Best Buy’s Secrets for Thriving in the Amazon Age (2017) • Hacker News Board

Re: Best Buy’s Secrets for Thriving in the Amazon Age (2017)

#51

Post by erichocean » Mon, Jan 28, 2019, 2:59 AM UTC

seattle_spring wrote: post #30

erichocean wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People who care about audio. Netflix streaming audio is shit. A Blu-ray has incredibly good audio tracks—usually 24-bit/96kHz lossless.

This got me really curious about what quality Netflix actually streams its audio, but the only thing I came across were tech support threads regarding low quality streams. Does anyone know of a good comparison of Netflix vs physical disc quality, and/or any hard numbers? FWIW, I have an extremely good system and I've always thought that streamed audio sounds great. I honestly wonder if I've been missing out on the ne…

What I recommend is having a DVD, Blu-Ray, and Netflix streaming of a movie with good sound and a lot of dynamic range that you can A-B-C with. Apollo 13 is a reasonable example and fairly cheap. :)

It's super obvious side by side, at least on my setup. Streaming is more-or-less DVD quality at best in my experience.

Re: Best Buy’s Secrets for Thriving in the Amazon Age (2017)

#52

Post by qaq » Mon, Jan 28, 2019, 3:00 AM UTC

lscotte wrote: post #26

Someone1234 wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's why I like B&H Photo now too. All genuine products, sold by them, with real reviews. Their shipping is a little slower and they close Friday/Saturday which is frustrating but overall a good experience. They even do price guarantee if you contact CS which Amazon discontinued.

B&H is great, agreed. They are an extremely honest company, so taking a few days longer is worth it in my opinion - you are going to get exactly what you ordered in my experience. On Amazon, that's only guaranteed if Amazon is the seller (not to be confused with "fulfilled by Amazon", of course). B&H is also closed on all Jewish holidays.

"only guaranteed if Amazon is the seller" nope it's not they mix inventory.

Re: Best Buy’s Secrets for Thriving in the Amazon Age (2017)

#53

Post by seppin » Mon, Jan 28, 2019, 3:07 AM UTC

randomacct3847 wrote: post #11

In my experience, no other category is so heavily gamed by shady marketplace sellers on Amazon than electronics. Search for wireless headphones on both Amazon and Best Buy and it’s night and day what you see returned. I’m bullish on Best Buy simply because it’s not a free-for-all of cheap foreign knockoffs. Retail of yesteryear might stand a chance because employing buyers who actually curate merchandise to be sold w…

> I’m bullish on Best Buy simply because it’s not a free-for-all of cheap foreign knockoffs.

After I worked on a project for BB, the best way I can describe what they sell is "high-end crap".

Re: Best Buy’s Secrets for Thriving in the Amazon Age (2017)

#54

Post by Rapzid » Mon, Jan 28, 2019, 3:07 AM UTC

giancarlostoro wrote: post #4

mercwear wrote: post #2

They price match Amazon which is really no secret, it’s just hard to do since they have more overhead.

My best guess is they hope to make up lost with items Amazon doesn't even list. I know there's some products that are owned by BestBuy, I forgot the company name for it, but some random electronics they sell.

Right, Amazon does not list Best Buy's house brand 25 dollar USB-A cable.

Some of that convenience stuff is so ridiculously over-priced(even compared to Walmart) and so restricted in choice(only option is the Best Buy brand) it must be integral to their business strategy.

Re: Best Buy’s Secrets for Thriving in the Amazon Age (2017)

#55

Post by Hippocrates » Mon, Jan 28, 2019, 3:08 AM UTC

Lately I prefer to shop at Best Buy over amazon. I have a couple nearby, so picking something up at the store is more amenable to impulse and instant gratification. It’s also fun to take a lap around a play with some stuff.

Besides that, the prices are competitive, not that it matters because they price match. Sometimes you can score a deal on open box items, which are conveniently listed on their site. Returning something to BB has been painless. I recently returned a monitor without the box for a full refund. I’d at least have had to find a box, pack, and ship that at my own expense w/ amazon which is a huge hassle.

Prime’s 2 day shipping on nearly anything is great but more than a few times I’ve had things lost in the mail. Amazon waits 3-5 days PAST the delivery date to consider it lost while you wait in limbo, and then you have to restart the order. It’s really frustrating if you need the thing quickly and it ends up taking more than double what it should to arrive. IME Amazon is not generous in compensating for these inconveniences.

Re: Best Buy’s Secrets for Thriving in the Amazon Age (2017)

#56

Post by anoncoward111 » Mon, Jan 28, 2019, 3:10 AM UTC

learc83 wrote: post #40

jnbiche wrote: post #34

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The first few issues sound to me more like poor management in a particular location, rather than a global company policy. However, it could be that company incentives led to this such management initiatives.

The overall company policies were pretty good, but each district was ran like the District Manager's personal fiefdom. Corporate pretty much let DM's run things the way the wanted and, and most DM's let store General Managers do the same (to a lesser extent). That combined with corporate providing tools to make it easy to drill down into meaningless metrics, and you ended up with employees encouraged to walk low marg…

Really appreciate this insight. This is one of the reasons that I wish corporations died sooner and had less power over the employee.

Employees can provide helpful knowledge to customers in exchange for a wage. The ones who hawk PSP warranties are probably the worst customer advocates, yet aren't the ones being fired....

The helpful employees and loyal customers lose, corporate wins....

Re: Best Buy’s Secrets for Thriving in the Amazon Age (2017)

#57

Post by FiveSquared » Mon, Jan 28, 2019, 3:13 AM UTC

lscotte wrote: post #26

Someone1234 wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That's why I like B&H Photo now too. All genuine products, sold by them, with real reviews. Their shipping is a little slower and they close Friday/Saturday which is frustrating but overall a good experience. They even do price guarantee if you contact CS which Amazon discontinued.

B&H is great, agreed. They are an extremely honest company, so taking a few days longer is worth it in my opinion - you are going to get exactly what you ordered in my experience. On Amazon, that's only guaranteed if Amazon is the seller (not to be confused with "fulfilled by Amazon", of course). B&H is also closed on all Jewish holidays.

But they are hella racists and discriminating.

https://www-m.cnn.com/2016/02/29/us/bh-photo-lawsuit/index.h...

Re: Best Buy’s Secrets for Thriving in the Amazon Age (2017)

#58

Post by ams6110 » Mon, Jan 28, 2019, 3:22 AM UTC

sys_64738 wrote: post #47

We buy all our appliances from Best Buy so I'd hate to lose them like we lost Circuit City. CC's decision to ditch appliances was their downfall, IMO. As for buying electronics from BB, it's a checkered history for me. I've bought a MacBook Air cheaply there and our current LCD TV was 300$ there. When I last bought a PC laptop there 12 years ago trying to get out of the shop without extended warranty was a nightmare.…

I've never had any issue at my local Best Buy just saying "no thanks" to the extended warranty stuff. Though I really only shop there about once every year or two.

Re: Best Buy’s Secrets for Thriving in the Amazon Age (2017)

#59

Post by Pxtl » Mon, Jan 28, 2019, 3:42 AM UTC

finaliteration wrote: post #6

I worked retail for over 5 years before starting my tech career and I’ve been a big advocate for Best Buy over the last couple of years as I’ve watched their in-store experience improve. At my local store the service is always awesome, they accept returns without a hassle, and I can order stuff online and they usually have it ready in less than hour. Their staff once spent over two hours with me resolving an issue an…

That's good to hear. I stopped going to best buy when every question I had for staff was answered by the staffer reading the card on the shelf. I go to a meat-space store when I don't know what I want and I need knowledgeable salesmen to help me. The BB in my neighborhood never ever had that, so I stopped shopping there.

Re: Best Buy’s Secrets for Thriving in the Amazon Age (2017)

#60

Post by nfriedly » Mon, Jan 28, 2019, 3:57 AM UTC

whoopdedo wrote: post #38

The article says Best Buy didn't have to layoff employees. But why would they ever? Retail has a high turnover rate already. All they had to do was not hire replacements when people left on their own. Or hire a part-time worker when a full-timer quits. Is there any national retailer other than Walmart that has not been forced to reduce their labor budget as a response to Amazon? None that I've looked into.

Maybe Costco, I hear they've been doing well.