Metro Detroit is a huge sports town, and if we have learned anything it is that the game isn’t over till you strike the last man out, or the buzzer rings and the teams leave the ice. For me each day is the start of a new game. Each customer that walks in the door is the next batter up and no matter how many shots on goal are taken I always have to be ready to protect the net in case of a rush on goal. Standing ready, eyes wide open and a genuine smile on my face, I know that the next person that walks through the door is as important and deserves the same level of attention as the first person that came in when the doors first opened today.
I know my game plan; I always start with hello and welcome to Tapper’s, even if I am twenty feet away from them I want them to see me and to know that they have been seen. It doesn’t matter if I eventually assist that guest or not, it only matters that they know that they have been acknowledged. This acknowledgement and greeting is also a matter of security. If someone with the wrong intentions is ignored it makes it easier for them to assume that they could go about their bad business without being noticed.
Each time I walk by a customer unless they are standing with another associate I’ll ask if they’d like a beverage or a snack from our refreshment bar. I know why they came here, so it is my strategy of engagement not to say what can I sell you today; but to open a dialogue and get the relationship /sales process started.
I use similar thinking when customers leave our store. Thank you for shopping at Tappers I’ll call out across the store. If I am close enough I ask how was your experience and always try to say something personal and positive, leaving them with a smile. As I try to make my face the one that they see when they first walk in our doors, I also want them to remember me with a smile as they leave our store. Today they may have only come in for a battery change; tomorrow they may be interested in a new watch.
A positive attitude brings positive results!
More tomorrow,
Steven