This post was originally an email sent to the local Chamber members with some easy tips and customer service reminders before Small Business Saturday and the holiday shopping season
Magnus Marketing wishes your business nothing but a successful and profitable Small Business Saturday tomorrow! Even if you didn’t plan any grand discounts or advertising blitz, that’s okay because you can still capitalize on a having a great holiday season for your business. There are numerous ways to cultivate your loyal and repeat customers and target new customers at the same time. We’d be happy to talk to you for a free 30 minute phone consultation helping you implement simple marketing and customer service strategies without spending one extra dollar. Shoot me an e-mail now and we could set a time up to chat; day or night.
Top-notch customer service made easy! Here are some tips for you and your staff to utilize during Small Business Saturday:
- Greet everyone as they walk into your store. You don’t need a staff member standing at an entrance necessarily, but a friendly “Hello”, “Hey guys”, or “Welcome to Magnus Marketing (insert your business name there)” from the back of the counter or by an employee working close to the doorway can set the tone for a friendly shopping experience, especially for those shoppers who are already stressed out, and can eliminate any barriers or hesitancy by a shopper to ask for assistance for a purchase, such as a product comparison or an informational question. Don’t mistake this as setting up your staff to stalk people as they shop, but make it obvious by having attentive staff placed around the store to assist shoppers when they want to be assisted.
- Offer guests who walk in a free coffee. A can of coffee can cost what, two to three bucks? Get that second coffee maker out of the kitchen cabinet, take a few filters, buy a box of non-dairy creamers and a mixed box of sweeteners and make a pot of coffee available at the front of your store. Have an attentive staff member near by for an assistance, but have a mini-flier or full-page flier ready to also hand out for the shopper(s) to read while they drink their very hot coffee slowly. You don’t need to advertise this in your front window “free coffee”, but having these extras made available helps create a better overall shopping experience for that customer in your store. Have cold juice boxes or water ready in a cooler for kids or teens too. You could make back the expense in drinks through just one purchase.
- Assisting customers to their car. If one of your customers who just bought that $100+ item looks like they might have trouble carrying out that box or bag to their car, have an employee ready to assist anyone who might need a hand. Again, you don’t need to advertise this perk publically, and having it informally makes you and your staff seem concerned and caring about your shoppers.
- Designate a small area as a “timeout” or space to regroup. Sometimes shoppers are scrambling for their list, their wallet to check their receipts or making sure they put their credit card back inside, think about having a designate or marked off area for customers to regroup once entering your shop. Have a table or two there, with a chair or two. Here’s an idea to consolidate these items without consuming the number of employees – Have a staff member at the front door ready to greet them, point out the free coffee station in this area and be ready to hand them a flier on their way out of this stressed-free zone.
- Make returns or exchanges easy. Yes this may sound crazy, but point out how returning something to your store is much simpler than returning it online to a place like Amazon. Online stores like Amazon may have complicated return policies, only offer Amazon gift card balances, and the customer might not consider that purchases made by third-party sellers might make the return difficult or impossible. Amazon’s policy here. This tactic should be reserved for customers who make a large, expensive purchase at the counter or when an employee or sales assistant makes a contact and helps a shopper in your store. Using this tactic won’t dramatically increase your returns, but might hook, line and sinker a customer who wouldn’t be afraid to come back and make an exchange – maybe even for a pricer item!
- Just smile! Amazing how a simple gesture as a “Hello” with a smile can make the difference between the customer thinking you’re just another store or You’re-That-Friendly-Store-With-Nice-Employees. With the competitive market we live in today between online sales, price matching and e-mail marketing with loyalty offers and specials, it’s these little things that count. No excuses why you can’t compete in today’s competitive world – we just need to approach some things differently.
We hope some or all of these tips can help you create the ultimate experience for your shoppers, especially new customers, during Small Business Saturday! Please let us know if you utilize any of these tips and what the result was!
Matt Checchio
matt@ineedmagnus.com
