Who is to blame?

A busy week in our Toy Shop again this week, but it still puzzles me that people aren't sure how to react when a shop keeper says hello to them and smiles, it can't be such a rarity these days - can it??

This got me thinking, as a nation of so-called shopkeepers, we seem to be inherently poor at customer service. When I say inherently, maybe that is the wrong word because we did have that skill in abundance, in the late 50's and early 60's a customer truly was treated with courtesy and respect - so what's changed? A customers attitude maybe? I think it has BUT. It has changed because we expect to be let down. Deliveries don't arrive when they should, emails go unanswered, phone messages are not returned... in fact I am willing to bet 10p that every single person that reads this will have been let down by a company at some point already this month. We have grown up with a generation of faceless websites and in some cases, those sites don't even have contact numbers! It makes it so much easier not to care when you know full well you can hide behind an email address. Another pet hate of mine are the big companies that do publish contact details but choose to hide behind 'corporate policy' - why? Surely almost every single query should be dealt with on it's own merit, I agree some of the queries or complaints will be identical but the person asking them will be different in each case and the mitigating circumstances will always vary so why try and pigeon hole the complaint into subsection 4.2 of the complaints manual? I will tell you why, it's because it makes everything neat, convenient and measurable and cost effective for the corporate giant. Of course, none of these factors will put the customer first... and to hell with customer loyalty. A very naive and short term view that has toppled some very large companies during the current climate.

I know it sounds a bit odd, me, an owner of a website, criticising them, but it just irks me when I come across websites that do their damnedest to hide their contact details - or when they publish them, they hide behind a scripted call centre that puts you in a box - how on earth is that good for customer relations?

So what is the solution? It is SO simple. Throw away the rule book, tear up the telephone scripts and train and trust your staff to treat a customer in a way that they would themselves like to be treated.

But it is not all up to the companies, it is also up to us as consumers to support the companies that step up to the mark and not just buy on price. If you buy on price alone, you will by default be buying from the companies that sell the product or service for the least money. This means they make less margin and can not inject the monies or resources into servicing that customer over their lifetime. So you might have saved a couple of quid but the cost of your time in sorting out the problems that may occur will far outweigh your thriftiness.

I know that view will annoy more than a few people and I am not trying to be elitist, I am just trying to point out the obvious. If the company you buy from makes little or no profit then the first thing to be cut will be the support for that product or service.

The million dollar question is how you find such companies. Well start in your town, next time you visit, take a few minutes to go into a shop that doesn't have a household brand name. How are you greeted by the staff, does it have a nice 'feel', give it a go, it might just surprise you. If you have already found an independent shop that you love - tell the world! Be evangelical about that company, if they really are that good, it's the least you can do to make sure they are still there next time you want to make a purchase.

If you are on-line, before you hit the 'buy now' button, check for an address AND phone number. If the company really cares, their number will be displayed clearly on every page of their website, pick up the phone, call them and talk to them, you will get the feeling straight away if it is a company that you feel comfortable with. If there is no obvious telephone number of address - DON'T BUY FROM THEM.

Only you can make companies change their attitudes by voting with your feet.

Paul. Daddy & Owner, When I Was a Kid.
01933 426365
Nene Court
Embankment
Wellingborough
NN8 1LD


PS. It is no bloody good Mary Portas sorting out the high street until the companies that trade there learn how to treat the customers that used to shop there. Rant Over.