I have an unreasonable, perhaps demented, fascination with the gadget sales process.
I wrote about it for some years over at CNET[1] and, now that I've been promoted to ZDNet, you surely can't expect me to change overnight, can you? (Though I promise to try.)
I've generally found salespeople to be either a touch indifferent or a little forthright. Sometimes, even both.
CNET: Verizon plays with data caps in limited billing trial[2]
Yet, after one particularly peculiar day going to three different carrier stores[3], I was contacted by many store employees who were desperate to correct me, ululate or even reveal the inner parts of their souls.
None was more detailed than Louis. No, that's not his real name. But, hey, if it's good enough for the royals of England, we'll use it here.
Louis is a long-time Verizon store employee. We're talking a long, long time. And we're talking Solutions Specialist, which is what Verizon calls its salespeople.
A salesperson's job isn't just sales.
Well, when I say "salespeople," the job has expanded somewhat.
"In addition to meeting a sales quota, I also have to take bill payments, stock shelves, help grandma learn how to use the iPhone her grandkids forced her to buy and troubleshoot any and all warranty issues that arise," he told me.
Once upon a time Verizon employed specialists in those areas. "The company fired all those people," Louis said.
It's not that when the firings happened he got a raise or a reduction in quota. "If anything, the targets got harder," he insisted.
Yes, you might mutter, but salespeople are incentivized to sell accessories, right? That's what makes them more money.
"Selling accessories and add-ons isn't