AT&T Sales Staff Not Helping

Alfa Kapa

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The phone market in US is seriously messed up :grincry:

I can confirm that the same things happen in Greece..
Going into a store and asking for a phone (specifically if it is Windows) is like football hooligans stop you in the street, and telling them that you support another team..
I think here (and I guess on other countries too) phone OSes is a way hotter subject than the corruption of our politicians.. :/

Some time ago, they were discussions about leaving the EU (which every level-headed person knew it wouldn't happen), and some politicians were worried that they couldn't buy apps for their iPhones!!

Things are seriously messed up indeed..
 

HoosierDaddy

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I can confirm that the same things happen in Greece..
Going into a store and asking for a phone (specifically if it is Windows) is like football hooligans stop you in the street, and telling them that you support another team..
I think here (and I guess on other countries too) phone OSes is a way hotter subject than the corruption of our politicians.. :/

Some time ago, they were discussions about leaving the EU (which every level-headed person knew it wouldn't happen), and some politicians were worried that they couldn't buy apps for their iPhones!!

Things are seriously messed up indeed..
I'm not going to stand idly by while somebody claims their country's phone market is more messed up than mine. USA USA USA we're number ONE in messed up phone markets!
 

Aaron Graves

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Sounds like my experience is a bit out of whack.
I went to a corporate AT&T store on Tuesday and mentioned that we were interested in the Lumia 950. The guy said "Ah the new Windows phone, I don't think it's out yet but let me check." Click click on his tablet and sure enough, they are coming out on Friday and are available for pre-order. He then makes a comment about this being the first phone that has him considering switching. I took that with a grain of salt as this guy was iEverything - iPhone, iWatch. None the less, it was refreshing to at least have someone who knows about it.
We ended up going back the next day to complete our pre-order. We got 3 of them. The phones arrived on Friday, and one activated online, however the other two had issues activating. We ended up going back to the store to get them activated. While waiting for that to finish, my wife actually found the demo unit they had on display. No fanfare, or advertising really. It was in between an iPhone 5s and the Blackberry Priv. Not the best placement, but at least they had a demo out.
The first guy we talked to on Tuesday was the one who helped us activate them on Friday, and he made a few comments about how cool they were, etc.
 

Allen Rhodes

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So let me get this straight... Keeping in mind I dont have a degree in marketing and am an owner and proponent of the platform. You want hourly workers to educate themselves, or have the carrier pay to train them, on a platform with less that 3% market share. WOW-wee. Makes sense to me. The dill-holes selling the phones are, themselves, isheep and fandroids. What else do you expect them to shill to know-nothings walking into the store?! Yes, the [platform] sucks people need to be fired, period. But they are sales people, and lets face it, our stuff doesnt sell. AT&T is a business, first and foremost. I blame the lack of market share on MS solely. If they gave the retailers the same incentives as crApple and Samsung, it would be different. Despite the "mobile first" hoo-ha, its obvious their attention is elsewhere. So, until then, dont go into a store and harass an employee whos job it is to sell phones and not EDUCATE the general public. I would love nothing more than to get to a solid 10-12% market share, but MS controls that. Yes, they do, dont even try to argue they dont. If you dont advertise a product, get it into the hands of celebs that the typical consumer mimics, we are <3%. And it seems their goal is to go after businesses, which is actually ok because they mostly use MS products. A PC in your pocket.... may decrease laptop sales a bit but would be great for the market share. This whole thread is turning into the typical "chicken and egg" discussion. The phones dont sell because the ones selling phones dont sell them. The phones dont sell because the ones making the phones dont promote them.
 

Geo Hutchings

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LOL in England we don't have them on display yet, soon but least all the phone company's knew about it and Went in to vodfone they had Samsung, apple and Microsoft in a line right at the font of the store, in carphonewarehouse, they had a whole section for Microsoft including a demo Kinect to bowers all things windows phone and the staff was talking about windows phone to someone and they went a got one, it was a Lumia 640 for their son, they had 730, 930, 640 and 640xl on display, apple had a little corner and Samsung was just stack with the rest of android XD
 

HoosierDaddy

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dont go into a store and harass an employee whos job it is to sell phones and not EDUCATE the general public.
Wrong. Notice you didn't say you shouldn't harass them for not educating people, just shouldn't harass them, period.

There is nothing wrong with standing up for groups you are a member of such as: consumers. Consumers as a class are harmed by misinformation and false statement (e.g. Windows phones are $%^$). Chewing someone out or reporting them will definitely change the behavior of some percent of the chewees. And that is good for consumers.

You say salespeople are just doing what makes them the most money. Okay, that is because they are responding to the environment as they perceive it. But that is no reason at all for those harmed by it to not apply their own stimulus. By your logic I should be okay with being eaten by a bear or a shark because its just natural for them to do that. While I don't BLAME salespersons or bears or shark's for being themselves, that doesn't mean I won't or shouldn't try to change that behavior when it benefits me or my kind.
 

tgp

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So let me get this straight... Keeping in mind I dont have a degree in marketing and am an owner and proponent of the platform. You want hourly workers to educate themselves, or have the carrier pay to train them, on a platform with less that 3% market share. WOW-wee. Makes sense to me. The dill-holes selling the phones are, themselves, isheep and fandroids. What else do you expect them to shill to know-nothings walking into the store?! Yes, the [platform] sucks people need to be fired, period. But they are sales people, and lets face it, our stuff doesnt sell. AT&T is a business, first and foremost. I blame the lack of market share on MS solely. If they gave the retailers the same incentives as crApple and Samsung, it would be different. Despite the "mobile first" hoo-ha, its obvious their attention is elsewhere. So, until then, dont go into a store and harass an employee whos job it is to sell phones and not EDUCATE the general public. I would love nothing more than to get to a solid 10-12% market share, but MS controls that. Yes, they do, dont even try to argue they dont. If you dont advertise a product, get it into the hands of celebs that the typical consumer mimics, we are <3%. And it seems their goal is to go after businesses, which is actually ok because they mostly use MS products. A PC in your pocket.... may decrease laptop sales a bit but would be great for the market share. This whole thread is turning into the typical "chicken and egg" discussion. The phones dont sell because the ones selling phones dont sell them. The phones dont sell because the ones making the phones dont promote them.

I was thinking this but this forum is a frightening place if you don't agree 110%! :winktongue:

I agree that it is not AT&T's job to push Windows Phone. They are pushing what makes them money. They know what sells. They know what customers like. They know what is returned. There is a reason they push what they push. The iPhones and Samsungs are their bread and butter. What do you expect them to do?

But on the flip side, I'm not sure why they deter customers who come in asking for a Windows Phone. It seems to me that they're likely to like the phone, and unlikely to return it. But I certainly understand why they don't waste shelf space on WP, or even push it to other customers.

It is Microsoft's job to make a compelling product. Don't kid yourself; when Windows Phone is ready to run with the big boys, it will sell, with or without the carriers' help.
 

emark858

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I went to an ATT corporate store last night. The 950 was on display and working, the dock was displayed with it. The salesman that helped me knew the phone. He let me know about all offers that were available with the phone, like the Surface 3 deal. He showed me a case, screen protector and the dock while my new phone was updating. I ended up buying the phone, dock and a screen protector when all was done. I had a very good experience.
 

Allen Rhodes

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I was thinking this but this forum is a frightening place if you don't agree 110%! :winktongue:

I agree that it is not AT&T's job to push Windows Phone. They are pushing what makes them money. They know what sells. They know what customers like. They know what is returned. There is a reason they push what they push. The iPhones and Samsungs are their bread and butter. What do you expect them to do?

But on the flip side, I'm not sure why they deter customers who come in asking for a Windows Phone. It seems to me that they're likely to like the phone, and unlikely to return it. But I certainly understand why they don't waste shelf space on WP.

It is Microsoft's job to make a compelling product. Don't kid yourself; when Windows Phone is ready to run with the big boys, it will sell, with or without the carriers' help.

Thanks for being a reasonable person in your quoted response. Not having a 100% pro MS and anyone who doesnt sell or have is the devil attitude is ridiculous here. AT&T and the like are businesses, why in the hell would they shill something that doesnt sell. Yes, any sales person that deters needs to be dealt with as its their job to sell to the customers needs, not their(sales persons) preferences. No one gave a frigg about hybrids until the manufacturers made them "cool" to have....THROUGH ADVERTISING DUUUHHH DUH DUH DUUUHHHH. MS is horrible at this and just expects current platform owners to continue to buy while neglecting to draw NEW buyers. Maybe this will change with the new flagship... MAYBE. I will be getting the 950XL as my 1020 is getting pretty antiquated and Id like something new to play with anyway. The camera is amazing, but its slow. The demo I played with at the Round Rock AT&T was extremely smooth and i rattled off 10pics in about 10sec and only had to wait another 10sec for it so save them. That can easily be addressed with an update. 20mp vs 40mp... admittedly the 40mp was a gimmick feature and mps dont make the picture. Although, knowing i could print a billboard with a pic from my phone was pretty awesome. But not a practical NEED. The new cam, from what ive seen online and in person is extremely impressive. The sales rep that took me to the phone at least knew what it was and where it was. Granted, it was in the corner by the old models and crackberrys. Thats where we are though, in the corner. Deservedly so until MS steps up their game on mobile. Look at the jump after the L900 marketing, they know how and what to do... MS needs, no HAS TO give the sellers all the incentives they can to make the platform relevant. Who knows, the Surface Phone may be the one they are waiting for. a 100% MS designed product.
 

sbrad

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Microsoft ceased being in the phone business the day they wrote off Nokia purchase. My opinion is Satya Nadella is a "Cloud and Enterprise" guy who has little interest in the consumer retail space and even less in phones in particular. If you read or watch his various interviews its very obvious where his head is at. Yes, he will continue to make one or two pieces of hardware in certain categories to show off his software capabilities, but investing the tens of millions needed to properly create brand awareness for the 950/xl is not on his list. There will be a phone that leverages the "Surface" brand (probably called Surface Pocket) and that will create the nice little hardware niche Satya envisions for mobile. If you walk into any phone store and ask the kid behind the counter about a Microsoft Lumia product we all know the reaction, but chat with that same kid about a "Surface pro tablet" and 85% of them at least know and display an interest what you're talking about, even if they use an IPad. That's because Microsoft spent millions on TV marketing for the product and it has now become a very recognizable brand. This time next year if the "Surface Pocket" has been released and properly piggybacked on the Surface name with good marketing, it will be the new cool thing that kids show off to friends at Starbucks.
 

7a2eer

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Just got back from AT&T store here in the Bay Area and same thing. No display unit and none in stock. There was another person in there asking for it as well. The salesperson was helpful and even offered that the L635 sells very well due to its low price, mostly to kids. If we can get more kids using it the better. They grow up being WP users!

I don't think kids need to be raised into fanboyism for a product :p
 

7a2eer

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I'm assuming you feel that way because that's exactly what Apple did by giving schools Macs for decades and look at all the products they sell to the current and new generation.

And the outcome is mad is it not?
I have grown to love and appreciate circular logic on this forum :p
 

boneycat

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And the outcome is mad is it not?
I have grown to love and appreciate circular logic on this forum :p

Mad? I guess it depends on if you're an apple fan or not. I'm assuming that's how you're using the word. Since I cannot tell your intonation due to the limitations of written communication, I can also assume that the "P:" would indicate that either you're trying to be sarcastic or a troll. Excuse me for running you in circles either way.
 

FXi2

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Maybe stores don't have to be "on board" for day 1? We are, but they're not required.
We have 100's of questions and know more about the devices because we already have them!
Like most tech support if they feel you may know more about the topic than they do that might leave them a bit uncomfortable in showing off the product, yes?

The stores I visit love to have me around for a few hours. It's easy to advocate, offer people options, and help increase the traffic (because people gravitate to areas where others are "looking") at windows phones. Have a race to find how fast you can get the local movie times for some hit film. NFL schedules? All this happens quickly on every phone, but you can do it so fast either with Cortana or with keys. And its fun for people to see the information available to their fingers.

Advocate and help the process along.
 

ajj3085

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I agree that it is not AT&T's job to push Windows Phone. They are pushing what makes them money. They know what sells. They know what customers like. They know what is returned.

Then they should have said "thanks, but no thanks" to MS instead of agreeing to carry the phone.
 

Fenoy

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Went to a small AT&T store in MD on Friday and they not only had the 950 on display but the salesman was reasonably knowledgeable about it even though he carried a 6 Plus. It was a functioning unit and took some photos with it that displayed nicely.
 

7a2eer

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Mad? I guess it depends on if you're an apple fan or not. I'm assuming that's how you're using the word. Since I cannot tell your intonation due to the limitations of written communication, I can also assume that the "P:" would indicate that either you're trying to be sarcastic or a troll. Excuse me for running you in circles either way.

maddening*, backwards, juvenile
aint_even_mad_bro.jpg
 

StevoPhilo

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So let me get this straight... Keeping in mind I dont have a degree in marketing and am an owner and proponent of the platform. You want hourly workers to educate themselves, or have the carrier pay to train them, on a platform with less that 3% market share. WOW-wee. Makes sense to me. The dill-holes selling the phones are, themselves, isheep and fandroids. What else do you expect them to shill to know-nothings walking into the store?! Yes, the [platform] sucks people need to be fired, period. But they are sales people, and lets face it, our stuff doesnt sell. AT&T is a business, first and foremost. I blame the lack of market share on MS solely. If they gave the retailers the same incentives as crApple and Samsung, it would be different. Despite the "mobile first" hoo-ha, its obvious their attention is elsewhere. So, until then, dont go into a store and harass an employee whos job it is to sell phones and not EDUCATE the general public. I would love nothing more than to get to a solid 10-12% market share, but MS controls that. Yes, they do, dont even try to argue they dont. If you dont advertise a product, get it into the hands of celebs that the typical consumer mimics, we are <3%. And it seems their goal is to go after businesses, which is actually ok because they mostly use MS products. A PC in your pocket.... may decrease laptop sales a bit but would be great for the market share. This whole thread is turning into the typical "chicken and egg" discussion. The phones dont sell because the ones selling phones dont sell them. The phones dont sell because the ones making the phones dont promote them.

Yes and no.
Microsoft has advertised for the Lumias like the 1020s commercial etc. They've had celebrities mixed with their devices and even paid to have it in tv shows like Agents Of Shield. None of that stuff has worked cause we're still in the same position as before. The thing that Microsoft has to do is create a feature that everyone can benefit from and market the crap out of that feature. Something like the pocketpc is what people seem to want again. If continuum can be expanded to like an x86 platform then I think we can see some traction.

The other part of it is the stores that are selling them. Microsoft has to invest in some way to get their phones out to people. Most carriers aren't educated in the Windows Phone platform. So what do the salespeople do? They will either tell you to go to a different OS because they aren't comfortable with trying to sell WM10 OR they will pretend they know about it and fall on their face. It's very rare that you'll find someone who knows or likes W10M offerings. I know it cause I work retail and I see it all the time.

What's the fix for this? They need to pay a representative to go out to multiple ATT stores and offer to help educate and promote W10M. No one wants to look up the info or do digital learnings that retailers try to make you do. They need to have an awesome sales representative for Windows and have them help their fellow employees. Best Buy does it and they have contests and rewards for numbers they hit.

As a salesperson everyone has goals and targets to hit. The reps have it too. I have an Apple rep who comes into Best Buy all the time. I don't particularly care for Apple at all, but our rep is one of the coolest people I know. I will always be more than willing to help him push his products to help him achieve his goals.
 

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