J.D. Associates Retail POS Solutions Blog

Customer Loyalty in My Store?

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Giving Back Many ordinary people in this world view most large corporations as nothing more than self-serving, greedy entities with insatiable appetites for making huge profits.  Well, for two hours last Saturday night, that perception was altered by most major television networks when they aired the commercial-free "Hope for Haiti Now" Concert.  To date, and still counting, those two commercial-free hours have raised over 57 million dollars for the Haitian-relief effort.   Those two "prime time" hours could have generated millions of dollars in advertising revenue for the networks, but, for whatever reasons, the network execs saw fit to give something back to the people who are going through an unthinkable tragedy.  If you watched this program of painful mourning and steadfast hope, did you notice that the performers were not introduced and there was no applause?  Humbling humility was the name of the game that night as it should have been.  The Cause rose above all self-centered egos and concerns. So, how does this relate to retail?  In spite of living through an extremely difficult retail climate, we still have our businesses, and we are still part of the community.  The question is how much do we as retailers give back to the communities who help put food on our tables by being our customers?   Do we sponsor a local or national charity and support it throughout the year or do we donate a few bucks around the holidays? Although customers like to shop stores that carry the merchandise they want, they also like to feel good about the stores where they shop.  A hot topic in retail these days is "customer loyalty."  Most good POS systems have customer loyalty add-ons which track customer purchases and provide rewards.  But customer loyalty is more than accumulating points; it also has to be earned.  Customers keep coming back to a store because they want to come back.  They get what they need, and they feel good about the customer experience.  Customers feel good about doing business with stores which embrace social responsibility.  Why don't you think about adopting a Cause that you truly believe in or expanding your involvement with a Cause you already support.  Customer loyalty will follow.

Bite the Hand that Feeds You?

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This morning, while listening to a major network morning show, my ears perked up when the announcer said to stay tuned for a segment entitled "what retailers don't want you to know."  On hearing this, all kinds of negative ideas went through my head.  What could devious retailers be up to now?  Are they over-charging customers at point of sale?  Are they selling ‘knock-off' merchandise?  Are they selling stolen goods?  When the segment finally aired, the answer shocked me.  Retailers were doing exactly what they should be doing to sell more goods and to make the customer experience easy and successful.  They were smartly merchandising their products.  One example described how an apparel retailer was matching tops to bottoms and accessories.  It was depicted as a trick to get the "brain dead" consumer to buy more.  First of all, this is a win/win for the retailer and the consumer.  In this situation, the smart retailer actually does sell more goods.

Isn't that what retailers are supposed to do?  As a result of smart merchandising, the consumer doesn't waste endless hours trying to find companion goods which results in making their shopping experience more productive and pleasing.

Doesn't it sometimes seem that the media are obsessed with trying to villainize anything the entrepreneurial retailer does?  Don't you think it might be better if the media kept in mind that retail is a driving force in the economy?  Much of the media's revenue comes from retail advertisements and sponsorships.  Why continuously bite the hand that feeds you?

Retail POS Systems on Steriods Survive - and Thrive

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Last week before I went to the NRF Big Show in New York, I ran into a friend and customer at the grocery store.  I told her that I was exhibiting at NRF, and she asked me if I would jot down a couple of my observations on the mood of the vendors and retailers in light of the Great Recession. 

Upon arriving at the Javits Center on Sunday, which is set-up day, I noticed that the show seemed larger than last year, although not as large as some of the shows in the past.   The "Big Show" isn't typically known for producing immediate sales, but most of the world's largest retail technology vendors attend if for nothing more than to make sure another vendor doesn't steal their customer.

As for the mood in the hall, most attendees including vendors and retailers expressed cautious and reserved optimism (optimism being the key word).  Having been "beat up" for the past two years, most felt they were better off this year that they had been last year and felt the worst was probably over.  Neither vendor nor retailer was jumping for joy because they felt business was fabulous.  But neither vendor nor retailer was expressing the devastating pessimism of last year.

This year it was obvious that technology companies have kicked it up a notch and were not only displaying point of sale systems on steroids, but were also placing  a strong emphasis on planning tools, video surveillance, traffic counting, customer loyalty programs, and business intelligence.  It appeared that both vendors and retailers realized that in order to flourish and not merely survive in the new economy, innovative and more sophisticated tools were essential.    

So, when the Big Show was over, I walked away knowing that I had met the survivors of the Great Recession and all of them were collectively looking for a better future.

Build Customer Satisfaction - Start Today

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2009 was a challenging year. But Christmas wasn't cancelled; customers spent money, hopefully in your store. And there will be lots of new customers redeeming their gift cards over the next few months - and beyond. This is a huge opportunity for you and your staff to build your customer base and fill it with ‘raving fans.’ How do you do it? With off-the-graph customer service, that's how. Do something different that distinguishes you from other retailers to get your customers talking about thier experience in your store. And you should be tracking all customers through your retail POS system, or as some refer to it, your inventory management software. You need to know what they buy so you can target market to them, based on their buying history. POS systems will tell you this information in great detail. 

Be prepared to serve them in a way that is remarkable. You want your customers to say remarkable things about you, your store, your brand. Look at the word REMARKABLE. Within the word is the word-REMARK. You want them to remark about your store to their friends. Set a good example of how the customer should be treated and your staff will follow your lead. This should be your marketing plan cornerstone for 2010 and beyond.

Is Lean Inventory Good Inventory Management?

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The strategy of many retail operations for this holiday season was to go lean on their ordering.  They are hopeful that this approach will cut down on their post-holiday inventory dumping and less inventory management.  Although that strategy may have some merit, it could also backfire for future sales. 

A couple of weeks ago, I was shopping for my wife at a well-known higher-end woman's store.  I must note that I was the only customer in the store at the time.  Being a man with a hunter's instinct, I honed directly in on my target and within a minute or two found exactly what I wanted, I thought.  Then I went to look for the right size.  I searched rack after rack with no success.  Only after I had spent about five minutes looking throughout the store, had the manager approached me and asked if I needed help.  When I told her I could not find the appropriate size, she immediately told me that all of the inventory was on the floor and the store would not be restocked with additional sizes before the holiday.  She didn't even bother to ask me what size I was looking for.  Nor did she ask me if she could help me find something else! 

I left without making a purchase and bought a comparable item at another store. She missed out on creating customer satisfaction leading  to my customer loyalty.

This experience was certainly a "retail turnoff." If the unproven strategy is to go lean on inventory during tough economic times, shouldn't retailers train their help to deal with this situation in a productive and positive way?