I wish that my experience the other night was a shop. It was awful!
I called ahead and made an appointment. I was told that appointments
were 15 minutes long, but that the techs would go over if necessary.
I said that I would need time for 3 devices and was told "No problem!
We'll just put you in for 3 appointments!" Great!

When I got there I was greeted by one tech who told me to get
settled and he would get me some water. He stopped to talk to
another tech and I was passed off because the 2nd tech insisted on
helping me. The guy who came to "help" me was arrogant, condescending
and obnoxious. He started off by criticizng the people who answer the
phone because "They don't know anything. Don't listen to them," as I
explained that I had 3 appointment times booked. He said that he could
only help me for 15 minutes, then went on to lecture me about appointments,
how knowledgeable he was and how he made 6 figures when he worked
for Warren Buffet for the first 10 minutes of my appointment. I finally said,
"Okay, well if I only have 15 minutes, this is eating into my time, so let's
get going." He would not even let me fully explain why I was there before
he started running his mouth off--you know, one of those types that is sure
he knows what you're going to say before you say it, but is wrong. SO aggravating!

Ultimately, he was not able to help me recover my lost photos from my
old, dead phone that committed cellicide last week. I figured it out myself
this afternoon.

I just really think Microsoft should know how awful my experience was.
I'm going to post on Yelp.

Hi Sandi,

I'm so sorry to hear about your experience. I hate horrible customer service as well. Which is why MSing is so awesome because they actually want to hear about it. =) I actually did a shop for them last month. unfortunately I can't disclose the MSC but I'm sure sooner than later you will come across the MSC that specializes in "Technology" driven stores as such. =)

Yes, they are shopped. Are there really Microsoft stores out in the real world? I thought they were a phenomenon only here in Microsoft-land.

I've shopped them before as well. The MSC who does them pays quickly too.

Hmm....In the meantime, I put a scathing review on Yelp.
Both employees (there was a girl who talked to me after the guy, thankfully, left for the day) I spoke to pushed training at $49 an hour. Considering the help I got (or didn't get), I would NEVER pay! The girl
showed me a few things, then just visibly checked out!

I was surprised how knowledgabe the sales person was when I shopped the local Microsoft store at the mall.

They had at least 20 sales associates on the floor and it was busy. I didn't make it 5 feet into the store and and I was attacked by a salesperson. You obviously got the wrong employee. I had to give great marks on my report. This was not at the counter at the back though. Data recovery from any device can really be hit or miss unless you send it into a company that does this as a primary business and charges accordingly.

Oh, I think they guy was knowledgeable. He spent 10 minutes telling me about his 30 years of experience in every tech job imaginable. What he had no experience with was concern for another human being...or a toothbrush!

I was once ignored at a MFST store, for a blonde european bimbo. He basically checked out mid interaction with me and started "helping" the girl. I tried a couple of times to ask questions and then just gave up. He got a nice high rating report of being an a**.

Sandi, there is an MSC that does these shops in the Chicago area....

petrohd Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Sandi, there is an MSC that does these shops in
> the Chicago area....


Thanks, petro! I have to apply for them, but I don't know if I want to go
back to that store anyway. I reviewed them on Yelp!

I've shopped the Microsoft stores in two malls here. They have been positive experiences and the guys were eager to share their knowledge. I also like that tablet/computer..forget the name, but it's pricy. The report had a lot of narrative, if I recall.

I've shopped Microsoft at least every month, because 30 days is the gap between shops. The associates were knowledgeable and friendly. I have had no problem but I did notice a change since I heard that they were laying off a considerable number of people.

I have shopped Microsoft stores. I saw one offered earlier this month.