eepjr24 Posted July 27, 2003 Report Share Posted July 27, 2003 Slightly off topic, but I just really don't understand this one. I went to my local gaming store (well, the largest local one) yesterday and looked for the new FH. It was not there yet, which is not all that surprising. I don't bother anymore to ask them when they will get products in, because the answer is always "Oh, that is in next weeks shipment", without even looking at their order system. I thought I would be proactive and do what many others on this board have done, so I asked about pre-ordering a copy. Answer: No. Offered to pay full price up front. Answer: No. When I finally asked why, they said "We just don't do that.". Can anyone explain this attitude to me? I have worked in retail, albiet not at a game store, and if we had a customer willing to pay up front for any item we carried, we would gladly order it. I mean, we would consider ordering things we don't normally carry if we were pretty certain we could get it in a reasonable time. This store does carry some Hero products, so I know that they can get them. My solution currently is this morning I will try driving a few more miles to the next largest gaming store and see how I fare there. Sorry to have bored anyone who was looking for some neat FH material, perhaps if I can ever get my copy I will put something a bit more worthy up here. - Ernie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yamo Posted July 27, 2003 Report Share Posted July 27, 2003 Sad fact of life: Some game stores just aren't very good. I'd try another or shop online. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Long Posted July 27, 2003 Report Share Posted July 27, 2003 At a guess, I'd say they don't want the administrative burden. It may not seem like much, but if they take your money then they have to keep track of the fact they've done that, and they have to order the book. I agree that it's not only weird, but counterproductive. As Yamo notes, there are an awful lot of game retailers in this country that are just plain bad businessmen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Goodwin Posted July 27, 2003 Report Share Posted July 27, 2003 I know for darn sure that, if I ever run a business, my attitude will be that there are people out there with money, and my job is to convince them that they want to give it to me. Anything I do to make it harder for them reduces the chance that they will do it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
umbra Posted July 30, 2003 Report Share Posted July 30, 2003 I've worked in a book store and there are many reasons why they might not have taken your money. 1. The product might get delayed which means that they have to keep track of the fact that you pre-paid for the book (and make sure that all the clerks know about it too, so when the book comes in you get it without re-paying for it). 2. Sometimes stuff goes out of print or just never gets published... I know that might sound strange to you, but believe me publishers have decided not to put out a book by a major author due to author conflicts, copyright violations etc. 3. Turnover... if they are paying minimum wage, the person who takes your money today may not be the person working tomorrow... which means they might never find the paperwork and/or your book never gets ordered. 4. And last but not least minimum ordering rules... Some publishers/distributors require a minimum amount ordered at one time, so if you are looking for something they haven't ordered (or it's sold out) they have to sit on the order till they have enough special orders to meet the minimum. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eepjr24 Posted July 30, 2003 Author Report Share Posted July 30, 2003 Reasons for not ordering I agree that there are valid reasons for a store not to order something. However, I can work around about any of them besides the book not being published. I need information to do it, but it can be done. If they don't want to take the money, not a problem, just order it and I will pay when it gets in. Or keep my credit card on file and charge me when it gets in. On the minimum order, if they had informed me of what it was, I might have ordered more stuff or ordered a copy for a friend who I know wants it soon but is cash strapped. And in any case, they do shelve some of the books, so they could have told me when their next order was. It comes down to this, IMHO: Their customer services sucks eggs. They could have been, at the minimum, more concerned with pleasing the customer. The point is now moot, however, since I have taken my business elsewhere and will start ordering online before I would give more business to this particular enterprise. - Ernie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Killer Shrike Posted July 30, 2003 Report Share Posted July 30, 2003 Re: Reasons for not ordering Originally posted by eepjr24 It comes down to this, IMHO: Their customer services sucks eggs. They could have been, at the minimum, more concerned with pleasing the customer. The point is now moot, however, since I have taken my business elsewhere and will start ordering online before I would give more business to this particular enterprise. - Ernie Just make sure you tell them that. If they maintain a website, send them and email to thier contact address, otherwise go in and do it the old fashioned way. Dont be belligerant about it, just let the manager or owner know (not a clerk) that you are taking your business elsewhere and why. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alibear Posted July 31, 2003 Report Share Posted July 31, 2003 Too true. In this day and age we don't need to go to our local gaming stores, we can order it online. We'll even get free shipping from lots of places. We don't need to have to deal with unwashed, unprofessional, uncaring, geeks who are more interested in playing Magic with thier friends than selling us what we want and thereby helping to ensure they still have a job next month. If I had that kind of attitude in my job I would be looking in the jobs section of tommorows newspaper while kissing my gf and sending her off to work.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnotherSkip Posted July 31, 2003 Report Share Posted July 31, 2003 Well my job is for a State but dagnabbit even with the semi legenday reputation Gov't workers get we bend over backwards to get stuff done!!!!! dang well as bad as the small private businesses I used to know and work for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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