[AMA] I Am The Operation Manager at MSY Head Quarter, Ask Me (Almost) Anything

Lbeetran on 17/11/2017 - 11:31
Last edited 20/11/2017 - 17:20

[UPDATE] 5:18PM 20/11/2017: Due to no more post coming in, AMA is officially closed now.

[UPDATED] 11:43AM 18/11/2017: There are a few accounts in this thread marked "Associated". User name "beetran" is the only MSY account with OZBargain. The rest of other users are not associated or related to us. Guys, I am just doing the AMA to bring MSY closers to everyone. Please do not mess around like this.

Hello everyone,

I've been a OZBargain follower for many years and I thought it is the time for me to contribute back.

A bit about myself:

  • I am the Operation Manager
  • I am based in Melbourne head quarter office
  • I am a male

Disclaimer: all my reply here express my personal opinion only, not representing MSY.

Let's start !

Introduce Yourself

closed Comments

        • beetran on 17/11/2017 - 15:57

          Not at this stage unfortunately

      • mrdevil on 18/11/2017 - 12:55

        It should be on your roadmap to open further down south of Adelaide (Noarlunga, Christies Beach or Seaford) … down south has expanded big time in the last few years, and new suburbs are being built further and further. A store down this way would BOOM, as it's a major pain in the ass having to drive 30-40 mins to get to the Plympton store.

    • Davo1111 on 18/11/2017 - 00:02
      +1

      every time ive been at plymton there has never been a queue. I don't think the population can support more.

    • beetran on 17/11/2017 - 15:48
      +15

      We do have a fair mix of nationalities in our organization

    • cheesecactus on 17/11/2017 - 16:32
      +8

      I Perth at least, it's definitely not all asian

    • hooyn on 17/11/2017 - 20:27
      +1

      Same with Brisbane stores. Not all asian.

  • JimB on 17/11/2017 - 15:37
    +6

    I think MSY gets a bad rap.

    I've replaced faulty items before and also even had items tested I thought were faulty but wasn't without charge.

    The prices are benchmark for cheap. Can't expect great customer service for the price.

    I generally shop at Scorptec these days, it may be a few dollars more, but I like to order online and then pick it up. Plus I can track warranty/invoices rather than a printed docket.

    With MSY, it's pot luck when you walk in the door if there is on customers waiting for a line 30 deep. And then stock may be out.

    If I need to buy a HDD, then I'm happy to shop at MSY as I'm sure they will have HDDs available if not the exact model I want.

    A couple of questions
    1- why do the stores print out A4 receipts on like cheap ink jet or personal laser printers? Surely it would be more cost effective to have an office style printer or MFD.
    2- do the staff feel like slamming their head or the customers head when customers who clearly have no idea about computers wants to buy a whole PC and are asking hundreds stupid questions? Come on! I'm 27th in line and at this rate, I won't see my 5yo graduate high school. Go to Harvey Norman FFS or Dell.com.au I want to slam the customers head against the wall lol

    • beetran on 17/11/2017 - 15:51
      +1

      1>We are slowly changing most of the printers in our stores to the comercial models now.
      2>Not supposed to be this way. They should have assisted you much better than that. We are rolling out some other incentive program for staffs to help make the whole shopping experience better.

      • JimB on 17/11/2017 - 16:02
        +4

        2- personally, I think they that need a lot of help then they shouldn't be your customers.

        You need to have a target market, not just from Computer illiterate to people who overclock their PCs and live off pizza and coke.

        • beetran on 17/11/2017 - 16:09
          +1

          You are absolutely right. Will get HQ review their targeted market again. Thank you for your input

      • HighAndDry on 17/11/2017 - 16:16

        As a suggestion, maybe have two lines - one for walk-in customers, one for pick-up only?

        • beetran on 17/11/2017 - 16:17
          +6

          We did implement that before but the staffs and customers always mess up :(

        • HighAndDry on 17/11/2017 - 16:26
          +1

          @beetran:

          Fair enough. It's okay - at MSY prices, I'm usually happy to wait however long I have to.

      • SquareTofu on 17/11/2017 - 16:20
        +7

        Incentive program target are near impossible to obtain. Targets can only be reached once a month and it only brings a measly bonus of a couple of bucks.

        • beetran on 17/11/2017 - 16:22
          -1

          Wow, associated ? Just joined OZBargain 20 mins ago ?

        • SquareTofu on 17/11/2017 - 17:18
          +7

          @beetran:

          Long time lurker, finally made an account because I couldn't take the bs.

          If you want me to reveal the exact incentive of the bonus. I'm happy to do so.

        • devpress on 17/11/2017 - 17:22

          @SquareTofu:

          Assuming your bona fides check out, maybe you should do an AMA

        • SquareTofu on 17/11/2017 - 17:24
          +4

          @devpress:

          I'm just a lowly sales staff on minimum wage

        • devpress on 17/11/2017 - 17:25
          +7

          @SquareTofu:

          I'm just a lowly sales staff on minimum wage

          That actually works well — would enable us to contrast @beetran's (management) speak vs. front-line staff

        • [Deactivated] on 18/11/2017 - 09:07
          +1

          @KSMLJ:
          Inkjet are you sure?
          Very expensive to run

          I use commodity laser jet home printers in commercial environment and they are perfectly cost effective and reliable and cheap to swap over.

        • 811b11e8 on 18/11/2017 - 18:52

          @carlb: They probably don't pay much for the ink jets, demo models from suppliers, returns from customers etc.

        • JimB on 18/11/2017 - 03:06
          +2

          I would feel that way if I worked at the front line.

          You guys do a good job considering the pressure you're under, I can understand why smiles are few and far between.

  • bargainsniper on 17/11/2017 - 15:42

    What is your salary?

    • beetran on 17/11/2017 - 15:52
      +2

      Pretty good to be honest. Just bought a new car too. 290KW stage 2 on hub dyno

      • misterpotatomato on 17/11/2017 - 15:54
        +35

        Sounds like a high yield investment.

      • JimB on 17/11/2017 - 16:06
        +1

        Nice, RS3, A45 or M135/140i?

        Still much cheaper than the Black S Class's I see at the Clayton store :P

        • beetran on 17/11/2017 - 16:10
          +2

          Cheating a bit on E85 to get to 290KW :)

        • JimB on 17/11/2017 - 16:11
          +1

          @beetran:

          RS3, A45 or M135/140i?

        • Kangal on 17/11/2017 - 18:42

          @JB1:
          Cheating a bit on E85 to get to 290KW ; )

        • jace88 on 20/11/2017 - 14:33

          @beetran: I'm guessing JDM.

  • AliensStoleMyMoney on 17/11/2017 - 15:54

    I love custom watercooling any chance of msy stocking some gear? Hate having 0 adl comp stores having no gear:(

    • beetran on 17/11/2017 - 16:00
      +4

      Sadly, we do not have enough demand for this market

  • JimB on 17/11/2017 - 16:00

    How long on average do the sales staff last there?

    • beetran on 17/11/2017 - 16:01
      +1

      If they can passe the probation, normally they will stay for a while (talking about few years)

    • Powershopz on 17/11/2017 - 16:02
      +1

      I think this varies from store to store. I know there were a fair few staff at the Pascoe Vale store that were there for like 3-4 years.

  • shangoz on 17/11/2017 - 16:02
    +2

    Your company response to email order or on line order so badly, so so so slowly, any plan to improve it? also, any plan list in Ebay ? any plan to match ebay prize?

    • beetran on 17/11/2017 - 16:03
      +5

      -The online order will be improved dramasticly after Christmas.
      -eBay- still in consideration
      -Match eBay price - too early to die

      • [Deactivated] on 18/11/2017 - 09:09
        +2

        Ebay the place business goes to die
        :)

      • [Deactivated] on 18/11/2017 - 16:41

        Me look forward dramasticly improvements.

    • cloudie9 on 18/11/2017 - 16:25
      +2

      Imagine all the hassles with eBay Guarantee…let along they had issues with ACCC.

  • Powershopz on 17/11/2017 - 16:03
    +1

    OP - Do MSY have some amazing bargains ready for Black Friday(next week)?

    • beetran on 17/11/2017 - 16:05
      +7

      Wicked deals are coming soon.

  • bargainsniper on 17/11/2017 - 16:06
    -7

    Do you hire anyone who is not Asian?

  • Xiaomi on 17/11/2017 - 16:27
    +1

    Great to have an AMA from MSY, but my question is primary based on customer service. Where is the customer service? When calling any of the stores, Auburn in particular seem to never answer their phone, you call the standard number and there is no real personal experience. The customer service would date back to the 70's, no systems in place, tracking events, etc.

    I tried numerous times to contact Auburn regarding a return, and the voice-mail is full, and no one answered 8 different calls over 5 days. It is absolutely pathetic!

    We aren't asking for a lot, just a consistency when calling when I have a faulty item that has been with you for 8 weeks for a warranty issue…

    • beetran on 17/11/2017 - 16:30
      +2

      Give it a try starting next Monday. We have performed some changes to the call centre. Updated phone number here : http://www.msy.com.au/Parts/PARTS.pdf

      For the warranty issue, please send me an email to [email protected] and I will sort it out for you

    • SquareTofu on 17/11/2017 - 17:21
      +5

      Best to send an email, Auburn is usually swamped with customers. So picking up the phone can be hard at times

    • bobbified on 18/11/2017 - 13:41
      +2

      but my question is primary based on customer service. Where is the customer service?

      Why did you go to MSY? Because the price was cheaper than everywhere else?

      The "customer service" that you received came in the form of the cheap price you paid for whatever you bought.

      Can't have everything. If you want good customer service with the product, the final price you pay will be much higher.

      • Xiaomi on 18/11/2017 - 15:54
        +3

        What are you talking about? I cannot wait til you have a warranty issue with a $700 graphics card, two months later no response and no one answers the phones.

  • myusername on 17/11/2017 - 16:31
    +11

    no questions here

    but would like to take the time to say thanks for being a very competitive seller in the industry.

    have never had a bad experience in buying products from you for prob 10yrs+ now

    • beetran on 17/11/2017 - 16:31
      +8

      Thank you for your support :)

    • HighAndDry on 17/11/2017 - 17:10
      +12

      Seconded so much. MSY keeps the rest of the industry honest imo, by acting as the benchmark for prices.

  • echelon6 on 17/11/2017 - 16:43
    +16

    Can you please implement a no-questions line? So at your stores, have a counter and a sign that says "NO QUESTIONS"

    • beetran on 17/11/2017 - 16:45
      +11

      they still ask "so, how much is the total I have to pay?"

      • echelon6 on 17/11/2017 - 16:47
        +9

        Do you want me to write the sign for you?

        EXPRESS QUEUE
        This line is reserved for customers who know exactly what they want to purchase. Please, if you have any questions regarding compatibility of parts / recommendations / system building etc, go to the normal queue. We reserve the right to move you to the normal queue.

        • Tnetennba on 17/11/2017 - 16:50
          +3

          NORMAL queue? I AINT NO NORMIE

        • stevtom27 on 17/11/2017 - 17:45
          +2

          Needs more upvotes!

        • [Deactivated] on 18/11/2017 - 09:12
          +4

          Do what the banks do to reduce the line.
          Go through the queue with iPad taking orders from those with exact list and send them to pickup line.

      • t_c on 17/11/2017 - 20:42
        +2

        @beetran Buy something from umart and take note how they do it. They have 2 sections one for pickups and another for sales.

        • beetran on 18/11/2017 - 11:58
          +2

          Thank you for your advice. Will follow up this one asap

  • Raddic on 17/11/2017 - 16:53

    I know this has been brought up previously, but is there any sort of plan to improve how often the phones are answered. Previously I have had to drive 30 minutes to a store just to see if an item was in stock because the phone was continuously not answered. This is not an isolated problem either with many people within the computer community knowing the small chance they have of actually getting a hold of a sales team member when calling. It would be nice to see a more concrete response too then "we will try to do better".

    • HighAndDry on 17/11/2017 - 17:11
      +7

      Look, you can have great customer service, or you can have dirt-cheap prices. You don't get both - not while still abiding by Australia's labour laws at least.

      • devpress on 17/11/2017 - 17:24
        +12

        Cheap, customer service, and always in-stock — you can only pick 2.

      • echelon6 on 18/11/2017 - 12:36

        I choose dirt-cheap prices and good customer service.

    • beetran on 18/11/2017 - 11:59

      Please give it another try next Monday. We have made some changes to the call centre and it should be better now

  • HumbleCat on 17/11/2017 - 17:02

    Hi, do you get any perks working at MSY like discounts on stuff or first grab at new stock as an employee? My sister works at Intel and she gets 40-50% employee discount on various parts and softwares. I got my 6700k from her that way.

    • HighAndDry on 17/11/2017 - 17:11

      Is there a limit to how much you can buy with that discount? Because otherwise, that's a business idea right there…

      • HumbleCat on 17/11/2017 - 17:12

        No limit

        • HighAndDry on 17/11/2017 - 17:13

          That's amazing…… wow I would buy so much. I mean, you could buy a new processor each gen, sell the old one, and STILL be making profit. Not to mention just buying and ebaying if you wanted to be dodgy.

        • HumbleCat on 17/11/2017 - 17:14

          @0blivion: Would you like to know the worst part?

        • HighAndDry on 17/11/2017 - 17:17

          @RandomDeviation: Ha! There's a downside to this??

        • HumbleCat on 17/11/2017 - 17:18
          +4

          @0blivion: She uses a Macbook and iMac and doesn't care about windows at all. The only time she used her discounts are when I ask her and I assembled my gaming PC. I didn't buy the 7700k as it's similar to 6700k. I have told her so many times that I can make her a PC but she says she hates Windows. She also gets 20% discounts on Nvidias reference cards

        • HighAndDry on 17/11/2017 - 17:25

          @RandomDeviation: Oh…. oh. Yeah okay that would cause me near physical pain, what a damn waste!

        • beetran on 17/11/2017 - 17:36
          +6

          @RandomDeviation: Build her a Hackintosh maybe?

        • citybargainhunter on 18/11/2017 - 17:59
          +1

          can i be your friend?

    • SquareTofu on 17/11/2017 - 17:20
      +5

      There used to be a discount where you can ask the branch manager to sell you something at cost price +10% but HQ removed that. Now you need to beg people from HQ and they might give you a couple of bucks off or nothing at all.

    • beetran on 17/11/2017 - 17:34
      +2

      We do not have further discount on parts due to the super slim margin.

    • AustriaBargain on 17/11/2017 - 18:33
      +6

      One perk of working at MSY is you can probably work on your Mandarin with your coworkers.

  • lancedefrance on 17/11/2017 - 17:47
    +1

    Dear Rep thanks for doing the AMA. What do you do with older items that are no longer in demand or may not have that much demand for like older graphics cards that are no obsolete. Do you just discount them or are you able to return them to the supplier.

    • beetran on 17/11/2017 - 18:00
      +5

      We normally do massive discount and clear them out as soon as possible. To keep the relationship between us and supplier healthy, we prefer not to return anything

      • lancedefrance on 18/11/2017 - 22:01

        I personally miss out on a lot of your discounts and clearance items. Perhaps you can ask for some of these items to be posted on this forum.

  • sillyguy on 17/11/2017 - 18:08

    U're Viet Viet or Aus Viet?

    • ericc on 17/11/2017 - 18:10

      my bet is on Viet Viet

    • beetran on 18/11/2017 - 12:00
      +1

      Viet

  • [Deactivated] on 17/11/2017 - 18:19
    +3

    can i have free stuff?

  • St Nick on 17/11/2017 - 18:20

    Hi there,

    This is more of a point I'd like to point out for a store in Geelong.

    It seems that it is run by 1 person and whenever that person has other things they want/need to do, they just close the shop, especially at busy times of the day.

    Not only that, but they don't even open the store unless they feel like it. I've found myself turning up at 10:30 and the shop is still closed. It's not until 11:30 when the worker shows up.

    How can MSY think this is good customer service? Why hasn't anything been done about this yet? If he needs to go elsewhere, hire more people.

    • Kangal on 17/11/2017 - 18:46

      Ohh dam, snitches get stitches…

    • KSMLJ on 17/11/2017 - 21:04

      Why do you think you get stuff cheap from MSY?

      Hire more people lol.. stop trolling :P

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