Just got a job in home theater. Help please

[guitarplyrstevo]

So I just got a job in the A/V section of Fry's Electronics today. I like to believe that I know the basics about home theater but you could never have too much information. I start next week so can you guys please help me with things I should know when talking to customers about home theater?

 

[Haoleb]

Dont try to pretend you know everything and make up stuff. Be honest. Dont sell people things they wont need. And try to relate to your customer. You'll do fine.

 

[j_garcia]

This is a good place to start:

http://forums.audioholics.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2203

Congrats on the job!!

Once you've got the basics, focus on the capabilities of specific units - knowing what something can and can't do is important when trying to sell it to someone.

 

[guitarplyrstevo]

I glanced at all that stuff and I know all that stuff for the most part. I was wondering if you guys could help me out with certain brands that I should keep in mind if a customer were looking to buy a system. Also the different connections on the sub and receiver.

 

[MDS]

As a salesman the only brands you need to be really familar with are those that the store sells. Go into the store and write down the brand names and model numbers of a good number of TVs, receivers, and speakers and then go find the manuals for them at the manufacturer's website.

You could read the manuals and make yourself notes on which features each supports and how they are similar or different. You don't have to do every single one by the time you start work but that would be a good start for getting familiar with what you sell.

 

[darien87]

I glanced at all that stuff and I know all that stuff for the most part. I was wondering if you guys could help me out with certain brands that I should keep in mind if a customer were looking to buy a system. Also the different connections on the sub and receiver.

Where do you live? What Fry's will you be working at, and better yet, can you hook me up?

 

[j_garcia]

I glanced at all that stuff and I know all that stuff for the most part. I was wondering if you guys could help me out with certain brands that I should keep in mind if a customer were looking to buy a system. Also the different connections on the sub and receiver.

You said basics. Yup, what MDS said - you need to know the specifics of what you are selling only.

Yeah man, employee pricing is awsome at Frys. My buddy used to work there and hooked me up with a couple of crazy deals.

 

[jake5717]

Yeah man, employee pricing is awsome at Frys. My buddy used to work there and hooked me up with a couple of crazy deals.

I applied at Frys and BB for a part time job and told them they could pay me in products or gift cards......no call back.

 

[j_garcia]

My daughter works at Best Buy, they get discounts but not nearly as good as Frys.

 

[Tarub]

I glanced at all that stuff and I know all that stuff for the most part. I was wondering if you guys could help me out with certain brands that I should keep in mind if a customer were looking to buy a system. Also the different connections on the sub and receiver.

Just be honest. Tell them that there is plenty of speaker brand out there which is a lot better and cheaper than BOSE.

 

[Reorx]

but if they sell a bose system or monster cable, that's their largest profit margin....
Last I heard, Fry's employee's get up to $500/month in discounts on gear. Not to excede a certain % on the items. IE: On tv's they can get up to $400 off, on a unit costing over X amount of dollars. You wont get $400 off of a $500 TV though....

You will have to know some of the basic's of other systems though. I always hear people ask, "how does this speaker compare to brand x speaker from a different store".

Congrats and good luck.

 

[highfihoney]

I glanced at all that stuff and I know all that stuff for the most part. I was wondering if you guys could help me out with certain brands that I should keep in mind if a customer were looking to buy a system. Also the different connections on the sub and receiver.

I can tell ya right now that your new employer wont care what you know for the most part,what they will care about is how fast you catch on to their marketing/sales program,most chain stores do not care about their salesmen helping a customer to get the best bang for the buck,however they do care about employee's pushing select models of receivers & speakers,they will also care about employee's giving customers the hard sell on expensive cables & speaker wire for their new system.

If you really want to do well forget everything you know about audio,throw your conscience out the window & learn the he!! out of the company's sales tactics & you will suceed fast.

 

[j_garcia]

You will have to know some of the basic's of other systems though. I always hear people ask, "how does this speaker compare to brand x speaker from a different store".

Most places will tell you to answer that question with more information about the product you are selling, not the one that someone else is selling...

My buddy that worked there was a forum dweller as well, and it was really weird to have someone at Frys who actually knew what he was talking about....lol.

 

[darien87]

My daughter works at Best Buy, they get discounts but not nearly as good as Frys.

I applied for a customer service center job at Fry's a while back. When I asked them about an employee discount, they said they call it the "revolving paycheck", cuz they pay you and then you just hand them the check back, buying stuff from them.

 

[guitarplyrstevo]

Today I started working on the floor and damn I didn't know half the things people were asking me.

 

[MDS]

What kinds of questions were you asked?

 

[guitarplyrstevo]

What kinds of questions were you asked?

Well this one guy bought a cable that was DVI on one side and HDMI on the other. He connected his DVD player to his computer monitor using that cable, but when he put a DVD in the player, only audio would play.When he played a VCD he would get both video and audio. When he connected the DVD player to his TV, he would get video and audio regardless if it was VCD or DVD.

I was not sure of the answer so I walked him over toward another sales associate and he told him the problem was the cable.

 

[Sheep]

If you want to last... do what they say.

SheepStar

 

[Buckeyefan 1]

Well this one guy bought a cable that was DVI on one side and HDMI on the other. He connected his DVD player to his computer monitor using that cable, but when he put a DVD in the player, only audio would play.When he played a VCD he would get both video and audio. When he connected the DVD player to his TV, he would get video and audio regardless if it was VCD or DVD.

I was not sure of the answer so I walked him over toward another sales associate and he told him the problem was the cable.

DVI is video only. He must have had audio connections hooked up as well. Did he actually hook up the player to the monitor, or to a video card in the back of his pc? As far as hooking up the dvd to the tv, he must have used audio cables to get sound. I think you just need to ask more questions - first of which "which component doesn't have HDMI." That's the reason he purchased the DVI-HDMI cable.

To succeed at Fry's, ask the sales manager whats important. Then find out from the top sales staff what they do to be successful. You don't have to push Bose or Monster if people spend the same amount of cash on legitimate equipment and cables. For $2000, don't be afraid to recommend Yamaha, Onkyo, Polk, etc... That's a lot of cash for better sound. Fry's wouldn't carry that equipment if they didn't want to sell it. The more of the legit stuff you sell, the better buying power Fry's will have in the future on that equipment.

 

[chicago25624]

Simple rules to follow

1. Listen

2. It's their hard earned money. They will spend it they way they feel is best for them.

3. Listen

4. Ask as many questions as you can to insure you know EXACTLY what they are looking for. Or at least have a good understanding of what they want. And answer all of their questions.

5. Do not find yourself in a cookie cutter system mentality. Although you will have limited products to offer, don't fall into 1 or 2 receivers, or sets of speakers for everyone.

6. Always consider the WAF, Wife Acceptance Factor, it might be there home too.

7. Listen

8. Never, and I mean NEVER judge a person by their clothes!!!!!!! They may only have a few bucks now, but they may have more someday. Or, they could be Marshall Faulk who came into the A/V store I used to buy from, looking like he was homeless.

9. Never make things up, or act like you know what you are talking about if you don't. Be honest and let them know you don't know, but find someone right away who does.

10. Listen

Congrats on the job and good luck.