Losing a customer due to Store Service being different from Phone Service price differential

[Anonymous]

Trying to upgrade my I-Phone and secured a deal by phoning O2.  However, the same deal could not be provided by the local store.  So you cannot buy a phone at the same price in the store (it costs more) as you can online.  You cannot purchase the phone online and then collect from store (as I wanted to do) without incurring a cost penalty - although the stores have (of course) the phones in stock.  Why not?  Instead the phone would be posted to me, to arrive a few days later.  Why?  Surely two arms of the same company can work together.  Will O2 reply please as have exhausted customer services appeals - they just say it's not what they do.

[Anonymous]

Thanks for the replies. I appreciate that its possible to buy online (or over phone) and then collect.  However it seems odd that the stores cannot offer a Price Match - as offered similarly by other high street retailers - when the parent company owns both businesses. In the shop they have phones available, surely they could be sent confirmation of sale from the online/phone side of their operation and simply hand over one of the phones they have in stock?  If its a case of seperate cost centres the store could be paid 'commission' by the online side of their operations equivalent to the courier cost of sending out the phone.  Overall this generates more income for O2 than if they were to sell this product online.  In addition it givers the store an opportunity to 'upsell' other products (cases, cables, etc) at the time when phone is picked up.  I bet most customers that buy phones online will go on to buy a case - so this is the ideal time for the shop to make the sale.  

Alternatively, if the online price is less, then if a customer goes into the O2 store and asks for the best deal available - and is prepared to wait a couple of days - then the honest salesperson in the store should be telling them to go and by the product online.  

[Cleoriff]

@Anonymous 

What you say makes complete sense but sadly would mean far too much "thought and effort by O2 to implement it" (It wouldn't really but then when does any big business agree that the customer knows best...)

That doesn't take away from any of the points you have made. They are all extremely valid

[Anonymous]

At the end of the day, each business has its own practices and there will always be people who will say things can be done a different (or in their eyes a better) way.

O2 know their systems and they do things their way for a reason. For the vast majority it is fine. For the record if you did the same process with Vodafone, EE or Three they too would not let you order online then go immediately to store to collect from store stock. (I have no idea whether they would price match their online or telesales offering so couldn't comment on that).

Ultimately you have a choice. You might find a better deal for you at Carphone Warehouse too although they don't offer refresh but they will sell standard o2 contracts. That might be cheaper still. You can also upgrade there.

[Anonymous]

I should add that if you were to get a more suitable deal for your needs at CPW and assuming the phone is in stock, you would be able to walk out with your shiny new toy

(usual credit check and stuff of course).