Beware of Pacific Geek

[BruisedQuasar]

I do a lot of my shopping online, finding this a great way to save money. It is always a fast way to lose money. Unlike local retail stores, you cannot size up an unfamiliar online retailer or its owners, manager or staff. You cannot ask nieghbors or
work associates.

A new trend on Internet are Daily Deals. Some retailers already have a good reputation, examples are Woot, Cowboom,
newegg, frys, geeks. But others are popping up from the woodwork. I've noticed refurbished Thinkpads and enterprise
of lease and refurbished Dells are being put forward at amazing prices.

Unfortunately, several of the formerly little known resellers range from just bad businesses to outright scams. One such
bad reseller who is at the top of the game at showing up in new daily deal "search engine" sites like Bargainjack,
and todaysdod is PACIFIC GEEK. Beware of them.

The main site for checking out online resellers is resellerratings.com. Pacific Geek has about a one star rating there.
The only reason it has one star is the rating program doesn't accept zero stars.

If you ever have a problem with an online reseller (retailer) check resellerratings.com. Several sincere sellers who have a higher than average low rating and want to get better have assigned a representative to monitor complaints that show up
under their name at resellerratings. If a retailer you are unsatisfied with has a representative monitoring resellerratings, most likely they will reply to you with a phone number and email address for one on one communication and problem resolution.

Of course, resellers like Pacific Geek doesn't bother with customer service according to most buyers at resellerratings.

--Bruised

[ThinkRob]

Just my 0.02 USD, but I've never had a problem with them... although I haven't purchased any full systems from them.

[robert213]

PacificGeek.com
http://www.resellerratings.com/store/PacificGeek

I have never had a problem with Fry's either and their rating of 1.76 is nearly as bad as PacificGeek's 1.07.
http://www.resellerratings.com/store/Fr ... cs_Outpost

At least Newegg is rated 9.71
http://www.resellerratings.com/store/Newegg

[Harryc]

Moved thread to the General forum.

[BruisedQuasar]

NewEgg is an oustanding seller whether you count online or not. The past two years their competitive pricing, returns
policy and shipping have continuously improved. They are not perfect, something their general rating shows. I suspect
any online retailer or product that gets dozens of buyer ratings and does not have at least three or so wacko short
Its or they are no good reviews.

I've been buying online for over ten years and save considerable money (not just sales tax). I read feedback and
reviews, even put together a set of rules I follow. Many buyer reviews are useless, especially reviews (feedback)
you find at eBay, Amazon, Walmart online. The useless ones tend to be the positive feedback. Too many are
very general (the Router is garbage. Woudn't work in my computer) or ramble on about the weather on the day
of package arrival, the person's birthday, age the item was bought for, etc and then provides no useful, critical
info such as how long have they used item. Far too many, get a nice box, open it and see a factory sealed item
and then post what a great buy it is! Others blame the product for their total computer ineptitude or fail to provide
vital information such as what computer, what operating system, etc.

Then, you see many negatives from people who have totally unrealistic expectations and not a clue about cartage
law, insurance, shipping, or how businesses operate in the real world.

I learned long ago to look for patterns. I learned to never reach conclusions based on mere head count of
nays or yeas. More important to me are patterns. Is their a clear, consistent pattern to negative comments?
For instance, is lack of communication being mentioned a lot? Shipping problems? Unreasonably poor
quality control? Really bad sellers produce buyer comment patterns that can be detected even among
the positive ratings. "Didn't respond for weeks but finally refunded my money"

This will draw fire but the truth is Amazon.com is clearly one of the most outstanding retailers I have known.
They remind me of pre-1990s Sears, once a shinning star of quality merchandise and high customer service.

Amazon gets false negatives because it has more customers than any dozen retailers combined and far too
many people fail to read Amazon return and refund policy, which is stellar but it must be read and the buyer
must act accordingly. Buyers often do not distinguish between Amazon direct and an Amazon marketplace
seller. We bought three items so far that were defective or not at all what we expected from Amazon Direct.
We got a low price, free shipping. We kept all the packing, the box, etc. We decided within a few days to
return for refund, followed the policy to the letter. Did the return form online as policy calls for, printed out
the return slips and the UPS sticker, took the box to our UPS store. We had our refund, as promised,
as soon as UPS posted the box. I wish Newegg was that efficient, that clear. Amazon pays return
shipping under their 30 days no questions asked return policy.

In my opinion, there is a strong and clear enough negative pattern in buyer complaints about Pacific Geek's
computer systems at Resellerratings and at Consumer to stay away from them. If it is not a bad seller, then
they should detail a customer service agent to monitor and offer assistance to people who complain at
resellerratings like standup sellers have such as Woot and DailySteals.

I've made several buys at both since my initial Christmas season transactions went south. Why? I posted
a negative about each. A customer service agent contacted me immediately, made me whole, and assured
me my experience was a holiday rush one off. Besides, I could always complain at resellerratings.com
and be made whole if I have additional problems. I have not.

What Pacific Geek does instead is post amazingly low prices on a computer system each day so the new fad, the Daily Deal search engine and post sites put them up. This keeps their name out there and Sheppard hooks in a flow
of steady fresh suckers.

My childhood as a member of a large business family and my years in business has given me a rich education. I haven't
learned everything but I've seen a lot. One thing I am very familiar with is the ethically challenged business person, persons like Meg Ryan on a big scale and Honest Joe's used cars. Most career bad sellers do not take people accross the board. Thats too obvious and they will not last long. No, the pro sells mostly on the up and up and focuses on a few sucker lines of goods where he makes his profit. An example is the auto parts selling dishonest used car seller. He sells auto parts at a discount, a few used cars a week dishonestly. His real business are the used cars. The barber with a real estate agent license. A good fella or a barber who is really in the business of shyster home sales. He means well. He's just naive
and somehow the homes prove very flawed down the road. The computer shop that is so helpful with the computers of people's elderly parents but overcharges for minor repairs.

--Bruised