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Out of curiosity, if a customer came in to buy a $1,500 machine, but what they really need is a $200 Chromebook, what would you do? EDIT: thanks for the down v

Out of curiosity, if a customer came in to buy a $1,500 machine, but what they really need is a $200 Chromebook, what would you do? EDIT: thanks for the down votes, but its an honest question. What if the customer comes in, and the solution that is best for them is not something sold by Apple? In particular, Apple only sell high end products. I have jad salespeople tell me to go to a low end competitor in the past, and some will just try to sell you the high end stuff.

covercash 13y ago
When I worked Apple retail (in a shopping mall) back in 2005, I walked a customer out to the Dell cart and helped them pick out a laptop because they had some Windows only real estate software that wouldn't run very well on Virtual PC.
- rednukleus 13y ago
  Wow, impressive! More high margin places should operate like that.
  - mjolk 13y ago
    Please, tell me why stores should get in the business of working against their best interest.
    - EvilLook 13y ago
      It's against Apple's best interest in this case if the person they sold the machine to couldn't get their software to work. Then it's most likely a return and an unhappy customer. When you help the customer get a solution they need then when they need a cell phone, want a music player for when they're at the gym, or are going buying kid a laptop for school they'll remember your service and consider Apple. That is in Apple's best interest.
    - valleyer 13y ago
      Because maybe next time the customer will come back shopping for a personal machine instead of one they need to run some Windows app. And they’ll remember the great service from round one.
    - rednukleus 13y ago
      Because in the long term it is not working against their best interest. If I know that a store will not try to sell me stuff that is a poor match to my needs, then I know I can trust that store. When I go into a store that tells me to buy a piece of equipment that doesn't match my needs, or a T-shirt in a colour that looks terrible on me, I often find out later and tell my friends. People rave about Apple downselling and Amazon allowing low score reviews on their products because in the long run its good business.
      - larrys 13y ago
        Please keep in mind though that it is a well known technique to try to build loyalty by doing something that the customer doesn't expect that isn't in your best interest. The problem is this doesn't always work and isn't applicable in all situations. The customer that you sell a laptop to may or may not return. But the salesman selling oracle would get fired for pushing a competitors product under the guise of building loyalty. The problem is that practices like this are specific to certain places and situations. Lastly, if you are a local small dealer you simply can't afford to easily lose a sale with the hope that the loyalty is paid back for years to come. You generally have to make hay while the sun shines.
        andrewflnr 13y ago
        As far as this thread goes, rednukleus did specifically say "high margin places". But yeah, it's just an often-overlooked angle on a (still) hard problem. I'm not sure about your example of the local dealer. The "local" part implies to me that personal relationships and long memories will play a relatively large role in someone's business. It could be extremely beneficial to at least be seen as looking out for others to your detriment, and it would probably be easier to do for real than to fake convincingly for a long period unless your customers are ignorant.
    - Nursie 13y ago
      Oh I don't know, we might end up with a better world... nah, never mind.
    - fiblye 13y ago
      If a company sells a product to a customer who needs something different, that customer will assume the product is bad. Saying "my company failed because my software didn't run on those Apple machines" is nonsense to us, but your average consumer will take this as a sign to actively avoid Apple products. If that customer never had a bad experience with Apple, it's less likely they'll complain about them.
      - meowface 13y ago
        You're right in that case. However in the case of trying to get a customer to buy something more powerful than they need, the product will work just fine from the perspective from the customer; it's just that it still would've worked fine for them and they would've retained more money if they went with something less powerful. There may be some economic dynamics I'm missing out on (aversion to buying Apple products in the future for being too pricey, maybe), but it seems like it'd generally be in a company's best interest to try and get their customers to purchase their most expensive projects. That is why the article linked seems so unusual yet refreshing.
  - cpursley 13y ago
    I often direct people interested in my saas product to competitors when the fit is better.
    - bradbatt 13y ago
      Love that approach. You aren't losing a sale — you are (1) preventing what was almost guaranteed to be a dissatisfied customer and (2) winning over a potential future customer for life. If there is any need for your service in the future it is a guaranteed sale from a customer that already holds you in high regard. Well done.
pinaceae 13y ago
I think it is reasonable for a sales person to only sell products by his employer. If you walk into an Apple Store, wouldn't you expect to get the best Apple solution for your problem? Same in a Microsoft store, just with a Microsoft solution.
- rednukleus 13y ago
  I don't think it is unreasonable for an Apple salesperson to try to sell the Apple product, but I think its even better if they choose and are allowed to recommend competitors when they have the more appropriate product. I was just curious to know which way Apple staff did it.
ahk 13y ago
Or an iPod touch with a cloud storage option.
sucramb 13y ago
I was at a trade show last week for a company which sells 3D printers of Makerbot-style besides R&D. Next to us was a company selling 3D printing as a service but on professional machines, thus finer resolution and larger objects. I referred several people to them and one visitor was simply astonished that I sold 'another company' to him. To me it was a matter of common sense because he'd been unhappy with our printers.
giovannibajo1 13y ago
What they do nowadays is to suggest to grab an iPad instead. In the Apple product line, that is the cheap computer for people that don't really need a computer, or wouldn't be able to operate it properly.

covercash 13y ago

When I worked Apple retail (in a shopping mall) back in 2005, I walked a customer out to the Dell cart and helped them pick out a laptop because they had some Windows only real estate software that wouldn't run very well on Virtual PC.

rednukleus 13y ago
Wow, impressive! More high margin places should operate like that.
- mjolk 13y ago
  Please, tell me why stores should get in the business of working against their best interest.
  - EvilLook 13y ago
    It's against Apple's best interest in this case if the person they sold the machine to couldn't get their software to work. Then it's most likely a return and an unhappy customer. When you help the customer get a solution they need then when they need a cell phone, want a music player for when they're at the gym, or are going buying kid a laptop for school they'll remember your service and consider Apple. That is in Apple's best interest.
  - valleyer 13y ago
    Because maybe next time the customer will come back shopping for a personal machine instead of one they need to run some Windows app. And they’ll remember the great service from round one.
  - rednukleus 13y ago
    Because in the long term it is not working against their best interest. If I know that a store will not try to sell me stuff that is a poor match to my needs, then I know I can trust that store. When I go into a store that tells me to buy a piece of equipment that doesn't match my needs, or a T-shirt in a colour that looks terrible on me, I often find out later and tell my friends. People rave about Apple downselling and Amazon allowing low score reviews on their products because in the long run its good business.
    - larrys 13y ago
      Please keep in mind though that it is a well known technique to try to build loyalty by doing something that the customer doesn't expect that isn't in your best interest. The problem is this doesn't always work and isn't applicable in all situations. The customer that you sell a laptop to may or may not return. But the salesman selling oracle would get fired for pushing a competitors product under the guise of building loyalty. The problem is that practices like this are specific to certain places and situations. Lastly, if you are a local small dealer you simply can't afford to easily lose a sale with the hope that the loyalty is paid back for years to come. You generally have to make hay while the sun shines.
      - andrewflnr 13y ago
        As far as this thread goes, rednukleus did specifically say "high margin places". But yeah, it's just an often-overlooked angle on a (still) hard problem. I'm not sure about your example of the local dealer. The "local" part implies to me that personal relationships and long memories will play a relatively large role in someone's business. It could be extremely beneficial to at least be seen as looking out for others to your detriment, and it would probably be easier to do for real than to fake convincingly for a long period unless your customers are ignorant.
  - Nursie 13y ago
    Oh I don't know, we might end up with a better world... nah, never mind.
  - fiblye 13y ago
    If a company sells a product to a customer who needs something different, that customer will assume the product is bad. Saying "my company failed because my software didn't run on those Apple machines" is nonsense to us, but your average consumer will take this as a sign to actively avoid Apple products. If that customer never had a bad experience with Apple, it's less likely they'll complain about them.
    - meowface 13y ago
      You're right in that case. However in the case of trying to get a customer to buy something more powerful than they need, the product will work just fine from the perspective from the customer; it's just that it still would've worked fine for them and they would've retained more money if they went with something less powerful. There may be some economic dynamics I'm missing out on (aversion to buying Apple products in the future for being too pricey, maybe), but it seems like it'd generally be in a company's best interest to try and get their customers to purchase their most expensive projects. That is why the article linked seems so unusual yet refreshing.
- cpursley 13y ago
  I often direct people interested in my saas product to competitors when the fit is better.
  - bradbatt 13y ago
    Love that approach. You aren't losing a sale — you are (1) preventing what was almost guaranteed to be a dissatisfied customer and (2) winning over a potential future customer for life. If there is any need for your service in the future it is a guaranteed sale from a customer that already holds you in high regard. Well done.

pinaceae 13y ago

I think it is reasonable for a sales person to only sell products by his employer. If you walk into an Apple Store, wouldn't you expect to get the best Apple solution for your problem? Same in a Microsoft store, just with a Microsoft solution.

rednukleus 13y ago
I don't think it is unreasonable for an Apple salesperson to try to sell the Apple product, but I think its even better if they choose and are allowed to recommend competitors when they have the more appropriate product. I was just curious to know which way Apple staff did it.

ahk 13y ago

Or an iPod touch with a cloud storage option.

sucramb 13y ago

I was at a trade show last week for a company which sells 3D printers of Makerbot-style besides R&D. Next to us was a company selling 3D printing as a service but on professional machines, thus finer resolution and larger objects. I referred several people to them and one visitor was simply astonished that I sold 'another company' to him. To me it was a matter of common sense because he'd been unhappy with our printers.

giovannibajo1 13y ago

What they do nowadays is to suggest to grab an iPad instead. In the Apple product line, that is the cheap computer for people that don't really need a computer, or wouldn't be able to operate it properly.