
Take the money!
Are you a retailer with an online shop or do you have a physical presence?
This is the busiest time of the year for retailers and yet it never ceases to amaze me how many business owners miss out on opportunities to increase sales. Let me start with those who have a street footprint. You have decorated your premises to attract as many customers as possible. You have stocked up to ensure you have plenty for those customers to choose from. You employ extra safe to deal with the additional business so what is stopping you taking the money?
One of the most frustrating things that customers experience is the queues to pay for their purchases. What makes it even worse is seeing maybe six checkouts, only two manned and loads of staff stocking shelves. I have met more people over the years who told me they left their purchases behind because they were not prepared to queue. There are more convenient times to refill shelves but you won’t need to do that if customers are walking out leaving their purchases behind them. My simple message is to ‘take the money’ while it is on offer and deal with the rest of the issues after that. Losing a customer in this manner has a knock on effect is so far as they will tell their friends of the experience and more than likely will not return themselves. It is hard enough to attract customers but to lose them in this manner is unforgivable.
If you sell online you have probably completed a robust check on your system and how customers are engaging with it. At this time of the year it is more important than ever to identify broken links or other technical issues that prevent customers from completing their purchases. Is it possible to test the system and see how it performs by making some test purchases. What happens if an item is out of stock, will everyone get their purchases in time for Christmas. How do you manage your customers expectations?
I know that this is much more complicated than I am making out but can I suggest that you make sure that the basics are in place.
Have a successful Christmas.