Retail Contrarian

The Twenty-Four Hour WOW

American Idol judge Simon Cowell often comments that even though a contestant's performance was good, and sometimes even quite good, nobody will remember it in twenty-four hours.  It wasn't a wow.  This is exactly the difference between good service and an extraordinary experience.

I've recently spoken with any number of retailers who tell me how good their service is.  Even if that's the case (and sometimes it's not) most customers aren't going to remember it a day later.  It's not a twenty-four hour WOW.

Some people might say it's okay to have service that's only "good" as long as the customer makes a purchase.  And that's fine if you're in a transactional business, but most specialty stores need more than that.  Specialty retailers need to deliver something the customer remembers beyond the next day to drive them back into the store again.

Just as important is getting the customer to tell family and friends about the store. The experiences that WOW the customer and stay with them are exactly what customers tell people about when they're advocating for a business.

What makes an experience stay with the customer longer than one day?

First and foremost, something occurs that is different from what the customer will experience at any other store or business that day. That's why I believe offering the customer a drink and/or something to eat works.  It simply doesn't happen that often.

Think about it.  Does a person tell her friends, "They're the store that gives people space to shop?" (Something I've heard three times this week.) Or is someone more likely to say, "They're the nice store that offered us a drink and some cheese and crackers."  It's a great differentiator.

I don't buy the argument that "too many stores are doing it."  Very few are doing it, and many of those that say they do don't do it regularly.  Miss one customer and you miss a twenty-four-hour-plus WOW.  If you choose not to serve food and drinks I encourage you think of another differentiator that will allow your store to stand out from the rest of the pack.  It takes more than just good service.

Another way to make a long-term impression is do something personal for your customer.  It can be something as simple as helping them with their child or calling a competitor's store to see if they have something in stock.  I know some people don't do that.  I say be so positive about the experience you deliver that you're fine sending your customer to the competition for an item.

There's always a way to do something special and personal for a customer.  I can't tell you exactly what it is, but you'll know it when you see it.  The key is to be looking for the opportunity, and then act on it.

Here's today's challenge. As each customer leaves ask yourself, "Will that person remember this experience twenty-four hours from now?" If the answer is "no," attempt to create a twenty-four hour wow with the next customer.

If the answer is yes, chances are you just created one or more sales in your future, and I bet that customer might also be walking out with a purchase, too.

Biorhythms, Moodiness, and Life's Ups and Downs

Let's be honest here.  There are days especially in late January that you want to look your customer in the eye and say, "I really don't care today" and walk away.  You might even want to say something worse but since this is a family-friendly Weekly we won't go there. There are some days you simply aren't in the mood to do what you do.
 
Believe me, I can relate.  Every now and then I want to publish a one-sentence newsletter that reads, "Had nothing to say."  And I'm sure you've read a Weekly here or there and wished I had done just that.  We all have a job to do, even when we're not in the mood to do it.
 
Wouldn't it be nice if, when you were in one of those moods, you could go up to your customer and tell him/her that you're mentally taking the day off?  "Go ahead, look around and since I won't be helping you much it will be nice if you'll buy something to help me make my numbers."  Then you could go back to thinking about that vacation you're planning or watching the clock tick so you can get on with your day.
 
Obviously we don't really say that to our customers.  Or do we?
 
The biggest challenge for any retailer is consistency.  It's difficult to deliver an extraordinary retail experience to every customer who walks in the door.  We're all human.  Call it biorhythms, moodiness, life's ups and downs, or whatever.  The fact is that it is difficult to be Mr. or Ms. Retail Perkiness every minute of every day.
 
Unfortunately, customers don't plan their shopping around our biorhythms, moodiness, or life's ups and downs. We never know which customer walking in the door might be the biggest spender of the month or the most likely to tell others about their experience.
 
Think about how many times you've gone into a store in a good mood thinking you'll buy something and walked out empty-handed and in a foul mood. Yep, you got tangled up in some retail employee's biorhythms, moodiness, or ups and downs.
 
If your store is blowing away goal every single month then maybe - maybe - you can afford to have a "who cares" kind of day every now and then.  Personally, I don't know any stores like that.
 
The biggest challenge for any retailer is to be consistent with every single customer who walks in the door. The key to success is to be consistent with every single customer who walks in the door.  I think we know that it isn't easy to do.
 
There is, though, a list of actions you can take when "who cares" creeps up on you. It just so happens to be the same list of actions you should take with every customer or employee.  There is only one fix for when we're not in the mood to give our best to a customer: trying to give our best.
 
So let me ask, do you attempt to deliver a great experience to every single customer no matter what kind of mood you're in?
 
It's okay to fall short in your delivery.  It's not okay to fall short in the effort.

-  Doug Fleener and Brian Sullivan

After "I'll Take It."

One of the differences between Superstar retail associates and all the others is what happens after the customer says, "I'll take it." The successful associate knows there are still plenty of opportunities to both enhance the customer's shopping experience and maximize the sale.

These are a few of the attitudes they have and/or the actions they take:

1. Whether you call it enhancing the sale, or adding-on to the sale, successful retail associates know that they just made the first sale, not the sale. We're doing customers a disservice if we don't suggest additional products that are appropriate with the product they are purchasing or otherwise meet their needs.  As you've read here before, think of it as an all-you-can-eat buffet and don't stop until the customer tells you he's full.

2. Reinforce the customer's purchase. So often a customer's first thought after announcing that she'll buy something is to start doubting her decision. She'll begin to tell herself that maybe she shouldn't be buying it now or that should shop around a little more. Your role is to put the customer at ease by complimenting her purchase and congratulating her. This is easy to do if you've done due diligence in identifying what it is your customer needs.

3. Offer the appropriate services and needed accessories. I'm always amazed how many retailers have nice added services like free gift-wrapping in place but their employees never offer it to customers. Even worse is when associates act put-upon when a customer requests it. We can easily disappoint a customer once they return home when they realize that we failed to gift-wrap their purchase or remind them to purchase needed products like batteries, cables, etc.  It's our job to ask the customer, not the other way around.

4. Remain focused on the customer until he/she has left the store. If you're checking the customer out it is important that you not let other employees and customers distract you. The other day I was making a purchase and the cashier was actually reading a text message on his phone. I thought about asking him his phone number so I could send him a text message to put down the phone and do his job.

5. Smile and thank the customer. It should go without saying but all too often it goes unsmiled and unsaid.

So let me ask, are you a Superstar retail associate or in the middle of the pack?

Your True Incremental Value

Part of delivering an exceptional customer experience is delivering incremental value along with the products and services you sell.  Some of you may charge for incremental value such as design services but most of you use it to differentiate your store, increase average sale, and create more loyal customers and advocates.

But what is the incremental value you offer really worth, and is it something the customer sees as adding to their experience?

Consider this.  What if your store was empty?  What if you not only quit selling products, but also took everything out of store except for your counter and some chairs?  Would your customer still visit?  Would your store be the first place your customer turns to for advice and an opinion?

I think these are fascinating questions since they define the true incremental value you and your team delivers.

I can think of a few stores I would still visit.  One obvious choice is the Apple store.  Even if the place were devoid of products I would still go there to ask questions, and probably hang out and shoot the breeze.

I know I would also go to Jordan's Furniture store.  It's is the only store in town that not only contains a trapeze school and an IMAX theatre but also boasts a replica of the Massachusetts State House made out of jellybeans.

I would also stop in and visit Kathy Fields at The Crafty Yankee, a wonderful store not too far from my home.  I know that if I asked Kathy or a member of her staff for advice on gift buying they would have some fabulous suggestions.

These stores deliver incremental value besides the products they sell.

There are many more stores I would never go in again.  The only reason to go to these stores is because they sell something I want or need.   Because of that I have no loyalty to them.  Given any reasonable alternative I have no reason to ever go back.  These stores have little, if any, incremental value.

Maybe some of these stores have incremental value than I've ever seen but because they didn't deliver it proactively when I was there to make a purchase I wouldn't think to go back now that they don't have any product.

Here's an exercise for you and your team.  List five to ten ways your store offers incremental value.  Maybe you teach people how to pack, or share with your customer the latest fashions.  The value is dependent on what you say. . . or maybe I should say what you used to say with what you use to sell.

Now ask yourselves what percentage of the customer's experience consists of that incremental value? Are you proactively delivering that value?

So let me ask, would you still have customers if you were no longer selling products?

A Flawless Experience Resulting in a Sale

"Nobody rises to low expectations."  - Calvin Lloyd

The expectations we set for our employees ultimately define our customer experience.  I recently talked with a regional retailer who, for one reason or another, has over time lowered his expectations of his employees to the point where they can't deliver a quality customer experience that creates a sale.  All they can to is to help customers who are making a purchase.

I don't believe this is the case for most of you.  I don't think you can read the The Retail Contrarian on a regular basis and deliver a poor or even mediocre experience.  As a matter of fact, I believe that most of you deliver an above average -if not outstanding - customer experience.

But that doesn't mean that there still isn't an opportunity for you to do even better. And when there are opportunities, there can be more sales, more loyal customers, and more advocates.  And that creates even more sales. It's a beautiful thing.

Imagine if every customer who walked in the door was delivered a flawless experience resulting in a sale.  Can you imagine?  Every customer is WOW'd and every customer makes a purchase. A close rate of 100%!  I'm all verklempt. Talk among yourselves. (If that doesn't make sense, ask an older colleague.)

So do it. Imagine it and then execute it.

What would you have to do TODAY to deliver a flawless experience?

Everyone focused on the floor? Check.

Not ask experience-killer questions like "May I help you?"  Check.

Quickly build a strong personal rapport with every customer?  I know they all don't want that, but that's okay because a flawless experience is based on the customer's perceptions and not ours, right?  Check.

So what will it take for your store to get there?

Now imagine every customer making a purchase.  That's a little harder isn't it?  It is, but if you don't strive for a high goal you'll never come close.  I don't think it's impossible.

What would you have to do TODAY to make a sale to every customer?

Treat every customer as though he/she is in the store to make a purchase?  Check.

Get past those "just looking" comments?  That's a tough one because we have to do it while delivering a flawless experience.  Nobody said being an outstanding retailer is easy!  Check.

Recommend products with energy and passion?  Check

So what will it take for your store to get there?

Are you and your team up for the challenge? Are you willing to do what it takes today to deliver a flawless experience to every customer so it results in a sale?  Even better, are you up for the challenge to do this through the WEEKEND? Here in the states it's a three-day holiday weekend. Imagine the opportunities!

Remember, the expectations we set for ourselves ultimately determine our customer's experience AND our success.

I think you'll be amazed at what you and your team can do. 

Doug and Brian

An Impeccable Customer Experience

When my children were younger and were called to a meal or wanted to help in the kitchen my wife always asked them if their hands were impeccably clean.  She would explain why impeccably clean hands were needed.  She pointed out that you always want to eat with clean hands, and if you are going to be help in the kitchen you need clean hands to handle the food.

At first I wondered why she just didn't tell them to go wash their hands since she knew they hadn't, but I came to realize that she wasn't asking them to go through a motion, she was teaching them to maintain a standard.   Just as important, she wanted them to create a habit of washing their hands instead of having to be told.

Over time, the girls learned that impeccably clean meant never coming to the table or to expect to help in the kitchen without first washing their hands with soap and warm water. (Disclaimer: It doesn't always happen but for learning purpose let's pretend it does.  I digress.)

The point is that the girls learned why it's important to have clean hands and inherently understood the expected outcome.

Successful companies use this same approach to deliver a better customer experience than their competitors.   Employees who understand why an extraordinary and memorable customer experience is important to the company and their own success are more likely to deliver it than those who don't understand that concept.

Customer-centric companies also have a standard for the customer's experience.  Like my wife's expectation for children to sit down to dinner with impeccably clean hands, there is a stated desired outcome that all employees strive to deliver.  It's a key part of the company culture and is reinforced on a daily basis.

Of course everyone needs to be trained how to do their job, but when employees know the why and the expected outcome the how becomes much more important.

Take something as simple as a customer walking in the door.  Most retail employees have been taught to "greet" the customer within x amount of time but they don't understand why those first thirty to sixty seconds are so important in setting the tone of the customer's overall experience.  They also don't engage the customer in a meaningful way since they've never been taught how the customer should feel as a result of this initial engagement.  So they say things like, "How's it going?" but never stop to hear a reply because as far as they know their how is over and done.

Companies will always be more successful when the how is only taught after the why and the expected outcome.

So let me ask, metaphorically of course, does your staff have impeccably clean hands or do you have to tell them to go wash?  The difference is in the experience.

10 and 51 - The Birthday Edition

I can't believe it but my youngest daughter, Jane, turned 10 the other day. It's hard for me to believe but I no longer have a child in single digits. And then the next day I turned 51. 

Here are 51 things I've learned in my life.  Some you may have read last year, but like life this list is constantly changing and evolving.

1. It's easier to give advice than take it.  Usually the advice I give is also meant for me.

2. Focus is extremely underrated. The most successful people I know have the ability to focus and get things done.

3. Jobs, places, and things come and go.  It's the people we meet that make life special.

4. It's my actions that define who I am, not who I say I am.

5. Learning to start my day over was one of the best lessons I ever learned.

6. Humility is the greatest trait I can have as a leader, partner, husband, friend, and father.

7. Having humility is easier said than done.

8. The more I try to learn from successful people the better my chance at success.

9. The only person who can decide if I'm having a good day or bad day is me.

10. The more teachable I am the more I know.  The more I know the more I can help others.  The more I can help others the better my life, and that's why I try to remain teachable.

11. Work hard when it's time to work, but go home when you're supposed to go home.

12. When you're a manager people have to do what you want them to do.  When you're a leader people want to do what you'd like them to do.

13. Everyone makes mistakes but not everyone learns from them. The difference has a huge impact on your ability to have a happy and productive life. 

14. The only person or thing that can hold me back is me.

15. We all need mentors in life.  Do you have one?  More important, are you one?

16. Your children won't remember much of what you said while they were growing up but they'll always remember how you said it.  The same advice applies to people who work for you.

17. To be a good parent and a good manager I need to set high but appropriate expectations.  It's even more important to hold the children or the employees accountable for meeting those expectations.

18. Most people are inherently good.  I can't let the few who aren't impact how I feel and act towards the others.

19. Take care of your employees and they'll take care of the customers.  Take care of the customers and they'll take care of the business.

20. Neither your employees nor your customers will know you care unless you tell them.  Tell them.  Often.

21. I can't let the news and what happens in other people's lives affect how I feel about mine.

22.  I believe faith and spirituality is extremely personal. I'm always offended when someone tells me what or how I should believe.

23. Always do what's best for the customer  - unless you no longer want that customer.

24. The best thing I can do when I am wrong is to promptly admit it.

25. Every time I'm told by a retailer "we have no competition" I always think, "You're delusional."

26. Criticizing someone you don't know and who has no impact on your life is a total waste of energy.  Criticizing someone you know is a waste of good karma.

27. Innovation is important to most retailers' success only if it is built on the bedrock of a commitment to customers and employees.

28. I make an effort to learn something every single day.  I know that combining the experience of the past with the knowledge gained today creates success.

29. Failing is important because if I never fail I'm not trying enough new things.

30. I can't afford to have resentments. I hope those who have one with me share it instead of holding it.

31. Don't miss the moment.  As my wife says, keep your head where your feet are.

32. Be grateful. Demonstrate it with both words and actions.

33. Specialty retail is more about relationships than selling products.  I wish more retailers understood that.

34. Accept or change anything in your life that causes you problems or concerns but don't waste energy complaining about it.

35. The greatest gift you can give someone you don't know is a smile.

36. Ask for help when you need it.  Offer to help when you don't.

37 Surround yourself with positive people who love life and love you.  Don't listen to people who don't share the same values you do.

38. Never regret the past.  Use it today to create a better tomorrow.

39. Compliments are wonderful things to give and receive.  I need to remind myself to give more than I do.

40. Prioritize your day and always put the customer first.

41. Whatever your title, if you're in a leadership role you always go first.

42. Passion trumps knowledge and skill.  Never try to cover a lack of knowledge and skill with passion.

43. Never shy away from a difficult conversation with an employee, friend, or family member.  You'll both be the better for it.

44. Be happy for others.  Don't compare their lives to yours, identify with what they do or have done so you can do the same.

45. Always say, "thank you," "please," and "you're welcome."  Expect the same from your staff and your children.

46. Sometimes bad things happen.  It's one thing to be a victim; it's another to stay one.

47. No matter the cause, if I'm bent out of shape about something the problem is always within me.  If I don't believe that I'm giving others the power to control me.

48. If you don't take the time to enjoy the rewards of your hard work, why work hard?

49. I wish you could buy patience online.  Since you can't, you have to just find it within yourself.

50. Thinking about doing something is not doing something. As they say, Just Do It!

51. Love and value your friends and family. You never know when your time together will end. I miss those I've lost.

52. Always go above and beyond in everything you do, especially when it is for others.

Thank you for reading this and sharing my birthday! May every day of your life be a learning day.

The Art of Greeting: Guest, Friend, and Customer

It's not hard to notice that so many store staffs rarely acknowledge customers until they make a purchase.  It's like you're invisible or unimportant until you decide to spend your money.

There are also store staffs that are clearly following a company policy of greeting every customer are as about as friendly as a dark alley at 3:00 a.m.  There's a quick acknowledgement and the obvious hope that you don't want to talk to them.

What is the right way to greet and engage customers?  Some people say you should do it within the first ten seconds a customer is in the store, others say within a minute, and clearly many retailers seem to think you should let the customer be the one to engage the employees.

First and foremost, it is extremely important to welcome each customer as he/she enters your store.  Not greet, welcome.  When you welcome customers you acknowledge that they are your priority; it is the first step in creating a great experience that will lead to a sale.

You want to engage your customer and treat them like an old (or new) friend. Inevitably, when I bring this up in a seminar or training I hear that "customers want to be left alone" or "they say they're just looking no matter what I say or do."

That's true.  Sometimes customers want to be left alone and sometimes they say they're just looking, but most of the time they do that because the salespeople aren't adding value to their experience. They're following a script, or doing something because they've been told to and not because they want to.  Customers know when a salesperson isn't being authentic.

Don't try to "help" your customer.  Don't get in his face and ask if he has any questions. Treat each and every customer like they're special.  Show them you're happy to see them in your store and that you're going to exceed their expectations.  Be an ambassador for your store.

If you welcome your customers and engage them like an old or new friend, more than 85% will respond in a positive manner (give or take a few percentage points based on where you live). So what if 15% of the people blow you off?  Don't look at it like 15% of your customers didn't let you get to know them, look at it like 85% of the people who came into your store are now your friends!  And friends help friends make purchases.

Once you have welcomed your customer, you can learn more about him/her and how the products you sell can add value to his/her life. The best customer experiences are when customers walk out with purchase they're happy they made.

That's why every single person who comes in your door should be welcomed like a guest, treated like a friend, and shown products so they become YOUR customer. That's what makes a specialty store like yours special.  Forget customer service, it's all about the experience!

Building Advocacy Before the Purchase

Most companies and experts look at the relationship businesses have with their customers in three steps with seven stages. Known as the Customer Relationship Lifecycle. (CRL) the three steps and seven stages are:

Pre-Purchase
1. Awareness
2. Knowledge
3. Consideration

Purchase
4. Selection or trial

Post-Purchase
5. Satisfaction
6. Loyalty
7. Advocacy

Too bad so many companies take this approach because it has a fundamental flaw. What's wrong with it? Advocacy should be in the pre-purchase step.  Most companies think that only buyers can be advocates, but the fact is that some of your best advocates may not have made a purchase yet - and maybe they never will.

Smart retailers focus on building advocacy during the pre-purchase step for three reasons:

1. To potentially turn non-buyers into advocates.
2. To lead more buyers into becoming advocates.
3. To use the advocacy elements to influence the consideration stage and improve the purchase potential.

To focus on creating advocates in the pre-purchase stages, consider the following:

1. Teach your employees that some non-buyers actually create a lot more revenue than the average customer spends. As a matter of fact, some studies have shown that in some businesses the highest spending customers are not the most effective advocates.  This is why we like to teach all retail employees to never label a customer as "just a looker."

2. Make it a company goal to deliver an amazing and delightful experience to every single customer. I love the retailer who told me that her goal is to have every customer who leaves her store feels better than when they came in.

How the experience is delivered varies from retailer to retailer but what doesn't vary is that retailers who deliver a superior experience have identified the steps to delivering the experience. It's usually a combination of activities including a warm welcome, a drink or some other gesture, and may include a surprise that delights the customer. The easiest way to get customers to advocate your store is to give them something to tell others about. What happens in your store that your customer will most likely tell a friend or family member about?

3. Capture contact information for all visitors.  Retailers who only capture the contact information at the point of sale are losing revenue opportunities and potential advocacy by non-buyers. Give the customer a reason to give you the contact information in the pre-purchase phase and you'll increase the number of post-purchase people.

So let me ask, is building advocacy in your pre or post-purchase stage?

From Stranger to Superhero to Friend

While wandering in and out of stores in New Orleans last week I became aware of the strikingly different attitudes retail employees present to customers.  In just one hour I was treated so differently I started to develop a personality complex.

Some retail associates treated me like a complete stranger, doing every thing possible to avoid eye contact.  It was almost like we were meeting in some dark alley, not a well-lit mall surrounded by people.  At least when our eyes did (accidentally) meet they smiled and then went about their business.  I followed their lead, left their store and went about my business, too.

Other store employees treated me like a superhero - if the superhero was Invisible Man.  I'm not complaining because at least they weren't avoiding me and I could see they were extremely busy.  Busy playing solitaire, updating Facebook or checking phone messages.  I didn't want to interrupt them so I disappeared from the store, which is easy to do when you're Invisible Man.

I'm happy to say that some associates treated me like a visitor.  They acknowledged me when I walked in to the store and politely offered their assistance if I needed any.  I appreciated their attention but because I didn't need anything I didn't buy anything.  It was a nice visit, though.

In two stores it was much different.  I wasn't a stranger, I wasn't Invisible Man, and I wasn't a visitor. Instead, I was a new friend.  In both of these stores I felt like those salespeople were glad to see me. They were happy, smiling, and inquisitive. As friends do, they asked where I had been, where I was from, and if I was enjoying New Orleans.  Never once did they ask to help me.

One woman was so friendly she wanted to know if I was visiting with family or not. When I told her that I was traveling alone, on business, she inquired about my children. And being such a good friend, she pointed out some nice Mardi Gras beads she thought my children would like.  I have no idea how she knew my daughter's favorite colors are red and blue, but then again she was my new friend.

She was also kind enough to sell me some of those famous New Orleans pralines, and she suggested a couple of other things that I declined since I didn't have much room in my luggage. While it was only about a $15 sale, it was a sale that my new friend created. And if she treated every customer like a new friend I can't imagine how much those $15 sales added up to.

I'm sure you don't treat your customers like a stranger or Invisible Man/Woman.  So let me ask, do you treat your customers like a visitor or a new friend?  I can personally vouch for the effectiveness of making friends.