TigerDirect is an El Segundo, California-based internet shop that specializes in electronics, computers, and computer components for commercial and corporate clients. TigerDirect is a company that sells computers, electronics, and other computer-related items. It also offers services such as shipping, installation, and technical support.
The company was founded in 1990 and ever since then it has been growing at an incredible rate. Tod and ay, it is one of the largest companies in its field. TigerDirect has been known to sell products from well-known brands like Dell, HP, Sony, Toshiba, Apple, Gateway, Compaq, IBM, Lenovo, Acer, Asus, Fujitsu, and many more. In addition to selling these products, they offer services such as installation, repair, and even warranty service for some of their products.
TigerDirect has amassed huge popularity due to the insanely discounted products they seem to be offering. This often makes tech enthusiasts wonder if TigerDirect is legit or not.
In the course of this article, we shall understand what exactly TigerDirect is all about and whether it’s legitimate or not.
Background Of TigerDirect
A utility and application software publisher called BLOC Development Corp. was created in 1985, with FormTool as its first product. Utility software pioneered by the original company has a number of top ten hits. Frank Millman, Jorge Torres, Frank Haggar, Phil Bolin, Stephan Whitney, and Bob Horton were the original founders of the organization. FormTool, the first product developed by Frank Milman and Jorge Torres, was conceptualized by the two.
Bloc Development Corporation acquired Tiger Software in 1989 and turned it into a publicly-traded company. “FormTool” and 20 other products continued to be developed and published by BLOC Publishing (a sister business of TigerSoftware), which also published SoftSync, the publisher of the “EXPERT Software” series and the Macintosh accounting software, “Accountant Inc.” TigerDirect was once known as BLOC Development.
By 1991, TigerDirect had shifted its focus from profitable software development to TigerSoftware’s library. Gilbert Fiorentino tried a different approach, but it failed miserably, and the company was eventually sold to Global DirectMail in a desperate attempt to turn a profit (now known as Systemax). For the first time in 1994, TigerDirect launched a series of profitable smaller products, such as GraphicsExpress, CDROM, and Mac. Systemax purchased it in 1996 after Hanover House attempted an acquisition but failed.
Previously owned by Systemax, a company best known for relaunching failed U.S. retail giants Circuit City and CompUSA as online shops after purchasing their intellectual property. In late December 2012, the two brands were shut down and merged into TigerDirect.com.
What Are The Services Offered By TigerDirect?
Here are the services offered by TigerDirect as claimed by the official website:
Daily deals
The Deal of the Day Slasher highlights one-day-only deals on desktops, laptops, and monitors. Whether you browse our site daily or sign up for email alerts, you’ll never miss a discount on the latest tech gadgets and accessories.
VIP business account
Using a TigerDirect account is a convenient and safe way to make purchases. A dedicated account executive and quotation, reporting, and approval capabilities are available to organizations who qualify for a free account.
Small business solutions
Your competitive advantage is in good hands with their technical sales specialists. Whether it’s digital signs, collaborative tools, software and cloud, networking and infrastructure, or anything else, they can help you get up to speed on the latest technology.
Business credit
You may affordably outfit your business by using business finance. With same-day shipping, you may expedite the decision-making process. Your cash flow and financial planning will both benefit from lower monthly costs.
Is TigerDirect Legit?
To be fair, we have a mixed opinion on TigerDirect. Of course, it is a legitimate business and not a scam but when it comes to being the best, it’s just not one of the greatest options you have available. Although TigerDirect has amassed huge popularity amongst tech enthusiasts across the globe, it is only a decent option when it comes to purchasing electronics and computers.
Why do we say that? Let’s look at what we like and dislike about the shopping experience with TigerDirect to understand that:
What We Like About TigerDirect:
Below we have explained in detail what we like about TigerDirect that makes them a legitimate site:
TigerDirect has great discounts.
They offer discounts on almost every item that they sell. The discounts vary depending on the type of product that you want. For example, they offer discounts on computers, electronics, home appliances, etc. It is possible to save hundreds of dollars on each purchase.
TigerDirect has a wide variety of products.
TigerDirect sells everything from computers to cell phones to clothes. They carry over 500 different brands. The sheer number of products that they sell means that you have no excuse for being stuck without the right thing! If you are looking for something that isn’t available elsewhere, then this is the place to come.
TigerDirect has experts available to help you out.
If you are unsure about what brand, model, etc you should buy for a specific product, you can contact one of their expert staff members. They are happy to assist you with any questions regarding the product.
They have a user-friendly website
TigerDirect has a user-friendly website, unlike many online retailers. You can easily navigate through the site using the search bar or by browsing the categories. The user-friendliness of the website makes it easy to shop there.
TigerDirect offers secure payout options
All the purchases that you make through TigerDirect are safe and secure. This means that your personal details are kept private. Your credit card information is never stored on their servers. They use strong encryption technology to ensure that your data remains confidential.
What We Do Not Like About TigerDirect:
Here are a few things that we did not find great about the company:
It takes too long to receive your package
Depending on how far away you live from the warehouse, you could wait anywhere between 1 week and 2 weeks for your package to arrive. This is very frustrating especially if you ordered an expensive item. A number of users online complained about delays in receiving their packages. Some of them even say that they did not get their products after waiting for quite a while post the estimated delivery date.
A user on Trustpilot says,“I ordered an External Hard Drive from TigerDirect and it could not be delivered in a timely manner. After countless contacts, I had the order canceled and confirmed online that that indeed was the status. The item got shipped anyway and I could not get the item stopped.
Before delivery, I contacted the seller and asked for an RMA in order to get a quick return. I was told they could not do that but to deny the delivery. I kept denying delivery with FEDEX but after the third time, it was dropped off without any interaction that I could provide. I then called TigerDirect and asked for an RMA and that was two weeks ago. I explained to the rep it was due to their error, to begin with, but it was talking to a stone wall.
Still waiting for an RMA that should have been provided earlier. I am still in daily contact with TigerDirect fro an RMA but just get the scripted response of we will put a priority on it and it will be resolved. What TigerDirect is doing is either getting close to violating FTC regulations or has crossed the line. STAY AWAY FROM THESE PEOPLE.“
They often deliver the wrong products
Numerous users online have complained about how TigerDirect delivered the wrong products to them and they were never able to return them. Mistaken wrong delivery is somewhat acceptable, however, not being able to return the said product can be insanely frustrating, the credit going to their poor customer service.
Many a time, when the users were successfully able to return the product, they were not issued a refund for the said product.
One of the TigerDirect users shared their experience about something similar on Trustpilot saying, “I placed an order for a Jabari headset. They sent me the wrong one. I called back and asked to stop that shipment. Lady said that she would stop the shipment but I need to pay for a new order. She even told me that I would receive it the next day. She lied.
I called back to find out why it was not showing tracking info. The first one did not announce his name, left me on hold and never came back. I called back and got the most rude and nasty rep who again did not announce her name. I asked for the supervisor and was told to call the next day if I needed to talk to a supervisor and hung up on me. Well, my son called back this time and spoke to someone.
The customer service rep had lied to me just so she could get the order. They told my son that fedex never delivered on Saturdays. I have not yet received a refund on my first order. This is the last time I buy from them. Nasty, rude call center in the Philippines. Never had any good experience with reps in the Philippines. We need to get our call centers back from the Philippines. Why pay for rude behavior?”
They have a poor customer service
As you must have seen from the reviews above, almost all of the negative reviews complain about the poor customer service TigerDirect offers. There is always a greater probability of you receiving the right product without any defects or complaints that you have to make.
However, if you do ever need to raise a complaint about any of the products delivered by TigerDirect, you have to be very much in luck to get a solution from their customer service.
Myriad users of TigerDirect complain that the company has degraded to having a very poor customer service that almost never finds the satisfactory solution to their problems.
One review on Trustpilot verifies the same, “have been a TigerDirect customer for over 25-years and I never had any issues until this past order. I paid for my order in full then low and behold I was double-billed for the more expensive item.
I called TigerDirect’s customer service where I was told to call their credit department, the man on the phone wouldn’t even transfer me! I called their credit department where I was subjected to upsell ad after upsell ad each one lasting a minimum of one minute!
There wasn’t a way to decline the ad and if you did you were hung-up on! I never got to speak to an actual person! I proceeded to call customer service where I was hung-up each and everytime ten times. When I finally got hold of a customer service representative, I told him my experience and the double-billing issue and the fact I never reached anyone in their credit department. He said he was going to check into my issue and call me back.
That was Thursday and I’m still waiting for that callback. I warned TigerDirect I will be going to financial institution and reporting their billing as fraud. I have pulled my business and my residential accounts from this business! I am done with TigerDirect!”
The advertisements may not be honored sometimes
It is obvious for the customer to expect the advertisements and deals made on any website to be honored at the time of purchase and payment. Although TigerDirect comes with great deals from time to time, there have been instances when the company hasn’t honored its deals.
A few customer reviews on third-party review sites such as Sitejabber, Trustpilot, etc, claim that the company charged them extra for a product that was initially shown to be discounted on the homepage. They said that during checkout, they were prompted to pay higher than what was initially mentioned in the deal. Although this is not always the case, it certainly would drive any customer skeptical when buying from a brand as popular as TigerDirect.
TigerDirect does not have ‘great’ reviews online
It is true that almost every company that has amassed popularity as huge as TigerDirect has both good and bad reviews. After all, you can not make everyone happy! However, most good companies always have more positive reviews than negative ones. In fact, for any company to be termed good (in our opinion), the positive reviews should far outweigh the negative ones.
When it comes to TigerDirect, the company seems to have a huge segment of dissatisfied and disappointed customers who do not wish to do business with them again. On Trustpilot, the company has been 3.1 based on some 5,000+ reviews, as of now, which does not put it into the list of companies providing a good customer experience.
Similarly, on consumeraffairs, TigerDirect has a 2.8 based on more than 1,500+ reviews which suggest that the number of negative reviews outweighs the positive ones.
Things You Should Know When Buying A Computer (or electronics) Online
Here are a few tips that can prove immensely helpful if you are looking to buy computers, computer parts, refurbished items, and electronics online:
- Read reviews, and if you can find a review that is not glowing, then it’s probably best to avoid them. Check out customer reviews. Lookup any complaints that people have had with the company.
- Be careful of the “free” shipping deals. They may seem like a good deal, but in reality, they are usually only free because the company is trying to get you to buy more than what you need. This will cost you money in the long run.
- Don’t just go by price alone. You should also consider how much memory or hard drive space does the product have? Is it worth paying extra for those features?
- Look at the return policy before purchasing. Some companies do not allow returns on their products, so make sure you know what happens if you don’t like the product.
- Try looking up the manufacturer on Google. There might be an official website where you can find out information about the product. Do some research on the internet about the company. Find out where they are located.
- Some companies don’t allow returns, so make sure that you know what their policies are first. When you do decide to purchase from a retailer, make sure that you check out the return policy. It’s always smart to ask before making a purchase.
- Most importantly, try to find a store that offers a warranty. A lot of times, companies will sell products at low prices in order to compete with other retailers. However, many of these items won’t last as long because they were cheaply made. In most cases, you’ll be able to get a replacement part at a reasonable price.
- Finally, make sure that the retailer ships quickly. Shipping time shouldn’t take longer than 5 days.
Conclusion
In conclusion, we would like to tell you that TigerDirect lies on the edge of what you can call legitimate. It is certainly not a scam but it is not a “good enough” company either. Since it is not the best out there and we would suggest that you buy from TigerDirect only after careful consideration of multiple factors since the deal that you get here may not always work out in your favor.
We hope that our review helped you decide whether or not you should buy from TigerDirect. We highly suggest that you check other stores before making any purchase. There are numerous other alternatives available; however tread carefully, since when it comes to buying computers and electronics, the market is filled with dubious snake oil scammers who would wish to drain your hard-earned money.
Some of the popular alternatives of TigerDirect include Newegg, Micro Center, Crucial.com, and Frys.com. Although these alternatives may not be better than TigerDirect, they are certainly worth checking out. You can always compare your options against each other and see what works out best for you!
