Why Does Best Buy’s Customer Service Irk Me?

Perhaps I’m so accustomed to getting terrible customer service wherever I go that I’m just not prepared for the customer gushing that takes place at Best Buy.

At first, it’s appreciated, but it doesn’t take long to get eye-gougingly annoying. I think their associates have overdosed on customer service videos.

It all starts when I walk through the front door. The second I enter I’m greeted by an employee who innocently enough asks if I’m looking for anything in particular. No big deal, totally expected, and welcomed.

I never break stride and reply, “No, thank you, I know exactly what I want.”

I make it about 15 more feet before I’m confronted by another bubbly boy in blue. “Welcome to Best Buy! Can I help you find anything in particular?”

“No thanks, I’m good,” as I continue to stroll on by.

Another one. “No thank you.”

Then another one. “Nope, I’m all set.”

I feel like breaking out my Ted Striker re-enactment. You know the scene in Airplane, right? The one where he Kung Fu’s his way through a sea of do-gooders pimping flowers for the Church of Religious Consciousness?

As I meandered my way to the furthest nether regions of Best Buy I had to pass the camera kiosk. I know better than this but I made the mistake of making eye contact with a shelf. “Are you thinking about a video camera today?”

Ugh.

I realize that my annoyance with all this attention isn’t justified. It’s not like this guy saw me being accosted every fifteen feet and wanted to antagonize me on purpose. So I shelved my frustration and simply replied, “Oh, no, I’m just here to get a video game.”

He pointed me to the back of the store and I saw yet another sea of Best Buy employees that I’d have to navigate through. It’s not that I don’t appreciate all the gestures, I’m just not used to it. And by this point, every peppy employee was little more than an obstacle to me.

It became a game. I snaked around some printers to see how they’d react and I was met at the end of the aisle by a member of the Best Buy brigade asking if I needed help with my printing needs. I wanted to tattoo his forehead with a printer cartridge but realized it wasn’t his fault. It’s the policy.

Perhaps this is Best Buy’s attempt to redeem themselves after they were caught price-fixing or after they arrested a guy for paying in $2 bills. Regardless of the reason, I think they should update their policy from one of an all-out smarmy assault to a tiered approach system.

Here’s what I propose…

It’s genius! When a customer first enters, they are fair game. Go get ‘em.

But by the time customers reach the back of the store I think employees can safely assume that they have already been approached a few dozen times.

“If my feet are a walkin’, don’t come a blockin’.”

That’s my proposed motto. I won’t even ask for royalties if they use it.

All this said, I fully realize that the next time I really DO need help in Best Buy there won’t be a sales associate in sight.

Karma has a strange way of working like that.

For added measure, I redid their commercial. They can thank me later.