Is Gamestop Evil? The Good, The Bad and The Ugly

[oxymoron]

@spoony

I remember reading somewhere that only 30% - 35% of GameStop patrons are power-up members. If they went by your logic then they wouldn't make any money.

[SpoonyBard]

It's not my logic, it's how they actually operate...

They don't have to have 100% power-up/pre-order sales. They usually shoot for 20-30%. Just saying, each transaction without one reduces their percentage, and in turn reduces their "performance" according to corporate.

[mas]

I was just happy that the assistant told the clerk to give the zelda controller to me. I'm happy the assistant told me the truth. He so could of gone the other way and say its on hold and come back tomorrow if it's still here then we can sell it to you.

[isiolia]

@spoony

I remember reading somewhere that only 30% - 35% of GameStop patrons are power-up members. If they went by your logic then they wouldn't make any money.

A fair number of retail chains use things like that as a performance metric though.

Many will push for "add-ons" in general. One of the first things they told us at Software Etc was to try to get more than one thing on the receipt. Not because it mattered for the bottom line per se, but because the computer systems would tally up the percentage of transactions with more than one item versus those with just one.

The discount cards are a similar metric. The statistic you gave would also say that 2/3 of the people walking in the store have the potential to be sold on the card.

If you have a day of single item transactions, what does that say about the effort your employees are putting forth to sell stuff? Someone who is always ringing up single item sales, no cards, etc will look to the system like they're failing at being a salesperson.

Not saying it's a good thing per se, just that it's very common - hell, even some banks do it with their optional services.

[oxymoron]

It's not my logic, it's how they actually operate...

They don't have to have 100% power-up/pre-order sales. They usually shoot for 20-30%. Just saying, each transaction without one reduces their percentage, and in turn reduces their "performance" according to corporate.

My point is that my business is just as good as the guy preordering/renewing and that it's no excuse for lying to me.

I understand the whole 'performance' thing. I just think that they push the card/trade-in offers a little too much. It can get annoying when you don't want it and they just keeping on pushin'.

[SpoonyBard]

It can get annoying when you don't want it and they just keeping on pushin'.

I'm not disagreeing, i'm just saying why they do it. I used to hate being sold on the card. Now I don't have to worry about that, as after having it renewed for so many years ahead to help someone with their numbers for a day or to get a B2G1 coupon - it'll probably expire long after I do.

My point is that my business is just as good as the guy preordering/renewing and that it's no excuse for lying to me.

They make most of their money on preowned stuff, so -- yeah, it probably is better than the guy pre-ordering. Unfortunately, corporate doesn't use that to measure employees worth. So most people you'll encounter working for Gamestop will think the opposite.

[Luke]

The past few pages of this thread highlight how some of you have zero clue how retail sales work. It's not rocket science, but it is a science. Read up on retail sales strategy, pricing strategy, finite shelf space, incremental sales strategy, TQM, 10 principles of Retail, customer data collection, etc. GameStops model will make complete sense to you if you bone up on how retail turns a profit. I'm actually shocked that GameStop isn't pushing a GameStop Visa card on customers.


Can't stand all the "the manager/clerk was a jerk to me, so I walked out" talk either. If an associate is being an ass, do something about it. It only takes a few minutes to file a complaint on-line, or seconds while in the store.

[oxymoron]

I stopped by Gamestop today for the B2G1 deal and had a interesting experience. While browsing through games and a guy walked in and asked the clerk (not the manager, mind you) if they had a list of games whose servers were down. The manager (this is the pushy guy I spoke of before) hopped in before the clerk could respond and said that of course they didn't. The guy said a few more things along the lines of why they don't and that they should. The manager responded in a normal manner but he speaks quite fast. This could be perceived as wittiness/rudeness and in this context it was. The guy got heated and called him a dick as well as said a few more things. The managers response was hilarious, "Well, thank you for that". Even though I think the manager was in the right, it was enjoyable seeing someone call him out. I'd also like to add that the guy looked like a stereotypical douchbag, so I guess his behavior wan't much of a surprise.

[Luke]

I needed to exchange a 360 controller (brand new, w/stickers still on the controller, in the original box, no receipt) and pick up a cib copy of GHOSTBUSTERS for the 360 too, so I went to GameStop at lunch.

Place was packed for a Tuesday afternoon, and after a short wait in line I told the cashier "You should have a game for Luke, and I want to exchange this controller". As usual, a sales associate picked out a "mint used" copy for me and was already on the counter with a "For Luke" sticker slapped on it. Good on 'em.

But then there was an issue with the controller. "No receipt, no return, no exchange".
No problem. I asked if (we'll call him Ed) Ed, the store manager was in, and he was. He told the cashier that he would handle it, and jokingly said "Make sure you charge Luke double for his future purchases".

So Ed asks if it was a new controller and when I confirm that it was sold as new he looked at me puzzled. "Luke, we haven't this model in at least a year. Ya see the grey back to the controller? This was made years ago...no way this was new. No receipt eh?". No receipt. No problem.

Ed goes on to explain what happened; sometimes GameStop knowingly sells used goods as new. "You wouldn't believe the amount of returns we get that are used but have been repackaged".

I got a new controller at no cost, so all is well that ends well. But! Just another reminder that it's a buyer's beware market. It's on you to take a few seconds to make sure you're getting what you're paying for.

[noiseredux]

I'm confused. Why did you need to exchange a brand new, still in box 360 controller for another 360 controller?