Negotiating buying a TV (UPDATED, TV purchased)

[azazyel]

I am going to be getting a new HDTV in the next few days and I was hoping for some tips on getting the best deal. Now, I was talking to a Sears sales rep and he basically told me that he could knock 10% off as a customer service benefit. Do the Best Buy and Circuit City reps have this same ability? Also, as far as price matching at Circuit City (not sure if Best Buy does this) how likely would I be to get a price match and then get the 10% off that they are offering now? Would it help things if I told them I would get an extended warranty (still not sure if I want one or not but if I a got a great deal on the set I probably would)?

Also, how likely are they to check the stock of a local store if I have a print out of the web page?

Thanks for any and all help


my future rig I know it isn't that great of a set but it is going to meet my needs perfectly. Right now I have a really old 27" so this is going to seem like night and day to me.

 

[Saulbadguy]

Best Buy will give you a dumb look and say "duhhhh"

 

[azazyel]

Originally posted by: Saulbadguy
Best Buy will give you a dumb look and say "duhhhh"

In regards to the price matching? I know they are not the brightest of the bunch but their warrantly is about $100 less than CC. Plus there is one really close to where I live.

 

[rudeguy]

if you really want to do it right, go to Sears first and get the ten percent off deal. Take that deal to BB and have them price match it. Take the BB receipt to CC and have them PM it, then take it back to sears or BB to actually buy the set.

It will take some time, but it could save you some serious cash.

 

[CPA]

You could always try a local dealer.

 

[RossMAN]

I have usually been able to negotiate with CC if you buy their extended warranty plan.

 

[Kelemvor]

Sometimes you can get them to comp you the warranty by having them take that same amount off the price of the TV. I doubt you'll get a cheaper price if you aren't buying anything extra though.

And the floor reps probably can't do anything by themselves...

 

[azazyel]

Originally posted by: GoodDad
if you really want to do it right, go to Sears first and get the ten percent off deal. Take that deal to BB and have them price match it. Take the BB receipt to CC and have them PM it, then take it back to sears or BB to actually buy the set.

It will take some time, but it could save you some serious cash.

How would I get documentation of the deal without actually buying the set? Also, Sear's doesn't have the item instock at the locations near me.

 

[TheGameIs21]

Find a store that pays commision. Wait until the end of the month and see what they will give up. A commision sales position has the authority to take the price down to the point where they rcv no commision for a sale but they will get the "points" for the sale.

(using round numbers)
Sticker = 1000.00
Commision for salesman = 200.00
Authorized lowest price = 800.00

Salesman still gets the credit for the sale but no commision. Many times these places will run monthly numbers of sales and if a salesman isn't near the required, they will forgo the commision just to keep their job by getting credit for the sale.

 

[rudeguy]

Originally posted by: TheGameIs21
Find a store that pays commision. Wait until the end of the month and see what they will give up. A commision sales position has the authority to take the price down to the point where they rcv no commision for a sale but they will get the "points" for the sale.

(using round numbers)
Sticker = 1000.00
Commision for salesman = 200.00
Authorized lowest price = 800.00

Salesman still gets the credit for the sale but no commision. Many times these places will run monthly numbers of sales and if a salesman isn't near the required, they will forgo the commision just to keep their job by getting credit for the sale.

I dont mean to disagree, but you are wrong.

I am a comissioned salesman, I sell TV's, electronics and appliances for a living. This is the way it works:

Tag price of tv=$2000
Cost of tv=$1400
I can sell the tv for any amount $1400 and up. We get paid off the profit of the deal. Really the only place left that pays based on the price is Sears, and they dont get much. Wating til the end of the month wont do anything, this isnt cars. Go in prepared with prices from other places and be ready to buy. If you find a deal you like, tell them you like it, but dont be afraid to walk if they dont give you what you want.

Thank you, that is all.

 

[TheGameIs21]

By all means... disagree... no offense taken. I have worked in a high end AV shop and that is how it worked for me there. I thought it was a standard. Thanks for the education.

 

[DuffmanOhYeah]

Originally posted by: GoodDad
if you really want to do it right, go to Sears first and get the ten percent off deal. Take that deal to BB and have them price match it. Take the BB receipt to CC and have them PM it, then take it back to sears or BB to actually buy the set.

It will take some time, but it could save you some serious cash.

Typically, retailers will refuse to pricematch a pricematch. That said, if you can do it, more power to you.

 

[Jeraden]

Don't even bother trying to haggle at Best Buy. They won't even take a penny off the price.

 

[azazyel]

Originally posted by: Jeraden
Don't even bother trying to haggle at Best Buy. They won't even take a penny off the price.

I think I am going to have to at least try them. They have the cheaper warranty and they are super close to where I live.

 

[azazyel]

Well, I went to Best Buy after work armed with printouts from a few sites in hopes of trying to get the price down on their set. I didn't really expect much but the Best Buy is only a couple blocks from where I live so I had to at least try. I went in there and grabbed the first sales person that walked buy me and asked him if he would match the Circuit City 10% off sale. I almost knew they would say no because I had called the store a few moments earlier and the person I talked to on the phone said they didn't match promotions. But to my surprise the guy said "probably" and walked to his manager and then gave me the thumbs up. What really surprised me though was that the set was already on sale there. So, I ended up getting the set for minus $76, with an additional 10% off. I think it did help that I told the guy I wanted to 4 year warranty, which was about $100 less than Circuit City's warranty. To top things off he even price matched the shipping cost of Circuit City which he said was free. I actually knew it was $40 but I decided to be smart and not speak up. So, with everything said and done I ended up saving more than I though possible. I cannot wait until Saturday to start watching my DVDs on my new 47".


Cliff notes:

-Went to Best Buy to buy a TV.
-Was on sale at 1,423.99 reg at 1,499.99
-Got additional 10% off
-Got free delivery
-Got a 4 year warranty (didn't save money on it but it was still $100 cheaper than most places)
-Bought a half rack and celebrated

 

[Doggiedog]

Nice buy but you do know BB's return and extended warranty policies are much worse than CCs right?

 

[azazyel]

Originally posted by: Doggiedog
Nice buy but you do know BB's return and extended warranty policies are much worse than CCs right?

Have heard some horror stories about Best Buy (who hasn't) but I don't really know the details of the differences between the warranties.

 

[Doggiedog]

Originally posted by: azazyel

Originally posted by: Doggiedog
Nice buy but you do know BB's return and extended warranty policies are much worse than CCs right?

Have heard some horror stories about Best Buy (who hasn't) but I don't really know the details of the differences between the warranties.

From reading about the problems with the new Sony GW III LCD TVs, I know CC lets you return the TV within 30 days no questions asked. BB does not. If you have a problem with the TV, BB will refer you to the TV manufacturer. If the problem isn't fixed in 3 attempts, then BB will take the TV back. CC will come out and either fix or take it back.

 

[TitanDiddly]

Steal it.

 

[arod]

Originally posted by: azazyel
Well, I went to Best Buy after work armed with printouts from a few sites in hopes of trying to get the price down on their set. I didn't really expect much but the Best Buy is only a couple blocks from where I live so I had to at least try. I went in there and grabbed the first sales person that walked buy me and asked him if he would match the Circuit City 10% off sale. I almost knew they would say no because I had called the store a few moments earlier and the person I talked to on the phone said they didn't match promotions. But to my surprise the guy said "probably" and walked to his manager and then gave me the thumbs up. What really surprised me though was that the set was already on sale there. So, I ended up getting the set for minus $76, with an additional 10% off. I think it did help that I told the guy I wanted to 4 year warranty, which was about $100 less than Circuit City's warranty. To top things off he even price matched the shipping cost of Circuit City which he said was free. I actually knew it was $40 but I decided to be smart and not speak up. So, with everything said and done I ended up saving more than I though possible. I cannot wait until Saturday to start watching my DVDs on my new 47".


Cliff notes:

-Went to Best Buy to buy a TV.
-Was on sale at 1,423.99 reg at 1,499.99
-Got additional 10% off
-Got free delivery
-Got a 4 year warranty (didn't save money on it but it was still $100 cheaper than most places)
-Bought a half rack and celebrated

Congrats man now get yourself a HDTV receiver and a small antenna and start enjoying some HDTV/.... Espeically with march madness coming up real soon.

 

[azazyel]

Originally posted by: Doggiedog

Originally posted by: azazyel

Originally posted by: Doggiedog
Nice buy but you do know BB's return and extended warranty policies are much worse than CCs right?

Have heard some horror stories about Best Buy (who hasn't) but I don't really know the details of the differences between the warranties.

From reading about the problems with the new Sony GW III LCD TVs, I know CC lets you return the TV within 30 days no questions asked. BB does not. If you have a problem with the TV, BB will refer you to the TV manufacturer. If the problem isn't fixed in 3 attempts, then BB will take the TV back. CC will come out and either fix or take it back.

Reading the warranties over they look almost exactly the same but I can see that Circuit City would probably be more apt to helping me out. I just wanted some peace of mind, and paying a quarter of the TV's cost seemed a little exteme.

 

[RossMAN]

Originally posted by: Doggiedog
Nice buy but you do know BB's return and extended warranty policies are much worse than CCs right?

Yep I read extensive posts about BB vs CC warranties on AVSForums.

Also CC carries the beautiful Hitachi S500 HDTV and BB does not.

 

[Doggiedog]

Originally posted by: RossMAN

Originally posted by: Doggiedog
Nice buy but you do know BB's return and extended warranty policies are much worse than CCs right?

Yep I read extensive posts about BB vs CC warranties on AVSForums.

Also CC carries the beautiful Hitachi S500 HDTV and BB does not.

That's where I got my info too.

 

[azazyel]

Originally posted by: arod
Congrats man now get yourself a HDTV receiver and a small antenna and start enjoying some HDTV/.... Espeically with march madness coming up real soon.

Yup, I got the calibration disk while I was there and will do that first, then I will call comcast and get the HD receiver. I have also book marked some threads from the AVI forum about some of their preferred settings.

 

[TheGameIs21]

If I am not mistaken... both CC and BB use the same extended warranty service (Federal Warranty). After the initial warranty is up, you shouldn't have any more problems at one than the other.

BB loses my business just because they have a restock fee. I bought a camera from them and decided to go back and buy a different one that was about $150 more... they wouldn't waive the restock fee even though I was going to spend more $$... Oh well, lesson learned.