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Microsoft to permanently close its retail stores

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Re: Microsoft to permanently close its retail stores

#111

Post by simonh »

muststopmyths wrote: post #56
AlphaWeaver wrote: post #21

This is a real shame. We have (had?) a Microsoft Store in the Triangle (Raleigh-Durham), and my visits to that store were always really enjoyable. I made several warranty claims in-store, and they went above and beyond to help me out, even when my grounds for a claim were kinda shaky. Microsoft did a really good job of hiring diverse talent, and every store-clerk I ever interacted with was smart, nice, and seemed to…

Same with the SF Westfield Center store. Great staff. It was a good place to check out various Surfaces in person as well. I will say, the surfaces/laptops side of the store was usually empty. Some kids playing with the Xbox or people at the counter getting help seemed to be the extent of traffic the past couple of years. They seem to be aggressively destroying any paltry remaining goodwill with consumer enthusiasts.…

I don't really see the connection. If the only traffic to the stores was a handful of people, how can this have any significant effect on customer good will? They can't be both empty and influential.

It seems like the stores were a missed opportunity, but they always had the odds stacked against them. Whatever you can get in an MS store, you could get a much cheaper alternative running the same software at another electronic goods store or online. I suspect the theoretical opportunity was really a mirage and never really there.

Re: Microsoft to permanently close its retail stores

#112

Post by blibble »

yellowstuff wrote: post #102
loydb wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Microsoft had all the cash in the world to make it happen. But instead, they put Candy Crush in the start menu. And got rid of Pinball. :(

https://devblogs.microsoft.com/oldnewthing/20121218-00/?p=58...

that's one of the pathetic excuses I've ever read

they're an OS developer and they can't spend a day figuring out a floating point bug?

maybe redirect some of the time integrating Candy Crush

Re: Microsoft to permanently close its retail stores

#113

Post by geerlingguy »

chadcmulligan wrote: post #30
geerlingguy wrote: post #20

A lot of people mention that the MS stores were a 'brand image' or 'marketing' front, but if that's the case, I can see why they closed. The three or four I visited were very near an Apple Store, and while the Apple Store across the way was always bustling and had people standing around with their Apple devices even outside the store front (I guess waiting for Genius appointments)... the Microsoft stores were always…

> I guess waiting for Genius appointments I'm convinced this is deliberate - the apple store is full of blue shirts and people waiting for their appointments / devices to be fixed. It makes the shops look like they're busy, most shops would not make people wait around like that for things to be fixed, but apple gets away with it somehow. It's all very clever - I call it apple theatre, and yes I participate myself. I'…

Last time I went in to get my PC laptop repaired at Best Buy it was about a 45 minute wait just to drop it off. Then three days before the repair was made.

I have also dropped off Macs at a local non-Apple-Store authorized repair shop and it was 20-30 minutes before I was helped. I think it's just how things are with support/repairs.

Re: Microsoft to permanently close its retail stores

#114

Post by canada_dry »

lotsofpulp wrote: post #87
sambroner wrote: post #24

This is disappointing, although I'm not surprised. One of the best things about the Microsoft stores is that they provided an obvious way to get individual attention on software issues. My grandfather was a frequent visitor of the Microsoft stores to resolve his software issues with his SurfaceBook and his generic Dell Laptop. This type of one on one, in person attention was really useful to him and made the Microsof…

> Disappointing news for him and for me, although I can understand the business justification. Understanding the business justification is why I don’t understand why people think Apple products are overpriced. Not a single other tech organization wants to provide customer service other than Apple, even one with as much cash as Microsoft. Why should I not reward Apple for putting their money where their mouth is? Obvi…

> Not a single other tech organization wants to provide customer service other than Apple

That's a stretch. I'd argue the level of support they're providing is the of the lowest-hanging-fruit level (e.g. how do I transfer my contacts, setup the device). Support forums are full of stories (and from my own experience) where hardware related issues are dismissed and rejected at their stores.

Re: Microsoft to permanently close its retail stores

#115

Post by reaperducer »

simonh wrote: post #111
muststopmyths wrote: post #56

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Same with the SF Westfield Center store. Great staff. It was a good place to check out various Surfaces in person as well. I will say, the surfaces/laptops side of the store was usually empty. Some kids playing with the Xbox or people at the counter getting help seemed to be the extent of traffic the past couple of years. They seem to be aggressively destroying any paltry remaining goodwill with consumer enthusiasts.…

I don't really see the connection. If the only traffic to the stores was a handful of people, how can this have any significant effect on customer good will? They can't be both empty and influential. It seems like the stores were a missed opportunity, but they always had the odds stacked against them. Whatever you can get in an MS store, you could get a much cheaper alternative running the same software at another el…

While I agree with your premise, I think that the availability of a store is a form of goodwill. You are given more confidence in a product if you know there's a place where you can go when things go wrong, or if you want to see something for real, and not just rely on some rendered image on a screen.

There's an Apple Store a few blocks from me. I've never been there. But I like knowing I have the option.

Re: Microsoft to permanently close its retail stores

#116

Post by dylan604 »

mc32 wrote: post #45
AlphaWeaver wrote: post #21

This is a real shame. We have (had?) a Microsoft Store in the Triangle (Raleigh-Durham), and my visits to that store were always really enjoyable. I made several warranty claims in-store, and they went above and beyond to help me out, even when my grounds for a claim were kinda shaky. Microsoft did a really good job of hiring diverse talent, and every store-clerk I ever interacted with was smart, nice, and seemed to…

I wish announcements were more straightforward. I’m looking at their announcement but can’t figure out what they mean by: “...We will continue to co-locate engineering, sales, support, envisioning centers, executive briefing centers, and retail spaces for maximum impact for our customers and our company.” What does that actually mean in real terms?

Probably something along the lines of GeekSquad inside BestBuy.

Re: Microsoft to permanently close its retail stores

#118

Post by reaperducer »

philshem wrote: post #108
AlphaWeaver wrote: post #21

This is a real shame. We have (had?) a Microsoft Store in the Triangle (Raleigh-Durham), and my visits to that store were always really enjoyable. I made several warranty claims in-store, and they went above and beyond to help me out, even when my grounds for a claim were kinda shaky. Microsoft did a really good job of hiring diverse talent, and every store-clerk I ever interacted with was smart, nice, and seemed to…

> I made several warranty claims in-store, and they went above and beyond to help me out, even when my grounds for a claim were kinda shaky. Maybe having a physical store that lowers the barrier for making warranty claims, especially “shaky” ones, isn’t a profit maker. ;)

Maybe having a physical store that lowers the barrier for making warranty claims, especially “shaky” ones, isn’t a profit maker.

Cost to fix a shaky piece of kit: $100

Future sale made because someone is happy with your service: $1,000

While I like to blame this sort of myopic thinking on SV, it seems like an entire generation, or two, has forgotten that if you make someone happy today, you've made a customer for life.

This was car sales 101 in the 1950's and 60's.

Re: Microsoft to permanently close its retail stores

#120

Post by tolger »

This makes me sad. I thought the Microsoft Store at the Domain in Austin was very cool and I visited from time to time. There was also an Apple store in the same location so I could visit both! And there was a Borders Bookstore, which I loved browsing in, and is also closed now :-(
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