to be honest with this guy? This thread is full of dudes saying "Most of the times I've been to GC it's been good!" When really every time they've been there you have to surgically remove the sales guys head from his own ass to get anything useful out of him. I'm really sorry you have to work in such a shit hole, I really am...been there, done that. Seriously, literally EVERY time I've ever set foot in a GC, I've been assulted by sales dudes trying to get me to buy chinese shit. I can't stand having to sit through a sales dood's pitch after telling him 5 times that I'm not interested in what he's selling. I'm there to get the one thing that I can't build, or borrow or buy online, and that's it. Not some shitty PreSonous interface and Monster cables. GC is the Wal Mart of the audio world, I'll never spend another doller there again...ever.

Short version: there is nothing you can do that will make GC stomachable.

[Sounds Great]

Originally Posted by Wes Kuhnley

Short version: there is nothing you can do that will make GC stomachable.

I just went to GC the other day and bought a patch bay. About the same price as on the internet, but got it that day. Knew what I wanted, walked in, and bought it. No hassle.

[DaKid]

Um.....

ok.... My personal view/suggestion...

I never had any major problem with GC, then again never thoroughly enjoyed GC....

My suggestion, which is based off of my personal experience and heresay through others.....

I'm not sure what your full timer/ part timer ratio is... But I would suggest having 2 or 3 full timers for a specific department that really do know their stuff.

2 or 3 guys in "pro audio" that know a lot about outboard gear...signal flow...the works...

Have 2 to 3 guitar freaks in the guitar section and so on and so forth...

Perhaps raise their pay for their knowledge and service... more extensive training... make them read gearslutz.com religiously!

My biggest complaint personally is the selection of gear at certain stores... Almost all of the GC's I've been to.. you can't get great/popular outboard gear such as 1176s/LA2A's/Neve stuff ect..... It's all that kind of prosumer/midgrade stuff.... which I understand is somewhat your demographic... but maybe update your "pro audio" section or add a different section for customers who are more serious about their gear and/or sound...

Trying to run or manage a business like GC has got to be tricky... Maybe raise pay and get rid of all commission together or rearrange how commission is done....

Basically, raising pay and obtaining a more knowledgable staff would be great... but like many things in life... easier said than done.

I'd put my bottom dollar on it that 90% of the people who whine and complain about the staff at GC for their lack of knowledge would NEVER work at GC because of the low pay... so what can they REALLY expect?

Oh well.


Best of luck!

[bexarametric]

I can see all the points here being valid.

I am a manager at the Plano, TX location. I guess I would be considered the guy at my store that sells to the "high-end" recording guy. What I do with the guys in my Pro Audio department has seen some success. I tell them that they need to ask a lot of questions and then listen to what the customer has to say. If they cannot help the customer, be honest and turn it over to someone that knows the answer. If you do not know what a Massive Passive is, please turn the sale over to someone that does.

I also tell them to be aware of the customer's knowledge. If the customer knows more than you do, it's probably not going to benefit you to offer suggestions. If it's a mother shopping for her son for Xmas, do your best with the knowledge that you have and sell the right thing the first time.

I do believe that the majority of the people on this site make up a VERY small percentage of our sales. But that doesn't make you less important. I am always trying to push product knowledge on my guys. The fact is that the majority of the people that come in to our store would be insulted if you pushed GREAT recording gear on them because they honestly could not tell the difference between a cheap Chinese mic and a U47 (used of course) because they don't even know what they're listening for (they just see $100 vs $10,000). I get customers all the time that say things like "I sure do love my Behringer mixer, it sounds great". I can't, for the life of me, figure out why someone would ever feel that way. But they do. And most of the people that walk into the store are like that. They think that Mackie is the "high end". The average customer sees our Midas board and can't honestly tell us that it sounds better than our Yamaha. They don't know what to listen for. They may recognize a slight difference. That's it.

I can see the point that it's very difficult for your average Joe salesman to justify spending the years and years that it takes to gather the amount of knowledge that all the people on these boards have when all it will lead to is about 1% of their sales. They don't have the time or the resources to compare and contrast API to Neve or Telefunken to Wunder. That being said, if you are looking for someone that has that kind of knowledge; we are out there.

As a manager I feel obligated to step in and support the original poster's intentions. I'm sorry that some of you have had bad experiences. I would like to join in and say that I too would like to work to make your experiences better. We cannot deny that bad experiences happen. But we can also come out here and let you guys know that we're here to help. If your local Guitar Center is not treating you right, let us know. If you're not getting the help you need, PM me. I will give you my #. We can chat. I will ship you the items that you want. I just like my customers to be happy with the gear and the price. Then they come back and life is good. We all want to win right?

[R3k]

ahh

[numrologst]

I must say I gave up on guitarcenter...until I met bexarametric. He is my pro audio dealer now.

If guitar center was staffed with more guys like him, everything would be 1 billion percent better over there.

The thing about bexar is that he not only works at GC, but he's also a great producer, musician, and engineer. He's been behind the board, he knows gear because he's used it.

Plus he's a good guy.

So, I think guitar center should probably do a better job in hiring people. To be a good salesperson you have to know the product and the industry. Guitar center has a bad habit of hiring 18 year old kids that are very immature and don't know anything about selling, pro audio, pro instrument, or even music in general.

I remember reading a while back that guitar center has one of the highest employee turnover ratios in the country. I can't remember the exact number, but I do remember it was something extremely ridiculous.

Moral of the story is: Clone Bexarametric and put his clones at all the guitar center store.

[chrispick]

Originally Posted by bexarametric

I do believe that the majority of the people on this site make up a VERY small percentage of our sales. But that doesn't make you less important. I am always trying to push product knowledge on my guys. The fact is that the majority of the people that come in to our store would be insulted if you pushed GREAT recording gear on them because they honestly could not tell the difference between a cheap Chinese mic and a U47 (used of course) because they don't even know what they're listening for (they just see $100 vs $10,000). I get customers all the time that say things like "I sure do love my Behringer mixer, it sounds great". I can't, for the life of me, figure out why someone would ever feel that way. But they do. And most of the people that walk into the store are like that. They think that Mackie is the "high end". The average customer sees our Midas board and can't honestly tell us that it sounds better than our Yamaha. They don't know what to listen for. They may recognize a slight difference. That's it.

I think you're right. I think GC is built to absorb the volume dollar that comes from a prosumer-and-lower customer base.

The only expectation I have from a GC employee is to know price, availability and location of gear sold there, to show some modicum of customer courtesy, and to know when to grab the guitar out of the hands of some dork hacking through "Smells Like Teen Spirit" on a dimed solid-state Marshall mini-combo.

Personally, I find it funny how up-in-arms some posters have gotten over this topic/thread. I mean, the joint's decked out like a discount store, not a Lexus dealership.

[Fluency]

I'm not even in the rock genre, so I don't go to GC (I'm sure their equipment branches out to other genres, but I usually just pick up equipment at local music stores) - the jingle imitation was humorous though haha.

Honestly man, you only have influence upon your local store (I'm assuming), so the best thing would probably be the traditional survey - whether putting them inside of sacks/bags/whatever you guys use, or through email. If the customers are that displeased, they'll respond.

[infopimpster]

Jessie in Pro Audio in San Jose deserves a raise. Vintage buff, really helpful.

My problem this week was that 3 of the 4 things I wanted were out of stock "but on the way" (...HD770 phones, blue bullet mics, SM7...) tf?

[gregohb]

[quote=dasmetre;1696545]I'm the general Manager for GC in Fountain Valley, CA and have a question for you guys-/QUOTE]

I used to shop in the GC/FV. The last time i bought something, and then I had problems and brought back about 18 days later, and they charged me a restocking fee of 20% or so. I said fine, and I have never bought anything there again. Might as well buy small things on Amazon which has a return capability for all items.

[Wes Kuhnley]

Originally Posted by Sounds Great

I just went to GC the other day and bought a patch bay. About the same price as on the internet, but got it that day. Knew what I wanted, walked in, and bought it. No hassle.

The staff must have been hungover that day.

[Steffmo]

1) Go to the Orange CT. Store

2) Find Shaun Chua.....oriental guy...hair down to his ass. You will know him because he will have three phone calls going and bunch of people waiting.

3) Clone that guy. Put two in each store.

No, I'm not Chua, but he was an intern of mine, This guy should be the model got every fear sales man, except he's overburdened and you don't pay him enough. Sooner or later you will lose him, but for now he probably accounts for 30 percent of the stores gross.

Why....thats the important info.

1) He knows the gear. 2) He knows the buyers. 3) He knows the sellers. When you get right down to it, its all about bringing these three things together. Pay the guy a bunch of money and have him find and train sales talent in different stores.

I buy a lot of stuff at GC because of that one guy. I know everyone in the audio department, half of them have interned at my studio. But I also knoe tons of reps and folks at stores all over. That one guy keeps me buying, and sending my other clients, to GC.

Its all about people.

One other caveat you could pass along to the big office. DO NOT become enamored with lousy house brands. There is a huge temptation to used your clout to OEM all sorts of stuff, but if it is mediocre it only degrades your name. I think this is a big mistake Ash made and it has cost them.

[ddageek]

I'll bite
1 Training training training! (yamaha book, practical recording techniques useing gear)
2 In pro audi every sales dude needs a chear sheet of who to contact at every manufacture for price and availability and a support contact. Sales dude who knows nothing = Danger Sales dude who knows nothing and un willing to go to those who know = Extreme Danger
3 after sales service is non existant!
4 Yeah cut the list Price BS!

To the guy who suggested marking real low price many MAP Policies consider signs Part of MAP!

As far as the enquirering why you want something. 60 percent of the people who want something really do need to be qualifed first returns are a drainage the other 40 percent can function as a learning tool for the sales due See #1.