Offensive Newegg Ads

[zelda2fanboy]

I'm sure newegg is a fine retailer. I've never bought anything from them, but I have used their site because it has a lot of useful information and clean layout. This thread is not to bash newegg, especially since I already don't utilize their services.

Anyways, the irritating ad shows a "dumb teenager" wearing a blue shirt in an electronics store (clearly supposed to be Best Buy). He gets asked a question about a product, looks at the the product's signage, and then clumsily answers. The thing is, I work in retail. I'm in receiving and I'm not involved directly in sales. Therefore, I'm not really allowed to know anything about anything, since our managers assume we're all callous hardened thieves in the back room (not even trained to use a register). When I'm carrying merchandise out to customers' cars, I'm routinely asked questions I don't know the answer to, even though the customer has already purchased the product and finished talking to a salesman. I'm treated with similar disgust and disdain. This ad hit a nerve.

I get that they're an online retailer going after a brick and mortar retailer. By showing this particular situation, they're shooting themselves in the foot. Every time I go into a Best Buy, I get great knowledgeable service, even if I have no intention to buy. They've got a rewards program, easy returns, great selection, ridiculous clearances.... it goes on and on. I'm sure this thread will be filled with all sorts of Best Buy hate or newegg hate. The ad just makes me think how much I really like Best Buy (no, I don't work there - where I work sucks).

I'm not saying Newegg is bad, but this ad feels like a direct insult to people who work in retail. They need to explore a different route in their marketing campaign.

 

[Radoh]

I work in retail too as a cashier, so I also don't know anything about anything in our store which is roughly the size of one of those Big Wal-Marts. That ad did not have the same effect on me, and to be honest it seems a bit silly that you should dislike that. The only feeling I get when I watch that is the dread of not knowing the answer to the questions.

In short, I think you are overreacting.

 

[Angerwing]

I work at basically an Australian equivalent to Best Buy, Harvey Norman.

I worked as a salesman for quite a while, but had to go casual for university. When the boss cleared out the casual sales staff a while ago, I managed to score a job as casual cashier. So I've been off the floor for a while, and my product knowledge has dropped severely. Hell, I don't even know where we keep half the stuff anymore. I used to know basically everything about what we carried in store.

So yeah, I'm with you buddy.

 

[LadyMint]

I feel you. The ad is slightly humorous to me but mainly incorrect. I have asked questions of people who worked in Best Buy and gotten amazing answers. I still prefer Newegg for the pricing, but I have not had the experience that their employees are dumb and callous. I suppose if I worked at a Best Buy or similar place I'd feel insulted, but I just shrug at the commercial despite knowing it has an inaccurate portrayal.

I am curious about something you said, though. You say you're not "allowed" to know anything about the company's products? That sounds... Incorrect to me. Most companies with the trend of promoting from the inside will take a good look at the lower tier employees that build their knowledge of the company's product and display some initiative towards getting people to purchase those products. Perhaps it's different where you work, but I've always been told that if you want a different position in the company, you start by increasing your knowledge and displaying habits that shows others how comfortably you'd fit in that position. This includes familiarizing yourself with products if you'd prefer to be on a sales floor instead of loading/unloading stock.

Anyway, if you feel so strongly about the ad, you should probably go to Newegg's website and voice your concern. Companies do change their strategies when enough people press on them to do so.

 

[Heraklitus]

So write them a letter or something.

 

[delanofilms]

Really? You're complaining about this as opposed to them trivializing nerd culture as a whole down to "software geeks"? 'Cause that's what I got uncomfortable about.

 

[aba1]

Ya those jobs can suck I used to stock shelves at a grocery store for produce and people always expected me to know everything to do with the whole store it can be a tad tedious

on a related note I refuse to ever shop at future shop or best buy (since there the same company) I got ripped off $2500 at future shop and I swore I would never go back

 

[Syphous]

I worked at a Target for a couple of years, and I don't see this as "offensive" or insulting. I think you're taking a humorous ad and blowing it up into something it's not.

This is the ad in question

And I'm sure this has actually happened to people who've been to Best Buy.

 

[freakydan]

You'd have a point if the commercial showed an employee carrying a customer's computer out to the car not knowing the answer to a question, but the employee in the commercial clearly works out on the floor, and the fact that he tries to answer the question indicates that he works in that department, since I've asked questions at Best Buy and been told "Just a second, let me get someone in this department."

That being said, I do loves me some Best Buy, though I have had some experiences with the employees not knowing all they should. A few years back, I went to buy a new video camera, and had a few questions. I opted to ask the guy helping me a few questions that I already knew, just to make sure he knew his stuff. When asked, he confidently answered the question with nothing even remotely resembling the correct answer. So I went home and did the research myself.

I guess what it all boils down to is, at newegg, apparently they do the research for you through user reviews, though I'm not sure how that differs from, say, Amazon.

 

[Jamboxdotcom]

The point of the commercials isn't to demean those who work at big box stores like Best Buy. Rather, it's emphasizing a common annoyance shoppers have with those stores, and pointing out that Newegg addresses that problem. Basically, "Shop at Newegg.com and we'll give you the information you need to make an informed purchase." And it is a common annoyance, believe me. I find that in any given Best Buy, there is likely to be only 1 person there who can/will answer any questions for me.

 

[BloodSquirrel]

To be frank, I've never found Best Buy employees to have what I would consider even a casual level of techincal knowlege, and I've never heard a story that involved the Geek Squad that ended well. Some of their "services" are documented scams.

 

[lacktheknack]

Anything can insult someone. No matter what avenue their ads explore, someone will take offenses at SOMETHING. I've been insulted by ads before, I just suck it up and ignore.

 

[sofareal]

You know what's funny, I am (so to say) that "dumb teenager" (although im not a teen). I work at a um...blue...retail...store, in the electronics. All the teenager had to start with is "Ok, let us check the specs on the screens here, and compare between them", then new egg people would have really looked like the giant twats that they are. Other then that, the stores do (or should) train the people in those departments, be it retail (food, clothing, electronics) or specialty stores (Movie, music, computers, video games). So out of personal experience, yes new egg "take it from a Geek"...ME

Edit: Hell I'd still buy from them, the stuff were I work is like, low tech crap anyway

 

[AgentBJ09]

-Referenced-

I have to agree. Being a three year seller of electronics, this kind of ad is the result of bad marketing intending to be humorous or informative. Then again, some places are not above mocking other businesses, much less employees in other businesses, to drive up support for their own services and products.

I've never bought anything from NewEgg before, but I'll hold off buying my new Acer laptop from them until they decide on another form of advertisement.

 

[antidonkey]

The ad seems rather appropriate to me. I have yet to go into the local Best Buy and meet a sales person that knows squat about the computer products. Several times I've had to correct them in their attempt to "help" a customer that happened to be near me and I overheard the conversations.

 

[A Werewolf]

I worked at a Target for a couple of years, and I don't see this as "offensive" or insulting. I think you're taking a humorous ad and blowing it up into something it's not.

This is the ad in question

And I'm sure this has actually happened to people who've been to Best Buy.

I like how both laptops are at the login screen >.>;;

 

[Fwee]

I just saw it as a drawn-out, unfunny, annoying ad that always pops up before I get to watch what I actually want to watch. Just try to ignore it, it's just an ad.

 

[Ironic Pirate]

I'm sure newegg is a fine retailer. I've never bought anything from them, but I have used their site because it has a lot of useful information and clean layout. This thread is not to bash newegg, especially since I already don't utilize their services.

Anyways, the irritating ad shows a "dumb teenager" wearing a blue shirt in an electronics store (clearly supposed to be Best Buy). He gets asked a question about a product, looks at the the product's signage, and then clumsily answers. The thing is, I work in retail. I'm in receiving and I'm not involved directly in sales. Therefore, I'm not really allowed to know anything about anything, since our managers assume we're all callous hardened thieves in the back room (not even trained to use a register). When I'm carrying merchandise out to customers' cars, I'm routinely asked questions I don't know the answer to, even though the customer has already purchased the product and finished talking to a salesman. I'm treated with similar disgust and disdain. This ad hit a nerve.

I get that they're an online retailer going after a brick and mortar retailer. By showing this particular situation, they're shooting themselves in the foot. Every time I go into a Best Buy, I get great knowledgeable service, even if I have no intention to buy. They've got a rewards program, easy returns, great selection, ridiculous clearances.... it goes on and on. I'm sure this thread will be filled with all sorts of Best Buy hate or newegg hate. The ad just makes me think how much I really like Best Buy (no, I don't work there - where I work sucks).

I'm not saying Newegg is bad, but this ad feels like a direct insult to people who work in retail. They need to explore a different route in their marketing campaign.

This is absolutely, hilariously excessive. For one thing, they're insulting bad retail workers, and they deserve to be mocked. They are saying that at Newegg, you can find out the differences between different products as oppossed to brick and mortar stores. You admitted that you can't answer customer questions on many occasions (at no real fault of your own, mind you). They are pointing out a flaw in the retail system that you yourself admit happens, and this is a problem? Seriously?

That is exactly how advertising works. This ad isn't offensive in any possible interpretation of the term.

Also, the only good thing about Best Buy is the visual aesthetic (which is awesome, my favorite store in terms of color scheme, but nothing else). When I go there, the employees seem to constantly ask if I need assistance, yet are never able to provide it. Their music and games libraries are laughably pathetic, and their website will display sales that don't exist. Seriously, they'll show that there's a sale on the site, but when you go there and find out it isn't on sale, they'll pull up an internal site showing it isn't and claim it expired, figuring that you're already there, you'll probably buy it. Best Buy is terrible, is my point.

I'm not saying Newegg is better. They sold me a seven hundred dollar laptop that had an eight second boot up time, four hour battery, and the entire Microsoft office package. In reality, it takes several minutes to boot up (and another ten before it becomes responsive enough to use) a 45 minute battery life (without using it, mind you) and a trial version of Microsoft word, which is apparently counterfeit, somehow. So fuck Newegg, too.

 

[loc978]

It's an advertisement. That's the least of the ways in which it's disrespectful. First and foremost, both of those laptops were obvious off-the-shelf crapboxes running an OS that's bloated to start with, and most likely contains extra manufacturer's bloat anyway... not acknowledging that is rather insulting to the viewer's intelligence...

That said, I ordered about half the parts for my current desktop from newegg (four years ago). I had to special order the power supply elsewhere, and I got a better price buying the case, processor, RAM and HDDs locally... but still, they're a pretty good site.