Gun Store Customer Service -How important to you?

Probably bought my last 20 guns in private sales. In MA, where shops can't sell such a large number of guns, shops just don't have that much to offer for my taste.
 
Bring a Item ( rifle or hand gun) to a to a Gun retailer in its original container that you have purchased before and have no intention of EVER selling and tell them (he) that you want to put put it up for consignment how much do you think it will sell for? Then he says not as much as you think and they (he) calls over to the guy thats all ways hanging around the gun retailers shop and says BLANK you can fill in any name,, any interest in a GLOCK 23 RTF gen for $375 and you then say them (he) you failed the trust test have a nice day !!! CAN YOU GUESS THE FIREARMS RETAILER IN MASSACHUSETTS?
 
When I go to a store to buy something,I already know what I want.I don't need knowledgeable salesperson,because I already did all my research prior to going into the store.

So I don't need a salesperson to talk me into buying something,I need the best price.

IMO,it sounds like some of you guys here are going into a gun store and wanting to be talked into buying something.
 
So far everyone whose customer service skills have sucked has gotten a second chance and they've been fine except for a few.

One, which is Bass Pro, has glass counters that turn me invisible every time I approach them but they have a big ammo selection and a few guns I never see anywhere else such as the coach gun I bought there so I still make the trip every month or two.

Another is an LGS with a counter clerk who, not so discreetly, trash talks the customers to the other clerks and is generally just ignorant all around to the customers. It might be because the undersized/overworked chair he's always sitting on is stuffed halfway up his ass like a rolling butt plug. I'd be cranky too under the circumstances. I still go there but I avoid and ignore the guy.
 
Customer service is defintitely tops on my list. The last gun I purchased through a LGS, I had a very poor customer service experience. It was as if I was an inconvenience to them by being there (and I was the only one in the shop). I didn't even get a thank you or have a nice day after I purchased a gun ( are you f***ing kidding me ? I only purchased there because I was given a gift certificate). Needles to say, I will never spend any money there again. Personally, I don't need to be talked into buying anything but I will not go to a place that does not seem to value my business.
 
Price #1
Inventory (Ammo,Reloading) #2

I love being able to browse physically inspect things. This is why I hate Dicks (All guns/ammo are behind shelf) but Cabelas is OK (They have their used guns and Reloading supplies out on the floor). KTP in Maine/ Rileys in NH are Great (Most all guns and all ammo/reloading are on floor).

Customer Service = last for me. I am the type who would rather only talk to someone when im about to check out.
 
The Goose said:
Price is never #1 with me. I buy everything I possibly can at Blue Northern in Ayer. They have helped me out in so many ways and it is a pleasure just walking in and visiting. They cannot possibly compete with the larger and busier stores on price and I don't care.
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Saved me the time and effort of writing exactly the same thing. When I'm driving by and have the time I'll stop by and grab a box of ammo just 'cause, Eben though I know damn well it's more there than the other 2-3 shops I can go to.
 
Its a matter of balance for me. All three are important. If the customer service sucks, then price and selection don't matter. I'm walking. If the service is good but the prices are ridiculous, I'm walking. If they don't have what I need or enough to keep me coming back, I'm walking.
 
VetteGirlMA said:
Here's a female perspective. A lot of gun stores, well let me be honest here, and say that a lot of them look no different that an oversized closet with a pegboard on one wall with some guns hanging on it. Some could use a woman's touch or at least brighten the place up a bit with some white paint. Also it's nice to have a gun shop where they don't start off with 'this is what you need right here ma'am', as if I'm some kind of nincompoop. After sales service is nice too. I would like to top this off by saying I would rather give my money to a local gun shop than any chain store every single day of the week.

In all my travels, I have only run into 2 gun stores that actually want a woman's business and actually care about it: Guns Inc in West Springfield, MA and Minuteman Armory in Templeton. Both are clean inside, bright, well lit, will take time and be patient. I was like a damn rocket scientist when I wanted my first handgun, and the folks in West Springfield were so very patient, I just knew I had to give them my business and my repeat business. The guys at Minuteman even did trigger rework for me on my revolver and they have been alright in my book.

I have run into a few gun shops that actively took other male customers and looked right past me as if I wasn't there, or I was the wife or girlfriend just standing around for no reason, instead of being the damn buyer. I waited at one place for about 25 minutes and basically walked out and said forget it, and have never stepped foot in there again. Then again I have run into the same thing at Best Buy and electronics stores.
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This was (and is an issue I struggle with in my household) my wife was raised around guns (her dad was an leo for almost 30 years ) she never really had the motivation to pursue shooting/carrying until recently. She does not feel that comfortable in most gun stores. She isn't die hard into guns so a little extra attention relating to detail of the store and customer service would go along way for her. I do my research I pretty much know what I want and all the details of it when I walk into a store. She does not. I keep her in the loop and give her info but I don't get to in depth because I will lose her at that point. In the experience I mentioned earlier in this thread she just needed a little reassurance with some minor questions relating to the firearm we were purchasing and a holster we were looking into from a store employee. I went in there knowing (after we had spent some time at the range with 1) she would be getting the shield. I didn't really have any questions for the store clerk. But she did. These are questions i could of answered but I am sure she would of liked to hear them from the salesmen.

On top of all that I need to find some females for her to shoot with. She grew up on the outskirts of Boston. Most of her friends are either anti's or could just care less about 2a. I really need to join a local club so she can maybe get to know some woman involved in shooting sports. The problem is for her all of this starts at the counter were she is purchasing the firearm.....
 
Greg said:
When I go to a store to buy something,I already know what I want.I don't need knowledgeable salesperson,because I already did all my research prior to going into the store.

So I don't need a salesperson to talk me into buying something,I need the best price.

IMO,it sounds like some of you guys here are going into a gun store and wanting to be talked into buying something.
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This, I need good prices and basic service. I don't really need a dog and pony show. I think things are different for newbs, though, newbs are all over that stuff. Some of them almost seem to lazy to do their own research and just want something spoon fed to them, or they want some kind of appeal to authority thing going on, etc. I don't get it. Then again I'm biased because I'm used to digging under the surface of anything remotely electronic or mechanical to find out how good it is, even if its just in relative terms, etc.

Networking is also a valuable aspect of building relationships with dealers but that's not something the "bweah, tell me which gun to buy" crowd really needs anyways. (For example, one dealer I know knew that I was about to sell a certain gun I had, then I got a call from that dealer a few days later and he gave me the number of a guy that was looking for that gun.... because it was something the dealer couldn't touch, but me and the other guy could do an FTF on it. )

-Mike
 
Mass-diver said:
Probably bought my last 20 guns in private sales. In MA, where shops can't sell such a large number of guns, shops just don't have that much to offer for my taste.
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That's actually a problem everywhere not just in MA. Try driving around new england and tell me how many shops have CZs on the shelf. (rifles or handguns, for that matter.... ) Maybe 10%, tops, as an example. A lot of times you gotta use gunbroker/GA/whatever to get what you want anyways. Friend of mine moved down to FL for a short stint, he did all inbound transfers with a small local dealer near his apartment down there, because the local retail gun shops were shitty and overpriced.

-Mike
 
I fail to see how firearm sales differ from any other business when it comes to customer service. If you're a prick, I'm out. I wouldn't accept that at any store I walk in to. I used to visit a shop in Lowell, MA many years ago. A certain person behind the counter was crass at best. No thanks.

I've had great experiences at MA Firearms. I drive over an hour to see them. Good selection, great service.
 
i've been in this for 40+ years, i'm at the stage of my shooting life where i don't want customer service (unless something goes south with my purchase), if i head to 4s, i know what i want, point and buy then good bye. want to browse, i head to collectors. don't want anyone around me until i call them over. life is easy. oh, i wont drive out of my way to save a couple of bucks. i wish the rest of my life was as uncomplicated.
 
I agree with Greg and Drgrant on this. I can do my research online, and I find the expertise available from the NES collective to be much more valuable than that of a single person whose motivation is to sell me something.

So price #1, selection #2 and the ability to fondle it's without being tethered to a salesperson #3. I don't want to be ignored, though. If I have questions I want someone to make the effort to answer them for me in a reasonable amount of time.
 
As long as they don't treat me like a criminal or an idiot, I don't care. Mike at Guns and Gun parts in West Springfield barely talks for example but he's never a jerk. Trader John's in NH on the other hand I get stared down like I'm about to rob the place and it makes me feel uncomfortable. That I don't like. Ignore me if you want, but don't mad dog me like I did something wrong.
 
Greg said:
When I go to a store to buy something,I already know what I want.I don't need knowledgeable salesperson,because I already did all my research prior to going into the store.
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If you go to a store and know exactly what you want, know what the price is and can get a person to help you with the purchase I'll agree with you. Sometimes though I go to gun stores to see what non-common guns they may have in their cases. If I see nothing of interest there's no need to interact with a sales person. If I do see something I would expect some form of acknowledgement sooner or later.

In my example of bad service I was perusing and came across a C&R that caught my eye. Though with no acknowledgement from the service folks they lost out on a potential sale and an ongoing customer. If it's a regular thing then sooner or later the shop will suffer, which affects their likelihood of lasting.
 
Customer service is important on all of my purchases.

Town Fair Tire has the lowest prices, but their customer service sucks.

Long Distance Tire is more expensive, but the work quality and customer service are much better.

To me, it's worth it to be treated with respect.
 
Paul455 said:
Customer service is important on all of my purchases.

Town Fair Tire has the lowest prices, but their customer service sucks.

Long Distance Tire is more expensive, but the work quality and customer service are much better.

To me, it's worth it to be treated with respect.
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I agree on the LDT. And soon, we have Direct Tire across the street no? Should be interesting. Thanks
 
Periphery said:
As long as they don't treat me like a criminal or an idiot, I don't care. Mike at Guns and Gun parts in West Springfield barely talks for example but he's never a jerk. Trader John's in NH on the other hand I get stared down like I'm about to rob the place and it makes me feel uncomfortable. That I don't like. Ignore me if you want, but don't mad dog me like I did something wrong.
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They probably see your Obama/Biden 12 sticker on your Prius when you pull up to the shop.
 
One store that I found to treat you like a preferred customer is H-S Trading in Auburn. They recently posted on FB they are going out of business the end of Feb. That sucks especially when there are shops that don't respect you.
 
free said:
Imagine if we had around here a B&H (or even Adorama) type of gun store?
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Sweet except for the "gray market" items. That would be like a gun show loophole or something.

Customer service rates highly in my book. Retail, employees should be very careful about what they say when customers can overhear. "Hmm, if they're saying that about that customer, what are they saying about me?". My wife has worked retail for a long time; some of the stories are legend.
 
Rockrivr1 said:
HA! Yeah that place was one of the worst. Same with Village. Though I did get a great 686 with a 6" bbl in their closing the door sale when they were closing down. Though for this post, the shop I'm talking about is still in business. [wink]
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Funny thing is, that Dowd and staff were always incredibly polite to me. Over several years, many visits and several purchases. I may not like Village Vault but I certainly can't fault all my experiences at the store.

FWIW Gun room really was that bad.
 
Paul455 said:
Customer service is important on all of my purchases.

Town Fair Tire has the lowest prices, but their customer service sucks.

Long Distance Tire is more expensive, but the work quality and customer service are much better.

To me, it's worth it to be treated with respect.
Click to expand...

Don't get me started on tire places. If you don't want your rims destroyed or the lugs put on so tight you can't get them off its a real struggle to find someone.

One time my Jeep (which was kind of a beater) went to a tire place to have the valve stems replaced (off roading in sand wears them out and they leak). I got it back and was driving it around for a while and everything seemed fine. For some reason I needed to take the wheel off to work on something and I discovered that even my 1000ft/lb pneumatic impact gun wouldn't budge the nuts. It's a good thing I discovered it at home and not on the side of a highway in the middle of the night in a rain storm in another state.

I had to use a breaker bar with a jack handle slipped over it to get them to loosen up. Not only that, but I had to STAND on the handle with all of my considerable weight and BOUNCE UP AND DOWN to get them to crack. I honestly can not even imagine how they got them that tight. Whatever impact gun they were using, I wish I had one.
 

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