haha yes!

I've been hearing this is true but I'd be to embarrassed and/or scared to try this.

this is how you buy properly. Customers have lost the art of haggling because they'd rather just buy the damn TV on sale and be done with it.

Go to any high end audio store, you'll notice there are no price tags... you deal directly with the associate and negotiate a price. Make sure to do research into what you are looking for after you go a couple times though.

So this means you don't necessarily need to have found a price cheaper online, but you can just complain and have it lowered?

My mom isn't scared to save a few bucks. its a mexican thing. i'll just take her, she has a haggling technique and everything.

Personally, I think haggling is ridiculous, and I owned a high-end store for 4 years.

When I was in college, I started working at the Wiz. My first day on the job, a customer asked me "What's the best price on this?" I had no idea what he was talking about.
I grew up with parents who would never dream of haggling, and therefore I never even knew what it was.
The price should be the price. If you can't afford it, buy something cheaper, or buy it somewhere that is cheaper.
I don't think it is right that some scumbag who wants to be a dick to a salesperson should get something cheaper than a nice guy who comes into the store and doesn't haggle, and thinks that price tags are on the product for a reason.
Not to mention the fact that when you work on commission at a big retailer, if some guy haggles you down, you make less money on your paycheck. And trust me, it always the obnoxious asshole who is going to be the guy who haggles it down cheaper than anyone else.

Could you walk into a deli and say "Well the deli around the block sells their sandwiches for a dollar cheaper than you, AND I get a pickle with it?"
You would look like a real dick if you did that.

I wish they had a online haggiling button:)

@suburbancowboy: I bet car dealers love dealing with you.

That is also the point of comission based sales. If you want to make the sale, you can lower the amount of money you take as comission in order to make the sale.

I just bring up a lower price on my iPhone screen - show it to the sales person, and ask 'can you match that?'

Doesn't hurt to ask.

Staples manager for example checked my price on a 1TB raid drive was real, then immediately matched it - no questions asked.

As a former Magnolia supervisor at BBY in the Chicago area, I can attest to the fact that this has always been the case. The only thing that employees can't do is take money off the service plans directly, though you can backdoor that policy by having them take it off the product if you fall into the trap of actually buy a service plan.

If for some reason you purchase a lot of stuff from BBY you can actually do pretty well in package deals, though buying accessories online will always be cheaper.

I'm fairly sure that this could get me sued, but heres an FYI that might still work because the POS systems are in the process of being updated. I believe employee price check is F4 on the registers if you ever get left alone next to one, that gives you a good idea how low you can get someone to go.

@suburbancowboy: Haggling does not mean being a scumbag or a dick, and given your inexperience with the concept, I don't know why you'd label hagglers that way. If the customer is a dick about the process, then there's no reason for the salesperson to lower the price (or make a such a suggestion to the manager who might decide these things). Any haggler will be much more effective if they show that they are both smart and pleasant.

@suburbancowboy:

I think the point is that haggling gives the store a chance to earn your sale, or else YOU WILL go to another store and buy it. What is wrong with that? Best Buy gets a lot of my business because they have a price match policy.

I've been doing this for years. Especially at Best Buy on Open Box items they are always willing to come down a little bit.

@suburbancowboy: well then if you really think that way you obviously grew up way too sheltered. why is it the customer's responsibility to be "nice"? its the salesperson who should find any and all ways to satisfy the customer and still make money

This really works and has been known for a while -- even Consumer Reports mentioned it in an electronics purhcase issue last year.

All you have to do is ask in a nice way after lining up a purchase. Last year I bought from Circuit City: I got a 52" XBR2, a Polk speaker set, and installation on my system. Also got a PS3.

All told I probably saved about $700 in everything.

Additionally, if the price on an item drops (which they tend to do more online than in the stores), just ask at customer service and they tend to refund the difference -- happened to me after the PS3 price drop.

@FuzzysFriedChicken: Well considering the fact that I have owned my jeep for over 10 years, and plan on keeping it until it dies, It isn't an issue I have to deal with very often.
On top of that, I have friends, and network with enough people that if I need to buy a car, I am getting a good deal without haggling.
I know haggling goes with the territory when it comes to cars, but you are also talking about a purchase that is substantially larger than the average consumer electronics purchase.
When you go to a car dealership, you expect to haggle, and you also expect the salesperson to try and get the upper hand, and be less than an angel.
When you go to an electronics store, you want a knowledgeable salesperson who is going to help you.
When I worked at the Wiz, I was by far the most knowledgeable salesperson. If you named a model, even for brands of audio that we didn't carry, I could tell you the specs. Why would I give you the best possible help, if you are going to haggle, and take away my paycheck from me? You can't have both. You can't haggle, and expect an honest salesperson. Once you haggle, I don't want to help you. I just want to sell you something with some of my wallet left intact. The customers who are nice to me, and listen to my honest recommendations are the ones who are going to get a continued high level of customer service.
Therefore, I don't think the car dealer scenario can even be compared to buying a stereo. Your expectations of service from the salespeople are totally different.

I thought you could haggle almost anywhere. The one thing I won't haggle for is food, but on everything else I always ask if there's a sale or any discounts before I buy.

Yeah... I would cut deals with customers all the time, but only if they asked for it and if it would actually help close the sale. Also, we wouldn't give them discounts if they were cheap ass customers. People would come in and buy two laptops that we were selling for less than we paid for them, but they would think that they deserved a discount. Usually extended warranty, geek squad services, or accessories meant no discount. I mean, we were almost always willing to give 10% off accessories when they bought them with big ticket items (computers, tvs, camcorders, etc), but never off of big ticket items because they would just take the discount and then just return the accessories.

The point is, don't be a dick about it. Don't lie about competitors' prices (I once had a guy try to tell me that Fry's had a Bestbuy house brand cable for cheaper... Fry's doesn't carry Bestbuy brands). Don't assume that they want to make a deal (we didn't get commission). Don't expect them to do much for you unless you are getting services and accessories (I'm already selling you this laptop for less than my store paid for it and you want me to give you a bigger discount????).

Speaking as a manager with BBY for a few years now, we've always been given latitude with pricing (usually in the form of a competitive price change). There isn't a hard fast rule, but we are extremely careful to maintain our margin percentages (when possible). We, or at least I, am/are keenly aware of the battle for a given customer's discretionary dollars and I'm extremely up front with our shoppers about what I'm able or willing to move on. I try to strike a balance between winning the shopper and maintaining profitability ...

@japanesegorila85: Whoops, I meant to say:

Usually NO extended warranty, geek squad services, or accessories meant no discount.

Apparently the people saying that haggling is ok has never worked in a retail environment.

Look, if you don't like the price posted, buy something else, buy it someplace else, but trying to wear down the salesperson is just cheesy. You probably are the same people who ask if they can get out of their 2 year cell phone contract when text messaging rates go up.

I don't understand the 'let's make a deal!' strategy. I do my shopping beforehand, I know what I want, and I buy it from the place that has the best price. It's apparent from reading these posts that people who want to haggle are lazy and uninformed and want something for nothing.

Do your homework, people! And let the salespeople be.

@suburbancowboy: I'm glad there are naive people like you around. Helps keep the retailers happy.

Why would you pay full price when you know you can get a 10-15% discount by asking nicely? I'm really into stereo equipment, and I've shopped for high-end audio stuff for some of my clients. My clients pay me to take them to the store and negotiate a deal for them. Why on earth would you ever pay full sticker for high-end audio equipment? Those prices are inflated by about 30-40%.

Somehow, your logic of "if you can't afford the MSRP, buy something cheaper" doesn't seem to click with me. If I can have a 5-star product for $70, why would I pay $70 for a 3 or 4-star product? Doesn't make any sense to me. I know that haggling has allowed me to buy much nicer things than I would normally be able to afford. I got my 24" Dell monitor 3.5 years ago for $550 by haggling with the sales rep. Picked up a brand new Macbook Pro for $350 off sticker by haggling with the sales rep.

"Haggling" doesn't mean being rude and demanding a lower price. For me, it's always been a matter of becoming friends with the salesperson, finding a topic (not necessarily related to the sale or the item) that we're both interested in, chatting them up, and then asking for a discount. Works 75% of the time, and if it doesn't work, I'll try a different store or come back on a different day and work over another sales rep.

Good. Might actually be able to get some of our money's worth. We're taking our new $1500 computer setup we bought yesterday back tomorrow because a stupid little hinge pin is missing.
I'm ripping Best Buy so many new assholes, they'll crap out their hair.

Wait a few months and Circuit City will sell you anything 90% off, CompUSA style.

Keep in mind, I'm not doing that because the computer's broke. I'm doing that because they had an hour with the computer out of the box, "optimizing" it, looking it over, and because we payed an exorbitant amount of money for in-home repair coverage. However, when one hinge pin is broken, they want you to take the whole damn system down, box it all back up, drive an hour away to the store again, and go through the entire buying process 2 days later.

I work for Best Buy, and if you haggle price with me I'll tell you real quick, "This is Best Buy, not Best Barter".

@suburbancowboy: It's guys like you who give crappy retailer's a bad name. My buddy in TX works at a Best Buy, and actually LAUGHS at the people who come in and pay full price, because even HE would not! Retailers get discounts for buying in bulk, then DON'T pass the savings on! (Comp USA anyone?) I rarely, if EVER pay full price for ANYTHING because somebody is willing to sell to me at a CHEAPER price to keep me as a customer. I gave all my business to Fry's because they are great with prices and liberal with returns, and I've spent THOUSANDS there because of it. The internet kills retail anyway, why go into a retailer and get treated like a know-nothing slob when you can have it at your door, and cheaper to boot by buying online? Plus you guys STILL make commission by selling at a discount! A discount sale is still an item SOLD! I've yet to find any retail associates that know anything anyway. I asked a member of the so-called "Geek Squad" about Over clocking and he said, "we don't sell that"!

@tehronin:

>I work for Best Buy, and if you haggle price with me I'll tell you real quick, "This is >Best Buy, not Best Barter".

If you told me that, I would do one of two things:

1. Speak to your manager, thus making you look like a dick for not engaging in a policy this article states Best Buy apparently supports.
or
2. Walk away and buy my item somewhere else for cheaper, thus costing your store a sale.

Boo to the frickin' ya.

I work for BB as well and unless you're an attractive girl I won't give you the time of day..

I wish some of the home improvement stores would do this. I recently needed to buy something in gross from Lowe's (around 500 bolts that they only sold individually). It was an item I had researched and couldn't buy in bulk in the area and was rather pricey online due to shipping (heavy!). I spoke to the manager about it and she flatly told me "This isn't a barter system, I don't care if you don't like it." - this was well before I even was able to ask for a lower price! (Because 45c ea seemed like a bit much for that many)

/Rant.

I do wish people would be more polite in their haggling. Occasionally I go to BB with an advert in hand from elsewhere and try to be polite about it. "So is this the same item as this ad? Because I looked it up and that seems like what would be good for me, and it looks like these are the same thing." They've been more than happy to work with me.

Circuit City haggled with me for and LCD TV. I just made sure I talked to a salesman who didn't look like highschool kid. It took about 5 minutes to save 15%.

My parents always would buy a new TV and haggle with the guy to throw in some Monster cables for 10% off, sigh.

@legacye: Well agreed.

working in the retail of motorcycles
I get customers who cry about pricing, how they saw it at another dealership cheaper.
When the closest dealer is about 30k from the one I work at, and then the distance just goes further.
Then you just feal like stating, well drive out there and get it then.

I really do not like how this whole discount thing has become.

To those who think electronic purchases are different from cars are rediculous. Both are 'dealers', both try to sell you unneeded accesories or upgrades and usually try to scare you into buying a service plan or extended warranty.

I mean you can buy a TV or Laptop for $3000. To not get the best possible deal is not the smartest thing in regards to your money.

To those who think CONSUMERS owe dealears anything including just 'buying' without asking questions can go ahead and do that. I for one think companies need to do something to deserve my money and my respect. You don't deserve a tip, you work for it and it will come. In fact if you do think you deserve it and have an attitude you will get a fat $0.00 from me.

I've done this before when buying an LCD TV, I got $100 off just for asking, dropped the price from $1300 to $1200...not bad. I'm sure they're less willing to haggle on smaller items and certain products that NEVER go down in price (iPod, etc).

yeah...like even in chinatown i feel a little weird doing it, but honestly it works, and when it does, it is so so sweet

now to go get my two dollar discount on burnout: paradise...

As a former employee of circuit city, I can tell you this only works for high ticket sales. If you're only going to buy a tv with nothing else, good luck trying to get a lower price. Also, since they took out commission 4 years ago, most employees couldn't care less if you buy it or not. Basically, they care just enough so the managers aren't breathing down your throat.

I can't help but think many of you have worked in retail, especially ones that work on commission.

You're haggling to save money, right? Well the salesperson is selling it to make money. The both don't fit together very well when people are literally trying to shave 20 or 30% off the price like its a garage sale. I truly don't care if you buy it at another store.

@ Mingdaking
If customer's aren't obligated to be nice, why should the salesperson? It goes both ways my friend. I would much rather loose a sell than selling to a person like you.

Now if the customer is nice, I would be more than willing to "haggle" with them because it was a nice experience.

uhhh this isnt news 3 years ago i got the circuit city guy to save me at least $700 when i was buying a home entertainment system (tv, receiver etc)

I think that it depends on the place and the circumstance. If a store clearly has a price-matching policy, then you're just cheating yourself if you don't do a little homework first. If it's a type of sales where haggling or negotiation is expected, you're just cheating yourself by rolling over -- doesn't mean you have to be a dick about it, and salespeople have to eat too. But there are times when it's just too embarrasing to go somewhere with someone who tries to haggle about everything, everywhere (restaurants, retail clothes, etc.).

@legacye: I would love for you to talk to my manager, seeing as this is NOT written anywhere in company policy and should not be treated as such.

I also work at Best Buy. Keep in mind we're non-commission so haggling too hard could backfire. And it usually isn't on brand new product. Mainly open item or clearence products.

@legacye:
Umm notice how it says "Unoficially OK with haggling" Keyword: Unoficially

We were in no way obligated to haggle with customers, especially ones with a bad attitude.

@Syrus28: You can tell legacye is one of those customers you hand a sale ad to and walk away from...

@suburbancowboy:

Would you rather loose the sale when they go buy it some place cheaper? I think not.

@chueychihuahua: Hahaha You must be one of those nerds that thinks they can get a piece by showing a girl that you'll give her a discount when really shes just walking all over you and you love it because in any other situation she wouldn't give you the time of day. Pitiful.. lol

"Best Buy has always earned my disdain with their retail price mentality. "

Help me here what exactly is that supposed to mean? A retail chain having retail prices! My God! The Horror!

Having grown up with Best Buy (born and raised in the TC where they are headquartered) - I have not once paid the labeled price on any product purchased from them that was over 200 bucks. Not in the 80s (our families first CD player and color TVs), the 90s (countless items), or this century (recently bought a new stove and fridge). This has always been the case. At least around here.

@mikecoscia:
Why would they go there if it was cheaper some where else? Obviously there is some benefit for the customer because they went there knowing they could get it cheaper some where else.

Take it or leave it. Believe it or not, life lives on for both the customer and the clerk.

I personally manage a snowboard shop and there are 2 types of hagglers, douchebags, and very nice customers who are curtious, the worst wa to try to get a discount with me, is to tell me how another store has the same item cheaper, or how unreasonable our prices are (EVERYTHING in the store is minimum of 30% off retail)

I do give alot of discounts wherever I can, if your a nice customer, didnt treat me like I was serving you, but treated me like I was helping you, ill show you some love at the register and you dont even need to ask.

if on the other hand your an A hole to me, seing as how I run the store in the store I have way more power than you and I can be a way bier A-hole. The owner is the same way when he is here, he has kicked people out of the store because they were talking to me like I was their servant, he told this one guy that he would only sell him this one board for retail which was $650 rather than our discounted price of $450 because he was complaining about the price and screaming about it like a maniac.

point is, be respectful of your salespeople dont treat them like servants, treat them like equals. they might end up wanting to give you a discount but dont have the authority, once you see your on friendly terms ask him,

@Hiphopopotamus: Apparently we read the same article.
[www.nypost.com]

I'm looking into buying a flatscreen, and how would you approach a salesperson about haggling?

Would a good tactic to find a subject that you both like, make "friends", and then just ask straight up "Can I get a discount on this?", or something more sneaky like "Is this the lowest possible price?"