Helping the misguided

Lately I've been a little upset, at least upset enough to write about it. I have been noticing something troubling to me as a person, a person with a decent set of debatable morals. I saw a big-name business take advantage of the misguided and misinformed individual, particularly the older generation. Maybe it's your parents or the more targetable group, your parents parents.

Let me throw out a situation that I witnessed this past weekend.

Behold...

Here we have your everday, average, older couple. They are the traditional, hard-working folks that just want to get back into the times and connect with their family on their level. (they pretty much resemble the couple I saw) Lately they have been hearing things about the internet that will allow them to keep in touch with their families a whole lot easier. Things like sharing photos, emailing, and talking to each other through an instant messenger service like AIM. They have an older computer, probably one their son has given them, but here is their problem. Their Internet isn't fast enough to do all of the wonderful things they have heard so much about. These two casually walk into their local Best Buy and talk to one of their sales reps who is OOOOooooohhh so eager to help them with what they need. Without even allowing the couple to finish their initial sentence pertaining to their problem the sales rep comes in with "I know exactly what you need!"

"Come with me and check out our latest Gateway product. In this GREAT PACKAGE you'll get an AMAZING!!!! 2.4 Gigahertz processor that runs a DUAL-CORE. (this all being said with a lot of vigor and excitement) This will all help your computer run much smoother." This statement is probably true, given that their computer comes from the old Pentium 3 or 2 eras. The older gentelman comes back with a question. "Now son, will this help me run the internet faster at home so I can look at my grandkid's photos?" The Best Buy Guy immediately answers "OF course it will! This computer is complete with an NVIDIA 7600 GT! for all of your photo needs. Photos will look crisper and you can watch movies of your grandkids too!" The older man looks confused, not really understanding his answer, and asks another question. "Yea...but will my internet be faster?" The Rep shoots right back some other computer jargon and the older man still looks confused. "Well I wanna talk to my wife about it, but thanks alot for your help. By the way, how much is this computer?" "Only fifteen-hundred sir, which is only for this weekend!" Yea right...

The sales rep surprisingly leaves the couple to their thoughts. I, just being your typical 21 year-old kid, approach the couple. I ask them the most important question, What kind of internet connection do you have. The man informed me that he had a dial up connection and was wondering if the new computer would really help with that. I explained to him about the slow ass 56k connection was the real problem in his calculation. I explained that he should look into a cable modem before he buys a brand new computer. He thanked me for helping shed light on his situation and continued to explain that he was competlely lost and didn't want to be taken for a fool with his money. The gentleman proceeded to thank me again and wish me a good day.

After that, I felt completely better about my day, for that moment I actually helped this man save $1500 on something that wouldn't even help his situation. It was at that moment that I felt completely sick of Best Buy and what these businesses have become. Now don't get me wrong, I'm all for capitalism and earning your dollars but seriously ask yourself what you would have done in the situation. You might have walked away and not paid any mind to it or you could have helped out as well. All I saw was a misguided couple that was hoping to find their answers in a store that sold them on the idea that they were there to help them and the money was a bonus. I know I'm getting in a huff and puff about it, but as a g community and the upper echelon when it comes to knowledge of the workings of our generation's machines, I think it is our duty to help those that are misguided and lead them the right way just as they have lead us with other things. So the next time your put in a situation where you know someone doesn't have all the information, don't just call them a n00b and move on thinking they are an idiot, take that extra step and help them out.

Sometimes when some of those employees ask me if I need help with something, I ask them questions just to see what kind of b.s. answers they give me. Sometimes they give me good answers, on rare occasion they'll admit they don't know, and sometimes they are either just making stuff up or are just wrong.

Your story there sickens me. However, that dialog seems a bit canned. I've never hard employees at typical retail chains talk like that (well, except maybe Gamestop :lol: ). They need to get one of those hidden-camea news crews in there and ask the employees about various products. ;)

I don't have my magnifying glass handy to read that.br0kenrabbit

I know, right? But ctrl+scroll wheel does the trick (in FireFox anyway).

Guy sounded more like a used car salesman.

People will do anything to earn an extra buck. Even if you have to scam someone. Good for you, though.

Most corporations think like so: profilibility trumps humanity. The world is a b%^{ like that.

Kudos to you for helping them old couple.

Consumer beware. That's awesome what you did for them, but in the end they should be the ones that do the research, talk to family and friends, go to the store and hear what they have to say, and then research somemore for themselves beforehand.

Companies like those prey on the uninformed. They are out to sell the best they can, no matter what the cost. It's the consumer's responsibility to protect themselves.

I thought Best Buy employees weren't paid on commission?

anyways that was a good deed done.

I thought Best Buy employees weren't paid on commission?

anyways that was a good deed done.

Led_poison

They still get a promotion or employee of the month...

You did a good thing, I'm proud of you. :P

Since a large portion of my family doesn't know anything about computers, they're always asking me for help. I try my best but sometimes it gets irritating when they think they know something but they're wrong, and they wont listen to me.

Best Buy is just doing what most companies do; they lie a little to get a sale. Companies have been doing that forever. That's why as a consumer, you're always told to research everything before you go to the store.

All I am suggesting is that if you see it then approach or offer help. I'm not saying you should stake out your local Best Buy and be savior.Zennious

Sounds like something Jesus would do. :lol: