Retail

Cyber Monday at Best Buy

courtesy Best Buy Co. Inc.
The convenience of shopping online attracts a lot of customers, and it seems reasonable that an online retailer would take advantage of the Cyber Monday traffic to promote certain items. That is not what Best Buy Co. Inc. (NYSE: BBY) has chosen to do.

At the Best Buy homepage, the only promotion touts a $25 savings on shipping if customers will pick up the item at their local store. Everything else is shown as rows of small icons under the heading, “Find Hot Deals in Every Department.” Here are where three of the icons lead when clicked.

The first icon — TVs — leads to a page that lists 15 different Samsung TVs, leading off with a 32-inch LED HDTV for $249.99, a savings of $130 according to Best Buy. The second item listed is a 40-inch LED HDTV for $499.99, which is sold out.

Another top-row icon from the homepage — Tablet & E-Readers — directs shoppers to a page headed by a 7-inch Samsung Galaxy Tab 2 model for $179.99 and a 10-inch model for $299.99.

A third icon — Mobile Phones — leads to list 15 phones and accessories. The phones are all free with calling packages from Verizon Wireless, AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T), Sprint Nextel Corp. (NYSE: S) or T-Mobile.

Perhaps the bare-bones approach is all that customers need when shopping for the stuff that Best Buy sells. But this approach looks like a lost opportunity from here.

Paul Ausick

 

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