IKEA has a great retail model; it’s cheap and good enough quality items and like the pan-piper, attracts thousands of consumers into their wonderful brightly lit Avant Guard -esq shop on a daily basis. A trip to IKEA for me always begins the same way. First the excitement, next you ensure you have your list in hand - determined not to buy anything else other than what is on that list. Alas, even with a list you are always tempted to buy other knick-knacks, many of which you really don’t need but you will end up buy, why? Well, because it's cheap. As you delve into the lower catacombs, you begin to feel some frustration, either out of slight guilt of your frivolous purchases, the disagreement with your partner on choices on colours of items (and how no matter what you say you never win! they get their way) or the groups of people around you with large trolleys - most of which seem to suffer serious ailment in “trolley coordination”. At this point, I look up and not surprisingly enough, I notice loads of other couples, argues, kids screaming, and newlywed couples one phone call away from a divorce lawyer (might be a suggestion for IKEA to invest in marriage counselling at this point). Cursing the heavens doesn’t help berating myself and wishing I had gone to the IKEA website instead rather than suffering this. Someone get me a pint please!
Most high street stores do get it right; enough money from my experiences is pumped in by brands to ensure that customer service training is always front of mind. Some retail stores now have "Style Advisors" - I love this, an elevation from what is sometimes viewed as the menial sales assistant to style advisor -I feel privileged! I no longer have a sales assistant is asking me "Is everything ok?", "Do you need any help?" (Same thing, again and again, in every shop I walk into - seriously it’s enough to want to make you scream). The style ad visor's approach is slightly different (a big T-shirt stating "STYLE ADVISOR" helps(not too sure on the Jo-90 glasses) - but an air of re-assurance is already there. I relate to these helpers more, I’m hooked and I feel satisfied and now, point of purchase, I’m in a queue and suddenly I feel like screaming again! I knew it wouldn’t last! I now have to queue for a good 10mins. Not ideal when you have kids screaming around you. I hope retailers reading this are taking note.
Moving on, I head for the Apple Store on Regent st. Great store! always packed but yet manages to still look horrendously spacious (a bit of Steve Jobs magic there). The store has an array of “technical/product advisors" (whilst the sleekness in all Apple product sells itself, I feel safe knowing these advisors are on hand to help me out. I look at the product I want (the new iShuffle), the advisor gives me a brief demonstration and I decide I want to buy it. Ok, here comes the weary bit. I head for the queue area but I’m glad to see the same assistant walking to me with a handheld device, she asks if I wish to pay, I say yes. Transaction done, bing bang bosh! I’m out the door - one happy customer and thank you Apple!
It is therefore, not surprising that if you go to the Apple website the same shopping experience is replicated this, you go to the apple store online, choose the product and you can find out more about the product on the product page, add to cart and pay..easy. Agree, the hefty prices on Apple's products are a little off putting however the service and online shopping experiences makes up for me coming back to Apple as a loyal customer.
The lesson here for retailers is quite simple. Treat your customers as you would like to be treated whist ensuring your have and deliver the same experiences throughout all your points of purchase - especially online. Unfortunately if retailers fail to do this then I'm afraid that no amount of offers, discounts and stiff wide smiles will make up for customers simply walking away due to having a bad shopping experience.
what do you think about Bing?
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