Richard J. George, Ph.D.

BrainTrust Query: Start a Customer Service War

November 18, 2009

FROM RETAILWIRE:
Walmart, Target, and Amazon.com have spent the last few weeks locked in an ever-escalating price war. Forget price wars: BrainTrust panelist Doug Fleener wants to see a customer service war.... To what degree can customer service help specialty stores survive or thrive in an environment increasingly focused on price?      [more...]

I am reminded that when you give the customer two equal choices, retailer A & retailer B, and if A's prices are lower than B's, the rational customer will always select A over B. The challenge is to never give the customer an equal choice and customer service is a great way to shift the balance.

While a number of useful recommendations are made to delight customers short of price alone, permit me to share the top-line findings from my research on what customers believe are the important variables related to customer service in food retailing.

I asked people to identify what aspects of customer service were important in their selection of a food retailer. The top ten most important attributes are as follows:

1. Accurate check out.
2. Speedy check out.
3. Uncluttered aisles.
4. Easy access to parking lot.
5. Prices visible when scanned at check out.
6. Accurate shelf tags.
7. Complaints quickly and fairly responded to.
8. Shopper friendly store layout.
9. Sale prices honored without the need to clip coupons.
10. No products on shelf after "sell by" date.

While supermarkets have always focused on the ante, namely, low prices, cleanliness, and quality of products, addressing the above attributes can result in delighted customers, raving fans, and most importantly--profitable, continuous purchases.