BN rep called Nook color a 'toy', recommended original Nook

[Grimm]

Originally Posted by RockdaMan

I do exactly the same thing with my Kindle.

But in a darkened room you're using some kind of attachable or external lightsource. Mine is internal.

[dixieknits]

Well, I would call it the "Cadillac of all E-Readers"
The Ultimate E-Reader.....the Ferrarri of fast page turns..... The Beacon of nightime reading.... I'm a really picky, critical kind of consumer and I really really like it..

[bobavey]

For the sales person to express her opinion, when asked, is appropriate -- that the original nook might be better for someone who only wants to use the device to read. However, she stepped over the line by referring to the nook color as a "Toy."

[Steven Lyle Jordan]

Originally Posted by bobavey

For the sales person to express her opinion, when asked, is appropriate -- that the original nook might be better for someone who only wants to use the device to read.

Even that requires further qualification, since the Nook Color can read magazine content that the Nook cannot... and reading magazines is, after all, still considered reading.

Specifically: If you only intend to read ebook novels and texts, so color is not an issue, you read for long stretches of time, and you are okay reading on an eInk screen, the Nook would be the better choice.

[fafaforza]

I'm sure if she were able to clarify or expand, she would have said that compared to eInk, which only does plain text, the Nook Color would appeal more to the type of person that's looking for a general device that does games, browsing, etc; more of a toy or personal gadget, versus a printed book replacement.

Sure you can read on the NC, but you can do the same on an android phone, or a Nintendo DS. Doesn't make them the best devices for "serious readers," which the customer asked about. I'm sure the corporate brass wouldn't like hearing that word, but since when are we as customers so concerned about the suits? And why should a B&N employee have any loyalty to the company that wouldn't think twice about firing her to make a quarterly report look better.

[SCION]

Originally Posted by fafaforza

... And why should a B&N employee have any loyalty to the company that wouldn't think twice about firing her to make a quarterly report look better.

That's an interesting take on life.

[boswd]

Originally Posted by fafaforza

I'm sure if she were able to clarify or expand, she would have said that compared to eInk, which only does plain text, the Nook Color would appeal more to the type of person that's looking for a general device that does games, browsing, etc; more of a toy or personal gadget, versus a printed book replacement.

Sure you can read on the NC, but you can do the same on an android phone, or a Nintendo DS. Doesn't make them the best devices for "serious readers," which the customer asked about. I'm sure the corporate brass wouldn't like hearing that word, but since when are we as customers so concerned about the suits? And why should a B&N employee have any loyalty to the company that wouldn't think twice about firing her to make a quarterly report look better.

I read in a pinch on my Droid, it has a 4.3 inch screen, takes about 5 screen shots to past one page. Cant exactly compare reading on a 7 inch screen to a 4.3 or less screen.

[bhartman36]

I think calling it a "toy" is more dismissive than I'd want a salesperson to be if I was the manager. As a manager, I would have preferred the opinion be expressed as, "The Nook Color is the one you want for magazines and children's books, or if you want to do things other than read. If you want to read straight text (e.g., novels, etc.) your best choice is the Nook Classic."

As a customer, though, I'd be appreciative of someone pointing me towards what she thought was the better device (for reading). As for the Office document question, her response might have meant, "Well, if you want Office docs, just convert them to PDF and the Nook Classic is fine." (And the subtext would be, "It's worth the hassle of converting to PDF to use the Nook Classic over the Color.") Now, that might not be true in some people's minds (and I haven't used either Nook, so I can't pass judgment on that), but I would certainly appreciate the honesty, as a customer.

Now, whether the manager would be happy with this salesperson depends on what kind of manager he/she is. I think that a manager who thinks short-term would be angry, but a manager with a longer view would be appreciative. A salesperson who gives an honest answer is more likely to attract repeat business than a salesperson who just tries to put the highest-price gadget in the customer's hands. Now, don't get me wrong. The Nook Color could be a wonderful device for reading e-books, and a customer could be very happy with it. But a salesperson who steers a customer to the Nook Color despite believing it's not the better reading device is more likely to mislead customers in other ways, and that's not good for long-term business.

[Steven Lyle Jordan]

Originally Posted by fafaforza

Sure you can read on the NC, but you can do the same on an android phone, or a Nintendo DS. Doesn't make them the best devices for "serious readers," which the customer asked about.

Again, assuming magazine reading isn't "serious reading." I read more magazines than books, and I consider them to be serious reading. And I read ebooks on a smartphone, which I consider a perfect device for ebooks. You show the same bias as MV64.

[SCION]

Still waiting for a definition of "serious readers" or "serious reading".

[Elfwreck]

Originally Posted by SCION

Still waiting for a definition of "serious readers" or "serious reading".

I don't think I mentioned "serious readers" here, but when I use the phrase, I generally mean "reads more than 30k words/week when not prevented by illness or bizarre timesucking circumstances; prefers to read 50-100k words in most weeks; would happily read more than 150k words/week if job etc. didn't prevent it."

That should probably be modified based on people's reading times; I know less about reading speed than amount of content.

[PatNY]

Originally Posted by bhartman36

But a salesperson who steers a customer to the Nook Color despite believing it's not the better reading device is more likely to mislead customers in other ways, and that's not good for long-term business.

If I'm her supervisor, I would have wanted her to be honest about the pros/cons of each device, then let the customer make up his/her own mind. And if the customer asked for a recommendation, then the salesperson should give one, without dismissing the other product and being misleading about it.

Also, by totally dismissing the Nook Color, the salesperson perhaps lost an opportunity to sell the device through an "influencer." Because if that customer was not the right consumer for the Nook Color, then perhaps a relative or friend would be.

The goal is to sell without being misleading.

I wouldn't have fired or even reprimanded her, but if one of her co-workers was more tactful and more knowledgeable about the various B&N products, I would choose to retain the co-worker if it came down to firing one in a layoff.

[bhartman36]

Originally Posted by PatNY

If I'm her supervisor, I would have wanted her to be honest about the pros/cons of each device, then let the customer make up his/her own mind. And if the customer asked for a recommendation, then the salesperson should give one, without dismissing the other product and being misleading about it.

Also, by totally dismissing the Nook Color, the salesperson perhaps lost an opportunity to sell the device through an "influencer." Because if that customer was not the right consumer for the Nook Color, then perhaps a relative or friend would be.

The goal is to sell without being misleading.

I wouldn't have fired or even reprimanded her, but if one of her co-workers was more tactful and more knowledgeable about the various B&N products, I would choose to retain the co-worker if it came down to firing one in a layoff.

Yeah, like I said, I think she was too dismissive of the Nook Color, even if she was being honest. It doesn't sound like a fair comparison to say of the NC that it's a "toy". There are definitely reasons a person might buy one. It seems the salesperson assumed that the question was about long-form reading, and based her response on that, but she should've given a more thorough critique.

Honestly, I think it's a push, but I might want to train all the salespeople on how to sell the strengths of both devices.

[emellaich]

... But there is an easy way to fix all of this. Give a $10 per device bonus on each Color sold, and a $5 per device bonus on each basic nook.

Bottom line as that all the comments really go to the problems with motivating minimum wage employees. Its pretty difficult. Most of them have a tough time even affording an ereader of their own. At 20 hours per week, employees will need to work two weeks to take a color nook home.

You can provide all of the training you want, but put a little money behind it and the training will really take hold. Then again, you'll walk through the door of your local BN and immediately be hit with 10 helpful rep's. I'm reminded of the old days at Circuit City.

[RockdaMan]

Originally Posted by SCION

Still waiting for a definition of "serious readers" or "serious reading".

Serious readers are still using their Kindle 1. Too busy reading to upgrade.