Mystery shopper is thinking about getting a 3G Tablet like the iPad or Dell Streak, what do the staff think, what data plans are available and are there any better options
Vodafone
As soon as I entered the store it was clear that the store had been quiet for some time as the two members of staff were sat playing with the new iPhone. Reciting my story one of the two began telling me what he ‘thinks’ the tariffs are with uncertainty in his tone.
There didn’t seem to be a rush for him to confirm that these tariff details were correct, until I asked if he could check. He scrolled through the Vodafone brochure before commenting ‘It should be in here but they haven’t added it yet’ and moved over to his computer. He turned his computer monitor around for me to look at,confirming the available tariffs matched what he had said earlier.
Questioning me about usage, I told him I would be using it mainly on the train commuting to London. Based on this he recommended either the 1GB or 3GB allowance, £10 or £15 a month respectively. “You won’t have issues with signal as Vodafone has an award winning 3G network.” I decided to ask him at this point what he thinks of the iPad; he admitted not trying one yet but said that everyone he has spoken to with one loves it. Finally I asked if there were any alternatives to the iPad, “No, none.”
A disappointing visit, the member of staff had seemed throughout that he wasn’t particularly bothered and that serving me was a hassle. I had to prompt him for all of the information which made the process feel disjointed and it felt that he would have been happy to let me leave once he had told me the initial tariff information.
Product Range ***
Product Knowledge ***
Airtime Knowledge ***
Questioning Ability ***
Sales Ability **
Shop Appearance ***
(17)
O2
Entering this iPhone/O2 store I was greeted by a sign stating they have run out of the new iPhone but will be getting more soon, while the staff were all wearing iPhone 4 T-Shirts.
Noticing that the store sold the Dell Streak I wandered over to have a look. I was quickly approached by a white iPhone 4 T-Shirt asking if I was ok. Standing next to the Streak I asked if it is like an iPad. The salesman said yes and proceeded to turn it on, flicking pointlessly through the home screens “It is a mixture of a tablet and a phone, all be it too big to be used for calls.”
Wondering about how easy it is to use he replied “very, do you have an Android phone?”. “I do, however feel it looks different to what I am used to.” He then showed me how easy it is to type with and informed me that he has one himself, “I use it around the house at home.” I was surprised to hear that he owns one as I had not been shown any ‘wow’ features or apps, something that I would expect an owner of one to have already figured out.
As he brought up the list of apps on the screen I asked him if the apps are the same as on Android phones to which his reply gave the impression that I should know they are, a tone which, looking back, was consistently used when asking questions.
For tariffs he recommended the £30/month data only (3GB + unlimited Wi-Fi) tariff for me as I had mentioned I wouldn’t use the phone side of it due to the size.
While he found the relevant Streak page in the brochure I asked about the memory, 16GB memory card in the box was his reply but he then added that the store are going to start selling one with 32GB for £50 on the same £30/month data tariff, so advised I’ll be better off buying a 32GB memory card from Amazon for £20 (a quick search found Amazon sell them for £84.99)
Despite the salesman recommending the Streak I asked about the iPad tariffs offered. He gave me a leaflet, quickly running through the different options and saying that once the data allowance is reached it stops for the month rather than charging extra.
The visit had all the ingredients for success: A demo ready Dell Streak accompanied by a salesman who apparently owns one and iPad tariffs to fall back on. Despite this the sales process lacked the spark I expected, the information was comprehensive and met the criteria but it seemed like he was just going through the motions.
Product Range ****
Product Knowledge ***
Airtime Knowledge ***
Questioning Ability ***
Sales Ability ***
Shop Appearance ***
(19)
Carphone Warehouse
I informed Joe, the member of staff who had approached me, how I am considering getting an iPad and am curious about the 3G and what tariffs are available, to which he asked me to follow him to the computer.
After a quick search of the system he told me about the Vodafone and Orange offerings, recommending Orange’s £25/month for 10GB as it offers twice the allowance of the same priced Vodafone and Orange’s customer service is the better of the two. Joe then told me that I’ll see other networks with iPad offerings; however they aren’t official through Apple. Asking about O2 he said that they are official but are only selling their tariffs with the iPad, which I found out wasn’t the case when visiting the O2 store.
As I had spotted the Dell Streak on entry to the store I asked Joe about it. He turned it on and gave it to me to hold. I mentioned that the layout is different to my Android phone and Joe said that they have changed it slightly but it is still mostly the same. He said that it can also be used as a phone, joking “If you want the biggest phone in the world!”. To make sure he didn’t end on a negative he commented that the screen is better than the iPad’s and that it is more portable.
While I jotted down the details of the iPad plan on the Dell Streak leaflet I had picked up, Joe did the calculations that the iPad would work out at £1300 compared to £600 for the Streak (Based on the 64GB iPad being £700 (Cheaper models are available) and monthly payments of £25 for 24 months on both). He left it with me but said that as it stands the Streak would be the better value for money.
Joe had been friendly and helpful, however his tariff knowledge was let down when he tried to explain why the store only had Vodafone or Orange despite me not even asking the question. He also didn’t seem to know how to demonstrate the Streak yet as he passed it to me straight away and when he did try to show me things it was again a case of flicking the screens and pressing the menu button.
Product Range ****
Product Knowledge ***
Airtime Knowledge ***
Questioning Ability **
Sales Ability ***
Shop Appearance ****
(18)
PC World
The member of staff stood near the iPads was Josh and when I started to ask about the tariffs my first impression of his reaction was that he was in uncomfortable territory; I could almost see him running through the options in his head to remind himself. He rattled through the plans quite quickly, however he got the details right. With three networks and their different options, he really could have done with a visual prompt to assist him as by the time he had got onto describing O2 after 3 and Vodafone I was unsure what he had said about 3 and had to ask him to repeat it.
He recommended 3 (£15/month, 10GB) over Vodafone and O2, due to the much higher data allowance. Asking what would happen if this allowance was exceeded Josh told me that you would be charged extra, but did not specify by how much. He also said that activating the micro-SIM is easy and is done at home, either online or over the phone.
About the iPad itself Josh showed me the demo unit, demonstrating the books, photos and games. He also asked what I will be using it for and when I said commuting he said that a lot of people had bought it for that same reason and that it does make browsing the internet and using apps a lot easier than on a phone.
Moving onto models and prices Josh advised that it all depends on how much music and videos I intend to put on it. With the 32GB (£599) only £70 more than the 16GB it seemed to be the best value for money and again Josh commented that it is the most popular, adding that they have just had a delivery, yet stock goes quickly, especially with a lot of people using reserve and collect online.
Josh had started off quite closed through perhaps concentrating on getting the tariff information correct; however once we had moved off the tariffs he became more comfortable. The experience in store was good; Josh wasn’t pushy but did give an incentive to buy in store (as stock could be snapped up). Had I have actually been looking for an iPad I would have happily purchased it after Josh’s help.
Product Range ****
Product Knowledge *****
Airtime Knowledge ***
Questioning Ability ****
Sales Ability *****
Shop Appearance ****
(25)
Orange
First impressions of this store are that it is a good selling environment, with selected handsets demo ready, stools for friends or family of customers to sit down out of the way, clear branding and promotional popcorn buckets to promote Orange Wednesdays.
I was then approached by Sam, who took me over to one of the computers to show me the data plans for the iPad. While searching for the relevant section of the system it became clear that Sam was chatty and wasn’t one to allow awkward silences, as she joked about how things seem hidden on the system.
Once she had found the tariffs she ran through them highlighting the key options of either going for Pay As You Use (5p/min) or Daily/Weekly/Monthly data allowances. “I will be using it whilst commuting each day”, “In that case I think rolling monthly options would be best. You could start on the £15/month for 3GB and unlimited Wi-Fi, and then, if you do find yourself using more you can move up to the £25/month for 10GB.”
Asking about the Wi-Fi hotspots Sam explained how it uses BT Openzone, which includes Starbucks and Cafe Nero, referring back to my commute saying “You will be always be near one in London.”
“Would you like to go for one?” “Probably but I’ll wait to get an iPad first.” In all the other stores this was my cue to leave, however before I moved to get up Sam let me know that she could give me a micro-SIM for free which I will then be able to pop straight into the iPad if I do get one rather than having to return to the store. After a mini credit check, despite money not being taken from my account until the SIM card is activated and bundles chosen, I was the owner of a micro-SIM ready to be used in an iPad, with no cost to myself until used.
Sam was extremely helpful, she didn’t put any pressure on me at any point and it was more of a conversation. During the process we went off tangent chatting about iPad availability, the iPhone 4 and somehow the pushy nature of the staff in the local Post Office trying to sell credit cards and insurance. It is when these conversations happen naturally that you feel comfortable and in control, rather than being preached to and just being another sale. The conclusion to the visit was very clever; getting a Orange micro-sim into my hands without the need to have the 3G iPad or re-visit the store for all intents and purposes made a sale without costing me a penny at the time.
Product Range ***
Product Knowledge ****
Airtime Knowledge *****
Questioning Ability ****
Sales Ability *****
Shop Appearance *****
(26)
Summary
In terms of the complete package of iPad + data plan PC World were winners here, however as the other stores didn’t stock the iPad itself it would be unfair to base the result on that alone.
Vodafone were the biggest disappointment of the day as the two members of staff just didn’t seem to care; despite it looking like their store desperately needed the trade that morning. O2 was also lacklustre, however they could be excused as when I walked past earlier it was heaving due to people trying to snap up the morning iPhone deliveries.
Considering the iPad has received a marmite reception from the public, with a lot of the haters moaning about the price, I see the Streak as something of an opportunity for stores to offer a better value option. However both Carphone Warehouse and O2, gave poor demonstrations, despite giving it their backing. They both also provided suspect information about other retailers.
PC World and Orange were clear leaders. The quality of the iPad conversation and demonstration in PC World was something that O2 and CPW should be looking to emulate when talking about the Streak. However it was Sam’s people skills and sales ability in Orange that clinched it, resulting in me happily signing up for a micro SIM card (even though I know I will never use it)
Winner Profile
Name Sam Wenden
Age 22
Job Title Assistant Manager
Tenure 3 ½ years
Best Tariff Panther, £30/month, 400 minutes, unlimited texts, unlimited internet and email, 50 photo messages and sat nav
Best Handset iPhone 4
Sales Ethos Give people what they want while trying to save them money
Hobbies Socialising and going to the gym
Store Round-up
- Vodafone: £10/month, 1GB data or £15/month, recurring, 3GB data
- O2: 16GB Dell Streak, Free on £30/month, 24 months, 3GB data + unlimited Wi-Fi
- Carphone Warehouse: 16GB Dell Streak, Free on £25/month, 24 months, 3GB data, 300 texts
- PC World: 32GB iPad for £599, 3 £15/month, recurring, 10GB data
- Orange: £15/month, recurring, 3GB data + unlimited Wi-Fi
Mobile News July Reading – 3G Tablets