helping others

Model Railroader General Discussion (Model Railroader)
1

hey everyone, my local hobbytown usa’s train section keeps getting bigger and bigger, but it seems the staff does not really know much about trains and gives people some false ideas and such, and i find myself being asked by people whenever i go in the store for help and info on things. the other day for example, one couple was in the store and said that one employee told them that lionel was the only O guage trains, even though they had tons of other O trains around the store, also told them that O was the only really good guage. so yeah, they have no clue what there talkin about.
well as my railroad pipedreams are finally coming to reality with the completion of my benchwork i am needing more and more money, and a $30 a month allounce is not covering it. i have most of my relitaves in other places so they will be sending me money for xmas and i should be able to hold out with that money till my bday in april when i can get a job.

so i was wondering, what is there to know? im trying to make a list of all the things i need to know and dont need to know for helping customers with modelrailroading.

thanks
Andrew

2

Well for starters you’re off to a good start. Being on this forum and reading the threads will give you a good cross section of what the hobby is about. Knowing what is available, what is good and what isn’t good is an asset.

We customers love honesty. If you don’t know, don’t bluff or hype because it will come back to bite you!
I respect the salesperson who tells me not to buy something as it’s crap.

If you alienate one customer you’ve lost 10, as word of mouth is a powerful thing.

Some customers may know what they want but don’t know how to express themselves. They’re not dumb!

Don’t push something that someone doesn’t need.

If you don’t know something know where to find out the answer.

Smile, be courteous and friendly and you’ll make life long customers and some friends along the way even if your prices aren’t the cheapest in the land.

Fergie

3

good point, this board is how i know most of what i do know already

4

your doing ok…(I only got $3.00 a week allowance when i was your age but did manage to mow a lot of lawns for the extra cash)…a good way to find out “what to know” is going to come from a lot of experience, but one good way to find this is by researching items from MRR mags. , listening to others that have had years of experience in this hobby and on forums like this one, and by reading lots of “How To” books…I wish I could have gained all the knowledge I’ve collected over the years overnight but it’s going to take lots of time, and lots of trial and error before you can become half way decient in this hobby…some good advice to help others is to mention to them for them to do the same thing…chuck

5

Your lucky your Hob Town has a growing train section. The one by me looks like nothings been restocked in 5 years. Owner knows nothing about trains. He tried to build a WS layout and you can tell he got frustrated half way through it. Fisnished off the scenery with a couple cans of cheap gloss green spray paint.(Yuck!)
As for advise- Don’t try and bluff your way through something.
I have a little diarama that I test new stuff out on before I put it on my layout. (road making techniques, ballesting methods, rock making methods ect…)

6

If you don’t mind the compliment, I see the signs of a maturing mind in your post, prr76. You are thinking outwardly more and more, and even though you are interested in fostering your own hobby, you are observant and have what appears to be good business accumen. Good for you!

The others have said meaningful things to you…take heed.

Things you need to know:

First…if you do this, it’s not about YOU. Your focus will be toward getting to know your customers a bit, asking them how they came to be interested in trains, what they like about them, and where they see themselves in the hobby in a year or two.

Secondly,…you should tell them that, like any hobby, you can go crazy, or you can keep a lid on the spending and explore for a few months to see how it goes. Point out that there are top quality products that will give years of pleasure, and lesser products to the extent of not really recommending that they buy them. Then you ask if you can show them what you mean, and do that with good locos and the other stuff.

You should thirdly,…have a memorized list of about 10 references and websites (this one comes to mind, and I would add Joe Fugate’s if it were me). In fact, have it ready as a hand-out. As a seasoned psychologist, I can tell you that people rarely retain more than 40% of what they hear in an interview. Give them something to take home that they can review and read.

Other than those, know something about track and switches, laying the same, and how to do benchwork and scenicing. Also, know a fair bit about DCC and decoders; you should be able to both describe their functions and demonstrate them.

I think if you do these thiings, and get really good at them, you could run your own train business with ease.

Good luck.

7

thanks for the compliment selector
loathar: it wasnt untill just this month that the trains have expanded. it used to be mostly warhammer and rc but there main warhammer employee patrick( dudes a wicked painter and good a scenic stuff too) went to college and all WH games are postponed during the holidays, so that section has unfortunatly( i play wh) getting smaller because of no new shipments. but in good news, because of christmas time and many people buying their kids train stuff for xmas the train section went from this tiny little section, to almost half the store and they are starting to explore dcc as well with a start of bachman ones but hopefully they’ll expand to digitrax( that would be nice since my train dealer still hasnt gotten my zephyer in even though i should of gotten it by now![:(!][:(!][:(!] but maby its cause of high demand, oh well

8

Sounds like you may have found a decent P/T job there - might be worth asking the manager if they’re hiring. I’ve been in one or two stores where the staff clearly didn’t fully understand what they were selling, and I do wonder how they survive really. While the experienced modellers will have no problems anyone starting out will be at a disadvantage.

Edit, sorry, didn’t see the part about “things you need to know” - I’d say you’ll pick up most of that here. For example, I know from what I’ve read here that the Bachmann DCC system is decent enough if you can live with the limitations (only 9 locos, not a huge amount of power available, very limited programming). I’d still recommend it to someone starting out, though I’d steer them away from the Bachmann decoders - compared to the cheaper TCS efforts (or the Lenz Silver/Gold if funds aren’t a problem) they’re very noisy and don’t make for smooth low-speed running. Just one example!

9

Uh, what about getting a part time job. Bet they need someone to help with the train department. If you have a question you can’t get the answer to right a way, we’ll back you up. (Might get you a discount and some extra spending money doing what you love.

The way to approach it is to ask to see the manager/owner." I notice you have expended your train section. I can help you with your customers who are looking for answers."

10

it would definatly be a part time job, weekends and some nights, i can spend hours in that store withought working there so hours wont be a problem.
and yes, they have an employee discount, and its supposedly a pretty good one, my friend patrick (the guy i was talkin about earlier) said he could sometimes get as much as half off. i know the owners of the store, nice old couple, very friendly and always interested in the different hobbies, the woman is almost always there so i talk to her, so alot of the employee seem to recognize me when i go in which is good for me getting a job. so basicly the hardest part of me getting a job is my age.

11

As long as you can be responsible and show everyone that you do everything you say you are going to do–and do it well–it should not be a problem. I am assuming that it is legal.

12

its legal, i know, and hopefully they will see me sometimes when im helping people which may get me some credit

13

Don’t wait for them to solve your problem. Go to them and solve their problem.

14

If you have not tried it your self, be suspicious of whether you really know it or not. Kids tend to bluff too much. I don’t mind being told people don’t know something, it happens a lot. I like to know people are in the hobby and they know some things and not others. Fergie has good advise as always.

15

Prr67, we seem to be in similar situations, however my LHS already told me wait a few years! (literally, not like the indefinite go away, i’m not hiring you)

The one thing that I think will make the most difference is to be outwardly friendly. Be well aware of whats going on around you, basically be one with the shop. What I mean is you should take the initiative to ask if folks have questions etc.

Best of luck.

16

You’ll find more information here than you ever will at HobbyTown. They suck.

17

yeah i know they suck at info. and i know this because people in the store ask me for info. even though i dont work there.

and yoshi, arent you only in 8th grade, i can remember if it was u from when we were talkin about grades over on ntres. if not sorry, but yeah age would definatly age issues, i wouldnt even try getting a job at my real trainstore, but hobbytown’s whole staff cept for managers are parttime teens

18

from what i’ve read you have good knowledge of at least 2 of the hobby areas that this store deals with , you are helpful , and you know enough to say you don’t know something when you don’t . i’d say start asking about a job now , if they can’t hire you for a few months because of your age at least they’ll know you’re looking .

i used to shop at a computer store and talked to several of the employees every time i went in . after about a year they had a sign up saying they were hiring so i talked to one of the guys i knew and he got me to fill out an application . they ended up hiring someone else , but 3 months later i walked in to buy something and they asked me if i was still looking for a job . i worked in sales for 5 years , transfered to the service dept. and by the time they closed the store 9 years after i started working there i was the service manager . not bad for someone who knew nothing about retail and just went in to buy the latest computer games [:)]

so start asking now . don’t be a pest about it , but make sure the owners and managers know you’re interested

19

thats sorta the hard thing asking, i dont mind when peoplle ask me stuff, but i dont know the owners that well, so in short i can be shy at times when it comes to asking for things but not giving things, that is what im good at. but if i see a sign id ask right away, i must sound soooooo confusing right now, im confusing myself