As an individual business there isn’t much we can do to turn this recession around.  Yet can we still do our small part by continuing to have the very best business practices no matter what the business climate.  What we can do is make every single customer or prospect count by providing outstanding customer service and giving everyone the best sales experience possible.

Customer service is one of the key business success elements in this downturned economic marketplace.  Make sure your information to customers and prospects is thorough and targeted.  Treat every customer and prospect like they are the only one you will ever talk to. Go the unexpected extra step with every customer or prospect to demonstrate you truly want their business and that your business is the very best; that you are the right choice to do business with.  Make authentic connections with every one you meet in your business.

Customer service was paramount on my mind recently as I began my search for an in-home treadmill.

Here’s a recap of what I experienced:

The first store I went to is a big box sporting goods store.  Beautiful brand new store with barely any customers in the store on a Friday night.

• No one approached me to see if I needed any help, wanted to try out the machines or had any questions.
• When I finally did seek out a sales associate, he really couldn’t tell me much about the individual machines. Didn’t even know who manufactured the various brands. The sales associate had to read from the information card on each machine. Wasn’t convincing with information as to why I should purchase one machine over another.
• The sales associate was on commission when asked but yet didn’t volunteer his name or try to close the sale.

The second store I went to is a national chain department store in a major upscale mall that sells everything from tires to appliances to clothing and household goods.

• This time the sales associate approached me and asked if I wanted to try any of the machines yet he readily admitted he really didn’t know anything about the machines so he probably couldn’t answer many questions – including how much at-home delivery and set up would be. Then he proceeded to give me his name but told me he was off over the weekend.

The third place I explored, after reading Consumer Reports online, was the website of an up and coming treadmill brand that originally gained its reputation by being placed in hotels.

• It was late at night, but according to the website the company offered 24 hour email customer service so I wrote an email with all my questions. Much to my surprise, I received a response late the next morning. And when I wrote a second email later in the day, a response was returned within a few hours.
• The company doesn’t have a store display in the eastern part of South Florida where I live. I would have to drive over to the southwestern part of Florida (a three hour drive one-way) to a big box sporting goods store that doesn’t have locations yet in this part of Florida. Or I could order directly from the website.  The downside with this brand is that to try out the treadmill product I have to either take a day trip to the other side of the state or order the machine sight unseen.
• But the company was prompt and responsive. Gave great customer service, even though it was by way of email.

Buying a well built treadmill is not an inexpensive purchase.  It is an investment.  Yet the customer service, overall, didn’t match the price points of the merchandise.  And retailers wonder why they can’t move product when a ready-to-buy customer is standing right in front of them?  Each store had the opportunity to sell me a treadmill on-the-spot.  Yet lost the high ticket sale.

With my busy life, I had no interest in going from store to store to get the best deal.  I wanted a piece of exercise equipment that would be reliable and serve the purpose I was purchasing it for.  If the sales employees would have been trained in product information and customer service, I would have bought the machine.  The store would have made the sale and it would have been the end of the shopping quest for a brand name treadmill.  Instead, the stores lost the sale and you can’t help but wonder how many other sales have been lost for the same reasons.

Look at your customer service.  If it is not up to expectations, start retraining your people immediately so you don’t lose sales at your company.