Genuine question to all you internet buyers...

hockey1

rustyboy21 wrote: »

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Nope, no website here, just little old me and my staff in the shop I have run for 25 years. I do ok, but you always want a bit more don't you. If something stands out on this thread I could possibly start to use it instore. I have a few mates who also run websites on top of their shops and they all say, they are the worst part of the business, with more complaints and issues. So dont want to go there

but without a site, even if it's just a site that shows stock, prices etc. you are losing business because most people nowadays browse on line to find specialist shops/suppliers.

rustboy21 wrote:

For the likes of price matching.... would you be prepared to have the same level of service from a shop as you would through a website, i.e you contacting manufacturers if things go wrong, or would you expect the shop to do your running around? If it was the shop, there would be an increase in price then as you would have to employ someone to man the cstomer services dept. Websites don't have to deal as much with this, they fob you off to the manufacturer

I've bought online for so many years and if I have had an issue with the product I've gone back and dealt with the supplier not the manufacturer.

i.e. a toshiba laptop developed a fault at about 11 months. Emailed supplier (Bennetts) who arrange for Toshiba to collect laptop, repair laptop and return it to me. When same fault developed 4 months later, again it was sorted in same way at no cost to myself.

Again Currys replaced my faulty fridge freezer.

Where I want expert advice and want to view product like furniture or bathroom suite then I'll go to a store and if I get good service and prices are not extortinate then I'll buy from them.

I do buy carpets from small independent retailer as I get better service and better prices than big superstore.

I also bought my gas fire from a back street supplier recommended to me by a builder. Again I wanted to see product and needed specific advice for my fireplace, room size etc. A part failed on it at 13 months old and cost me £90 to repair. Shop didn't want to know so I wouldn't recommend them.

ukjoel

I hate shopping in shops.

I do the Tesco shop at 6am saturday morning to get it fresh and avoid the crowds and I do the boot sale Sunday morning cos I am nosy and like looking at peoples stuff and getting the occasional bargain.

Everything else is done online. I usually get reviews online, read the forums (like this one) and then press the button.

On the whole the experience and service I get from Amazon, Appliances Online, Ebay, to name a few is far far better than I get in the shops.

I always pay by credit card and that covers me for most large transactions. Smaller ones I am prepared to take the risk if they fall under the cc protection limit.

You just need to ask for the business - Say you will try and pricematch any other quote. You may not always be able to but at least let them give you the chance.

Also focus on the aftersales and service side that the online providers cant offer. Fireplaces can be delivered but what about installs, accessories, things they have forgotten or didnt realise they needed.

zaax

rustyboy21 wrote: »

.

Nope, no website here, just little old me and my staff in the shop I have run for 25 years. I do ok, but you always want a bit more don't you. If something stands out on this thread I could possibly start to use it instore. I have a few mates who also run websites on top of their shops and they all say, they are the worst part of the business, with more complaints and issues. So dont want to go there

For the likes of price matching.... would you be prepared to have the same level of service from a shop as you would through a website, i.e you contacting manufacturers if things go wrong, or would you expect the shop to do your running around? If it was the shop, there would be an increase in price then as you would have to employ someone to man the cstomer services dept. Websites don't have to deal as much with this, they fob you off to the manufacturer

Don't forget a web-site does not need a shop in an expensive high street. The warehouse can be in a low employment area (with lots of money from the local council).
Also with good photos the item displayed can be just as good as a shop, and each computer screen is your shop front.

sarahg1969

1. No pushy salesmen trying to flog warranties, etc
2. Distance Selling Regulations
3. I can sometimes find a code to reduce the price
4. I can shop around and find the best price
5. I might have two or three similar products in mind, and will compare them on the internet when I get home at my leisure
6. Quite often buy from Tesco for discounts or extra points

RobertoMoir

It depends. If I feel confident that I know what I want in a "large" item and I can get a better deal (not *always* the cheapest price) by ordering online then I will do so. If I can get get a better deal from ordering locally then I'll be equally happy to do that. I don't waste the time of local independent shops by browsing goods in their place with the intention of ordering stuff online from somewhere else. If I'm in your shop it's because I genuinely believe and hope you can offer me a competitive deal on the item I'm looking at.

But the big suppliers... open season i'm afraid, they offer cheaper deals online themselves than they often do in their shop so I have no problem in simply considering their local branch of their chain to be the local showroom for their website.

By the same token, I've done research online then gone to a shop to order the item, when I've felt that would serve me better. And don't underestimate the good things about being able to look at goods online - I can compare both prices and specs of a dozen similar items in half the time it takes me to drive to most stores around here (and just to make it clear, that would be about 30 mins tops). If you don't have an online presence then you're missing a chance to sell to me whether online or in person because I'll never get a chance to research your goods and services and see how good your deals are.

Secondly, you mention "faceless websites" - well I tend to order from the amazons of the online world rather than the "crazy_joes_place_of_washing_machine_bargains.com" end of things, and lets be honest, its also happened enough times that people have gone into a shop, placed orders and paid a deposit on something then had the shop go into receivership, has it not?

Does that then make the shops "faceless shops" when the customers find out that a boarded up shop-front in the high street makes zero-point-nothing difference to their chances of seeing that money again compared to if they'd ordered online from a store that then went out of business?

katejo

I am not a big internet buyer at all. I wouldn't buy that way except for things like books/CD's from Amazon or maybe white goods because the price was cheaper. However I would only do it from a chain which also had shops with the item on display for me to see first. I do also like the way in which the website has reviews of similar products so I could check quality/recommendation in advance. I never buy clothes/shoes online because of inaccuracy of size/colour/apparent quality.

Where is your showroom? Is it near London/ accessible by public transport? I do actually want to get a fire/fireplace installed and that I would NEVER do over the internet. If you would tell me where you are, I might come and look at your display.

vikingaero

I prefer buying over the internet for most things rather than instore.

I really really hate pushy salespeople - if I have to buy instore I the first thing I'll say in a friendly manner is: "Hi, how are you? I'd like to buy a Widget 3000, but if you so much as say extended warranty or try and sell anything else I'm walking out." Most of them take my statement with good grace.

But I'd rather had time to buy the correct product which frankly most salespeople don't have a clue about. I'd kick myself if I bought a Widget 3000 for £249 and found that the Widget 3001 for £299 would have fitted my needs better.

vyle

mazza111 wrote: »

Price is biggest thing for me.
I hate when sales people jump on you as soon as you walk in a shop.
But then I hate it when you don't get asked if you want any help. Think they need to get this timing right.

When you've got 20 or 30 people milling arround in the shop, how is a salesperson meant to know the exact length of time that each person has been in the shop, and meant to psychically know how long they prefer to be left before they get service?

Yesterday, I saw somebody (she was a right state, and quite noticable) walk into the shop while I and two others were serving, and stand there huffing and flouncing about the place, clearly irritated that she wasn't being served right away, then interrupted me while I was with my customer and demanded she be served right away.

On the other hand, somebody can be in the shop messing around for an hour, and if you ask if they're looking for anything, they bite your head off for daring to ask, then sometimes still ask me a question about the product.

I think a lot of people just instinctively hate anybody who works in a shop and considers them to be a lower life form, and yet still expects them to be "experts" and to do everything flawlessly, while at the same time refusing to credit them with having so much as a soul.

claire16c

I buy lots of things off the net, but for something like a fireplace I would always want to go in a shop and buy it from there. for big items like that, especially ones that need fitting to a certain size/connecting etc, Id much rather go in somewhere to a real shop.

For things I do buy off the net its mainly because of price and convenience.

But I dont buy things like clothes, shoes or large items that need to be fitted or tried on.

rustyboy21

Wow !

I went for my dinner and came back to a deluge of posts !

Thanks for all the input. The main gist I am getting from a lot of you is that you hate pushy sales people, You are not on your own there, me too.

I think the retail sector I work in is unique in the fact that there are NO national chains, who sell gas fires through their showrooms. You can pick up electric ones in certain places, but not gas nationally. This has been like this from the demise of the energy centres BG used to have.

All the fireplace showrooms now are independantly owned, mostly man/wife teams, a lot of them their sons/daughters fit for them. There are over 2000 showrooms nationwide all family run.

I totally agree with you all that pushy sales people are offputting. No one in my trade sells extended warranties, the only time it comes up is if it is supplied free of charge by the manufacturer. It seems to be that the chains, the likes of Comet, Curry's, etc have spoiled it by employing pushy sales staff. Not all shops are the same !

I think I practice in my shop what you are asking, the pricing is the only factor really, but the overheads of running a showroom do not permit selling at such low margins. You normally only make about £60-100 on a fire sale anyway, anything less is sometimes not worth it. I think that is the difference between independant retailers and the chains, the small retailers have to earn their wages, by being professional and not too pushy, compared to the chains that if they dont sell anything all week, they still get their wages. The extended warranty comission, pays towards their next holiday, or good night out.

I try to present myself and the shop in a fair and relaxed image, we sell our reputation, our long time in the same business and have many thankyou cards dotted around the shop to show how we deal with people. Many times my fitters have popped out to help people out if they have had problems lighting their fires, it is normally that they haven't cleaned the soot from the pilot light, and not charged for the callout. It is things like this, I feel help me get more custom through recommendations. The majority of the smaller showrooms only ask for a deposit up front and the rest on the day of fitting, when you are happy and satisfied with the fire/fireplace you have bought. Any small retailer who asks for the money all up front, walk away, it is not standard practice in this sector.Same goes for anyone without a credit card machine in the shop, don't trust them.

Katejo.... Sorry but I think I am a little too far away from you to be of any help, I am in west Lancashire. I would give you this advice though, look at the websites for companies like Gazco,Wonderfire,Morso,Legend, Brilliant,Farmington . the major decent players in this industry. They will have retailer addresses on their sites. Try and narrow it down to retailers who stock a number of these products hopefully all the manufacturers i have listed. They are good companies who don't really deal with internet guys and are quite picky on who they deal with, looking at customer service, backup, even things like car parking spaces available. This should narrow the good guys from the bad. The more manufacturers they deal with from the above, the more reputable they are. Ring a manufacturer up and ask them for advice on good retailers in your area, it is a benefit to them, you buy from someone who isn't going to cause them hassle.


Once again, many thanks for the responses. I think I am doing things ok, perhaps be a little more open to asking what price range they have in mind, or have seen and I wont stop anyone coming into my shop in pyjamas if they want to ! As long as you supply the coffee !