My customer experience today at a ‘Theme Basics Store’ in Wellington…
[ZEF] Hi, do you sell shower curtains?
[TBS SHOP ASSISTANT] Yes – over there… (points)
[ZEF] (looks over) They look great – can you tell me what length they are?
[TBS] Hang on (finds a brochure) 180cm or 190cm – it depends – we’ve just got two examples on display…
[ZEF] (sees many more designs on the brochure) Can I take a look?
[TBS] No…
[ZEF] Well, can you give a copy of the brochure? I’d like to take it home to show my partner…
[TBS] This is our only copy…
[ZEF] (notices brochure has a web address) Well, just write down the web address for me and we’ll take a look online…
[TBS] We can’t do that…
[ZEF] Why?
[TBS] We’re the agents in Wellington…
[ZEF] I just want to see what’s in your catalogue – if I want to buy something I’ll come back… (actually, by this stage I’m having doubts – and by this stage I’ve memorised the website address anyway)
[TBS] No, we can’t do that…
[OTHER HTS SHOP ASSISTANT] Go on – give it to him…
(long pause)
[TBS] (says nothing – writes down the address and hands it over)
[ZEF] Great, thanks… (leaves)
After visiting the website I can now see why she was reluctant to give me the website address (it has a shopping cart and I can order the curtains direct). BUT, I do value good customer service. If they had treated me better I would have made a point in going back and placing my order through them (but now – no way…).
What the Theme Basics Store could have done to ‘buy’ my loyalty…
- “We’ll make a photocopy of the brochure and give you a call when it’s ready” (and then blocked out the suppliers website address)
- “Sure, here’s the website address – if you order through us we’ll give you a discount”
- “Give us your email (or postal) address and we’ll send you the details”
Was this too much to ask to ensure I would spend my money at their store?
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