I am your customer. Ignore me at your peril...
Have you ever walked into a shop, only to be totally ignored by the sales person?
You walk around looking for something and the young guy or girl behind the counter keeps chatting on the phone, chews gum or listens to their ipod - while studiously avoiding acknowledging you.
Frustrated, you walk out! Another lost sale.
Happened to us on the weekend - again.
I'm in the market for a digital video camera. I know the make and model I want, but want to compare prices and get some final advice.
So walked into a camera store in the city - found the shelf with the camera and stood there for about 2 minutes looking at it.
There were a lot of sales people in the store - one standing about 5 feet away right behind me - chewing gum. He knew I was there, I was obviously looking at something, but do you think he could have been bothered to walk around and ask if I needed some help?
Interestingly, I've faced the same issue in their store in Chatswood. Very hard to get someone to help you.
Walked into a rival about 10 minutes later. Walked up to the shelf and within 30 seconds someone walked all the way around the extended counter and asked if we needed help. Unfortunately they didn't stock the model we wanted.
Contrast this with an RM Williams store we walked into. Within seconds, a sales person acknowledged us. And as we walked further into the store, we were acknowledged again. We felt welcome.
And we've noticed this consistently no matter what store we've visited. And they've benefited as we've outfitted a client's complete sales force with multiple sets of clothes as part of a "uniform".
So what's the lesson here?
As Napoleon once said, "Recognition... Babies cry for it and grown men die for it."
It doesn't take much to recognise your prospects and clients and make them feel special. Acknowledging people is vital to your success be it in business or your personal life.
Sadly though, it often doesn't happen naturally. Your organisation needs to have a culture of friendliness and service. You need to hire the right people and make sure they're trained correctly.
And above all, you, the leader need to show the way.
Rashid.
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