CompUSA - They Don't Get It.

The power cord to my laptop wasn't working. Battery runs out of juice. I'm two hours away from needing to use the laptop.

For weeks, I've had to jiggle the power cord for my laptop to get the charge going. Today, I wiggled and jiggled and even gave it some kiggle - no juice though.

With plenty of time left on the clock, I head to the neighborhood CompUSA (Tagline: We Got It. We Get It). They don't get it. Forget I had to hunt someone down for help.

I explained the problem thoroughly. Their reply was that it was common in Compaq laptops that the pin comes loose and the motherobard needs to be replaced. Time? Ten days. Cost? $700.

Nevermind that I have another Compaq that still works fine (though slow) after 9 years. Did I mention the fact I was interrupting the Star Wars movie on their big screen that had most of their attention?

Still time left, I go to Best Buy. As soon as I walked in, someone was all over me ready to help. Explained the problem. They tested the cord (what a novel idea). Power cord is no good.

Savings? Ten days and $600. Plus, I'll save time by NOT going to CompUSA in the future. Best Buy Gets It - my business, that is.

Technorati:Best Buy, CompUSA

Comments

[Michael Wagner]

Great story though certainly not one you would have wanted to be the subject of, right Mike?

What you just experienced is the difference between zombies and the living - what I would call in brand ownership terms "engagement". But the bigger question is why? Why is one set of employess ready to serve and solve your need, while others are without a pulse or clue?

There is no intentional brand without an engaged workforce.

How many dollars were spent with some agency "creatives" cominng up with "we got it, we get it"? Then there is the cost of plastering the tagline advertisement. Add to that the likely cost of internal communication (read - something to hang on the breakroom wall. Finally there is the loss of production as a culture of cynicism builds within the workforce - people show up at their appointed hour to "work" and collect a paycheck only to blindly watch you come and leave without satisfaction.

And then YOU come along and tell the blogosphere! And I am glad you did - now I know how great the gap is between "we got it, we get it" and reality.

Is anyone at CompUSA blogging Mike? They need a voice in this conversation if they want to rescue their brand.

[mike]

Mike,
You're spot on again. If companies don't transfer the belief in the brand to their team, how is the team going to transfer that to the customer?

I don't believe CompUSA is blogging yet. Though I'm sure they're paying attention (am I too confident?).

Here's a list of CEO blogs at New PR Wiki

[Tim King]

I love stories like this. Talk is cheap. If you want to know what someone really believes, look at what he does, not what he says.

This lesson carries into marketing as well. I'm sure you're not the only one making comparisons between CompUSA and Best Buy and other competitors. Make promises, yes, but make those on which you can actually deliver.

-TimK

[Mark True]

In these situations, I just want to grab them by the shoulders and tell them what's wrong, but that's not appropriate, or legal.

What IS legal, appropriate and appreciated is when you call out the ones who DO get it. I recently walked past a national branded cookie store in a mall. The customer was holding his three- to four-year-old daughter up as she tried to make the excruciating decision of a chocolate chip or oatmeal cookie. The lone employee stood there, looking rather put out, not engaging with the child, not representing the fun that could be part of the brand. He didn't share her enthusiasm or help in the decision. I was disappointed.

By the time I made it to the upscale department store at the end of the mall, I was hungry for a chocolate chip cookie, and stopped at the small kiosk in the entrance of the store. The lone employee quickly stopped cleaning the coffee pots (he was about to close up), turned to me with a smile, served me a cookie, asked if I'd like anything else (coffee, mocha, etc.) and sent me on my way with an appropriate "have a great evening."

I started to leave, then turned back around and thanked him for his attitude, and explained what I had just seen at his competitor. He seemed to appreciate the comment, and I believe that it reinforced the behavior for the next time.

As customers, we need to recognize the ones that get it and watch it spread like a virus.

[mike]

Good points Tim and Mark.

I agree that we as customers play a large part in the direction an experience can go. We're all contagious, we have a choice of which contagion we want to be.