Daily Dose of Sultnpapper 06/01/18> Customer service… brick & mortar… online purchasing and my thoughts, all in this edition.

in #blog6 years ago

Thursday was the end of the month and also the end of a two month sales promotion that the company I represent was holding on a couple specific products. So Thursday morning I spent an hour in one of my distributor’s store and we reviewed the sales history for the two products. After running the sales report I called three of the customers who were close to qualifying for the fishing trip that was within their grasp if they just made another purchase that didn’t amount to $100 in each case.

All three of the customers ended up purchasing what they needed to qualify and were tickled to death that I would take the time to research it and inform them of the situation. None of three had any idea that they were that close and that is a clear sign that the distributor’s sales staff is falling short on what they need to be doing. The sales staff sees the people on a regular basis, they know what products they purchase, and you would think that they would keep in mind when a promotion is ending to check and see who is close to qualifying. I am sure that what happened today, because I prompted it, would not have happened had I not gone in to that location and asked them to run a report. When the store manager asks, “Why would you want that report, we send in the next quarterly reports at the end of June?”, it was a clear sign he had no clue what I was about to do.

Had any of the three not gotten my phone call and missed out on qualifying they more than likely would be angry if they found out how close they had been. They wouldn’t have been angry with me but with the distributor they purchase my products through. Customer service is more than just saying “thank you” when the customer is leaving with their purchase, it is about looking out for the customer’s best interest. I think you and I would agree a free fishing trip or a $250 gift card to Bass Pro Shops would be in the customer’s best interest; since he needs and uses the products that would get him either of those two items.

If the sales staff isn’t going to look out for the customer than the customer may as well buy it online and have it shipped to their location rather than have to go in and pick up the materials. It is no wonder that more and more people are buying online because brick and mortar stores have failed when it comes to providing added value to the transaction.

The sales staff at this particular location is a prime example of what lack of training and lack of caring is doing and the reason online purchasing is becoming not only popular on the retail side but on the wholesale side of business as well.
Those three customers trust that their distributor is looking out for them, that trust would have surely been broken. Trust goes beyond just believing that you will be told the truth should you ask a question or that the pricing will be correct on the bill when you get your statement at the end of the month.

We are all involved in commerce in some fashion, either on the buying side or selling side and in some cases some of us are involved in both sides when you consider that we purchase things for our personal use all the time like food, clothing, electronics and services. I have been involved in sales now for over twenty years and I have seen a steady decline in customer service in that time frame. I believe that online purchasing has a lot to do with it and I believe that the brick and mortar stores can survive but only if they step up their game and start adding value in the transaction.

Most brick and mortar stores have taken the approach to reduce staffs to cut expenses so to be at a closer price point to their online competition. I see that as the biggest mistake that they can make, having longer waits to check out or to get questions answered in the store leads to more customer frustration. Customer frustration leads them to the internet market place and it only takes a few flawless online transactions before the frustrated walk in customer will no longer be “walking in”.

If you have a brick and mortar store now is the time to man up your staff not cut your staffing. Teach your people how to add value and make it where customers want to come in and purchase because of the personal interaction. Teach your people to encourage customer questions not run away from them. Make sure your people know what they are selling; product education is paramount to the survival of your business.

Not everyone is driven by price alone, but it is the first thing store owners want to point too when sales start falling. If I have heard it once, I’ve heard it a thousand times,” we just can’t compete with those low online prices”. You are not supposed to compete in that arena, don’t try, and make the customer experience the focus of your business. If you want to compete with online stores then close your store, make it a warehouse and fire your staff and hire a couple shipping clerks; become an online store and then compete until the cows come home.

Brick and mortar stores are not dying because of the internet, the internet stores are thriving because the brick and mortar stores are not realizing what their advantage is. There is no customer experience with online purchasing, let me rephrase that, there is no positive customer experience with online purchasing; there can be plenty of negative experiences. Warranty issues are one that most online purchasers never think about until they have to go through that experience.

Brick and mortar stores aren’t dying, they are committing suicide is the way I see it. How do you see things when it comes to your purchases? Have you noticed the brick and mortar decline in your area? I would be curious to get your take on this subject.

Until next time,
@sultnpapper

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The thing that annoys me most is when I go into a brick and mortar store and I am greeted by a gum-chomping teenybopper that doesn't know beans about the store or their products! It is most annoying that I know more about the products than they do. Case in point: In a paint store I had a teenybopper tell me that in order to use the silicone paint I wanted I would have to mix it with half water first! When I finally had it sorted out and headed for the check out I stopped dead in my tracks. One cashier ad 35 customers waiting in line! I left the paint and went to another store.

That sounds like our local bank, they shut down the drive up banking so you have to use the ATM or go inside. They have 8 teller stations at the bank counter and two tellers, but they have two people "greeting" you when you come in the lobby. When they ask me, "how can we help you today?" I always reply, well you could open the drive through lanes again, but that probably won't happen, so why don't you just go behind the counter and open another teller station and move this process along.

@sultnpapper, great thought-provoking post!

Recently, I was at Office Depot to buy my favorite Office Depot branded sheet protectors and had trouble locating them. Let me preface this comment by saying... I'm loyal to this particular sheet protector. Once I discovered them years ago, I never buy any other brand. In fact, I even quit buying manila folders because of them.

The customer service rep was amazing, she let me know that the inventory indicated that they had some in stock based on the item number. She proceeded to position rollable stairs in various parts of the store to look above in the cabinets and after 20 minutes, she let me know that she couldn't find them. She called another store 20 minutes away and found out that they were well stocked.

However, before I went there, I googled the item number she gave me and the same exact Office Depot branded sheet protectors showed up in Amazon for less than 1/2 the price, so I went online and bought 4 packs and got them two days later, in addition to a stapler for 1/2 the price too.

In this instance, the customer service rep went above and beyond her calling by climbing up and looking in every cabinet and calling the other store. She just couldn't compete with the fact that her own store also distributes their products through the online behemoth, aka, Amazon.

I believe that the blockchain will end up being the only way for mom and pop shops to compete with Amazon. It will be exciting to see what happens in the years to come.

I am so glad you read this and commented on it, your experience you had pretty much proved my point to some degree and also exposed where additional problems exist.
I would disagree on one point where you said the service rep "went above and beyond her calling" , to me her effort is to be admired but her calling was to make sure that you got what you came in there for and left as a satisfied customer. In that regard she failed as I see it, not by her own doing but by the fact that their computer system lacks important information, like where the product is located in the store. I can guarantee you that there is a place in that computer system for "product location" by aisle number and shelf spot. That information has probably never been entered or at least it has not been updated. Most inventory management systems even have overstock location for product that won't fit on the sales floor so that when the shelf is empty it can easily be retrieved from the stock room and refilled on the sales floor.
The store manager is the person responsible to make sure that the store runs on all cylinders and that manager has dropped the ball on making sure that happens. You wasted twenty minutes of your time and all of her good will and effort was lost to that location because if their inventory shown in system was correct and they had it in the store, she couldn't locate it.
You were the "walk in customer" I gave as an example and I doubt that you will be going back to the location to purchase those again unless it is a dire emergency and you need them that moment. In which case you may or may not get them as we have seen. Store pricing wasn't an issue I assume because you were there to purchase them, but when the store failed to satisfy your need you then opted for online purchase.
The savings ended up being a bonus for you. You got what you wanted at a more favorable price and I can also guarantee the order puller at the Amazon warehouse facility didn't spend 20 minutes looking for them when they pulled your order.
The question that Office Depot needs to be asking themselves is, "do we really need brick and mortar any longer?" Especially when they undercut their own store pricing like they do.
I can remember years ago when stores gave "trading stamps" and you could accumulate trading stamps and then go to a location to redeem them. The location had one of every item that you could purchase with the trading stamps, so you could see and feel what you where going to get. You never were able to walk in and get the item at that moment, they would place an order and then ship it to you or to that location and then when it arrived you could go pick it up. Maybe that is the future of "retail" , look, touch, feel and then order on line, just like the trading stamp places from the 50's and 60's.

Ohhhh, boy. You touched a nerve. I routinely buy more and more from Amazon. I can get it tomorrow and have no BS in the transaction. Like the coffee I'm drinking...

My little market that was within walking distance closed a year ago through sheer mismanagement. So now I have to make all my purchases at the big market a couple of miles away. I don't much shop price, I shop product. The problem with the big store is not the people, it's the absolute inability to provide any sort of service. Corporate makes all the decisions for the whole chain. Individual stores have no input or ability to source a locally popular product at all.

I've worked customer support and customer service on line, too. Support was mostly good, you just worked with people that couldn't follow a 4 line instruction packet. They were always happy for the help.

Ahhhh, you know the drill, I could go on. But the key point is that you retained 3 customers for your company. I know precisely what that means in any business I am involved in. 10x. It's 10x easier to retain a customer than find a new one. How can you not service that customer? I see it all the time.

Thanks for a report on the state of the business. AAaarrggghhh.

It surely is easier to keep customers you have, just like you mentioned.

Corporate stores give very little room for the local management to make decisions with regard to product offerings, which can surely vary from area to area.

In doing that they drive people to online for what they are wanting, you too are proving my point.

that was greta work by you noting they were close to the limit for the fishing trip and following up with them, thats as you say what makes a store stand out over online shops

I do use online occasionally but i much prefer shopping it Brick and Mortar stores as much as possible

I guess that I am just old school and believe in personal interaction. I had a nightmare experience with an online order I placed with a computer for a car, it took over two months to resolve and an additional $350 on a $200 purchase. I like being able to speak to someone face to face when ever possible.

Yes I am the same buying at a local store you know you will have support if needed

Brilliant minds think alike.

but they also say fools never differ

Yes, "they" do say that, but my experience tells me that most of the "they's" don't know their ass from a hole in the ground so I'm sticking to my guns on this one, we are brilliant minds.

I wont argue with that LOL :)

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