Genius Bar
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Genius Bar | |
 The Genius Bar at the Apple Store SoHo, New York, in 2003. |
|
| Opened | May, 2001 |
|---|---|
| Website | Apple.com - Genius Bar |
The Genius Bar is a station located inside every Apple Retail Store, the purpose of which is to offer help and support for Apple products. Ron Johnson, the Senior Vice President for Retail, has often referred to the Genius Bar as the "heart and soul of our stores"[1]. Mac Genii are specially trained and certified employees who staff the Genius Bar. [2] Their role is to help customers with Apple hardware and software. All in-store repairs of Apple products are carried out by Mac Genii.
Contents |
[edit] Store layout
The layout of a Genius Bar consists of at least two 15" MacBookPro/PowerBook computers, often mounted on "floating" stands. LCD screens behind the Bar play looped videos which offer tips to customers waiting to speak to a Genius, as well as updates on the status of the reservation queue. The "Red Telephone" sometimes seen behind the Genius Bar was a direct line to AppleCare's Tier 2 agents, allowing for even the most difficult problems and questions to be answered. [3] This phone is no longer installed in newer Apple Retail Stores.[citation needed]
[edit] Staff
Mac Genii are primarily viewed as the local representatives of AppleCare, although they are employees of the store. They offer personal support when customers have problems or questions with their Apple products. Most services carried out at the Genius Bar are free. Non-warranty service (which is paid for by the customer when repairs are complete) is also routinely performed.
[edit] Reservation system
The Genius Bars currently operate on a reservation system. Customers can schedule a reservation time online before coming in (choosing a time up to 48 hours in advance) or may choose to sign up when they walk in the store. ProCare members are able to access open reservations up to 14 days in advance and take advantage of other features, like Fast Track, which allows for priority repairs.[4]
[edit] Spinoffs/offshoots
The Studio and the iPod bar, two offshoots of the Genius Bar concept are present in many new and renovated stores.
- The Studio is staffed by "trainers" who serve customers with questions about many Apple and third-party applications, such as Final Cut Pro, Aperture, as well as Adobe Photoshop, to name a few. [5]
- The iPod Bar serves to separate out the customers with iPod-related questions to allow the Genius Bar to focus on customers with Macintosh-specific queries. [6]
Pro Labs and Open Lab were introduced with the opening of the Apple Store on West 14th Street in New York City, and to date are only offered at that location.[7][8]
- Pro Labs consist of 8 hours of training, spread across a series of 4 2-hour sessions. Much like The Studio, these sessions focus on Apple's "Pro Apps" such as Aperture and Final Cut Pro, as well as other third-party applications such as Photoshop, however, they are much more in-depth and focused than sessions at The Studio.
- Open Lab provides first-come, first-served assistance to customers with various applications, much like the early days of the Genius Bar, but with an emphasis on software as opposed to the Genius Bar's focus on hardware.
[edit] References
- ^ IFO Apple Store. "Analysist's Conference", 2004-03-01. Retrieved on 2006-10-13.
- ^ ungeni.us, "Mac Genius Training." [1]
- ^ macworld.com "Big Crowds Cheer Apple Store Debut in California, May 19, 2001. [2]
- ^ Apple Store - ProCare [3]
- ^ apple.com "The Studio" [4]
- ^ gizmodo.com "iPod Bar Japan: Great service, but the cocktails need work" [5]
- ^ Apple Retail Store - Retail Pro Lab
- ^ Apple Store West 14th Street
[edit] External links
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||
