One of the BEST etailers out there!
Written: Mar 22 '04 (Updated Apr 02 '04)
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A Little Background
Crutchfield started business back in 1974 with just a handful of people and a simple goal, great electronics with great support at great prices. Things aren’t that much different now except they now employ over 500 people, have one of the most user friendly sites on the net and have some of if not the best customer service (CS) and support out there. The catalogs are just as informative and colorful as they were from the first day I did business with them back in 1990 when I bought my first Sony receiver and Polk speakers for my dorm room. Based out of Virginia, they have dedicated phone reps for home audio and video, car audio and video, as well as any other needs you may have, whether checking on an order or simply getting input on what electronics might best fit your needs from phones to high end receivers.
Brands
Over time, some of the brands that Crutchfield has carried have varied a bit, but the real performers have always stayed, brands like Sony, Polk, Pioneer, Panasonic, Toshiba, and so on. It doesn’t matter what electronic device or accessory you may need, there is almost always quite a wide array of options available to the shopper. The brands available aren’t always the best necessarily, but there is always a very good range in price such there is always something for everyone. Overall, I would say a lot of thought is put into not just the brands, but dedication to those brands as well. With all the unwarrantable purchases one could make over the internet, purchasing from Crutchfield is quite reassuring in that you know you will never have a problem with a factory warranty issue if it comes to that. Certainly there is something to be said for brand loyalty, why else would they lead in their respective segments? Denon makes receivers, Sony and Toshiba make great TVs, Infinity makes great speakers, and Crutchfield has it all.
Website
The website is very well laid out and the interface is very easy to use and understand. This isn’t always the case with some sites and I think Crutchfield had to realize that as there are no vague scrolling sidebars and non specific menus. Everything is easy to access and whatever you may need in a given segment is only a few clicks away. During certain hours there is even the option of live help online with a real person. I haven’t used it, but I imagine it’s pretty helpful, at least based on the rest of the sites options and usability. Another thing that really sets this site apart is the servers. This site loads very quickly far more consistently than any other site I have ever been to of this nature. There are a lot of electronics retailers out there, but what does it say about a company that sells high end electronics, yet can’t seem to get pages going any faster than dial up?
The key thing about this site though is all the information. This site is packed with almost every possible piece of information you could ever want. Whether bigger pictures, suggested accessories, fine detail, or basic specifications, it’s all there. You won’t necessarily get all the info a user manual might give, but what’s on the site is enough to make a very educated buying decision. If for some reason the site doesn’t have what you need or you are still on the fence about a purchase decision, there is always the 1-888 number to call so you can actually talk to a person who helps people with exactly that every day. That leads us too CS…
Customer Service
Crutchfield truly has some of the best customer service out there in my opinion. There will always be someone who knows what you need to find out. Through car installs and home electronic purchases I have made not only for myself as well as clients that have employed me for install or consultation and set up I have never had a real problem with their service. If something even minor has popped up like a product not arriving on time (very rare) to a product simply being out of stock, they have bent over backwards to ensure that everything was taken care of in a timely fashion.
It’s hard in this day to find folks who really care about what they are doing and often times are quite enthusiastic, but most all the reps you will talk to on the phone are. They know what’s new, what’s hot, how stuff works together, and how it can work for you. The few times I have needed specific and highly detailed install info, they have always had the answers. Granted sometimes it takes more than one call, but some installs can be harder than others, especially for a novice. The wait times when I call in are generally very short and almost across the board, the people I have dealt with on the phone are very polite and professional.
Shipping
It doesn’t matter if you order online or over the phone, shipping is easy and very fast with Crutchfield. Everything I have ever ordered has been shipped UPS and I have had very few problems with either UPS getting it to me in a timely manner or Crutchfield getting it out on time. Quite often, 2-3 day shipping is available at no cost depending on the purchase. A good example of that is a recent purchase of a home receiver, speakers, as well as a sub for my mom. Most of the shipping was free and got to me in an average of less than 3 days. Not bad.
Without a doubt, the whole return/oops/damage factor is vastly reduced with Crutchfield. Not only does Crutchfield pack there shipments very well, everything needed to return/exchange what you bought is packed right in the box for you along with everything you ordered. If for some reason you are sent the wrong product or it happens to be immediately defective, all one has to do is slap on the shipping label provided over the one on the original box, and you’re good to go. It truly couldn’t be any simpler.
Extras
Any savvy shopper who is versed in internet shopping will know that for the most part Crutchfield has higher prices than many sites out there almost across the board, almost all the time. Catalogs are surprisingly expensive, especially for the square backed, bright, colorful catalogs Crutchfield puts out. I would hope to think at this point we all know that an effective, well maintained web site is not cheap to operate, and Crutchfield has one of the best. So, when visiting the web site these things seem to account for prices that are only marginally better than you local Good Guys, Circuit City, Best Buy, or other major regional chain, if at all. There is a bright side though, almost blindingly so.
As an authorized retailer for so many premium brands, often times Crutchfield will get a lot of a particular product and is able to sell it for surprisingly cheap. A surprisingly large amount of my purchases from Crutchfield have been of this nature. Whether car stereos, home audio, or even cable purchases, I have literally saved thousands shopping in this manner. Two (of four) VCRs I own were purchased in this way. Yeah, car speakers out the kazoo, subs (home or car), receivers (home or car), you name it; I have gotten so many deals from Crutchfield, its hard to count. Beyond all that however, it’s the service, it’s the records they keep, it’s the available help if you need it, it’s the personal level of understanding and desire you will never get at a churner like Circuit City that makes Crutchfield the best option. You get what you pay for.
Overall Experience
Almost every time I have ever dealt with Crutchfield it has been a good experience. I have only ordered purely online a few times, but not because it is hard, it’s actually quite straightforward and easy. For the most part, I just prefer to deal with people. Granted, based on my other reviews you might not think so, but the process on the phone is so easy and comfortable, I just actually prefer it. I like the ability to confirm things with a person rather than just clicking a mouse when it comes to this type of purchase.
I have been in more than one retail establishment where I witnessed poor information or application advice being offered a consumer and it kills me every time. This is something that isn’t a concern with Crutchfield. The advice you receive and the care you get from Crutchfield generally doesn’t seem to so heavily rely on commission, but more specifically what you need for your particular application, and that’s far more important than the ease of having a store “right around the corner”.
Final Thoughts
Possibly the truest endorsement for any internet business is word of mouth and I cannot even begin to count how many people I have recommended Crutchfield to. I have done extensive business with this company, to the tune of several transactions a year regularly since about 1998, so I have far more interactions than the average consumer. With this in mind, yes, I have had some bad experiences, but so few in respect to the greater quantity of good experiences , that I can’t really complain that much. For every quantity of “good transactions” for the consumer, some will be bad, but infrequently does that actually happen to one person. As it has, I know from experience the relative incidences are actually few and far between. Assuming that I am the short side of the scale, Crutchfield does damn well.
The bottom line is that I have had numerous, consecutive good experiences with this company. I have purchased a surprising amount of products (I think) for one person and so I feel I am in a good place to say that Crutchfield should consistently offer the best service and follow up of any electronics retailer available on a national basis with, for the most part, some of the best prices out there. It is incumbent on any individual shopping on the net to do the footwork as it is really no different than brick and mortar shopping except for the travel, so if you don’t get the best price and service combo available, whose fault is it really? I hope this review has been helpful, happy shopping!
Recommended:
Yes
What product did you purchase or try to purchase? Receivers, speakers, subs, etc
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