For any retail business to survive in today’s competitive marketplace, they must operate by the rule of one: you have one chance to give customers what they’re looking for; if you fail to do so, customers will forever say you carry nothing.

Don’t let this happen to you. With a few foundational, fool-proof tactics in place, you can better protect your business against the rule-of-one death sentence and position yourself as a valuable, reliable resource your customers return to again and again.

Define and Exceed Customers’ Expectations

When customers walk through the threshold of your store, what do they expect to see? Do they find what they expected to find?

A common mistake retailers make is showcasing an item that does not fall under the umbrella of their specialty and what they’re known for. This confuses customers, and they become frustrated when they see items in your store that are different than what they expected to find.

  1. Do you frequently ask what customers expect? Ask your employees: from the front lines of your business, you’ll gain a more realistic idea of what customers want and expect. Ask your customers: remember that those expectations will change, much like a moving target—so you need to ask frequently.
  2. How are you filling customers’ needs? Once you determine what customers want, look for new and provocative ways to not only meet expectations but to exceed expectations, particularly with strategies, your competition lacks.

Collect Realistic Feedback through Surveys and Questionnaires

Retailers can easily collect feedback on products, services, and customers’ experiences by offering well-structured surveys and questionnaires through their websites.

In the past, Rick Segel & Associates worked with a consulting firm that developed a survey to look specifically at how customers felt about their experience with the firm. The firm classified the survey feedback in A, B, C, and D categories, A being the absolute best experience and D being the absolute worst experience.

They immediately threw out all responses in the A and D categories on the premise that some people will always love everything and others will complain no matter what. This allowed the firm to collect realistic feedback. The goal was then to create more B and C-level responses, indicating improved customer experiences.

Although you don’t need to replicate this same survey format, consider how to collect information from customers in ways that ensure feedback is authentic. Doing so verifies that the changes you make to your business can actually meet and exceed customers’ expectations.

Track Customers’ Preferences

A retailer’s goal is to have customers come back again and again and again. If you take the time to determine and track customers’ preferences, you will be able to more consistently offer products customers want, attracting them back to your business.

With computers and data collection programs, retailers have at their fingertips the tools needed to track customer data. Use this data to create customized newsletters and email lists specific to target groups in your customer base. The better you tailor promotional content to your customers’ preferences, the more you will prove yourself to be a valuable resource, rather than simply a retail store.

 

Always Do What You Say You’re Going to Do

If we exceed expectations, we wow our customers; if we perform below what we told them to expect of us, we run the risk of losing customers. Remember the rule of one.

We make a huge mistake when we fail to keep promises. Sometimes we fall short due to our own error; other time’s the error is out of our control. Focus on making promises that you’re able to fulfill. You will position yourself as a reliable resource—a key ingredient to creating loyal customers. To account for errors you can’t control, create an alternative plan.

 

 

 

Richard L Woodard works as a writer for write my essay sos service. He is fond of taking photos. In this case, Richard dreams of visiting as many countries as possible in order to take a lot of photos and take part in the exhibition to present his works to others.