Android Forums now teaching Verizon Employees

[pbwhite]

Being a geek, I've been very interested in getting a Droid, and in anticipation, have been following this forum since day one.

I've been to the Verizon store a few times to play with the Droid, and was comparing it to the Eris today when an employee came over and started chatting with me.

He had a Droid, so I asked him how he liked it, etc, etc. I mentioned how I knew quite a bit about the device just from reading up on it online. I asked him about the keyboard, and what his take was.

He mentioned the lack of raised keys, etc., and then said his main complaint was that there was no way to 'lock' the Alt key so he could type numbers - and he proceeded to show me how you had to hold the Alt key down, and type with the other hand.

Then I mentioned to him that I thought all you needed to do was double-tap the alt key to lock it. He did that and was amazed that it was that simple, and thanked me for the tip.

Perhaps this forum should be mandatory reading for all Verizon employees?

 

[PinheadRamone]

I agree! A few days before the droid was out I went to Verizon store in a mall hoping that they would have one there before they were released. So I tell the guy working that I was interested in getting one and the first thing out of his mouth was " I dont know what all it can do." So I tell the guy I know what it does, I just wanna know what I have to do to get one. So he said he'd call me back, he must be on AT&T because I never got the call.

 

[GDroid]

I agree. When I go to the Verizon store to check out phones, I usually say "I'm an IT Guy" before any conversation starts, and then the conversation basically turns into him indirectly saying "you know better". For example, the guy didn't know if the Droid would synch with Microsoft Exchange. This is very important to know when a user is purchasing a phone for business use.

The sales people need to have better technical training IMO. Of course, this does not apply to all sales people. You may find one that knows what he/she is talking about, but good luck.

 

[colnago]

At my local VZ store, where I got my Droid, in (2) different days, I was told by (3) different salesmen, (3) differnt pricing tiers for "tethering"...and you guys want them to have more technical knowledge? Baby steps...baby steps.

 

[GDroid]

At my local VZ store, where I got my Droid, in (2) different days, I was told by (3) different salesmen, (3) differnt pricing tiers for "tethering"...and you guys want them to have more technical knowledge? Baby steps...baby steps.

Wow. While we're on the subject, how about the wannabe computer wizards in Best Buy's computer department?

 

[Crush_Buds]

I once went to a Verizon store not that long after I purchased the original LG voyager. I had mentioned that the new firmware update was out for the phone and the Verizon employee asked me... "Do you work for Verizon or something?"

Too funny.

 

[redwing26]

I can relate to this completely!!

I was having issues with my Droid's screen not rotating unless I flipped the keyboard out - the screen wasn't rotating at all closed -

I had to talk to 3 different employees, all of them having a different answer! they finally resolved it by saying "well, let's see what the display model does" and proceeded to go over and check out the display -

I thought they would have a spec chart or manual that they could check - What would have happened if the display model was one of the lemons?

Thankfully it wasn't and they replaced my Droid with one that works -

 

[Polymira]

Omg, double tap alt and wow. I honestly had no idea, it was a big annoyance for me.

Thanks =)

 

[DanSan]

I agree. When I go to the Verizon store to check out phones, I usually say "I'm an IT Guy" before any conversation starts, and then the conversation basically turns into him indirectly saying "you know better". For example, the guy didn't know if the Droid would synch with Microsoft Exchange. This is very important to know when a user is purchasing a phone for business use.

The sales people need to have better technical training IMO. Of course, this does not apply to all sales people. You may find one that knows what he/she is talking about, but good luck.

Ive been working in retail for 5+ years, doing car audio installs for as long as the sun has been around. I get people all the time coming in and starting off their conversation with something just like you posted. basically its just them trying to say they know better than you and to listen to what they have to say because they love to hear themselves talk. If your so smart and claim to be an expert why must you ask questions?

No offense, not doubting what you know or anything.. but please, dont say that to retail employees in sales. it really pisses us off.

 

[MotoDroidHelpandInfo]

Sales people at Verizon always tend to annoy me. At Verizon as i was buying the phone he continuing to try and sell it to me as if i hadn't just handed him cash. It's also annoying how they can't tell when you're already aware of something.

 

[GDroid]

Ive been working in retail for 5+ years, doing car audio installs for as long as the sun has been around. I get people all the time coming in and starting off their conversation with something just like you posted. basically its just them trying to say they know better than you and to listen to what they have to say because they love to hear themselves talk. If your so smart and claim to be an expert why must you ask questions?

No offense, not doubting what you know or anything.. but please, dont say that to retail employees in sales. it really pisses us off.

No offense. I was not denouncing the "sales" field nor was I stating that I know everything. I also said that this does not apply to ALL sales people. However, when someone tries to BS me, that pisses the customer/me off, and I will rebuke something if it's false. I only bring out the "IT Card" when necessary. For example, and correct me if I am wrong, a lot of Verizon sales employees are telling customers that they require the $45 dollar data plan if they would like the Droid to sync with Exchange. That is not true. The $30 data plan works fine. Do you know how many customers must be paying the extra $15/month??

Anyway, I have no reason nor the time to go into a store and show off to the sales crew. Any Verizon sales person I've talked to about techie stuff is always cool about it. I had a conversation with 2 sales people for about an hour on Friday at the Verizon store about "techie stuff" while I was checking out the Droid, etc., and they were cool to discuss ideas/thoughts on the phone.

Once again, my fault if you felt offended. I was misleading in saying "before the conversation starts". I should have said "before any BS starts". I'm not one of those annoying "mr. know it all people".

 

[Deleted User]

As I've mentioned before, there are 2 types of people that work for Verizon Wireless.

There's people like me, who love gadgets and technology. We read blogs and message boards daily/hourly. We read up on rumors, leaks, rumors, rumors, and more rumors. We watch countless video reviews on YouTube. We watch unboxing videos on YouTube. We read the same reviews multiple times. We're always looking forward to a new device every 4-6 months. So when we're asked by a customer, we can deliver accurate, detailed, and helpful information about devices. Not only that, but we WANT our customers to ask us questions about devices. We ENJOY talking phones and gadgets.

Then there are people who are there for the paycheck, and really don't know much of anything about devices. You'll know which one of these two categories of employees you're speaking to once you start asking slightly advanced questions.

I gotta agree though, I hear some of the stuff my coworkers say, and sometimes it just makes me question why they're even working at VZW in the first place.

Also, when somebody starts a conversation with "First, I'm an IT pro, so...", 99.99% of the time, they really don't know anything, ever. Period, end of story. I don't know how many people I've dealt with in past jobs that preface a conversation with those words, and then just are total morons.

This is always good for a laugh: Go to Best Buy and ask a floor sales rep the difference between 64bit and 32bit versions of Windows. Ask what the differences/benefits are. Back when I bought a netbook, I let the sales rep give me his speech, and then incorrectly answer my questions.

 

[DanSan]

No offense. I was not denouncing the "sales" field nor was I stating that I know everything. I also said that this does not apply to ALL sales people. However, when someone tries to BS me, that pisses the customer/me off, and I will rebuke something if it's false. I only bring out the "IT Card" when necessary. For example, and correct me if I am wrong, a lot of Verizon sales employees are telling customers that they require the $45 dollar data plan if they would like the Droid to sync with Exchange. That is not true. The $30 data plan works fine. Do you know how many customers must be paying the extra $15/month??

Anyway, I have no reason nor the time to go into a store and show off to the sales crew. Any Verizon sales person I've talked to about techie stuff is always cool about it. I had a conversation with 2 sales people for about an hour on Friday at the Verizon store about "techie stuff" while I was checking out the Droid, etc., and they were cool to discuss ideas/thoughts on the phone.

Once again, my fault if you felt offended. I was misleading in saying "before the conversation starts". I should have said "before any BS starts". I'm not one of those annoying "mr. know it all people".

Its ok bud, I didnt take any offense or anything.. Guess I just read it the wrong way and misunderstood what you meant. Yes I totally agree with you and I would have to say the people at cell phone stores piss me off the most. they are all walking around on their cell phones which isnt allowed at majority of jobs but since they "sell" them they are allowed. They become very disrespectful and ignore people as they carry on their personal conversations. they stop doing what their doing (activing my phone) to answer a text message or tell somebody about their weekend. They pretend they know stuff about the phone and try to tell you the most obvious things..

I went in 2 days before the droid dropped and the guys in the store didnt even know if it had a physical keyboard or not when i overheard customers asking. then i went in the day it came out and the guy was trying to tell me well known things like its a slide out phone or it is a touch screen. im like, come on dude i just used the phone.. try and tell me something nobody would know about the phone with just looking at it you moron.

I listened as this one new sales employee at verizon tried to sell the phone to a customer and i just laughed aloud and i had to stop them and step in. the customer was asking simple questions that you could easily get the answer by just reading a spec sheet. The guy didnt even know who wrote the android OS when its all over the phone lol

 

[GDroid]

Its ok bud, I didnt take any offense or anything.. Guess I just read it the wrong way and misunderstood what you meant. Yes I totally agree with you and I would have to say the people at cell phone stores piss me off the most. they are all walking around on their cell phones which isnt allowed at majority of jobs but since they "sell" them they are allowed. They become very disrespectful and ignore people as they carry on their personal conversations. they stop doing what their doing (activing my phone) to answer a text message or tell somebody about their weekend. They pretend they know stuff about the phone and try to tell you the most obvious things..

I went in 2 days before the droid dropped and the guys in the store didnt even know if it had a physical keyboard or not when i overheard customers asking. then i went in the day it came out and the guy was trying to tell me well known things like its a slide out phone or it is a touch screen. im like, come on dude i just used the phone.. try and tell me something nobody would know about the phone with just looking at it you moron.

I listened as this one new sales employee at verizon tried to sell the phone to a customer and i just laughed aloud and i had to stop them and step in. the customer was asking simple questions that you could easily get the answer by just reading a spec sheet. The guy didnt even know who wrote the android OS when its all over the phone lol

Haha, this topic has the possibility of turning into a long thread

 

[Barbara]

I don't think that I know it all or am more knowledgeable than the salespeople but I have learned a lot from this forum and the last time I went to the store I was sharing with them just to help them out. My husband was trying not to crack up because the one person had her jaw dropped. She had no idea half the stuff I was sharing. I gave this website and she immediately went to the computer to bookmark it. I appreciate ALL here who have shared their knowledge, mistakes, great finds and general experience. It has made my DROID experience infinitely better!

 

[Thumper]

The salesman I got when I bought mine seemed pretty knowledgeable, but then I didn't ask a bunch of detailed questions. I had already read up online and knew that the Droid did everything I wanted.

 

[ginigma]

When I exchanged my Droid a few days ago, I was talking to two salesmen while waiting. They were asking me questions and then asked me where I got all my information. I told them here and HoFo. Sure enough, two minutes later, one was on this site and the other was checking out HoFo. They were amazed at the wealth of information out there. They were telling me all they get are bulletins from Verizon about the devices and a few hours sales training. No tech training.

 

[Droid Lover]

Omg, double tap alt and wow. I honestly had no idea, it was a big annoyance for me.

Thanks =)

I didn't know this either..I learn something new on here everyday. I always learn more on forums than most of the verizon reps know..I did with my voyager too.

 

[rawness]

Don't y'all remember the secrecy that surrounded the release of this phone?

I think that has something to do with it. They should be expected to well trained by time the holiday season, though.