I don't understand what retailers are thinking about. How is it possible that they have not yet understood that customer service is the one and only thing that separates them from their kindred? It's as if they fell asleep at the wheel and instead of waking up as the car careens from pillar to post, they sleep comfortably waiting for their inevitable death. It's disturbing to say the least.Don't get me wrong, Everybody falls asleep at the wheel. But hello!!! Wake up and get control of the very vehicle that takes you from point "A" to point "B".
By the way, what the heck am I talking about? I'll tell you. I am talking about simple things that separate you from the pack. About standing out in the crowd. About taking charge of your destiny. Let me explain:
"Joe the plumber" walks into your place and he asks for a very popular product that does not happen to be in stock at your suppliers warehouse. Yet "Joe the plumber" needs it ASAP. What do you do? Anyone? I know what to do. I call one of my competitors on the phone, probably a big box store, tell them I am "Joe the Plumber" give them my warehouses name and number and have them deliver it there. I broker a deal for the best price based on the prices I have available to me and make that company match it. I then get "Joe the Plumber" name and address and when the item gets delivered to my warehouse, I deliver it to him the next day.
Free thinking. Out of the box thinking on the fly. Survival of the fittest. If I keep doing that then everybody is happy and I make myself a couple of bucks. But most of all, I make "Joe the Plumber" happy, and he becomes my customer FOR LIFE. Why? Because we get it done.
Senator John McCain walks into my store and starts talking about the appliances he wants to buy for his home. But his home is in Arizona, not New York. Who the heck wants to waste their time with this guy, right? WRONG. I take him through everything. Refrigerator, dishwasher, ventilation, wine cooler, cooking, the whole works. He loves it. Then I tell him, "Look John, I can get this stuff to you all you have to do is e-mail me with the proposal I just gave you and BAM! It's in the house." He says, "You can truck this all the way to Arizona?" I tell him yes. Then I get his address, call some random Continental trucking company, Give them John McCain's address and the items going and get a price for delivery. Guess what? John McCain saves the tax on a $20,000.00 sale and he pays the delivery which is inevitably less expensive then the tax and delivery he would pay in Arizona. Who's your Daddy now Johnny boy?
So what I am saying is that GETTING IT DONE, is the only way to keep your mind, your motivation and your business fresh. NO sale is too small, or too big.
As General Patton once said, "Fortifications are monuments to man's stupidity." Keep moving forward.
Luigi Giogaia
Store Manager
