Friction in retail is a hot topic at retail business conferences right now, in particular removing friction that can get in the way of shoppers doing business with you.
Here are key points of friction that if removed or addressed could improve customer relationships and increase revenue achieved in your business – if they apply to you:
- Minimum eftpos / card transaction value. Such a limit does not make any sense today.
- Eftpos / card transaction surcharge. The costs of offering eftpos are small. By all means is yours is an agency focused business with small margins, charge it. However if yours is not an agency business such a fee has no place and your shoppers know it.
- The customer in front of you is the most important task you have. If the phone rings, don’t answer it.
- A complaint is an opportunity.
- Accessibility. If you only sell while your physical store is open you are missing opportunities for half the trading time or more.
- Always use a bag. Asking shoppers if they want a bag for cards or gifts can be friction. Maybe not so much for a newspaper or magazine. With cards and gifts just do it and stop asking.
- Slow checkout. Make it fast.
- Check out mistakes. Eliminate them.
- Single item shoppers having to wait for people in front with more items or a long transaction. Let single item purchasers get in and out quickly.
I appreciate some of these will be controversial. The objective is to present ideas to be though through and evaluated as to suitability.
Item 9.
A customer buying a paper is of no more or less value than any other customer. They don’t have a “right” to be served faster or jump any queue. They cannot just dump the cash on the counter in front of the customer ahead of them and walk out. They will be served when its their turn.
Brett the point I am making is it is a point of friction to contemplate addressing. Many retailers are and enjoying success because of it.
I half agree with you Brett.
Often I am with a customer who is slow and I am unoccupied while they look for their lotto card for example. In these situations, if I see someone standing behind them with just the paper, I’m more than happy to grab the correct change off the paper customer and get them on their way.
But boy do I hate it when that paper customer expects to push ahead/reaches across my customer to give me their money/dumps their money on the counter. Just wait your turn…
I am with you Katie, it’s my pet peeve! They wouldn’t do it in a major supermarket so why expect it in a small business… can you imagine in Woolworths… slams the money on counter and yells it’s just the paper as they walk out!! Definitely if we can keep a queue flowing whilst still providing “A” class service we do it.
So look at the situation and consider alternatives. For example, honour tins where they put in the correct money for the titles named on the tins.
Not sure about point 6. We see many customers who are offended by waste of bags. They appreciate opportunity to say no.
Never had a problem with customers dropping the right change for a paper on the counter and getting on their way, seems a lot more frictionless than waiting for me to check all the SnW tickets someone got for their birthday.
Now customers dropping a pile of change on the counter and expecting me to count out the cost of a paper because their obviously incapable of counting themselves, that I have a problem with.
Of course it’s a problem I keep to myself as I serve them with a smile If humans develop the ability to read minds I’m going to have to get out of retail.