Do you haggle?

[lucy7]

This year we have decided to try and have a few holidays, just nip off for the odd week here and there (only one week at a time, as I can not leave my business for to long)

There is no way we can haggle on flights, so I decided to have a bash on holiday apartments instead.
I approached people who had the top end of apartments on offer, that showed none or hardly any dates booked on their calendar. I did it by e-mail and phone calls, I was amazed at how people were prepared to drop their advertised prices.

We are now going way at the end of the month to a 5 star two bedroomed penthouse apartment, with stunning views, all day sun on its two balconies, all for £225, a reduction of 50%!!

My husband says I was being cheeky, but now is happy that I dared do it!

I now think I have the haggling bug!

Does anyone else do it?
If so, what have been your sucesses?

[Hugh]

Every time on high ticket items - usually manage to get 10% - 25% off, sometimes nothing.

We are off to the Pelion this summer - the 4 bedroomed villa was advertised at 1800 Euros per week, with a 20% discount for the second week; we got it for 2000 Euros for the fortnight.

It never hurts to ask - if they say no, you are no worse off than before.

[Kymmy]

Yes, I haggle and barter all the time, whether it be at the car boot sale to an item in an electrical store...There's always a discount to be had especially when dealing with high priced goods

[zing_deleted]

I always try to get better prices on most things. Haggling I do in any situation where its possible to talk one on one with someone in charge. Obviously grocery shopping is out most of the time. I look online for the best online deals then go into shops and try to get them to match the deal. It does quite often work or for example I got a good deal for cash in Currys which I gather is something they tend not to do as much as they used to?

If a business offers me a price that leaves them with no profit then more fool them . I relate this to calling to get loyalty discounts from Virgin media for example

[Turkey Machine]

This year we have decided to try and have a few holidays, just nip off for the odd week here and there (only one week at a time, as I can not leave my business for to long)

There is no way we can barter on flights, so I decided to have a bash on holiday apartments instead.
I approached people who had the top end of apartments on offer, that showed none or hardly any dates booked on their calendar. I did it by e-mail and phone calls, I was amazed at how people were prepared to drop their advertised prices.

We are now going way at the end of the month to a 5 star two bedroomed penthouse apartment, with stunning views, all day sun on its two balconies, all for £225, a reduction of 50%!!

My husband says I was being cheeky, but now is happy that I dared do it!

I now think I have the bartering bug!

Does anyone else do it?
If so, what have been your sucesses?

If they're short for business, they'll take anything that comes, even if it means knocking down the price.

The last time I bartered with a person was in France in 1999/2000 on a trip to Paris with the school. My French teacher dared me to go and get a set of postcards knocked down from 10 Francs (remember them?) to something below that. Got them for 8 Francs (about 80p). :)

I make a point never to pay the same for a contract year after year, as you invariably end up paying more. Which is why I tell my friends and family to re-negotiate for things like Sky, BT, broadband, mobile phones etc. The last time I locked horns with somebody over paying for something was getting a phone repaired for a friend (Nokia E71, button pops out, various other intermittent hardware/software phone faults) in Gainsborough, but they weren't having any of it, til a knowledgeable friend who was with me quoted the Sales and Goods act (phone was 4 months old) and got something sorted out!

[Saaf_laandon_mo]

Is bartering not technically different to haggling. I thought to barter was to obtain an item in exchange another item. As opposed to haggling which is to get the item cheaper.

I enjoy haggling for the sake of it as well as to get a price reduction. Many years ago, on a holiday to Turkey,I haggled with a guy at a kebab stand over the price of a donner kebab. The 20 mins of haggling did work, but I had only saved about 10p when converting it all to sterling.

[lucy7]

Is bartering not technically different to haggling. I thought to barter was to obtain an item in exchange another item. As opposed to haggling which is to get the item cheaper.

I enjoy haggling for the sake of it as well as to get a price reduction. Many years ago, on a holiday to Turkey,I haggled with a guy at a kebab stand over the price of a donner kebab. The 20 mins of haggling did work, but I had only saved about 10p when converting it all to sterling.



Yea, your so right!
Stupid me!!

Can some one re-title it for me please, pretty please!:)

[Chris]

Yea, your so right!
Stupid me!!

Can some one re-title it for me please, pretty please!:)

Done. :)

And yes, I do.

[Kymmy]

Actually I do both (so editted my previous post)

We often do work in exchange for items/services... In this economic crisis it's stupid not to

[BenMcr]

I don't - but then I am rubbish at it!

Personally I think a company shouldn't be able to haggle on price - because they are already offering the best price they possibly can for what they sell!

[Kymmy]

Personally I think a company shouldn't be able to haggle on price - because they are already offering the best price they possibly can for what they sell!

Rubbish,

Extremely few companies ever offers thier items at minimum profit..

[Chris]

Personally I think a company shouldn't be able to haggle on price - because they are already offering the best price they possibly can for what they sell!

If you seriously believe this to be the case, you're a tad naive and quite possibly you get ripped off on a regular basis. ;)

[chrispuk2004]

Managed to get 200 Inclusive miles per day instead of 100 and extra miles at 30 cents per mile rather then 50 cents, on the Corvette C6 im hiring in vegas.

Wish I'd tried to haggle over more stuff stuff now ive read this thread!

[lucy7]

I don't - but then I am rubbish at it!

Personally I think a company shouldn't be able to haggle on price - because they are already offering the best price they possibly can for what they sell!



Its the nature of all good business men and women (and bad ones!) to haggle on a price really.

The services I offer are the highest I know for what my company does, but I can get that price as I offer a top notch service and my work never has to be checked up on, so actually that is saving the other companies money.

I was haggled with once, and as I did not want to lose the contract, I took a 25% reduction. I just hoped the word did not get out that I would work cheaper, it has not.....yet!

[superbiatch]

Its the nature of all good business men and women (and bad ones!) to haggle on a price really.

The services I offer are the highest I know for what my company does, but I can get that price as I offer a top notch service and my work never has to be checked up on, so actually that is saving the other companies money.

I was haggled with once, and as I did not want to lose the contract, I took a 25% reduction. I just hoped the word did not get out that I would work cheaper, it has not.....yet!

I suppose the aim is to not go too low that you're doing yourself out of income. Work out what is you ultimate lowest % and stick to it.

[joglynne]

I'm not too good at haggling, I have got money knocked off the odd car but that is an accepted practice so I can't claim any real success in that area but

I am a dab hand at bartering though.

So far this year I have managed to get our gardens maintained for the summer, our windows cleaned once a month for a year and had some decorating done all in exchange for the odd canvas. In fact our gardener ...doesn't that sound grand :D...now refuses to come into my work room in case he sees another canvas he can't resist. :D

[lucy7]

Now that all sounds really good!
I would love to do something like that too.

Thats how we did things in the very old days. We have a guy coming around tomorrow to quote for work on my house, a bit of rendering, carpentry in one of the bedrooms, I might try it out on him! ;):)

[superbiatch]

Now that all sounds really good!
I would love to do something like that too.

Thats how we did things in the very old days. We have a guy coming around tomorrow to quote for work on my house, a bit of rendering, carpentry in one of the bedrooms, I might try it out on him! ;):)

But what are you going to offer him Lucy?! :Sprint:

[lucy7]

But what are you going to offer him Lucy?! :Sprint:


There was nothing I could do for him that he wanted;):)

Awaiting the estimate!

[Stuart]

Personally I think a company shouldn't be able to haggle on price - because they are already offering the best price they possibly can for what they sell!

No they don't. Capitalism doesn't work like that. They offer the product for the highest price they think they can get away with. If someone comes up with a lower price, then they will lower their prices.

Do I haggle? Yes, if I can.

[zing_deleted]

I don't - but then I am rubbish at it!

Personally I think a company shouldn't be able to haggle on price - because they are already offering the best price they possibly can for what they sell!

Are you saying a company should sell at a fair price from the start then I agree

if you are saying they are selling at a fair price now then I dont

[Hugh]

Are you saying a company should sell at a fair price from the start then I agree

if you are saying they are selling at a fair price now then I dont
Zing, if your customers try to haggle with you, what is your response?

[zing_deleted]

Depends on if there is room for maneuver. I seriously do charge a low fee. If there is room then I will drop the price if there isnt then I say no I am not offended. Am am more likely to be reasonable for the poorer in the community and do particularly like sorting those who cant afford much to be able to get a computer and keep it working. Also a lot of people I help are quite old and all of them are a pleasure to help out so again I do not overcharge in fact a few of em give me a tip

[Raistlin]

I think zinglebarb's point is the key here.

I will always haggle and ask for a discount when I feel it's appropriate, and it's extremely rare for anybody to take offence. At the end of the day I will either get a slightly better price or I won't. I don't expect it, but it's nice when it happens.

I've actually ended up paying more than the initial price when haggling.

I asked for a discount, was told that I couldn't get one on the item I was buying at the price I was getting it for, I asked what else I would need to purchase at the same time to get a better overall deal. As it turned out I think I paid about £100 extra, but got something like £200 worth of extra goods which I would most likely have ended up buying at some stage in the future in any event. I classed that as a win, the sales person was happy because they got a slightly larger sale, everybody's happy :)

[Hugh]

Depends on if there is room for maneuver. I seriously do charge a low fee. If there is room then I will drop the price if there isnt then I say no I am not offended. Am am more likely to be reasonable for the poorer in the community and do particularly like sorting those who cant afford much to be able to get a computer and keep it working. Also a lot of people I help are quite old and all of them are a pleasure to help out so again I do not overcharge in fact a few of em give me a tip
Excellent answer, and excellent approach (imho).

[tweetypie/8]

This year we have decided to try and have a few holidays, just nip off for the odd week here and there (only one week at a time, as I can not leave my business for to long)

There is no way we can haggle on flights, so I decided to have a bash on holiday apartments instead.
I approached people who had the top end of apartments on offer, that showed none or hardly any dates booked on their calendar. I did it by e-mail and phone calls, I was amazed at how people were prepared to drop their advertised prices.

We are now going way at the end of the month to a 5 star two bedroomed penthouse apartment, with stunning views, all day sun on its two balconies, all for £225, a reduction of 50%!!

My husband says I was being cheeky, but now is happy that I dared do it!

I now think I have the haggling bug!

Does anyone else do it?
If so, what have been your sucesses?

good on you lucy ;) i have never paid the full whack in my life,i always start at the minimum 10% off and take it from there keep it up.:tu:

[Caff]

Blue Man Group... tickets bought by a friend for the NIA Brum... hmmm - it's timing: you want best seats - be quick and pay for exactly what you want... or choose the route of bought secured excellent places via trusted ticket resalers,or indeed, very vague places at an early date... or wait for those to be thrown back on sale at the venue/local newspaper sale at maybe half face value
It seems to depend on how much you want something and sometimes there's just no haggling. I think haggling just isn't the nature here. But it doesn't hurt to ask :D
It's all the same principle really... how much do you want what you want;)

[zing_deleted]

Blue Man Group... tickets bought by a friend for the NIA Brum... hmmm - it's timing: you want best seats - be quick and pay for exactly what you want... or choose the route of bought secured excellent places via trusted ticket resalers,or indeed, very vague places at an early date... or wait for those to be thrown back on sale at the venue/local newspaper sale at maybe half face value
It seems to depend on how much you want something and sometimes there's just no haggling. I think haggling just isn't the nature here. But it doesn't hurt to ask :D
It's all the same principle really... how much do you want what you want;)

Its a recession its a buyers market so in fact its how much do they want to sell the product. Even when the country isnt in trouble in a competitive market its still the same. A concert is something else because demand tends to be greater than supply specially for the better seats. Its where supply is greater than demand you have a chance

[Halcyon]

I sometimes wonder about who lives on my street as apart from my next door neighbour I don't know anyone else.
Imagine if we knew everyone on our street. There may be a doctor, a builder, a cook, etc.
If we each helped each other out doing favours we wouldnt have to pay crazy prices and everyone would gain.

[Rockabilly Spike]

for anyone wanting to try haggling as DSG stores (Currys/PCW), we have an overall 1% discount level for the day, week and 4 week period.
its supposed to be for non pristine items & genuine price matches.
DSGi will price match and give you 10% of the difference on the same item found in any high street store. not an net only company.

thats it.

the only way other than the price promise you might get something knocked off, is if its last one on display, been opened and returned as non faulty or say if something is out of stock and you want to order it anyways.

all discount is done via the sales colleague and the manager. not the customer bypassing the sales people and just asking the manager for discount for no reason.

best thing is go in with print outs of what you've seen elsewhere, but it must be available from a high street shop.
talk to the sales person, show them what you got and see what they can do.
they'll go clear it with the manager.

if you approach a store manager and just ask for discount on something outright, its not gonna fly.

overall-be nice about it.
don't expect discount on something quite low priced such as a cheap nasty £299 laptop.

its supposed to be haggling, such as "if I take xxx, can you do zzz at a lower price?"
not "I'm buying stuff, do it cheaper or I'll leave"
there has to be an incentive for both sides.

theres no commission anymore, so thats a card that won't play anymore. I've had loads of people ask me how much I'll make off their sale. normally i just look at my watch and quote them around 30mins of standard pay.
then say but I woulda got that whether they bought something or not cos we just get paid by the hour, not by the sale.

like I said, be nice. get into a conversation. please don't open your conversation with questions like "what discount will you do for cash?" or "is that your best price?" cos all that makes us want to do is not sell you anything.

in the end, we don't mind a bit of bartering too, but its a store not an auction.
head office puts the ticket price on there for a reason.

[Raistlin]

I wanted to buy a TV from Currys the other weekend. The only one they had was the one that was on the shop floor, and which had therefore obviously been on display and constantly switch on and buggered around with for 7 days a week.

I spoke nicely to the assistant, said that I was quite happy to take the one that they had in stock on display, and asked if there was anything at all they could do on the price or if they were able to do me any sort of a deal at all for buying the TV with the extra warranty cover.

The answer was 'no'. No conversation, no counter offer, no empathy - just a flat out 'no'.

I smiled politely, thanked the assistant for their time, and went off and bought the same TV elsewhere.

[zing_deleted]

for anyone wanting to try haggling as DSG stores (Currys/PCW), we have an overall 1% discount level for the day, week and 4 week period.
its supposed to be for non pristine items & genuine price matches.
DSGi will price match and give you 10% of the difference on the same item found in any high street store. not an net only company.

thats it.

the only way other than the price promise you might get something knocked off, is if its last one on display, been opened and returned as non faulty or say if something is out of stock and you want to order it anyways.

all discount is done via the sales colleague and the manager. not the customer bypassing the sales people and just asking the manager for discount for no reason.

best thing is go in with print outs of what you've seen elsewhere, but it must be available from a high street shop.
talk to the sales person, show them what you got and see what they can do.
they'll go clear it with the manager.

if you approach a store manager and just ask for discount on something outright, its not gonna fly.

overall-be nice about it.
don't expect discount on something quite low priced such as a cheap nasty £299 laptop.

its supposed to be haggling, such as "if I take xxx, can you do zzz at a lower price?"
not "I'm buying stuff, do it cheaper or I'll leave"
there has to be an incentive for both sides.

theres no commission anymore, so thats a card that won't play anymore. I've had loads of people ask me how much I'll make off their sale. normally i just look at my watch and quote them around 30mins of standard pay.
then say but I woulda got that whether they bought something or not cos we just get paid by the hour, not by the sale.

like I said, be nice. get into a conversation. please don't open your conversation with questions like "what discount will you do for cash?" or "is that your best price?" cos all that makes us want to do is not sell you anything.

in the end, we don't mind a bit of bartering too, but its a store not an auction.
head office puts the ticket price on there for a reason.

Im sure your gaffers are so proud of you ;) did you miss the concept of a retail market or what hehehehehehe :D

[Rockabilly Spike]

no i didnt i've been in retail since before my 20s (am 32).
but i've found that if people are nice and get into an actual conversation, the asking for discount or haggling comes as a softer blow.
just throwing it out there before you've even said anything else to a sales person, just gets their back up.

as for Rob M, sorry you couldnt get what you wanted.
generally the best time for getting discount is at the start of the day, week or month when none has really been done.
if a store goes over the allotted level of 1%, they're in some serious trouble.

[Raistlin]

but i've found that if people are nice and get into an actual conversation, the asking for discount or haggling comes as a softer blow.
just throwing it out there before you've even said anything else to a sales person, just gets their back up.

I'll agree with that, my first few jobs were all in sales - the people that got the best detail were those that I got on best with throughout the whole transaction. If they were polite, pleasant, and friendly (as opposed to rude, ignorant, and demanding) then their chances of receiving a discount (assuming I was in a position to offer one) went up massively. There were actually occasions where I offered an additional discount without people having to ask for it - those were normally times when I thought they would probably come back at a later date and I wanted them to come back and spend their money with me rather than one of my colleagues.

as for Rob M, sorry you couldnt get what you wanted.
generally the best time for getting discount is at the start of the day, week or month when none has really been done.
if a store goes over the allotted level of 1%, they're in some serious trouble.

No need for apologies, I did get what I wanted (a television) and I got it at a price I was prepared to pay (the asking price) - the discount I was after was just something that would have been nice to have, it wasn't a requirement of the final goal. At the end of the day the staff at that store had a job to do, and rules to do it within, and I'm sure that's what they were doing - can't really argue with them for that.

[Halcyon]

I wanted to buy a TV from Currys the other weekend. The only one they had was the one that was on the shop floor, and which had therefore obviously been on display and constantly switch on and buggered around with for 7 days a week.




I wonder what planet some sales people are on sometimes.
So they wanted to charge you the same price of a brand new unopened TV that has never been used when the one you were buying was opened, had been used, and on the shop floor.
:confused: How they can think it is the same as a brand new un-opened TV is crazy.

[Saaf_laandon_mo]

I wonder what planet some sales people are on sometimes.
So they wanted to charge you the same price of a brand new unopened TV that has never been used when the one you were buying was opened, had been used, and on the shop floor.
:confused: How they can think it is the same as a brand new un-opened TV is crazy.

A similar thing happened with me. I reserveded a stereo online from Halfords, which connects via a dedicated cable to an ipod. The store called me to tell me that the unit I reserved was the last in stock and didn't have a cable. I told them I'd take it without the cable, if they took away the price they normally charge for one separate, but the guy told me they had to return it as a faulty item. I don't understand the logic of that, as he told me the unit was in full working order.

I think haggling can prove to be a waste of time in the majority of high street stores, though you can be successful if you ask them to match a price.

[Rockabilly Spike]

I wonder what planet some sales people are on sometimes.
So they wanted to charge you the same price of a brand new unopened TV that has never been used when the one you were buying was opened, had been used, and on the shop floor.
:confused: How they can think it is the same as a brand new un-opened TV is crazy.

but you want to have tvs on the shop floor to look at and examine and mess around with?
so are the store or company just supposed to pay for them?
if tvs are going to last aslong as they are supposed to, 60,000 hours plus, then a few months on display is nothing.
if it wasnt pristine and had scratches etc, thats fair enough.
clothes are on display and have often been tried on, fruit is on display and handled by all sorts of people...do you ask for discount on your clothes or fruit cos they've been on display?

maybe the TV had been reduced to clear already.
maybe the store had reached its discount level for that week, or month.
I don't know the exact situation, but neither do you.

[zing_deleted]

but you want to have tvs on the shop floor to look at and examine and mess around with? 1
so are the store or company just supposed to pay for them? 2
if tvs are going to last aslong as they are supposed to, 60,000 hours plus, then a few months on display is nothing.
if it wasnt pristine and had scratches etc, thats fair enough.
clothes are on display and have often been tried on, fruit is on display and handled by all sorts of people...do you ask for discount on your clothes or fruit cos they've been on display?

maybe the TV had been reduced to clear already.3
maybe the store had reached its discount level for that week, or month.4
I don't know the exact situation, but neither do you.

1 yes
2 yes
3 it will say so
4 tough if its used its second hand you cant sell it full whack

[superbiatch]

1 yes
2 yes
3 it will say so
4 tough if its used its second hand you cant sell it full whack

I ordered a new suite from DFS the other day. They offered me the display one which has been on display for months, and they needed to keep it until 2nd July. I said yes, provided I got it at a reduced price - they knocked off £200 - RESULT!

I asked what would happen if it gets damaged or has been already (although i checked it over very carefully and considering its been sat on hundreds of times, there is no 'give' in the cushions or stitching). They told me it has to arrive in 'tip-top' condition and would have to rectify any damage.

I don't expect to pay full price for goods someone has been touching, sitting on, pressing buttons etc as this is 'used'.

[zing_deleted]

On a similar vein dvds and games that have been removed from there cases and shoved in a draw only to be handled by idiots who do not know how to handle a disc. If its open its second hand imo and should be sold as such :)

[Rockabilly Spike]

1 yes
2 yes
3 it will say so
4 tough if its used its second hand you cant sell it full whack

it generally ISNT sold at full whack. it'll have been reduced by head office if it IS the last one.
if its just the last one on display but other stores have them and so does the local warehouse, then one could be gotten from there.

but the company should pay for the display models?
maybe the manufacturer should just give them to us?

but as is so often the case now, the display model is just used for the customer who has no intention of buying from the store, they just wanna touch it, feel it, mess around, then go buy it from an internet store who don't have a shop, or sales people to employ, rent to payfor a high street premesis etc.

it'll get to the point where if there are shops, there are merely showrooms with one or two staff.

[Halcyon]

but you want to have tvs on the shop floor to look at and examine and mess around with?
so are the store or company just supposed to pay for them?
.

Yes stores should pay for demo units for their shop floors.
They can then sell them on but at a reduced price.
Although these TV's have thousands hours life these days, I want that to be in my living room, not some hours of my TV taken up from the shop.
Many of these TV's will have been on all day long, far longer than a user averages watching TV.
Even if the unit is in as new condition, I would still not pay full price due to it having been used constantly on for however many weeks or months.


As for haggling, I think everyone should have a go.

Last time I did it was when I bought some speakers. I got a full set of banana connectors to go with them for free.

---------- Post added at 12:45 ---------- Previous post was at 12:41 ----------

On a similar vein dvds and games that have been removed from there cases and shoved in a draw only to be handled by idiots who do not know how to handle a disc. If its open its second hand imo and should be sold as such :)

And that is the reason why I buy my DVD's online. They are 99% of the time all shrink wrapped and no one will have got into to them since they left the manufacturer.

[zing_deleted]

it generally ISNT sold at full whack. it'll have been reduced by head office if it IS the last one.
if its just the last one on display but other stores have them and so does the local warehouse, then one could be gotten from there.

but the company should pay for the display models?
maybe the manufacturer should just give them to us?

but as is so often the case now, the display model is just used for the customer who has no intention of buying from the store, they just wanna touch it, feel it, mess around, then go buy it from an internet store who don't have a shop, or sales people to employ, rent to payfor a high street premesis etc.

it'll get to the point where if there are shops, there are merely showrooms with one or two staff.


All the DSG group have online shops and often offer better prices than the branch so whats the beef? company in trouble is it? your job at risk? you seem quite hostile? whats your job title? you just sales staff or have a better position?

[rogerdraig]

I don't - but then I am rubbish at it!

Personally I think a company shouldn't be able to haggle on price - because they are already offering the best price they possibly can for what they sell!


lol

---------- Post added at 13:33 ---------- Previous post was at 13:20 ----------

it generally ISNT sold at full whack. it'll have been reduced by head office if it IS the last one.
if its just the last one on display but other stores have them and so does the local warehouse, then one could be gotten from there.

but the company should pay for the display models?
maybe the manufacturer should just give them to us?

but as is so often the case now, the display model is just used for the customer who has no intention of buying from the store, they just wanna touch it, feel it, mess around, then go buy it from an internet store who don't have a shop, or sales people to employ, rent to payfor a high street premesis etc.

it'll get to the point where if there are shops, there are merely showrooms with one or two staff.

i dont really see that as problem myself as i find most staff dont know what they are talking about and are there to sell warranties and extras that are either not needed or over priced any how

which lol is why its often easy to haggle prices down in store though even then often you would do better online ;)

i haggle for most things except food ( to risky that unless you have already eaten lol )

[Rockabilly Spike]

All the DSG group have online shops and often offer better prices than the branch so whats the beef?
No idea. usually the Currys and PCW online stores are the same price for items as the stores, however online is usually free delivery over £150 or so within 4-5 days. in the stores we have no free delivery options other than discount, which is frowned upon.
Dixons online is just an online store only. no high street shop front anymore.


company in trouble is it?
nope, DSGi have just raised around £311 million to carry on their store redevelopment plans and are opening new megastores around the country, one just opened last week.

your job at risk? only if I dont meet sales targets

you seem quite hostile? i just dont agree with asking for discount for no reason. its the equivalent of someone coming into your work and saying to you, all day "NOT GOOD ENOUGH, DO IT BETTER", when you have very little control of the outcome.
like I said, the stores have a set discount level which is supposed to be for non pristine items, price promise and when it happens, wrong ticket prices displayed (human error).
Constantly being told every day by people "you should give me that for free, theres a recession on" gets ya down.
I love the job, I love my colleagues, I love seeing the new stuff come in and start selling.
but going from my previous job in an independant PC store where I was sales AND tech staff, to just sales with targets to meet and re-training and people who havent shopped for TVs and computers for a long time, expecting 'personal deals' made up by the store staff like in the old Dixons days where things where priced higher so there was room for negotiations and discount, cos there was both profit and commission to be made, has been a total eye opener for me.

whats your job title? you just sales staff or have a better position?
sales monkey.

[Raistlin]

Ok, specific personal question asked and answered - the topic's about whether or not we haggle generally and not about individual people's jobs/motivations.

Let's keep this nice shall we? There's potential for this to be quite an interesting topic.

[zing_deleted]

All the DSG group have online shops and often offer better prices than the branch so whats the beef?
No idea. usually the Currys and PCW online stores are the same price for items as the stores, however online is usually free delivery over £150 or so within 4-5 days. in the stores we have no free delivery options other than discount, which is frowned upon.
Dixons online is just an online store only. no high street shop front anymore.


company in trouble is it?
nope, DSGi have just raised around £311 million to carry on their store redevelopment plans and are opening new megastores around the country, one just opened last week.

your job at risk? only if I dont meet sales targets

you seem quite hostile? i just dont agree with asking for discount for no reason. its the equivalent of someone coming into your work and saying to you, all day "NOT GOOD ENOUGH, DO IT BETTER", when you have very little control of the outcome.
like I said, the stores have a set discount level which is supposed to be for non pristine items, price promise and when it happens, wrong ticket prices displayed (human error).
Constantly being told every day by people "you should give me that for free, theres a recession on" gets ya down.
I love the job, I love my colleagues, I love seeing the new stuff come in and start selling.
but going from my previous job in an independant PC store where I was sales AND tech staff, to just sales with targets to meet and re-training and people who havent shopped for TVs and computers for a long time, expecting 'personal deals' made up by the store staff like in the old Dixons days where things where priced higher so there was room for negotiations and discount, cos there was both profit and commission to be made, has been a total eye opener for me.

whats your job title? you just sales staff or have a better position?
sales monkey.

Fair points made from the view point of someone in sale :tu:
If I was to come in and buy a tv whats the first thing you would offer me? an extended warranty thats just as annoying to the consumer as we are to you offering discounts :D I mean in statement as bit of fun and not as having a go :)

Last time I was buying something in Currys it was for a mate who was with me and he bought a laptop we didnt haggle a discount but we did manage to wangle a laptop bag and accessory kit worth 30 quid I think but he did pay cash for an extended warranty instead of the monthly deal so they were happy to do that. I do hunt down the best price but also ensure I buy from a reputable source as sometimes you need to knwo there is at least some chance of after sales support. Its like I would not buy a 40 in bravia off ebay new lol

[Rockabilly Spike]

why is us offerring you an extra care package seen as annoying?

please tell me you're not one of the "I am covered for 6 years under the sale of goods act" people?
or are you open minded about it and will actually listen to whats on offer, the benefits of it to you personally (since a good sales person will tailor the benefits of the service to the customer, not just list them all, robot fashion)

some people will stop me in my tracks and say no.
depending on their abruptness, I usually fall back on 3 replies, either:
"well I understand if you're pushed for time, would you like to take a pamphlet and read up on it at home?"
"Sure, but its always best to know whats on offer and make an informed decision before just saying no, right?"
"OK, well thanks for your time, I'm just doing my job and if we get over heard not explaining or even mentioning it, we can get disciplined" (which is true)

Sometimes they'll let me continue, sometimes not.
Not everyone wants every attachment with every sale and I wish DSG would realise this.
if a sale is gift vouchers or a card from our insurance services for a replacement product, often the customer has all the add-ons they want from the original purchase, but it just goes on my sales record as 1 item without attachments.

theres a million arguments for and against extra services. Some stores like John Lewis offer a limited service for free on all their TVs, whilst also having a premium one that is paid for and covers about the same as everyone else's.
Some people just cover it under a 3rd party or house insurance.
its always best to weigh up the pro's and cons of all sides.

I think the notion of 'discount for cash' should be put to bed.
its often used as a "I can be quick cos I've got cash and I can be out of your store, leaving you to serve someone else" bargaining tool.
However, since the demise of commission based sales, it makes no difference how long I personally spend with a customer and what method they use.
sure its often disappointing when you put a credit agreement through and it declines, but I get paid the same hourly rate either way.

What I'm saying is, that if you're nice, we'll be nice back and it turns into a conversation between 2 adults, rather than a customer trying to 'get one over' on the greedy salesmen that just want to rip you off.

we can't afford to be like that anymore.
especially with internet shopping now, which has no face to face interaction at all.

we're consumers too, we've stood where you are and had to listen through it all.
in the end we're just doing our job and our job is to most importantly-find you the product that makes you happy.
at the same time we need to make profit for the company that pays us.

its very simple.

[lucy7]

I am remembering several years ago my sister and I both needed a new vacuum cleaner, we went around a new shopping place in our area, and in the end decided on two uprights and asked the guy for a discount (very nicely, but a bit cheekily, as that is my style!) He asked his manager and if I remember right, we got £15 off each.....result!

Today, I went out help choose a car with my eldest girl.
Toured around the show rooms, got a bit sick of some of the salesmens and ladies approaches, then found one she liked, took it out for a drive, and tried to do the deal with the guy.

I asked if he would reduce the price for cash, he actually laughed at my suggestion. He said they want to sell the finance deals, not just the cars! Said he would get it polished to a high standard, and put 6 months road tax put on it, because I decided I didn't like his attitude, we walked away. No haggling to be done there today!

[zing_deleted]

why is us offerring you an extra care package seen as annoying?

please tell me you're not one of the "I am covered for 6 years under the sale of goods act" people?
or are you open minded about it and will actually listen to whats on offer, the benefits of it to you personally (since a good sales person will tailor the benefits of the service to the customer, not just list them all, robot fashion)

.

No I am not one of those but I am a reasonable amount of time guy lol :) I am one of the lets not pay more than I need for a service I do not want :) If I bought extended warranty on everything for which it was offered it would cost me thousands. Actual costs of replacement of items covered that die within the first 5 years equals a hell of a lot less than the overal costs of extended warranties. I play the odds if say for example my 300 quid fridge freezer and 250quid washing machine dies within 3 years then I guess id be unlucky but how much would extended warranty cost me?Looking at the Currys website it would be 2.99 for the fridge and 2.50 for the washing machine per month so 65 quid a year so in 4 years ive saved enough to buy a new washing machine id have to be unlucky to lose more than 1 new appliance in 4 years wouldnt i? then if you add all the rest like TV, cooker (which is 10 years old and would have cost me 600 quid by now at todays rates)etc it all adds up to a lot of payment for nothing. Sony are pretty sure their TVs are gonna last 3 years at least as that is covered when you buy one :)

[Stuart]

I remember a few years back, I'd done some consultancy work for a friend's company (a small TV channel). Got paid £300 for 4 hours work.

The next Saturday, I was in London with another mate. We went up Tottenham Court Road, where I saw a nice monitor (it was a 17 inch Samsung, but I bought it when 17 inch LCDs were still expensive and the original price was nearly £350). My mate bought £400 of hardware (GFX cardm hard drive, wireless router and network card). We clubbed together to buy the hardware and paid cash. I haggled the shopkeeper down to £620 (I was actually willing to pay full price, but thought I'd give it a try).

So, I essentially got a £350 monitor for four hours work. Funny thing is that when I did the work, the friend who worked for the company drove to and from their offices (I can't drive and by public transport the cost to get to their offices in Wood Green would have been significant) and bought me lunch. The only cost I had was that I needed to get my suit dry cleaned (there was a chance that I would be meeting with one of the directors so it was important I look smart).

[Rockabilly Spike]

I am remembering several years ago my sister and I both needed a new vacuum cleaner, we went around a new shopping place in our area, and in the end decided on two uprights and asked the guy for a discount (very nicely, but a bit cheekily, as that is my style!) He asked his manager and if I remember right, we got £15 off each.....result!

Today, I went out help choose a car with my eldest girl.
Toured around the show rooms, got a bit sick of some of the salesmens and ladies approaches, then found one she liked, took it out for a drive, and tried to do the deal with the guy.

I asked if he would reduce the price for cash, he actually laughed at my suggestion. He said they want to sell the finance deals, not just the cars! Said he would get it polished to a high standard, and put 6 months road tax put on it, because I decided I didn't like his attitude, we walked away. No haggling to be done there today!

were you actually prepared to buy a car in cash?
honestly?

or did you just mean a one off payment by card or bankers draft/cheque etc?

[lucy7]

were you actually prepared to buy a car in cash?
honestly?

or did you just mean a one off payment by card or bankers draft/cheque etc?


Whoops! You've got me there!

I have paid in cash before now for cars, but that was when I was a cash business.

I do not actually have that sort of money around anymore! (Burgulars stay away!)
ING direct has my money!:)

[Caff]

:DIts a recession its a buyers market so in fact its how much do they want to sell the product. Even when the country isnt in trouble in a competitive market its still the same. A concert is something else because demand tends to be greater than supply specially for the better seats. Its where supply is greater than demand you have a chance

Point taken :)

Muse - NIA November
I had presale priority but...:cry:

My thought on haggling in this country is... quality is worth paying for... and I don't want to be tempted to buy cheap things just because they're cheap... and mebbe the vendors are trying to cash in on the 'recession' element...
But... I might give it a go next time I want to buy something that I really want. They can always say 'NO' :D

Hmmm - come to think of it... I've always done haggling with buying houses.Recession or no recession :D.

[iFrankie]

when i haggle i feel totally guilty afterwards for some reason lol so i dont do it anymore.

[Lord Nikon]

I recently bought a copy of Red Alert 3 from PC World (Who had it listed at 35 quid) for 14.92. But that wasn't haggling, that was knowing PC World's price match promise.

Asda had it listed at 14.92, but the local store didn't have any in stock. So I printed out a copy of the page listing the price. It was available for immediate shipping but I didn't want to wait. I then went to the PC World site and printed out their price match promise, which specifically listed ASDA as one of the stores they will match. (For a price match it doesn't matter if the local store is out of stock, but it MUST be available for immediate shipping) I then went to PC World, looked unsuccessfully for the game and asked a sales associate if they had it.

10 Minutes later I was about to head out of the store when one breathless associate ran up to me wielding the game in his hand. I thanked him and he went off to serve someone else. I went to the sales point and offered up the game, along with the ASDA price I had printed out. The sales associate said "Ok, but we don't price match ASDA, Sorry" at which point I merely handed him the printout from PC World's site which said they did. We went over to see the manager who looked at the printouts, said one word which began with an F, and looked up the price, AND the price match promise online, confirmed them, reiterated the word again, then took me back to the sales point to enter the discount. The sales associate at the sales point took a look at the discount being entered, iterated the same word, but the sale was completed.

PC World also sometimes offer better deals online than in the stores. "But I don't want to buy online" you say. This is where another of their deals comes into play. You can reserve the item online for store collection at web prices. So you get the online discount and purchase from the store.

[Chris]

Sounds like the staff of PC World have been re-watching Four Weddings and a Funeral. :D

[haydnwalker]

Its my wife that usually haggles with people... Shes sometimes a bit too cheeky though imo. I tried to haggle in the Apple shop and they looked at me like I was the devil :D The main thing we haggle on is things like delivery charges and electrical goods (oh and the house and car :D)

I managed to get 4k off the last car I purchased due to haggling...and it wasnt brand new.

[smeagoly1]

I always find it useful, to mention if a companies rivals have a similar deal to what i am looking for and it's cheaper, during a conversation. Remarkable how many people will then drop down to match it. Sometimes i even get a few freebies :) As the old saying is "shy bairns get nowt"

[Sasha222]

I haggle all the time and love it. Nine times out of ten I get results. Why not if it works and the person your haggling with gets a laugh from it. Our car was going to cost 400e for the electrics but I haggled the guy down to 170e. Not a bad days work. Its no harm in trying and my motto is "Its better for the person to haggle with you rather than the customer walking away and not making a sale" and they badly now need to make a sale with the way the economy is. I get loads of bargains just by haggling

[lucy7]

Husband does not haggle, but asked what the best price the guy could do for my anniversay pressie at the jewellers today in Ilkley, got 15% off, he was happy, and so was I !:)

[Sasha222]

Husband does not haggle, but asked what the best price the guy could do for my anniversay pressie at the jewellers today in Ilkley, got 15% off, he was happy, and so was I !:)

:wavey::hugs: Hi Lucy how are you. I think that your husband might be getting the bug of haggling from you :D Im delighted that he bought a lovely present for you because you deserved it because your so nice :D