14. Managers have coupons kept in the safe that they can use for dissatisfied customers. If you have a problem ask to speak to a manger and most of the time they will offer you some sort of discount on a product or a free service in the store.
13. Easy Tech’s are in every store to provide technical support for the customers. The fees are lower then Best Buy. Most techs are just Business Machines associates who have a little computer background. While I am a tech in a store, I wouldn’t trust some of the other techs in the chain. Deals can be had with Easy Tech service. An example would be you could get Norton 360 for 30 installed, or pay the 60 for it without the Easytech service.
12. Associates do not make commission, so there is no incentive for selling plans and attachments. The managers make HUGE bonuses (as there bonuses are tied to the profit margin). Most of the time a big sale (laptops, etc) will have a manager approach you before the sale hits the register if you leave without any attachments.
UPDATE: A current Staples supervisor writes, “Employees make quarterly bonuses if they meet sales and margin goals for every period during a quarter, which are payed out as 10-20 cents per hour worked during that time. It’s hardly commission, but there IS sales incentive. “
11. Associates cannot give you random coupons (mainly the $3 ink ones) due to the new lost prevention procedures in place. Every coupon is counted in the book before a shift starts. At the end of the shift the number of HP, Lexmark, and Dell cartridges are counted against the number of coupons offered.
10. Sales Associates are not able to offer any special discounts to you. However because the store gets judged on the number of service plans that are sold (total dollar amount) coupons do exist. An example is there was a $10 off a $60 shredder coupon. This coupon was only distributed in the stores, so customers did not know about the true use for the coupon. A common sales pitch would be, for this day only my manager has authorized me to give you a free service plan. When shopping at Staples remember that it has to be done by a coupon and you can ask to see the coupon before purchasing the item.
9. Staples does not offer rainchecks, so if the product is out of stock in the store, three options exist – order the product from Staples.com, find the product in another store, or substitute a similar item. I have seen items that are of better quality be substituted in for an out of stock item. All you have to do is ask a manager.
8. Stores are authorized to offer up to 15% off of the clearance price of an item in the store. Most stores will sell the product at cost. If you say that you want the warranty before the associate goes to speak to a manager about a discount, the discount will be larger. When you get up to the checkout just say you no longer want the warranty and pocket the extra savings.
7. The Copy and Print Center offers a 100% money back guarantee. Many stores, including my own, have covered up that guarantee. If you are not satisfied with the way the order was done, you simply need to state that you want it for free. The manager will most likely come over and stand firm (they will offer you 50% off or something similar) and you will receive the order for free. Staples will even reprint the order correctly without charging you.
6. Staples still has its guarantee that your ink will be in stock or you get $10 off. Most of the time the ink is able to arrive the next business day at your door, so customers don’t force the issue (or even know about it). Make sure that you are clear that you want your 10 dollars off the ink if you order it – sometimes the ink will magically appear.
5. Almost all printers in the store come with full ink/ toner. The few machines that don’t are the “low” end machines in a series. The HP Laserjet 1600 has starter inks while the 2600n has full toner. The box will make it clear if it has full or starter toner in them. All INK JET machines have full ink in them.
UPDATE: A current Staples supervisor writes, “most of the printers we sell come with the starter cartridges, not sure where s/he got the idea that they don’t (few manufacturers put this on their boxes at all) “
UPDATE: A current HP sales rep writes, ” all inkjet printers come with FULL cartridges. We no longer use starter cartridges. It says so right on the box the capacity of the cartridges included. Compare them with the separate retail cartridges, and you will see that they are the same. The author of the piece is correct when he/she mentions that the lower end lasers (1600 and 1018) do come with half-full starter toner cartridges.
Most retail employees have no idea that HP inkjets come with full cartridges. They just take the word of their superior and tell customers that the printers come with starters. They never take the time to verify what the printer comes with. Since the most, if not all, retail stores are ranked by their respective companies based on sales and/or margin, they tell customers that they’ll need to pick up extra ink since printers only come with starters, which is false in most cases.”
4. Machine sales are judges on a CIPS basic. Cable, Ink, Paper and a Service Plan. A great sale is a sale that has all of them. The warranties for the most part are a rip off. You need to call up a phone number and they will mail you a refurbished machine within a week or so. If they don’t want to do that they will send you the amount they can buy a used machine for (normally 1/3 of the buying price, or double the price of the warranty).
UPDATE:A current Staples supervisor writes, “We’re now actually judged by what’s called ASPs, where all electronics in the store have a metric that has qualifying attachments, not just CIPS on printers (in fact, we no longer use that term). The more attachments you sell, the better your percentage, and the better you look.”
UPDATE: The original Staples confessor replies, “While the CSIP System is no longer being used as a measure of success on selling printers, it is a good way of measuring the ASP that are published every Monday morning. Computers and other items also have attachments that associates are suppose to sell. The information about bonuses for the most part are correct. However for an associate to be able to get the high end of the scale the exit survey needs to be above a 90% (meaning every question received a 5, or a perfect score) which gives a 10cents bonus, and sales need to DOUBLE the budged sales for the store and the gross margin needs to be extremely high. The only time that I have seen a bonus above 1.00 an hour was during the back to school season.”
3. Sales tags are often outdated and Staples needs to honor whatever prices are on the shelves. Make sure you ask for the lower price if there is one.
2. Associates are not allowed to accept tips, but sometimes customers bring in gift baskets of goods for the copy center. Next time that customer needs an order it will be completed faster then other orders because all the associates know the customer. Make yourself known to the associates and they will treat you well.
1. Copy and Print Center associates have the ability to not charge you for a service. While they are not officially allowed to due this, many will do so.
- Anonymous
Is this “confession” legit? We don’t have any Staples insiders in our database to check, so current and former Staples associates, let us know what you think in the comments.
(Photo: Maulleigh)
UPDATE: Staples insider #2 adds these 3 more buying tips:
15. Extended warranties… they are designed so that the obligor must pay out the full value that you payed in the event that they do not fix or replace the printer you bought. I’ve mostly worked with the HP warranties, but they usually send a replacement “core” unit back that is essentially all parts of the printer except for your ink cartridges and a few outer cosmetic plastic pieces. Also, the EasyTechs are allowed to do HP warranty work (both HPs actual warranty, and the staples extended warranties).
UPDATE: The original Staples confessor writes, “With the extended warranties, they are outsourced to a company called Assurant. When they offer you a cash card for a machine they will go by the replacement value for a comparable machine at TODAYS value which is normally half of the actually cost of the machine. Numerous customers have come back into the store complaining about it, with little the store can actually do.”
16. Staples offers free delivery on all orders done through Staples.com over $50. Customers can use this to their advantage if they are buying bulky furniture or printers and the like. Staples associates can place “dot com” orders for you in the store so that you can pay as though you’ve bought the item in the store, and the shipment time is usually within two days on most products, but can be up to 7 business days on some furniture.
17. If you go to a store looking for a particular product and that store does not have it in stock, you can ask associates to check the SKU for quantity at other stores. If another store is shown to have it, managers have the option of doing a “save-the-sale” so that you actually purchase the item in the store you are currently in instead of having to drive out to the other store. This is much better than asking them to hold something! If you wish, the item can also be shipped to you, from the store, via UPS on Staples’ dime. You may ask to do this, but please note that the manager of the store with the product always has the option to refuse to do this if they want to keep the sale.
UPDATE: Yet another employee has a few more to add:
18. Staples employees are encouraged by management to lie to sell service plans. One very popular lie is that the staples extended service plan covers you from date of sale. This is wrong, the staples plan covers you after the manufacturer’s plan expires. So if you buy a two year plan, staples won’t help you for a year, you need to contact the manufacturer.
19. We also tell customers that our warranties cover accidental damage. Some employees even say that customers can literally roll printers down the stairs, and it will be covered if you say it’s an accident. This is NOT true.
20. We tell customers that service plans cover them all over the world, so if they are in Canada or England or Africa they can take it to any staples and have it replaced for free. The truth is, Staples is not in any other countries we are in, such as Canada, we use a different name and the warranty is not able to be used there. For the brighter customers who would question the world-wide coverage of the service plan, saying that staples is not in a place like Hungary or China, we would tell them that Staples will pay to have the defective unit shipped back to the USA, fixed, and we could send it back, free of charge. This is a total lie.
21. Employees will lie their heads off about laptop service plans too. We will tell customers that water-damage is covered, so if they drop it in a pool or spill coffee on their laptop, we will replace it. NOT TRUE. We also will tell customers that the laptop warranty covers batteries, so if the battery dies, we will replace it, free. This is a total lie. If you read the fine print in the pamphlets we have, it says it does not cover batteries.
22. It is totally 100% true that the CIPS program and the new ASP (I worked under both) did push the sales of attachments (cable, ink, paper). What the author of this article forgot to mention is how much money Staples makes off of USB cables. Staples will buy a 25-foot “gold” usb ” 2.0″ cable for $2.83/cents as of 2006. We charge $24.99. This is why we push cables. You can buy the same cable at Wal-Mart or Target or Kmart for under $10.
23. Staples employees also LIE to get you to buy cables! Some of the printers (Brother) come with a cable, and we will say it does not, unless a customer notices it on the box. We will also tell a customer that their old USB cable will not work because it is probably a USB 1.0 or 1.1 cable, incompatible w/ USB 2.0. THIS IS A BOLD-FACED LIE. USB CABLES ARE USB CABLES! There is no 1.1 1.0 or 2.0 cable, its only the components that have this, not the cables. I have single-handedly sold over 200 cables to unknowing customers. Managers force employees to say this, and they know its a lie too.
24. TIP: If you are shopping at Staples for a computer and would like to get a nice discount, find a floor model that is on “clearance”. Ask to buy it and demand 15% off. The manager has the ability to drop the price by 15% but will only do so when you buy a warranty, usually. Buy the warranty. Then leave the store and the next day drive back and bring in your receipt and ask them to return the warranty. You will get your money back and keep the 15% savings. You could also go to any other Staples store and return the warranty, so if you are uncomfortable going back to that store and seeing the same manager, go to another Staples in your area.
25. You may wonder why Staples employees will lie so much to get you to buy accessories and service plans. We are not paid on commission, we don’t even see a dime of any sale we make. The incentive most employees have to sell these things is so they do not get moved from electronics department to furniture or office supplies, which are much more boring. Managers WILL threaten to move you if you do not sell.
26. TIP: Staples stores will get hell if they receive negative feedback for a particular store. If you are dissatisfied with your experience at staples, or discover that you have been lied to, file a corporate complaint. Call 1-800-3STAPLE (1-800-378-2753) and tell them you want to file a corporate complaint against a store, and they will direct you to it. This will cause the person you report to, to send it in email to the offending store and this will cause chaos for a day or two. Do this enough and the manager will be replaced.
UPDATE: and another:
27. If you need business cards, and you want to order them from Staples, order them online. They go to the same 3rd party company, and instead of having to come back in and pick them up, they’ll come to your house instead. In fact, they recently changed the system to go paperless for us too, so it’s the same procedure for us to order the cards/stamps/etc in the store as it would be for a customer to do it from home.
28. Easy Techs will try to sell you everything they can, even though there’s not much incentive to do so. Plus, as previously mentioned, they aren’t specifically trained as computer techs. Mainly they’re catering to the “The drink holder got stuck” crowd.
29. Don’t send us emails. Half the time we don’t get them, and when we do they are the lowest priority jobs we have, since you’re not in our face telling us to get the job done. Often customers come in and expect their jobs to be finished when they’ve just emailed it an hour ago. This will never happen.
30. If you want your copies to look good, bring in a file. Preferably a PDF, but any MS Office file or graphic (.tif, .jpg, etc) file will be fine too. Make sure it’s the only thing on the thumbdrive/CD/floppy though. There’s nothing that makes us not want to work on your job than having to root around looking for your cryptically named file that’s buried in 30 subfolders. If you’re not giving us a pdf, don’t use strange fonts that nobody has. We don’t have them either.
31. They lock down our computer so that we can’t even right-click on things, and don’t have access to the C drive, or half the other things that the computer is supposed to do. So no, we can’t just install Print Shop Pro, or your crazy fonts, and No we can’t just let you connect your laptop to our network, and we can’t get on the internet except to check our own copy center email. I’ll give you a blank CD though or a floppy to transfer your file.
32. The Ship Center kiosk is designed so that customers can type their information in themselves, so please feel free to save us both the time when you want to ship something, don’t bother filling out the form, just type it into the kiosk, then call me over.
33. The managers are trained to pretty much bend over backwards to help customers. They can wheel and deal up to a certain percent, and sometimes they can even break that rule if the need be. Don’t be afraid to lean on them if you feel like you’re not being treated right.
34. The Express Cards that we all switched over to recently for Self-Serve copies can be used as cash cards in the store if you don’t spend all of what you put on there, but we can’t cash them out at a register.
35. Once you get a receipt for your transaction, we can’t help you if you forgot to hand us your rewards card. There’s a number on the back, call it and they’ll fix you right up.
36. Staples Rewards are pretty much a scam. It used to be that you got 20% back on any copy center purchase over $200 in a month. Now it’s only 10%. They changed that but didn’t tell anyone, except now it’s 10% back on everything in the copy center, so sometimes that works out better. All I know is that I see a lot fewer rewards checks these days since they switched the system.
37. Despite having a computerized quote system for copy orders, we still have to key in exactly what you got, so there’s some room for fudging, and depending on the specifics of your job there might be several ways of putting it into the computer. If you ask for a price, make sure to get the Copy Hold slip, that way you can come back and be assured the same price you were quoted. Plus, there are some things that we’re supposed to ring up that I just don’t bother with because I know for a fact that other chains don’t, like RIP fees, scanning fees for signature stamps, ringing for copies on colored paper when it belongs to the customer, etc.
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I Am a current Business Machines Specialist, Easy Technician, and Key Holder at Staples. Here is some more information on the warranties for everyone.
———————————————————————————————–
[-THE WARRANTY-]
the warranties are actually not as much of a rip off as people believe.
for example, the best features about the Extended Service Plan for laptops (and in my opinion, the only reason to actually buy one) is the fact that staples will replace your laptop screen ONCE if it breaks and the extended service will also cover Product failure coverage up to $1,000 caused by power surges occurring on or after date of purchase. Honestly, those are the only two benefits I see for the laptop Extended service Plans because [A] Replacing a laptop screen is usually double the cost of a laptop Extended Service and [B] having protection from surges allows you to use your home owners insurance to cover your big screen TV and other electronics that may have got damaged in the surge.
Here is a link to access a PDF for the brochures of the Extended Service Plans we offer at Staples.
-TSPP Stands for Technical Service Protection Plan
-PRP Stands for Product Replacement Plan
-FPP Stands for Furniture Protection Plan
18. Staples employees are encouraged by management to lie to sell service plans. One very popular lie is that the staples extended service plan covers you from date of sale. This is wrong, the staples plan covers you after the manufacturer’s plan expires. So if you buy a two year plan, staples won’t help you for a year, you need to contact the manufacturer.
There are two different plans that Staples offers. There is a product replacement plan (PRP) that will cover your low end electronic purchase for a year AFTER the manufacturer’s warranty. The other type of plan, which is used on all printers, computers, etc., is a TSP. A TSP covers the customer from date of purchase.
19. We also tell customers that our warranties cover accidental damage. Some employees even say that customers can literally roll printers down the stairs, and it will be covered if you say it’s an accident. This is NOT true.
There are standard service plans and accidental damage plans. The accidental damage plan is a lot more pricey but it should cover all damage. Accidental damage plans are only available for laptop PCs and cameras.
20. We tell customers that service plans cover them all over the world, so if they are in Canada or England or Africa they can take it to any staples and have it replaced for free. The truth is, Staples is not in any other countries we are in, such as Canada, we use a different name and the warranty is not able to be used there. For the brighter customers who would question the world-wide coverage of the service plan, saying that staples is not in a place like Hungary or China, we would tell them that Staples will pay to have the defective unit shipped back to the USA, fixed, and we could send it back, free of charge. This is a total lie.
All I know is that the TSP brochure advertises worldwide service for US residents.
21. Employees will lie their heads off about laptop service plans too. We will tell customers that water-damage is covered, so if they drop it in a pool or spill coffee on their laptop, we will replace it. NOT TRUE. We also will tell customers that the laptop warranty covers batteries, so if the battery dies, we will replace it, free. This is a total lie. If you read the fine print in the pamphlets we have, it says it does not cover batteries.
It depends on the employee. I personally will not lie to sell a plan. An accidental damage plan should cover water damage.
22. It is totally 100% true that the CIPS program and the new ASP (I worked under both) did push the sales of attachments (cable, ink, paper). What the author of this article forgot to mention is how much money Staples makes off of USB cables. Staples will buy a 25-foot “gold” usb ” 2.0″ cable for $2.83/cents as of 2006. We charge $24.99. This is why we push cables. You can buy the same cable at Wal-Mart or Target or Kmart for under $10.
The cables are a ripoff. $21 for a 6 foot, 25 for a 7′ “gold plated” cable, 30 for a 11, and 35 for a 15′
23. Staples employees also LIE to get you to buy cables! Some of the printers (Brother) come with a cable, and we will say it does not, unless a customer notices it on the box. We will also tell a customer that their old USB cable will not work because it is probably a USB 1.0 or 1.1 cable, incompatible w/ USB 2.0. THIS IS A BOLD-FACED LIE. USB CABLES ARE USB CABLES! There is no 1.1 1.0 or 2.0 cable, its only the components that have this, not the cables. I have single-handedly sold over 200 cables to unknowing customers. Managers force employees to say this, and they know its a lie too.
I have NEVER seen a printer with a cable in the box in the year that I have worked at Staples.
24. TIP: If you are shopping at Staples for a computer and would like to get a nice discount, find a floor model that is on “clearance”. Ask to buy it and demand 15% off. The manager has the ability to drop the price by 15% but will only do so when you buy a warranty, usually. Buy the warranty. Then leave the store and the next day drive back and bring in your receipt and ask them to return the warranty. You will get your money back and keep the 15% savings. You could also go to any other Staples store and return the warranty, so if you are uncomfortable going back to that store and seeing the same manager, go to another Staples in your area.
Up to 20% off actually.
25. You may wonder why Staples employees will lie so much to get you to buy accessories and service plans. We are not paid on commission, we don’t even see a dime of any sale we make. The incentive most employees have to sell these things is so they do not get moved from electronics department to furniture or office supplies, which are much more boring. Managers WILL threaten to move you if you do not sell.
This is true. You do not have to lie though. As long as you attempt to sell and get a few sales there is very little pressure.
26. TIP: Staples stores will get hell if they receive negative feedback for a particular store. If you are dissatisfied with your experience at staples, or discover that you have been lied to, file a corporate complaint. Call 1-800-3STAPLE (1-800-378-2753) and tell them you want to file a corporate complaint against a store, and they will direct you to it. This will cause the person you report to, to send it in email to the offending store and this will cause chaos for a day or two. Do this enough and the manager will be replaced.
The managers pretty much never get in trouble. The associate will take the heat for any complaint.
Sounds like some of you work/ed at really crappy stores. I have worked for a Staples in Canada for over three years and I can honestly say that my store doesn’t work like that. We try to be as honest and helpful as possible, even if we end up losing a sale. Also we have NO COUPONS in the safe! We bend over backward for customers who actually deserve it, the more you complain about ridiculous things the less we want to help you. We can’t be the only good store around!
As a current Sales Manager, I know that in my area, Sales Managers lie about the stock of an item that would be in lockup and only accessible to Sales Managers unless the technology item is moving out of the store with attachments. Usually the associates will get interrogated about what’s being sold with the technology item, before the Manager will be willing to actually go retrieve it. Different stores have different items locked up, but sometimes associates themselves, through loyalty to the company or pressure for loss of hours or loss of job, will outright lie and tell customers that the item is not in stock.
A word of advice is to always have the item ordered online. If you absolutely must have it right then, ask the associate to do a SKU or item # check on the item to let you know which stores have it. Some stores will have a sense of comraderie to other stores and will either call the other store to let them know that a customer is coming unwilling to buy attachments or just tell you that no one currently has the item in stock.
All Staples.com orders done through the store do not count against their sales metrics (ASP) so there is no pressure to attach to your sale there, even if the associate has to help you through the staples.com sale.
Most managers will only do a save the sale either upon request (if they don’t feel like lying) or if the sale is a high margin one (attachments).
Writing the company (via email or phone call) is the best way to get anything done in the customer’s favor, with Staples. If you were told an item was not in stock, made a trip to another store, did another SKU check on the original store and it DID in fact show to have a quantity greater than 1 in stock (floor display model, where applicable), chances are you were lied to by the store associates/managers and you should write to the company to let them know. Eventually action will be taken to rectify this.
I never shop for big technology in a store; I do a lot of research online, go to the store to see it in action, and then order it online, because it’s just not wise to have someone fetch you an item when their job is on the line if you are not spending money in their favor. Base prices for items do not cover the cost of labor on the retailer’s part.
If you sign an associate s book you know that this is confidential information and you must not share THIS ,it can cost your JOB !!! I this period of crisis ratter not lose it ,it hurt the pocket and other personal staff/car house !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I have some good info, if you ask a associate or know someone that works there. Staples issues a weekly sign batch that has dirt cheap computer pricing for all clearance models a day before they become active. I got my computer that was priced for $649 for $280 by doing this.
Hmm.. Staples associates and managers cannot stop you from stealing even if they see you doing it. You can set the alarm off walking out the door they cannot stop you if you keep walking. We are TOLD to let you steal and can be fired if we try to stop you.
Technical Service plans are pieces of shit and we are pressured to make the sale. Ringing in and signing up rewards cards are a key part of being a associate and we are pressured to sign you up, sometimes even lying to you.
If we are out of stock on a item and the customer is not buying any attachments than 9 times out of 10 we will not do a save the sale. The only time we will offer a save the sale is when the store is making good $$$ in attachments.
Beware of tech associates, they are trained and encouraged to sell you single packs of ink (look at the HP 02 series) over combo packs even though it could save you $30.
Associates are heavily pressured to sell Service Plans and Product Replacement plans. Beware.
Most staples stores do not have cameras, go in look around if you don’t see any than they don’t have them.
If you have the time and the energy head to the dumpster before trash day. Our inventory managers must “destroy everything” when in most cases they jsut toss them out. You can get free cables, DVDs, headphones, and GPS units.
The security code on most staples laptop alarms systems are the store number. U can look that up on the staples website.
I’ve worked at Staples for three years. A lot of what’s said here is absolutely true, but a lot of it has exceptions in certain areas. I work in a Staples up north that has been pretty renowned for high customer service rates and the like. I for one like my managers and know that we have never been encouraged to lie to customers. Managers do bend over backwards when it comes to customer needs, but not all the time. I don’t think anyone has mentioned it, but you *cannot* return opened software, even within the 14 days after you bought it like typical returns in the electronics department. We can switch it out for the same product, but opened software is like an auto-prompt for the manager to walk over and make sure everything is okay (as typically, customers get very angry when we say we can’t return it). Be aware that we make exceptions to this generally REALLY rarely. “I didn’t like the software” NEVER cuts it. This counts for computer games too.
Our Copy Center never charges $2 conversion fees.
If your job was done wrong in the Copy Center, don’t yell or swear out the associates. Half the time, the person handing your job over didn’t even DO it; it might have been finished the night before and left under the counter to be picked up. Don’t yell at us. Tell us what we did wrong and we’ll do it over again, and yes, we will give it to you free. There are signs up in the Copy Center with the 100% satisfied guarantee; they should be rather hard to hide. In the past months Staples has issued some kinks in our jobtaking system for the copy center, including a need to talk the complete job over with you and/or get a proof out. If you like the proof, we have you sign it — and that is exactly what you get. If you don’t like it, you don’t get it redone because you approved the proof. Be wary of this.
Staples associates are overworked and underpaid, but even considering this, we do a pretty good job taking care of our customers. Our managers are usually good people; talk to them if you have a complaint, not to the cashier (who can’t do anything but call over a manager). If you’re considering working there, think hard about it. Most new associates, from what I’ve seen, last about 2-3 months before quitting for whatever reason. Depending on your store, it’ll either suck or be fine, so if you get hired, at least give yourself enough time to decide which it is.
I don’t know how long it has been since you have been in staples…but most easytech’s including myself, If you bring in your computer or electronic we will call “assurant” our ESP (extended service plan) for you,the customer. We have a special number that takes directly to escalation AKA Immediate problem solvers, or level 2 support, if the associate is assertive like i am he basically tells them what he wants for the customer and doesn’t take no for an answer. They will get what the want…
People say we screw them over with the ESP (service plans) but seriously the crap that gets manufactured and sent to retail stores in general will usually break with in 2 to 3 years. Plus the ESP that we sell allows or gives (at least our store) the ok touch and try to figure out whats wrong with your device. When people bring in Laptops 6 months old and say they need me to help them, I look it over quick and see if i can find a quick solution if not i ask if they purchased a service plan. If they didn’t, well thats the end of that, i give them the computer manufacturer’s customer service number and tell them to call them , tell them to have a good day and also mention that a diagnostic costs 69.99 and i can do that for them if they don’t want to spend 2hr talking to some guy in India, and go on to the next customer. If they bought the service plan I take in their computer call assurant if they tell me it is still under manufacturer’s warranty i call have the customer go to lunch or run some errand while i call the manufacturer for them.
Basically at my store buying a service plan gives you complete and total domination of my time at work. And if i have a problem with the ESP provider i get there name and id# and my manager gives it to his boss who calls his contact manager at assurant and makes sure that this employee is trained better which usually means either termination or threat of termination.
So basically of you live in near my store buy a service plan, me and my manager’s bend over back-wards in the name of customer service.
Hello,
I have worked for Staples for alittle over 7 months and have just left the job a month ago. Most of these tips are still valid, and you should take advantage of as much as you can get.
I was an Easy-Tech Sales man, worked copy center, register and sales support for the so called new BEST TECH sales model. The new model makes us dig deep get to know the person, and exploit everything you say to buy, and attach items. We are told to lie to customers, as long as we make sales the customer doesn’t matter, if you walk out, so what there will be someone else to buy the item. If you try to buy a computer without attachments good luck, most of the time we are not allow by the manager to sell the computer without something attached to it. No attachment we don;t have the computer and are encouraged to get you to shop else where rather then take a hit to out numbers.
We have a new business consultant in every best tech store, the one in my store is a really nice guy, but uses that to take advantage of you, he will wear you down with needless talk and will not let up until you walk up to the register with an item in hand.
This guy has told me many times that I’m only there to sell, not customer service. If you think we are being nice and helping you, think twice before you commit to buy, make sure its what you need not what they want to sell you. We DON’T get a thing for selling you items, other then hours, and keeping our jobs. You don’t sell $2500 a week in plans and tech you lose your job. That’s why we come on so strong.
The items they will try to sell make sense, and look like a good deal, but most of the time they are not needed nor required to run your computer.
Staples was the worst company I have worked for in my 15 years in retail, not because of the customers or the hard days, but because of ruthless sales tactics that make us feel a little worse about our selves at the end of the day.
I’m not sure if this information is out of date or not but some of it is just wrong. As a staples employee I can honestly tell you that my coworkers and I have never been encouraged to lie. As for some of the price problems customers might have Staples does have a price match policy, bring in proof of the same item lower elsewhere ,like a web printout or flyer, Staples will match it, we even except other retailers coupons Our 100% satisfaction for customers isn’t a secret it’s writen on the back of every recipe, and it’s not just for the Copy center but for all Staples brand products, just bring it back, all Staples products are good for a lifetime. It is certainly not a Staples policy to lower prices if a service plan is bought or lie about coupons. Employees most certainlt are not told to lie to customers but are there to help sell you what you may need, bottom line they’re there to help you not only get what you want but make you the customer happy, so just talk to them in detail and they can help you find the best deal for what you need. If you want to know what you can do to save it’s as easy as asking an employee, after all it’s our goal to attract repeat customers, by making sure your happy with us you won’t go elsewhere right?!
From a Staples Associate
I have been in almost every associate position at Staples. I have been an Electronics Associate, Office Supplies Associate, Resident Easy Tech, and am currently the supervisor of the Copy and Print Center, known as the CPC Expert.
First I just wanted to say that many of the things you posted DO NOT apply to all stores. In our District (District 5) you would get fired for knowingly providing false information to customers. When I was in electronics, customers LOVED me, because they kinda felt like I was on their side, and I was. I was totally honest with them, and told them the items they needed and didn’t need. The CIPS you talked about, is an example. Most printers DO NOT come with a cable so that one was normally easy. Some printers do come with full cartridges, mostly HP printers, however many do not. I was always honest with customers about what they were getting, but most bought ink anyways because they knew they were going to run out. Suggesting optional “Photo Black” cartridges we’re a possibility as well. Paper was normally an easy well too. The Extended Service Plan was a bit harder sometimes. At my store I sold almost twice the number of plans than anyone else, but its because I was honest with customer. You have to realize WHY Staples pushes plans so much. I went around with a Scan Gun one day and was just curiously looking at the profit margin on items. I was Shocked to learn that on some computers and printers we make so little profit, that by the time the employee carries it to the front, the profit is eaten up by the labor involved to ring it up. I’m talking less than a dollar profit. On a PC or Printer sale, ALL the profit comes from attachment selling.
When you said that plans do not start on Day of Purchase that is only partially true at best. The ESPs start on DAY ONE. Those are the ones that cover Computers, Printers, MP3 players and the like. Those start on day one and include 24/7 tech support for the term of the plan. They cover repair and replacement of your item. For items that might get accidentally damaged, like laptops, there are plans that can be purchased that WILL cover that. The plans that DO NOT start on day of purchase are PRP’s or Product Replace Plans. Those cover other electronics items like shredders, networking equipment, webcams, mice, keyboards, graphics cards etc. I had very little trouble selling those plans. And actually they are a pretty good deal. Most of those plans are less than 19.99 and some are less than $5. Well worth it when a year and a half from now your shredder stops working or your router goes out. I would always tell people “Statistically you’ll never need this plan but for $7.99 you’ll have the peace of mind knowing that if it goes out we’ll replace it.” For those a cash card is issued for the FULL price you paid for the item NEW.” Those do not start from day 1. They start when the manufacturers replacement warranty expires. This is different than a limited warranty. Often, products will have a 90 day replacement warranty that totally covers the item and THEN have a 6-month or 1-year LIMITED warranty that covers manufacturer defects only. What we tell people is, If you purchase this PRP you’ll be totally covered from day 1 for 2 years, which is true. A couple months of that 2 years is covered by the manufacturer and the rest is covered by us.
My biggest peeve about your post is some of the things you suggest about the Copy Center. Yes, we DO offer a 100% product guarantee, but this is in place to insure that customer orders are done right the first time. This is not something that customers should abuse. We all know that NOTHING is truly perfect, and nit-picking an order to death just so you can get it for free is only benefiting you at others expense. Most people in the copy center make minimum wage and they have to answer to corporate about things like that. When you abuse the system to get something for free, remember that someone, somewhere has to pay for it; whether it be the company, which may eventually end the policy because of abuse, or whether it be me by loss of bonuses (which are not a lot and quite infrequent), or by loss of employment.
Staples rewards ARE NOT A SCAM. This one really blows my mind. You sign up for a FREE rewards account, and then you get 10% back on all your ink, paper, and copy center purchases. It can really add up if you’re a frequent shopper at Staples, as many office buyers are. Its not uncommon at all for people to bring in $20-40 rewards checks. You can also bring in up to 10 ink cartridges a month for $2 each, 20 if you’re a premier member. That’s a pretty good deal if you ask me. You can complain that we went down from 20% to 10% on copy center items all you want, but the truth is the company doesn’t HAVE to offer anything. We also have the Business Discount Program in the Copy Center now, so if you are planning on spending at least a $1,000 on print services we can sign you up for free, and you get additional savings. If you sign up not only do you get 10% back in rewards but you also get either 10% or 20% off instantly at the register. I think some people just like to complain.