Thursday, December 11, 2008

Customers No

Writen by Ron Kaufman

Customers...NO!

We were visiting in Gisborne, an attractive small town near Melbourne, Australia.

Walking along the main street I saw a small clothing store with a very bold sign pasted on the door directly above the doorknob. It read:

CUSTOMERS NO… jam donuts, sticky buns, fizzy drinks, mucky boots, cigarettes, ice creams, gooey lollies, water pistols, fairy floss or half-eaten fruit in this shop. Thank you.

I understand the need to keep a shop clean, but the largest, loudest and strongest message in the sign is clearly:

CUSTOMERS NO...

In the window next to the door was an even larger sign:

UP TO 50% OFF!!

What an odd way to do business! The first sign scares customers away. The second begs them to come back by slashing prices (and profits).


Key Learning Point
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Customers form opinions about every aspect of your business: your place, people, products, packaging and procedures. Anything not 100% customer friendly is a message that screams (or whispers): `Stay Away!'


Action Steps
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What messages are you sending to your clients? Review your website, application forms, product information, customer service counters, returns procedures, etc. Actively seek out moments that are unpleasant, inconvenient, problematic, confusing, offensive or difficult to understand. Then go to work and smooth the way. Make sure every point of contact says it loud and clear: CUSTOMERS WELCOME!

Ron Kaufman is an internationally acclaimed educator and motivator for partnerships and quality customer service. He is author of the bestselling "UP Your Service!" and founder of "UP Your Service College". Visit http://www.UpYourService.com for more such Customer Service articles, subscribe to his Newsletter, or to buy his bestselling Books, Videos, Audio CDs on Customer Service from his secure Online Store. You can also watch Ron live or listen to him at http://www.RonKaufman.com.

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