Do you think of Wal-mart like K-mart?

I’m not talking financially especially when half the richest Americans are Wal-mart heirs, I mean in the sense of quality. Is Wal-mart known for having high quality products or for cheap prices? Not rhetorical questions, I’m asking what you think. I don’t think of quality and Wal-mart in the same sentence. I think of them as a cold, gigantic warehouse with workers in dark blue vests rushing to fill emptying shelves. Sometimes they don’t even remove the pallets. It’s got all the warmth of shopping in a shipping dock.

Our family shops there occasionally, but I can’t help feeling guilty about it. Except when I remember they are the only store that sells cherry sours. Like I’m putting some local shopkeep out of business somewhere else in the country every time the cash register rings. So I try to minimize shopping there consciously and subconsciously. If it was up to my wife I think we’d shop there regularly. She likes the more local Fred Meyer too though so maybe not.

The big W juggernaut doesn’t seem to be able to be stopped although there have been scattered reports that sales are dropping in some areas. Today’s news has Wal-mart hawking Skype calling cards and Skype phones on Wal-mart aisles near you.

There’s no question this will help Skype distribution, but what does it say about the Skype brand? I fondly remember reading Jim Weir’s story about why he stopped selling his quality lawn mowers through Wal-mart.

We are considering dropping Skype as the primary tool for our weekly radio show. The quality has deteriorated and we’re having numerous dropped call problems. Been thinking about trying the Comcast VoIP offering or [gasp] go back to the phone company. One major plus for the phone company is working 911 services. I don’t mind using Skype for business calls but it doesn’t work for an live internet streaming radio show very well.

Quality. Skype. Wal-mart. I’m sensing a connection here somewhere …

• Pain in the grass
• Toys ‘R’ Us may get out of toy business
• Skype for Linux available
• Wal-Mart AKA Robin Hood wants CDs to sell for $9.72
• Skype VoIP adds conference calling
• Dropped Skype calls when other calls come in