Walmart had a little surprise for him once he got to the store, though. Turns out the item was $20 more in store than online, and Walmart refused to price-match its own online price. Even worse, if he wanted to order the item online for in-store pick-up, he'd have to wait forever.
Lloyd speaks:
I asked if I could use an internet terminal so I wouldn't have to drive home to place the order so I could pick up the unit now and the salesperson said yes. She showed me the kiosk and I placed the order. Upon confirmation of the online order, the screen said I would receive an email between July 20-24 (nearly two weeks after my vacation was scheduled) telling me to go and pick up the GPS. Since we're going on vacation this weekend, I need the GPS now and was lead to believe I could pick it up right away.
Lloyd says he's ditching Wal-Mart for life because of its silly, consumer-unfriendly practices. Which leaves more overpriced GPSes for the rest of us!
(Photo: largeheartedboy)
]]>That means they have a choice. Sometimes, things don't always come easy. It doesn't mean you lack options. It just means you have to work harder.
]]>Look, the point is, there are a handful of people out there who need groceries tonight and it's not feasible for them to jump through internet hoops to get them. If Walmart is the only place to buy food within a day's driving distance, that's where they're gonna go, period.
The vast majority of the people who shop at Walmart have a choice, but it doesn't cost you anything to sympathize with the few who don't.
]]>Wal-Mart near Palm Springs, California, pulled this same "stunt" on me about 10 years ago and I haven't stepped foot into a Wal-Mart since!
They had a name-brand VHS (or DVD) player online and the online price was more expensive in the store. Aside from my plan to purchase the electronic device, I had a cart full of $100 worth of other stuff to purchase.
I demanded to see the store manager, and the person on duty refused to honor the online price. She said, "We don't honor our on-line store prices in the actual store and we do not honor lower prices from other Wal-Mart locations."
I wrote a lengthy letter to the CEO of Wal-Mart (which was a complete waste of time), obviously, since they are still following what I believe an unfair practice to consumers.
Only one way to fight this. Stop shopping Wal-Mart!
]]>did you ask a manager for a price adjustment? once i went to buy a minifridge they had in their flyer i get in my mailbox every week with the grocery store coupons. got there and it was sold out, found manager "oh yeah we only got two, sorry" but then he gave me $50 off the other one they had it in stock to make it the same price as the one in the flyer.
]]>Employees hate it just as much as customers do - especially electronics employees, who will almost certainly get bitched at at least once a day over pricing policies they have no control over. At every point of connection between B&M stores and the website, there is some new hassle for employees because the integration between the two is half-assed.
The website is a neverending source of irritation. For my part, every time a customer calls to ask if we've got something in stock and mentions the website, I make sure to point out that the price could be different in the store.
]]>same company, should be the same priceI don't think you understand how business works. A B&M Wal-Mart in middle of nowhere Idaho is the "same company" as a B&M store in downtown NYC. However, the have vastly different operating expenses, and thus may have different prices. Likewise, the online store is completely different from your particular branch -- different inventory, expenses, items, etc.]]>
This one ain't Walmart's fault.
]]>I often think the same thing when reading here. Same goes for Best Buy, I have no problems at Best Buy here and often get great customer service.
Maybe it's just the Canadians running/working at the stores.
]]>Wow, fairness, something one does not normally see in a post on The Consumerist.
]]>I can't remember for sure if the online side was another retailer that Walmart bought. But the point is, inside the company, the online side is NOT the same as the retail stores.
So I can see why the store would not honor the online prices. The price-matching issue is stupid though. They should do that as if the online side was unrelated. Simple price match in that case.
]]>But yes, most people do have a choice. I just like to pre-acknowledge those who don't so I don't get snarked.
]]>Now, I feel for the OP slightly, but I'm taking Wal-Marts side on this. Their online price is advertised as lower because its a seperate entity than the store, and has a much lower overhead from the fact that they have to use less people to for "customer service". The item is shipped to the store as a convienience, and is lumped together witha bunch of orders to the distribution center that services the store, not like its FedEx or UPS. That alone is a 3 day wait just from the DC to the store. You want the item TODAY, you're gonna have to pay the in-store price, which is competitive with other stores who have to pay for the building.
I do feel for the OP for the incompetent person who told him he could order it online in the store and pick it up right then and there.
]]>I've been boycotting the Devil store for years. The few times since then that I've let myself lapse and wander into one I have been disappointed. The online vs store price issue; crowded, dirty stores; incompetent staff... the list goes on and on. What makes this all worse is how they manipulate their suppliers into having specific items that are only allowed to be sold in their stores and now requiring that their product marketing must include the walmart name. They're doing everything they can to develop a monopoly. And if you really thing you're saving money... you're not paying attention.
]]>@JustinSane07: The thing is places like Wal-Mart have more foot traffic than the B&M Best Buys and CCs. With that in mind, Wal-Mart may feel it necessary to keep items in stock for those that come to the store to purchase that item, rather than have them there for price match. Many of their items, particularly electronics, are cheaper online, so if wind of price-match with online products came about, they would probably lose a lot of profit on that practice.
BB still marks up the crap out of things, so even with the in-store pickup they come out alright.
]]>Yes. It's more like false advertising than bait and switch. The end result is the same though.
]]>I don't see it that way at all. I think of an online store the same as I would a catalogue. Remember when department stores used to send huge, glossy catalogues to your home for free? The online store is more for advertisement than cost savings. Ordering online is no different that ordering from a catalogue and catalogue prices were always the same as in-store prices.
]]>I don't feel too bad for customers who try and game the system and end up with egg on their face. I didn't know they blogged about it though.
]]>Pah! Same thing happened to us! My son wanted Call of Duty 4 for Xbox 360. We looked online and saw a great price. Went to the store and was shocked that it was about $6 higher in store. The rep had no idea why, but says it happens all the time.
So went back home and ordered online (also ordered 2 bookshelves at the same time).
2 weeks later bookshelves are at store for pick up, but game is not.
Waited another 5 days and received an email from Wal-mart that my order for the game was cancelled. No explanation whatsoever!
WHAAAT! My son is waiting anxiously for this game. I look online to see if it's available and of course it is at a higher price.
Sooo....I shoot of a really irritated email to Wal-mart. Reply is some bogus crap about the distributor failed to meet their quantity and they couldn't fulfill my order. If I wanted to re-place the order online I could at a now higher price. Whaaat??? What about backorder?? At least an email stating it would take longer than promised (if that was really the case) and would I like to keep or cancel my order!
Oh I so hate Wal-mart....it is one of those necessary evils (sometimes anyway).
It is probably cheaper to buy from Newegg and have it shipped overnight. No tax, lower prices and not having to drive to Walmart.
Of course, you would lose the opportunity to see 350 pound women riding electric scooters so they don't have to burn a calorie by walking.
]]>This was a fight I would have with customers EVERY DAY when I worked in Photo at Wal-Mart.
Yes, technically Walmart.com is a sperate division of the company. That's the excuse I was told to give customers......however, I think that's crap. It's got the Wal-Mart name on it, so therefore we represent walmart.com.
Find the right manager, though, and you can probably get him or her to approve a price override at the register. Tbe photo/electronics area manager at my store was a transplant from Walgreens and hadn't been sucked into the walmart mindset....so as long as we were still selling it at a reasonable profit, he'd OK the price match (and yes, even peon salespeople have access to the wholesale price and markup of every item)
]]>@pgh9fan1: Oh jeez. It's a blog, not the New York Times. They're going to fuck up ocassionally. Just take those screw-ups in stride, or maybe consider using any one of the number of handy staff e-mail addresses to give 'em a head's up next time it happens. There's no need to act like an upitty prick about it. ;)
]]>I had the same experience with them on a different electronic device a year ago and I was not happy.
Target>Shopko>Anything else>Wal-Crap.
]]>...why are people still amazed about retarded shenanigans at Wal-Mart? Let alone the ovbious question of why anyone deems W-M to be worthy of your dollars in the first place.
However, to the point of this article, I did this at Best Buy a couple of times. Looked on their site to shop before going to the store, only to find the item more expensive in-store than on their website.
So I plod over to the computer section, go to their website from one of their own computers, and order it online. A few moments later I get the email confirmation, which I can view on my phone...then plod over to the customer service desk and pick up my item.
W-M clearly doesn't want people doing that, so they put this policy in place. Reason # 8 billion and 2 for not patronizing W-M.
]]>The old own-to-rent plan. I would be surprised if Walmart didn't give the money back entirely (unless they have shrunk their electronics returns to 14 days and your vacation is longer than that.)
]]>And shipping it to the store is free, vs. shipping it to your home - which costs.
]]>@EdnaLegume: Lucky for you then, that Newegg frequently offers stuff at cheaper prices too! So it's like the best of both worlds.
Newegg for life! :P
]]>Sometimes that doesn't work if a receipt is tied to a serial number. Often when buying electronics, the cashier scans the UPC for the price/SKU and then the serial number bar code. But your idea is still worth a shot.
]]>@Cant_stop_the_rock: Now i'm dizzy. That's nuts. *retreats*
]]>@wellfleet: To be honest...I couldn't focus on reading anything you said after you said you would eat off the floor of a Walmart...that's just crazy talk.
]]>It must be an American thing. Canadian WalMarts are apparently run entirely differently, because I go there for the service, never mind the lower prices.
Canadian WalMarts are also, oddly enough, well known for offering at least half-decent benefits to their workers (for the payscale, that is). I understand this is a total 180 from the US WalMarts.
Maybe we're a test market for a new and improved kind of WalMart. Because these stories just make me wonder what kind of WalMart this is.
]]>@trellis23: The silly thing though is their "site-to-store" policy if something is already in stock at the store. It should be "In-Store Pickup" like Best Buy and formerly Circuit City. You already have the fucking product, why do I have to wait for shipping to your store?!
And why would I ever do that feature anyways?! Why wouldn't I just ship to my damn house!
]]>plan ahead
]]>@bravo369: Just try to get one Wal-Mart to match another Wal-Mart's price. It can be a hilarious endeavor. I did it once. Man, were those idiots lost, LMAO.
]]>"We do our best to provide you with the lowest prices possible on Walmart.com as well as in our stores. However, sometimes a price online does not match the price in a store. In our effort to be the lowest price provider in your particular geographic region, store pricing will sometimes differ from online prices. Our stores do not honor Internet pricing or competitor advertisements from outside of a store's local trade territory."
But we shouldn't expect people to read contracts should we?
]]>And the two week wait is for a reason. THEY HAVE TO SHIP IT TO THE STORE. If you want it faster you can pay for faster shipping.
]]>They do also offer - for an extra fee - "express ship to store" that doesn't take 2 weeks.
I don't usually shop at Wal-Mart, but I did recently buy a 42" Vizio lcd tv from the site and have it shipped to store. Love the TV, although I had to stand around for like 20 minutes before someone actually came to the counter to ring it up. But it was worth dealing with Wal-Mart to get a 42" 1080p LCD for $598 plus tax.
]]>@yzerman: Oh...wait...for real BINGO!
]]>@scoosdad: I think they're exempt...
I was trying to be ironic...alas...
]]>Also, this whole deal isn't any different than walking into a store vs. buying on Amazon.
]]>They usually offer the lowest prices around and that matters to many people. I am surprised that no one yet has said, "Well, I shop at Target and that ain't so bad..." As if target is really different from WM.
That being said, even Best Buy will price match to their own website if you ask. I've never used to site-to-store, but when I go to my local Wal-Mart, many people do seem to use it.
]]>I think more to the point is they jack it up to whatever the price for shipping and handling would be if you were to order it online. ...Say the item I want is 10lbs. and costs $200 and $20 to ship, well it's going to cost at least $220 in the store. Not that I agree with it but it makes sense.
@morganlh85:
Try Besy Buy instead. My mother just herself a laptop only they were out at the store. They told her to go online and buy it because they weren't getting anymore. She did and to our suprise, they paid for the shipping and it arrived in 2 days UPS...
Screw Wal-Mart.
Tht's wht y gt fr shppng t Wlmrt!
BINGO!
]]>What's the rest of the story???? Did he show the manager that he ordered in-store pickup of an item they had in stock? Or did he get dizzy and retreat?
]]>Just buy the GPS in the store...Have a nice vacation and return it when you get back...
If they only want to give you Walmart credit, use it for the online GPS and you have $20 left...
]]>My wife thought she *had* to have something from the retail Anti-Christ. They would not sell it to for web price. Going to the front of the store in a highly visible area (say the entrance) and asking for the GM or MoD (Manager on Duty) got the issue resolved.
At one point the MoD tried to move her away from the high traffic area as he did not want to do conflict resolution in front other potential customers but she held her ground. She got the item at the web price (same company, should be the same price if you want the business....) and is loathe to go back to Walmart again based on the hassle factor and shadiness of it all.
]]>Lloyd should have just paid the extra $20 to get it the same day from the store. Then ordered it online, select site-to-store, pick it up when he came back from vacation and returned it for full price using the first receipt.
]]>I've heard many arguments for and against why companies do not have the same price online as in the store but frankly I don't care. When i'm searching for something, i do my window shopping online, compare features along with price. I find the place that has it and i go there. If online gives the option to pick it up in the store then the store should price match...no...BE THE SAME PRICE as online.
it's like bait and switch i think if a deal is online but pretty much permanently 'out of stock' but the store has overflowing stock and is more expensive.
]]>Fear not, I went on amazon and got it for the same price and had it within 4 days. Screw Walmart!
]]>Not that I'm blaming the OP, because he should have been treated better, but I'm happy for him that he'll choose elsewhere next time!
]]>I don't understand why these stores have online counterparts with the same name. I do understand that some of them are not even related, except by name. That's not my problem. If they carry the same policies throughout their stores, online should be no different.
]]>Walmart has bad customer service?!?! Say it ain't so!
]]>