Tweet
We sell a little accessory in our electronics chain called a speaker harness. (Link provided to show an example). We use them whenever possible for speaker installations. They make the speaker wiring much easier, eliminate any possibility of mixing up the wires, and keep the factory plug in place so that the original speakers can be re-installed later. Until recently our regular price for these has been $7.99 for a pair.
A few days ago, without warning, they started ringing up at $19.99 a pair. Shortly afterwards our Corporate tech support staff posted a notice on the company intranet explaining that this was an error, it would be corrected soon and until then we should just override the prices to $7.99.
The next day, the price was the same but the notice had changed: "Upon further review with the buyers, this is the correct price".
The installers erupted! The message board that the notice was posted on is normally used for technical tips and information, and it allows the local store personnel to post feedback. When I left work yesterday there were nearly 100 different feedbacks submitted by store installers and salespeople, in a rage about the price increase (I only counted 4 posts that were anything close to favorable). Each feedback post automatically shows the poster's name and store number, too. One of them just said, "We're all going to hell".
It's no secret that electronics accessories often carry a huge margin. It's not exaggerating to say that my store might make less money on the computer you purchase than the USB cable you buy with it. In Car Audio, we make a similar margin on things like mounting kits and deck harnesses; while our prices are much higher than the generic kits and harnesses you buy at Wal-mart, we have a much larger assortment, of generally better quality, and it helps to absorb the cost of the free deck installations we offer for most of the year. However, we don't do free speaker installations, and (unlike mounting kits and wire harnesses) the speaker harness is really just a convenience. In short, I personally wouldn't pay twenty bucks for them if I had to, while I would pay the price for other accessories with similar margin.
Unfortunately, I'm probably going to be required to make people buy these things if they want me to do a speaker installation. Anyone can look at them (check the link) and see that there's no way they can cost us more than a couple bucks, so I'll end up having to defend the cost of something that I don't think is worth the money myself.
A few days ago, without warning, they started ringing up at $19.99 a pair. Shortly afterwards our Corporate tech support staff posted a notice on the company intranet explaining that this was an error, it would be corrected soon and until then we should just override the prices to $7.99.
The next day, the price was the same but the notice had changed: "Upon further review with the buyers, this is the correct price".
The installers erupted! The message board that the notice was posted on is normally used for technical tips and information, and it allows the local store personnel to post feedback. When I left work yesterday there were nearly 100 different feedbacks submitted by store installers and salespeople, in a rage about the price increase (I only counted 4 posts that were anything close to favorable). Each feedback post automatically shows the poster's name and store number, too. One of them just said, "We're all going to hell".
It's no secret that electronics accessories often carry a huge margin. It's not exaggerating to say that my store might make less money on the computer you purchase than the USB cable you buy with it. In Car Audio, we make a similar margin on things like mounting kits and deck harnesses; while our prices are much higher than the generic kits and harnesses you buy at Wal-mart, we have a much larger assortment, of generally better quality, and it helps to absorb the cost of the free deck installations we offer for most of the year. However, we don't do free speaker installations, and (unlike mounting kits and wire harnesses) the speaker harness is really just a convenience. In short, I personally wouldn't pay twenty bucks for them if I had to, while I would pay the price for other accessories with similar margin.
Unfortunately, I'm probably going to be required to make people buy these things if they want me to do a speaker installation. Anyone can look at them (check the link) and see that there's no way they can cost us more than a couple bucks, so I'll end up having to defend the cost of something that I don't think is worth the money myself.
Comment