Buying a PM Sim at Walmart

[Kris_marie]

So I purchased a PM Sim 2 days ago at Walmart and switched over.  The whole process, from the time I requested to purchase a Sim to setting up my account (at home), was uber easy.

I went to Walmart today and the process was not as easy.  It was a different location.  I was buying a Sim for my spouse so that he could change over to PM.  She said she couldn't sell me just the Sim, that I had to do everything then and there (account activation/set up)..... um what?   

My spouse wasn't with me and I wasn't going to kill his phone while he is at work, we have no landline, and then have to wait til we see each other so he would have phone service.  I was shocked.

I left empty handed from the Kanata, ON Walmart.  I went to the Barrhaven one and was in and out in 5 minutes.  

What is the procedure that you expect to be followed when new clients are trying to get up and going? 

[dna2016]

@Kris_marie Wow, can't believe reps are still trying to force people to set up in store.  Ya this is not allowed, customers are allowed to make the decision if they want to activate in stire or just buy the SIM Card and leave.  If you had the extra time you should have asked to speak to a manager, I'm sure the rep would have changed their attitude at thhat point.  

Possibly there is some type of wireless activation quota at this location and that's why they tried to force you to activate in store.  

Please be sure to provide @Mary_M as much info as possible becuase reps like these need to be following the rules and not lying to customers.  

[Mary_M]

According to the information collected, the user was referring to the location on Fernbank Rd in Kanata.@cappaj

I'm also glad to hear that you had a positive experience at Wal-Mart 🙂

MAry

[cappaj]

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@Kris_marie wrote:

So I purchased a PM Sim 2 days ago at Walmart and switched over.  The whole process, from the time I requested to purchase a Sim to setting up my account (at home), was uber easy.

I went to Walmart today and the process was not as easy.  It was a different location.  I was buying a Sim for my spouse so that he could change over to PM.  She said she couldn't sell me just the Sim, that I had to do everything then and there (account activation/set up)..... um what?   

My spouse wasn't with me and I wasn't going to kill his phone while he is at work, we have no landline, and then have to wait til we see each other so he would have phone service.  I was shocked.

I left empty handed from the Kanata, ON Walmart.  I went to the Barrhaven one and was in and out in 5 minutes.  

What is the procedure that you expect to be followed when new clients are trying to get up and going? 

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Which Kanata Walmart - the one at Centrum? I'm sure it depends on the rep who's working, but that's where I bought my SIM card last week and he sold me just the card no problem (I just had to wait 20-30 minutes while he finished up with another customer, which to be honest wasn't a picnic with two kids asking me to buy them everything they say in those 20-30 minutes!).

[Kris_marie]

thank you so much for the offer. I was able to acquire a SIM and activate a new account for my spouse 🙂

[Mary_M · Accepted solution]

Good morning @Kris_marie,

thank you so much for taking the time to share your experience at a Wal-Mart location recently. I'm really sorry to hear that you weren't able to simply purchase a SIM card. As we have emphasized before, this is not true - you are totally allowed to buy a sim card without having to activate it in store. 

Over the last few weeks, we have been collecting feedback in regards to these specific Wal-Mart locations - would you be able to share more information? Such as the exact location, employees name, time, etc. Would you be able to send me this via private message?

I look forward to your reply 🙂

Mary 

[jjhack84]

I will first clear out one thing "Walmart Wireless" is not run by Walmart. It is run by a company called OSL. (On a side note, OSL is working on taking over all of the electronics sections, photo centre, and also handles the Bicycle sections).

I know this to be the case as I work for Apple, and one of my contracts is with OSL through Walmart. Having worked in the industry for a few years now (I used to work for Bell as well), the only reason why they wouldn't "let you" buy just a sim card, would be because it is a loss of sale. 

I can say for certainty that since this insurgance of low end prepaid tier companies like Lucky Mobile, and Chatr have hit the scene, there is much more of a push to sign on prepaid clients. Back in my Bell days, when someone walked in looking for prepaid, the first thing we would do is try to sign the client on a month to month "post paid" instead of a prepaid. Typically, prepaid is more expensive than prepaid. If you were to look at Telus, Bell, Rogers, etc. Month to Month (aka bring your own phone) would typically be $5-10 cheaper than prepaid.

Also, keep in mind that from time to time, there are what they call "spiffs" on prepaid signings. A spiff is a bonus where if you sign on a client to a certain criteria, you would get a pay bonus at the end of the month or pay cycle. This would take a $2 pay out for a prepaid client to anywhere from $5-10 bonus.

In my bell days, if someone walked in the door looking for just a sim without a Bell account, I would try to convince the person to sign on in house. I would end up being paid for signing on a client, plus a "tick" towards my monthly targets.

To be brutally honest, you will get different hospitality from different locations. Any location with high targets, or if a rep is being in his targets, you will get a strong sale pitch from the rep. OSL is what you would call a "multi-carrier" (others being Wireless Wave, Tbooth, WowMobile, etc) because they handle multiple brands (Telus, Rogers, Bell, Chatr, Public Mobile, etc).  Typically, you get a better deal from these guys and gals simply because they have multiple offers that they can give you.

As for giving WowMobile a try, I recommend it, as they are a multicarrier, and they have multiple offers they can give you. However, they too are run by OSL, so if you hate Walmart Wireless, WowMobile has the same processes! 🙂

[Luddite]

@Kris_marie Terrible; Walmart is really hit and miss. Give WOW Mobile a try; they show little interest in activating (at my local)! 

If you're still stuck on Monday, send me a private message. I have a spare and will be visiting Ottawa.

[NDesai]

For some reason some Walmart have missed the memos. They all suppose to allow customers to purchase sim card with or without activating. They told us to report these location so they can contact them directly. I will do just that and hopefully they will improve the service for future customers. 

[MacMe]

Kris, you could buy a SIM and activate it with a new phone number. 

Then when you get home (or whenever you want), you can log into self serve and port your husband's number over 

But it's unfortunate that they wouldn't just sell you the SIM.

[Dunkman]

According to company policy, Walmart is suppose to see you the SIM card with or without activation.  However, some reps at Walmart are not following this policy.  The likely reason is the lack of commission when the rep does not activate the account. 

By stating the location to the forum, the moderators are likely able to make note of this particular location and possibly enforce the company policy.  

[lstokes]

Hi there,

First, I am very sorry this has happened to you. Technically you are able to buy a SIM from a retailer and that's it. You are not obligated to activate it there at all. Of course, if you were to activate it there, the sales person would get some kind of commission. Unfortunately many sales people are in it for the money. I am a sales person at a newly launched London Drugs. Hopefully you have a better experience at the next PM retailer you visit. Let me know of i can help you further.

Cheers,

Liam