Dishonest Behavior - 2007

Our youngest just turned 15 and wanted a Nintendo Wii for her birthday present. She and my wife were unsuccessful after looking for her future Wii at Toys "R" Us and Best Buy. The salesperson at Best Buy told my wife that when they run an advertisement, the product sells out as quickly as it’s shipped in. While a little disappointed, my daughter was willing to wait until another store had a shipment.
I told my wife that I hoped someone other than Circuit City would have the Wii first. Many years ago I had an uncomfortable experience with one of their stores. They had advertised a particular model of video camera and offered a free tripod and camera case with the purchase. Circuit City also made a lot of noise about how they had a “low-price guarantee” on the camera. I purchased the camera and watched as the salesman put in quite a high price for the “free” tripod and camera case and then discounted the camera to get to the advertised total-package price. This would insure they indeed would not be undersold—but the only way I was getting that low price was by buying these high-priced, supposedly “free” items. A perfect example of false advertising.
For years, I avoided shopping at Circuit City, but Sunday came and sure enough the Wii was on sale there. I drove to the nearest store before it opened, stood in line to get a ticket to buy the machine, and then stood in another line to make the purchase. The salesman behind the counter didn't start selling the product immediately, though. For about five minutes, the young man lectured us assembling customers that the reason we were standing in line for this product was not because it was so popular that Nintendo could not make them fast enough but because the machines overheat and self-destruct. The only way to be safe from this nearly inevitable loss of playtime was to buy the $59 Circuit City extended warranty.
Consumer Reports magazine reveals to us that extended warranties on electronics such as the Wii are very profitable for the retailers but a really bad deal for the consumer; I have to say I am more inclined to believe Consumer Reports than the Circuit City employee making the pitch. However, several people in the line were instantly worried and made calls on cell phones to consult parties at home. Fear was in the air.
When finally I reached the front of the line and exchanged my ticket for a smallish white box containing the object of my daughter’s desire, the salesman asked if I'd be purchasing the extended warranty. I said no.
He said, “Are you sure about that?”
I replied in a less-than-friendly tone, “I am sure that I am sure.”
He snorted in disapproval. I left the store with the desired product feeling a little unclean and happy to be out of there.
At home, I went straight to the computer and googled ‘overheating Wii.’ On the Wii forum, there was much discussion about this topic and it became clear that it wasn't a significant problem. I wasn't surprised; the salesman had lied. When I googled Circuit City, though, there was an article from WashingtonPost.com from March 29, 2007 reporting that the company fired 3,400 employees who were “overpaid” to replace them with people willing to work for less.
What would it take for me to go back into that same chain? I’m not sure I'll ever find out. We, as a culture, despise dishonesty. In my direct experience of 30-plus years, in which I have fouled up orders on occasion and disappointed customers, if you tell the truth, own up to your errors, and apologize, customers may remain angry but they don’t hate you. If you lie to them, they never forget it and they hate you. Nobody wants to do business with people who lie for their own benefit.
How do you build trust? Tell the truth even when it may hurt you. It isn't the easiest thing to do but it's always the right thing to do. Yes, there are rare occasions when telling the truth is cruel and hurtful to someone else; that’s not what I'm talking about here. Telling the truth can be painful in the short-term. Lying destroys your soul long-term.