{"id":2362,"date":"2011-01-24T05:41:05","date_gmt":"2011-01-24T05:41:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.thesocialcmo.com\/blog\/?p=2362"},"modified":"2011-01-24T15:40:43","modified_gmt":"2011-01-24T15:40:43","slug":"will-canadian-retailers-survive","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.thesocialcmo.com\/blog\/2011\/01\/will-canadian-retailers-survive\/","title":{"rendered":"Will Canadian retailers survive?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"\u201cMotivated employees make a huge difference in service<\/em>\u201d\u00a0\u00a0says David A. Aaker<\/a>\u00a0in his book, Strategic Market Management<\/p>\n

Mind the gap<\/strong><\/p>\n

Like many busy moms, I willingly and sometimes, forcefully, take on everyone\u2019s shopping in my family. This year, more than ever before, I\u2019ve had the opportunity to experience the limits of customer service at retailers, more particularly, at\u00a0Canadian retailers<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

This has given\u00a0me a pretty good insight in their practices and what the end user, the customer deals with. I will use this “experience” to bring you a series on Canadian retailers; the first topic is pretty general as it sets the tone and give you a fair idea of the landscape.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve recently had a few incidents at\u00a0RW & Co<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Tristan<\/a>\u00a0stores; I complained about it on Twitter and Facebook; Yes, I was really mad. I am not talking about stellar customer service, even the basic politeness had not even been displayed; The general attitude has been cold and unhelpful on each of my several visits. A few of the gems I can vividly remember:<\/p>\n

– I was dismissed by\u00a0sales staff when I asked to help me find specific size for an item; she said there was only extra small left; I skimmed through the rack one more time and found all the sizes;\u00a0Note<\/em>:<\/em>\u00a0I am really persistent otherwise, they would have lost a sale opportunity.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"\"– On one occasion, I said I would call head office in order to weigh in with them for a return policy issue and before I exited the store, the manager started to shout: \u201cwhere is the phone? Where is the phone, need to call head office now<\/em>.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0Note<\/em>:\u00a0This lady totally did not see the iphone in my hand? I can dial faster than my shadow.<\/strong><\/p>\n

While I received no word from Tristan \u2013 which doesn\u2019t come as a surprise, RW & Co, on the other hand, reached out to me on Twitter and by email \u2013 I figure 2 different teams are handling \u00a0online monitoring as both, customer service and sales asked me for my phone number; \u00a02 weeks later, they haven\u2019t called me back.<\/p>\n

Social media, so what?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019ve looked at several retailers\u2019 online assets and find a\u00a0deep disconnect between the company\u2019s statement and the reality of the brand<\/strong>. \u00a0Is the gap in the definition of the company\u2019s mission, in the implementation of the mission, in the communication within the organization, in the operational steps such as HR, sales, training, or could it be in the strategic planning.<\/p>\n

Social media will not help any company if internal processes to handle a social media program are not in place<\/strong>. Social media will only showcase the organization is unorganized, at best. \u00a0One of the biggest challenges retailers face today is the disparity in service delivery from one location to the next and from one sales associate to the next; However, a retailer needs to be able to serve their customers with consistency. Today\u2019s shopper knows more about the industry as most staff members; customers are aware of what\u2019s being said about retailers thanks to platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, Yelp, Foursquare, and Google.\u00a0Smartphone penetration<\/a>,\u00a0with over 7 millions subscribers, allows customers to update their social profiles from anywhere, including \u00a0while in stores if they are not happy with service.<\/p>\n

\"\"For most businesses, using social media seems to be just another place to market to their consumers, a means to an end, an expedient purpose.\u00a0Business doesn\u2019t start nor end with social media.<\/strong>\u00a0Social media should be part of how organizations conduct business. Social should allow them to better serve their customers. \u00a0Displaying a Twitter icon is not doing social media; it\u2019s just adding another widget to the plethora of social tools out there. What makes the difference is what efforts and initiatives businesses put together towards truly making the customer\u2019s experience a * WoW*
\n<\/a><\/p>\n

Customers DO care<\/strong><\/p>\n

Most clients don\u2019t complain as they don\u2019t deem it worth their time and effort; a customer that complains is a huge opportunity for businesses. \u00a0I am one demanding customer; my expectations are high as I expect the service that goes with the money I pay for my purchase.\u00a0 When I complain, I can be tough because I feel the business did not fulfill their promise. However, on the flipside, I never fail to shower with compliments those that are good.\u00a0Today\u2019s norm is to be mediocre, so anyone who does a little better will get my attention.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Chasing customers through social media will not do it.\u00a0KLM<\/a>\u00a0has demonstrated avant-garde thinking with their latest campaign.<\/p>\n

Businesses don\u2019t need to\u00a0chase<\/em>\u00a0customers across social networks; Initiating contact on social media is great when it is a premise for the business to show they have the internal processes and internal culture to follow-up on their social promise. In a time where customers are craving for\u00a0connections<\/a>, businesses have to revive the human in their business practice.<\/p>\n

To be successful,\u00a0retailers must deliver consistently on their promise<\/strong>. Also, for brick and mortar retailers, their success or failure may just depend on its manager – choosing the right person as well as training and empowering them are crucial steps to diffusing good customer service in-store.<\/p>\n

The organisation\u2019s culture ought to be geared towards serving the customer.\u00a0 This includes management shaping the culture and supporting it throughout the organization, empowering its people, and focusing on the customer. This way,\u00a0all processes will be put in place and excecuted\u00a0in a consistent manner.<\/strong><\/p>\n

As for front-line staff, I have 1 word and a few tips :\u00a0Human 101<\/strong><\/p>\n