Help Big Poppa...Want your opinion

[Big Poppa]

As you know Guitar Center is the largest company in the music business. Let me start by this thread is not about whether you like or hate Guitar Center. I want a mature and honest evaluation of a section of their web stie...Your opinions may not seem important but they give me input that I need.

I REALLY NEED THIS>>>>>>>>

Remember...this isn't open season on Guitar Center...We will moderate anything that gets weird. Love em or hate them understand that without them we would be done. If they fall short in your views of our representation understand that there are many companies like us that could not make it without them. So if you like us.....

Simple.

Go to Guitar Center: Musical Instruments - Guitars, Bass, Drums, Amps & DJ and click on "find and expert" Let me know if this encourages you to shop. Let me know if the profile matches the 'expert' you deal with. Let me know if the stores mission and profile matches the experience (this is where we will be modding if it gets ugly) Rate this feature as a tool for you to decide where and who to shop with.....let me know what you think...Does this humanize the experience? Is it self serving for the associate? does it do anything to motivate you? Does it tell you where to go at Guitar Center if you want to talk Music Man?

The very top people at Guitar Center are watching. Show them how balanced and intelligent you are.

Thanks I appreciate it.....I have my motives which I will share with you after this runs awhile.

 

[ozzyrules]

I'm on it now BP. This will be interesting and keep in mind,criticism is constructive.......... We all want EBMM to benefit & flourish.
As I viewed the link, I found no "find and expert". I did however find a tab entitled "store experts". When I clicked on it, it took me to the Hollywood store and offered several employees to choose from. I'm not sure which ones are actually "experts" on EBMM? I do know, however, that Robbie Gustin @ GC Dallas is an EBMM expert. This is based on my personal dealings with him. I live in the New Orleans area and I choose not to deal with locals in Baton Rouge & New Orleans based on prior experiences with their very limited knowledge base regarding Music Man. If the selection tab was a dropdown tab that offered experts on specific brand, I believe it would be more helpful. I hope this provides some insight.

 

[tonelover]

It doesn't do a thing for me. Despite the listed credentials I know that the "expert" could be a truly knowledgable employee or a new kid. Regardless, when shopping, I usually know enough about what I am looking for such that even if they do have an expert, he/she isn't likely to tell me anything I don't already know. I know how to find things on their website and I know how to call when I have questions. I don't have faith that asking for one of their "experts" is going to get me improved results. All I want when I deal with GC is a helpful employee who can get the deal done in a smooth, helpful and friendly manner.

When pre-ordering the Axis tributes, some people you'd call had no idea about them nor what to do about it. The guy I called hadn't heard about them but immediately knew exactly who at Ernie Ball to call and find out. Within an hour I had a call back and my order placed. He called me when they left the distribution center and the day they arrived at the store for me to pick up. That person, Chris Shelton, is not listed as an expert on the Nashua, NH store where I bought them but I'd ask for him again before their listed experts. I never noticed the "find an expert" thing before, and now knowing it is there, I likely won't click on it again. It simply does not add any value to the shopping experience for me.

 

[tommyindelaware]

well i think it's very cool. i recently decided to look into digital recording after decades of resisting it due to the giant learning curves that come and go in this arena. however, after talking once or twice w/ the expert daniel"agent" smith in the wilmington store a couple of times now i popped on logic express and currently moving forward to assembling my killer little mini recording setup here at home.
i don't expect every employee in the whole store to be an expert. but i shop there first because i know there is an actual expert to be found if i need them . this is also why i dump a crapload of doe at the apple store. having access to extremely knowledgeable salespeople makes me comfortable spending my very hard earned doe.

 

[yan12]

I concur with tonelover. It does nothing special for me and in fact almost sets up and adversarial situation because if someone is labeled an "expert", you may assume there are qualifications that have been met to earn the title. You expect the expert to know more than the person seeking help the majority of the time. My two local experts (in guitars) are very sharp on certain brand names, not so much on EBMM at the moment. I have had various types of experiences with GC, mostly positive. I think training materials are essential for these experts, IE; at least provide an online training class of an hour or so with a short quiz! A solid rosewood neck does not always constitute a BFR, etc. I may be splitting hairs but a savvy customer does not need the expert opinion or guidance. A novice may benefit.
A side note is all my GC contacts think very highly of EBMM products and are very willing to pick up the phone and make a call to get the right answer. I have found building relationships with sales associates (human experience) in any industry is critical to feel comfortable when making a purchase...I do it with all my customers! I applaud GC for wanting to build relationships and tackling that issue, but their employee turnover ratio does not bode well for long lasting servicing of returning clientele.
BP, thanks for striving to make things better all the time. I admire your ethic as much as your product.

 

[Big Poppa]

this is EXACTLY what Im lloking for very thoughtful.

 

[dwells]

only one thing to me, looks like to much information to go through just to buy and look at guitars-" i just wanna buy a guitar" i dont think most younger guys would be really motivated by this because it takes time to read and digest what its actual point is.
just a thought
im not sure myself i would use this but i live in australia haha

 

[jakedawgwhite88]

In all honesty I think the turn over rate is important as well as a sales associate's length of time selling various instruments( ie brands or types) , to give a broad amount of knowledge and ideas that intern help the customer. The closest guitar center is about 2.5 hours away and the first time I visited i wasn't impressed at all. I was a freshman in a music program seeking to play some fine instruments to try out some sig pickups (and new nothing of the grandeur of ernie ball either lol) I asked for a few things and was faced with a blank stare several times. As time has gone on, joined a band, the band visits together getting needed things when we play near there, the sales associates know who I am, who I play for, some have seen me play, and are now seem more apt to help. Now the amount of knowledge I have attained since that first visit has compounded leaps and bounds, but I think these sales experts are growing too, some of them the same age I am or younger. If they are there for a job during school , starving musician, whatever lol, they need to give the knowledge they have to those who need it, but when encountering a musician of 30+ years they need to listen and take notes, check out some of those smaller companies that these older music warriors have encountered over the years and expand their territory.

I can say that in the time I've visited my local gc, the guys definitely know that I wear eb tshirts in there for a reason. LOL I was just having a conversation with a tech the other day. New guy but totally experienced in the field and has been playing a long time and he had many good things to say about ernie ball. (he had no clue what the gamechanger was, but I fully informed him and he was ecstatic to go home and check it out LOL)

To conclude ....hmm (I thought I was done writing essays when I graduated this december lol) anyways . To conclude I look at the list of experts and can pick out some that know more than others, but that is because I have a relationship with some of them and know. Otherwise there would be no knowing what knowledge they have because their profiles are kinda similar. (I really hope I looked at the right thing bp LOL) I hope many associates take the time to research on their own and listen to customers and not just pay attention to who has the most legendary status and uses that to market. On a side note 50 years of eb is pretty cool and I hope this company continues to plant its feet and hold fast. I'm seeing more ads and more eb in places I haven't seen and the techs at gc notice it too. so "thats all I have to say about that" (in my best forrest gump impersonation LOL)

 

[jvh]

I concur with tonelover and yan12... I'm not really going to comment much on gc. I typically buy based on what I read on forums from consumers/musicians like myself... They have no stake in whether I buy the product or not so they are not biased. If I want to know about say an ebmm product I'll come to this forum or another forum like rig talk and then make an educated buy from these forums. I also typically buy out of state to avoid sales tax. Typically I'll buy from amazon or musicians friend(another gc company). MF is a less pressured environment and will give me better prices cause they don't work off commission so I save sales tax and commission "tax". So basically to sum it up I have no need for an expert. I probably strayed from the topic, but anyways those are my thoughts.

 

[brokenvail]

Unfortunately this feature would not help me at all. I am a regular at my GC and know the whole staff. Their knowledge of EBMM is very poor. They actually call me to educate them on EB when new models arrive ect. Most of them are very nice guys and are willing to work with you when it is possible but they don't have the knowledge (or maybe I should say that don't have new knowledge unless I update them)

 

[ozzyrules]

JVH,
Excellent points. The real experts occupy this forum. I learn from this venue, then go to y local GC and am perplexed at how much they listen to what I have to say.

 

[FantasyMetal]

The only thing I have to add to this is that Music Man knowledge in the Portland store is practically non-existent. I'm pretty sure I'm the only person whose ever even asked for a Music Man guitar there, so I wouldn't rely on them as "experts." I've basically used GC's return policy to do my own product research (i.e. buy it from another store online and if I don't like it, then I return it) and it has worked out pretty well so far. The only disadvantage is that when I visit that GC location I never get to take a guitar home that day.

 

[tonelover]

I might add that although I still probably wouldn't pay the feature any attention, it could be more useful if their expert credentials specifically listed manufacturers they were intimately familiar with. Saying that this guy is an expert in guitars, or drums doesn't help. If they took the time to "train" a person on a manufacturer's catalog and the person had some direct contacts with the manufacturer so I could rely on getting hard answers promptly and accurately, I suppose I might be more likely to want to talk to them if I really needed some help. But it's pretty rare that I ever need them in that capacity.

 

[lumberjack]

I think it's a great idea, as long as it can be executed properly. I checked out some of the experts in the Buffalo store. It's the closest store to Toronto. I don't necessarily want someones musical tastes. It's alright to read about there background and what got them into guitar, drums etc. But I want to read about what product lines they are knowledgable about. I find it incredibly frustrating when I go into box stores up here like Long & McQuade (our version on Guitar Center but no where near as big) And no one has a clue what I'm talking about and some don't even want to find out the information for you. That's why I prefer going to the smaller stores that are dealers for Music Man. They are more knowledgeable and will take the time to find out info for you.

I'm going to use the guitar dept as an example. If an employee is working part time at GC, I guess I don't expect them to have the widespread knowledge base. The chances of them staying there for the long haul are probably low. But if you work in the guitar dept full time. Learn as much about the product lines as you can. I mean, guitars and amps are your job. I realize that the amount of guitar product lines GC carries must be mind numbing but get the managers to ask their staff what products they are passionate about. This guy is really into Music Man and Gibson. Another guy is into PRS and Marshall and Blackstar. The guy that is into Music Man is the person I'm going to want to talk to.

I'd actually like to see a company wide listing. Not necessarily the website directing you to the store closest to were you live. When you go to the expert section I'd like to see a list of companies. I'll click on Music Man, and hopefully I'll get a list of people that are into their products. And more importantly, play their products. Then I can decide who I want to get in touch with. And it doesn't really matter what store the expert is at. With free shipping and incentives like that, I can chose which store I want to deal with.

As an example, there were 2 occasions when I would have bought from a specific employee and store. One was when limited GC models were at the Dallas guitar show and the other was when the limited color Axis models were released. One of the employees from the Dallas store( I think) got onto the forums and introduced himself and told us to get in touch if we were interested in any of the guitars. He would take care of us. And based on the forumites who dealt with him, he was helpful, answered questions, and got the info that they needed. Here is a guy I'd want to deal with because he had knowledge about the product. Now was this employee trying to get a commission(is that how employees are paid) probably, but I'd rather see this guy get the commission cause he took care of us as opposed to someone who is getting the commission because he rang our purchase through the cash register. Sorry, I can't think of the employees name. I think Keith (Sweat) knows him. The name Robbie comes to mind.

Talking to someone that "knows their stuff" in definitely motivating. I watched a show up here called Guitar Picks. They interviewed two employees that worked in the "guitar vault" section of one of GC's stores. The topic was the vintage guitar market. The knew their stuff. Those are definitely two guys I'd like to sit down and talk with. They seemed to have a passion for the subject. And that passion will turn into sales

Scott

 

[GWDavis28]

As far as GC goes, I usually don't check their sites, but I must echo what the others have said, knowing who knows what brands and is the store expert in said brand would be key from my point of view. The concept is good for those that do research before they buy, but isn't the majority of buyer people who walk in from the street. So unless this data is posted in the stores as well, chances are the web site data will go put of data.

Glenn |B)

 

[koogie2k]

I clicked the store expert and found the one for Virginia Beach, Va. I happen to know most of the employees there. They have been there for quite a while too. The one employee I deal with I checked his profile. Very accurate and very true. IF I was a new shopper this could help me. I could see who all works there and have an idea of who I would need to talk to. I could simply specify who I wanted to talk to at the store by knowing a bit of their background. The people here at the Va. Beach store will help you, and if they can't, will find the employee that can. I happen to like that. My local GC is actually good in my opinion.

The only down side...not the employees fault...is the lack of EBMM guitars at this particular store. I feel like I am the only one who uses EBMM guitars...haha...Once in a blue I will get a call from them if a special order comes in...but...that is very rare. The one guy I deal with knows EBMM guitars and basses very well and we love to talk them up on my visits. My only guess is the lack of EBMM guitars is demand. No demand...why have it I suppose.

Bottom line...I like the tool. I think it helps. However, I am biased about my local GC. They have always been good to me and have always helped me with what I am after.

 

[dkannen]

I agree with everyone above- it is very hard to know what these guys (if they do indeed) specialize in, as ozzyrules said. I think it would be sick if under each person, there would be a list of brands that they specialize in, and in order to earn that title, they would have to take a small quiz, like yan12 suggested.

For example

John Doe
Specializes in:
Gibson
EBMM
Martin

Just a suggestion- if this was part of the website, I'd immediately start using the tool!

 

[DrKev]

So, I click on "Store Experts", I get an error message.

I click on "Find an Expert" further down the page and...

...I get to read some horrifically badly written bios of store's employees? Here is a real example...

"I first picked up a guitar when I was 14 years old. Countless hours, weeks and months were spent playing along with my parents Beatles records on a guitar my father won in a poker game aboard an aircraft carrier while serving in the Navy in the early 1970's."

And this helps me, how?

Some people writing in first person, some in third, no common style or focus, sometimes poor grammar and spelling. I think it all comes across as incoherent and amateurish.

One gal just wanted a part-time job six years ago and now she's store manager. Another guy's bio only mentions drums but yet he's "certified" in Guitars & Amps. They may both be fantastic at their jobs but I'm not starting with confidence.

Don't call it find an expert, because it degrades your experts. Just call it "find a store".

 

[roburado]

I could see this being useful for someone if they haven't dealt with a particular store before. GC would probably need to give more info about why so-and-so could be helpful.

It's not really useful for me regarding guitars, because I know whom to consult at the GC's in my area. Basically, it's one guy at a particular store. I looked at his profile, and it was really useless. It really didn't tell much. I know, though, that he's the most useful resource I have at a GC in my area. So, I talk to him. Unfortunately, the Internet is a better resource than he is. So, I consult the Internet before buying. I bring my iPhone to the store. Those are my primary sources of information when I deal with GC.

I would probably only use this feature to find a face and a name if I wanted something at a GC in a different part of the country (e.g., buying a used item). It does nothing for me locally.

 

[Astrofreq]

I found experts for the store in Albuquerque, so it works. If I had a question about ordering something and wanted a name to ask for, I suppose it would be useful. I honestly haven't spent time much at that store, simply because it is an hour away. I am a long time fan of GC, so I'm not trying to avoid them, it just isn't close.

The bigger picture is that I order 95% of my musical gear online, generally from places where I don't have to pay tax. Easily 95%. If I had a GC in Santa Fe (which isn't necessary), I would be more inclined to shop there. The times that I have been to the Albuquerque store, the staff has been top notch.

To the GC higher-ups, THANK YOU for adding the inventory of used gear to the web site. I look at that almost daily. Whenever I visit a different town, I often look up the used gear for that town to see if I want to check anything out.