Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!cornell!rochester!rit!ultb!pmb1566
From: pmb1566@ultb.UUCP (P.M. Barella)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.tandy
Subject: Reply: Unstandard Tandy 1000
Summary: My $.02 on the Tandy 1000 stuff, Tandy
Message-ID: <665@ultb.UUCP>
Date: 12 Apr 89 14:45:10 GMT
Reply-To: pmb1566@ultb.UUCP (P.M. Barella (713ICS))
Organization: Rochester Institute of Technology, Information Systems
Lines: 43

In response to Mr. Applegates comments on the Tandy 1000 being
unstandard, although I'll admit that the machine is hardware wise
unstandard, the series is a quite inexpensive, software- compatible
machine.  I have one myself, and have not had too many problems, except
the hard drive.  I'll admit I paid a little extra because i ended up
having to get a Tandy hard drive, but the convenience of having RS
stores nationwide is nice when something breaks down.  (Which it
hasn't, except the keyboard, but that's my fault.)

About Tandy's personnel, I do agree that a lot of their salespeople
don't know much about their products.  I worked for Tandy for just under
two years.  The store I worked in started out with a lot of good people
that knew the products, but they ended up being promoted to managers of
other stores.  For example, The first computer manager we had was really
good.  People from other stores around the district used to call with
questions.  He was transfered to another store as manager.  The person
who replaced him had worked for Tandy a few years before, but knew very
little about the newer products.  He could sell anything though.  Anyway,
when I went home for Christmas break (I'm in college) I stopped by to
say hello to everyone and to get some empty boxes if they had any.  He
asked me to set the dip switches on one of the printers because he could
not get it to work with the color computer.  This is the computer
manager of the store.  He's been there for nearly a year, and he still
has trouble with simple things like dip switches.  Tandy trains these
people in Sales, and they do send out video tapes with information on
certain products, but a lot of the salespeople don't watch them.  In the
two years I worked there, I only saw 2 or 3.  If I remember right, one
my manager wanted me to see, the others I watched only because I wanted
to.

That is, in my opinion, Tandy's main problem.  They don't train their
salespeople as good as they should.  Another problem is the commission-
based salary.  The salespeople try to sell the most expensive thing to
the customer, not necessarily what would best suit the customer.  (The
training tapes may instruct that the salespeople should sell the best to
suit the customer; I don't remember them much, but the salesmakers sell
what is going to get them the most money anyway.)

                            -Peter Barella
--
The opinions expressed here are my own and do not necessarily reflect
the viewpoints of Tandy Corporation or Rochester Institute of
Technology.