admin You will pay MUCH less If you go with an online dealer.
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There is a wide range of quality and professionalism among the electronics dealers you’ll find online, so you need to check them out before doing business. A professional-looking website is a good sign, but it’s no real insurance against an eventual case of buyer’s remorse. Nor is paying with a credit card. Credit card companies can only protect you to a point. Ultimately at this point you are bound to the dealer’s sales and returns policies. People these days are tending to pay by Pay Pal. This is a free service for buyers and offers protection if there is a problem with your vendor. Pay Pal is good for both vendors and purchasers alike.
Generally, you’re looking for an established, specialized electronics vendor that can give you a good price and good service support.
When buying your plasma display from an online dealer, be sure to get someone on the phone so that you can do some investigating.
- Find out if the company you’re dealing with is an Authorized Dealer of the TV you’re thinking about purchasing. Most Internet e-tailers are not authorized, which makes ones that are, stand way out from the rest of the pack. Getting authorization to sell a given manufacturer’s products is no easy process. Dealers have to meet some fairly stringent standards. Manufacturers usually require their dealers to offer technical support through a service center of some sort. In almost all instances, they will also require dealers to have a showroom for the product and a warehouse for the stock. Internet companies that are not authorized retailers of the electronics they sell normally do nothing more than drop ship those products from distributors or other dealers. All of which means they have no way of replacing defective merchandise, getting spare parts, or handling returns. Nor can such dealers guarantee that the TV you get will be new, unopened, or unused.
- Ask, “What if…?” Imagine everything that could go wrong, and then ask a sales representative how his or her company would handle the situation. What if the unit you receive is defective? What if your display goes bad after six months? How can he or she guarantee you that your television will be repaired?
- Find out where they’re located. Check the physical address of the company, and exclude those listing P.O. boxes or foreign countries as their addresses. You should also verify any address information with the Better Business Bureau (if the BBB insignia is posted on the website). Why? Because, if a dispute should arise, you need to be able to contact the company in writing.
- Determine whether they stock the products they sell. Many companies will claim to have a physical location, when they are really home or apartment-based operations with little or no control over what happens once the transaction has been made. Always try to purchase from a dealer that buys direct from the manufacturer and stocks inventory.
- Ask whether they have corporate clients. If a vendor services other businesses, chances are, they’re legitimate. You might also consider phoning some of these clients to confirm their references.
- Ask some technical questions about the products they sell. Make sure these people are competent enough to give you some after-purchase technical assistance should you need it.
- Get the low-down on the warranty. Inquire into the specifics of the dealer’s return policy. It should give you one month’s time to have any defective unit replaced at the seller’s expense (shipping charges included).
You should also expect to pay some reasonable shipping fees. “Super saver” shipping is fine for books. But shipping a plasma television via the cheapest method possible will almost certainly turn into a major hassle down the road. In most cases, the costs of shipping are offset by the money you save.
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