Was I Expecting Too Much

I have several owned successful restaurants over 40 +  years & know something about guest service. That owner was being foolish & now probably lost the golden opportunity to gain another loyal customer. It’s a bit different In restaurants because have to eat everyday but repeat clientele is the heart & soul of just about any business. That could have been you!

Because turntables are so fragile, a home audition is tricky but in the price range of those fine turntables, a private session could be arranged in store possibly w/ some of your own stuff ( phono amp, amp, speakers, whatever). If they did this, treated you well & offered you a good deal on the spot, there’s a good chance you would buy right then or at least in a few months when you were actually ready. 
 

They clearly have no faith in their salesmanship for both the product & themselves. I would look elsewhere. 

Everybody knows what the problem is. It is the Internet. I ran into this at a local dealer. Looking for some Macintosh products. The first thing he said to me is.” are you here to shop or are you gonna buy one on the Internet used?” I kind of felt bad for the guy, that’s probably what I was going to do. I could tell it was burned out, and probably realize that he was at the end of his business life. I can only imagine the amount of people that they get going into the store Doing exactly what I was going to do. The way that I justify it is that if I buy something used from somebody with more money than me hopefully they’re going to a dealer and buying something new. But I have no way to guarantee that. It’s just the way of the world and retail is , the new person in the economy to take a hit. I had a bunch of friends who work around the printing industry and they all got their butt kicked 20 years ago. Now it’s stereo guys turn. I guess at some point we’re all going to get to take our turn . 

Online sales has indeed hurt a lot of businesses but I think w/  mid fi equipment on up, the attention to proper handling, set up, service if needed, it’s wise to buy from an experienced dealer. Additionally, most of the better audio brands are not available new for any discount sizable discounts from online companies. Used equipment is of course a different story. 
 

Fortunately, as a restaurateur, the internet has only helped my business & the lack of consistent quality of food & service at the majority of chain restaurants has only helped to make my offerings look & taste better. 
 

I understand the concept that better customer service equals better sales. 

But, I also think that there may be internal research that shows that in store demos don't lead to increased sales. If anything, it may lead to increased costs from having to pull personal to perform duties that don't result in increased profits. Whether it would lead to down the road sales is uncertain but hard to make a business plan based on what may or may not happen in the future. Maybe I am wrong, but I suspect if it were a straight forward issue then everyone would do it the same way.

 I think it is short minded to think these dealers will bend over backwards for us because we might buy their product. There are very few car dealers who will let you take home their product for the weekend. If they do, you are probably a customer who has bought from them a few times previously.

It would be nice to hear from those with knowledge of this subject such as Troy in New Jersey. 

I have yet to hear a turntable prior to buying it. In today's world you can just return it and get a refund. Let's see, I've bought the following turntables over the Years, yea not the ultimate in turntables mind you...music hall mmf-7.3, thorens td 240-2, thorens td 1500, technics mk7, Avid ingenium, Music Hall mmf-7, lenco l90 vintage, denon dp37, thorens td 203, pro ject the classic, pro ject the classic sb...and so on...not one of them did I listen to before purchase...every one of them was/is a great sounding table.