Mystery Shopper is looking for components and advice to upgrade a top end gaming PC? 
Curry’s
The visit began with a long game of pass the customer due to an admitted lack of staff knowledge about computer components. After initially explaining my quest to the customer service desk a salesman who proclaimed he knew nothing about computers because he worked on the washing machine section was first to offer help. “If you know what you want I can get it for you?” “I would some advice please.” I replied, “I’ll find someone else for you.” Next in line was a sales lady who, after listening to my story, explained she didn’t know enough about graphics cards to help “I’ll find someone who can.” Finally, after another 5 minutes a young sales man met me and understood my request.
“Does your boyfriend play the likes of Call of Duty or World of Warcraft? As you would need a graphics card of at least 7000, but we don’t sell them here, your best bet would be to try the likes of Aria and Micro Direct online?” “You also need to know if the operating system is AMD or Intel. AMD works better on an ATI Radeon graphics card while Intel works better with a NVIDIA graphics card; it gives you a better clarity if you choose the right one.”
“My boyfriend has just got the game Avatar, does that help?” “You could always see what the minimum specs are on the back of the game before you buy just to check, unfortunately we don’t have the PC version in store for you to check here, I’m sorry I couldn’t have been more help for you.”
It was unfortunate that it took so long to be given the right sales person as he obviously knew about the subject and had advice to give. Recommending rival websites when Currys online stock graphic cards was an interesting comment from a sales man who was friendly and helpful but couldn’t provide me with anything other than words.
4/10
Comet
Customers were out in force on this day, all the salesmen were busy interacting with people so I had a quick look around the computer section with approach before heading straight to the customer service desk.
“I’d like some advice about upgrading my PC for gaming please, my boyfriend has just got a new game called Avatar.” The man behind the desk didn’t need long to consider my request, “I know that you will need a high spec graphics card in order to play the likes of Avatar but we don’t sell anything like that here, I’m afraid. Try this place.” He said writing down ‘Aria.co.uk’ on a Comet leaflet “They will be able to help you with your requirements, they are really good technically.” I thanked him for his time took the leaflet and left the store.
This was the 2nd recommendation for Aria.co.uk so I had a look at this salesman’s choice of website; there are a multitude of components and deals to be had if you know the sort of items you are looking for. My eye was immediately drawn to a front page deal of a specific Nvidia Avatar 3D package and a list of components I would need to play the game, very useful.
The complete lack of in store PC components meant this mystery shop was not going to be a raging success. The personal recommendation of the Aria website was appreciated and the customer service was as expected but not the place to go for PC component upgrades.
4/10
PC World
I was greeted by a woman on my arrival and asked what she could do for me today, I explained what I needed and she walked me over to the desktop PC’s, “I didn’t want a new PC but the means to upgrade the PC I already have so I can play the newer games.” “I’m sorry, I will take you to the Tech Guys as they specialise in things like that.
“I’m a PC gamer myself” said the Tech Guy; ”Unfortunately the best graphics cards are the most expensive ones so I’d say that the BFG NVIDIA graphics card, (1GB DDR3, 260 PCI-E) which costs £159.99 will suit your needs the best. There is a 10 year warranty on this one as well but you will also require an external power supply of 500 watts, these games are just so power thirsty.” He then pointed out the Jean Tech power supply unit, which was 500 watts and costs £59.99, “The PNY NVIDIA graphics card (250 PCI-E) is a bit of a cheaper option costing £129.99 but I would recommend the BFG as it will last longer overall.” “The way games are being released you will always need to update graphics cards on a regular basis to keep up to date with the latest releases.” “That is just how the gaming market tends to be like, the games and software themselves tend to have a higher spec, then we have to wait for the hardware to catch up half of the time, when it really should be the other way around.”
“Another thing you could do is to expand your memory, as this also tends to help with the quality of gaming.” He then walked me over and pointed to the Corsair DDR2 1GB (CGM2X1GS800 PC2-6400 DDR2-800 SODIMM Ram Memory Module) memory costing £34.99 and the same type but for 2GB costing £64.99, “It depends on what kind of RAM you already have, I would suggest that it would be best if you brought in your PC so we can have a look at it, see which operating system you use and then we could upgrade your PC with all of the necessary requirements at the same time.”
Finally a store that could help me with all of my requirements and also offer a service that could do all of the upgrades as well, it did seem a bit expensive and I wasn’t told how much it would be to install everything but the option was there for me if I wanted it. I was happy with the overall recommendation for my needs and was given advice from a person I trusted as I could tell that he knew what he was talking about without confusing me with too much jargon.
9/10
Computer Warehouse Ltd
A confusing location and a store half filled with clothes meant the expectations of this store were mixed before a conversation had even begun.
A jolly man was behind the counter; he smiled and asked how he could be of assistance. I told him about my requirements “We have loads of graphics cards that will enable you to enhance your gaming experience they do start from £20 and go up to £300. For your purposes I’d recommend the BFG NVIDIA GeForce 8800 (GTS OC 512MB PCIE 2.0) gaming graphics card, it’s on sale from £166.37 to £195. You could also get more memory as higher spec games tend to use a lot and that will slow down your PC and gaming experience as well, we have a Corsair 2GB DDR2 on a promotional sale price as well for £32.99. We can also install everything for you here in store, if you bring your PC with you next time.” “If we make those upgrades I think you will be very satisfied with the results.”
From being sceptical on entry I was very pleased with the advice and customer experience I had in store. The recommendations were clear and given with confidence from a wide variety of products available backed up with the option to have the upgrades completed in store by someone who knows what they are doing.
9/10
Currys Digital
I entered the busy store and headed for 2 free staff members talking, once they had finished they turned and acknowledged me “Could someone help me with a PC query please?” “I’m afraid there aren’t any staffs available” said the male staff member tapping away on a computer. I turned to the other sales person and she asked about my query and went to get some help.
She appeared a few minutes later with another lad and I told him what I needed; he looked at me a bit blankly and then asked the Store Manager for help.“I’m sorry but we don’t sell anything like that here, PC World would probably be your best bet.” “I know for certain that they do upgrade PC’s as well as having the likes of graphics cards but it is not going to be cheap though.” I thanked him for his advice and left the store.
A lack of PC components meant the mystery shop was limited and the advice was expected to a point although the detail about high cost was unexpected from a fellow DSGi colleague.
1/10
John Lewis
The consumer electronics section was found with ease and it was quite busy with customers but the only staff member in the PC section was actually being trained up by a manufacturer representative. After looking interested and trying to catch eye contact for 5 minutes I went to find some help.
After requesting some assistance from the ‘After Sales Care’ desk a salesman approached me in smart business attire and asked what I needed, after reciting my story he told me that unfortunately they didn’t sell anything like that here. “In fact we don’t even have high end PC’s or desktops for gaming either, try PC World or somewhere online.” “Can I help you with anything else?” I thanked him for his time and made my exit.
The customer service was fine, once found, but the Mystery shop was cut short again due to the seemingly specialist nature of my requirements. Another appropriate store was recommended but I was surprised at the lack of high end spec machines on display as the John Lewis website does list some expensive desktops and a range of monitors which could have been classed as an upgrade for gaming.
4/10
Summary
The list of stores where PC upgrades are available are limited and too specialist for the normal electrical outlets typically catering for a much broader audience. Customer service was fine in the majority of stores when the correct member of staff was located but the nature of request meant knowledge was more personal than required by the retailer.
PC World and Computer Warehouse Ltd both did the computer specialists proud offering applicable advice and a full service. Recommendations for websites were welcomed from Comet and Currys staff but without prior knowledge purchasing the correct equipment would have been difficult.
Due to the recommendation of online retail sites the list below compares prices of Corsair Memory and GeForce Graphics Cards selected as potential upgrades from PC World and Computer Warehouse Ltd against web stores.
Computer WH Ltd £32.99 Corsair 2GB DDR2
PC World £64.99 CGM2X2GS800 PC2-6400 DDR2-800 SODIMM Ram Memory Module
Ebuyer £46.01 Corsair 2GB (2x1GB) DDR2 800MHz/PC2-6400 XMS2 Memory Non-EC Unbuffered CL4 Lifetime Warranty
Aria PC £37.59 Corsair Value Select 2GB (2x1GB) DDR2 PC2-4200C4 533MHz Dual Channel Kit
Micro Direct £47.82 Corsair memory 2GB TwinX XMS2 6400 DDR2 Memory Kit
Computer WH £165 BFG NVIDIA GeForce 8800 (GTS OC 512MB PCIE 2.0)
PC World £159.99 BFG NVIDIA GeForce GTX 260 OC MAXCORE 55 896MB PCIE 2.0 (D)
Ebuyer £164.68 BFG NVIDIA GeForce GTX260 OC MAXCORE 55 896MB Dual DVI
Aria PC £176.24 Gigabyte GeForce GTX 260 OC 896MB GDDR3 PCI-Express
Micro Direct £160.96 Gigabyte GeForce GTX 260 Super OC 896MB GDDR3 PCI-E 2.0 Dual DVI-I D-sub HDMI
PC Retail Mystery Shopper May 2010 – Desktop Upgrades