No matter what business you’re in, there are likely to be multiple competitors in your area. So why would someone come to you over anyone else? And if you’re a retailer, why would someone even come into your store over going online and getting a cheaper price?
On that note, we had an interesting shopping experience the other day... one I think we can all learn from.
We wanted to buy a friend a birthday present – and settled on a gift voucher from the beauty salon she goes to.
Barbara rang the salon to get the voucher ready for us to pick up. The receptionist asked how much we wanted to spend ($40) and what name the voucher should be made out to.
On hearing the name, she immediately responded... “Could I suggest you make the voucher out for $42 as that will give her a nail infill – which is one of the things she has done on a regular basis”.
Naturally, we agreed.
If you’ve ever bought or received a gift voucher – you know to expect something in an envelope.
Not so with this salon.
They placed the voucher in a gift box with other product samples and wrapped it with a pretty bow, adding value to the gift.
All for no extra charge.
All in all, a very pleasant experience.
So what’s the lesson here?
Knowing your customers well is one of the most powerful things you can do to grow your business.
The salon knew what our friend normally had done and upsold us making an extra 5% on the sale. We felt good knowing that our friend would get something she liked. A Win-Win-Win.
And there was another side effect. Barbara was so impressed by the service, she may become a client as well.
It just highlights the point that relationships are important. More and more of us are looking for a more “personal shopping experience”.
We want to deal with knowledgeable people who can give advice and steer us in the right direction. Someone who takes the trouble to find out what we’re going to be doing with what we’re buying and makes sure it fits the purpose.
This builds up trust and more often than not, price becomes a secondary consideration.
Rashid.
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