What do Customers Want?
Children’s Orchard customers are a very unique bunch. Meeting their needs is paramount to achieving our Mission.
Here’s an interesting article entitled, “Satisfied Customers: What Do Customers want?”. It pretty much sums up what every Children’s Orchard franchise owners needs to keep in mind as they run their stores.
“With today’s cutthroat competition from big business, trying to compete on price can be a quick road to ruin… But here’s a little secret you should know: contrary to common perception, customers will not go almost anywhere just to save a buck.
So if you want to avoid getting beat up on price, stop trying to compete on price alone. What your business needs to stand out is better customer service and satisfied customers . But don’t make it the simple “please and thank you” variety. Aim higher. Strive for fabulous, standout, outrageously great service…
Will superior service trump price? Absolutely, says a dramatic new survey of over 100,000 small business and retail customers nationwide. According to a four-year study conducted by the Ohio-based market intelligence firm BIGresearch, most customers will put service ahead of price - if you give them the chance.
BIGresearch asked tens of thousands of shoppers how they like to shop, what they look for in customer service and what it takes for them to buy. And according to T. Scott Gross, who turned the results into a new book called “When Customers Talk,” some of the most deeply entrenched “wisdom” about what customers want may simply be wrong.
For example, when researchers asked customers how far they’d be willing to drive for excellent service , 80 percent said they’d travel four or more miles, and nearly half said they would drive 10 miles or more for the right combination of price, quality and customer service.
“American shoppers are not the finicky, price-conscious bargain hunters they have been made out to be,” says Gross. “Consumers will pay for good service with both their cash and their time.”
Your job… is to deliver superior service that attracts and keeps customers day in and day out. Satisfied customers say they are willing to drive a little further for great service, but you’d better make it worth their effort.
Just how many service slipups does it take to send a customer packing? According to the BIGresearch survey, 17 percent will bolt after a single service faux pas. Another 40 percent will jump ship after two instances of poor service, and 28 percent more are out the door after three. So for 85 percent of your customers, it’s three strikes and you’re out.
Fair enough. But what do buyers really want from you?”
At Children’s Orchard, we never stop thinking about What the Customer wants (WCW). That singular focus is vital to achieving what every Children’s Orchard franchise owner seeks, prosperity.
Filed under: National News