How to keep your customers

This is a tale of two chains.

Store X, I’ll call one, is part of an independent chain that I frequent. It’s impressive and reminds me of the chain I started at years ago. It’s always clean, the produce department usually in great shape, as far as how I measure a produce stand, anyway — clean, fresh produce, neatly stocked, plenty of variety and selection and interesting merchandising. 

Best of all, the store and produce department are adequately staffed. When I shop there, I’m asked several times by friendly employees if I need assistance with anything.

That’s getting rare, as chains buckle down on labor, and I think it shows in important areas, especially customer service.

Store Z is another story. They’re big enough all right, and when I happen to shop there, the difference is glaring. They’re always playing catch-up. Even at 9 a.m. on a recent Sunday, the night crew was still stocking in congested aisles and the produce department was the same, nowhere near customer-ready condition. 

And worst of all, the too few clerks were so immersed in their tasks that no one offered a greeting or asked if they could help with anything.

And because I went through the self-scan on the way out, not a single employee acknowledged my presence.

It’s interesting, due to my own deeply engrained customer service background. 

Which chain do you suppose has the better business model? From which chain does a customer go home with their goods, feeling like “their” store is somewhere they’re likely to return to on a regular basis?

This is important, as a retailer’s lifeblood is regular customers. Shoppers have many choices where they do their regular shopping and it’s only partly decided by the price. Customers appreciate clean, wide aisles. They like getting to know a friendly face who greets them and offers produce help or a preparation tip, calling attention to a new fruit variety or offering a sample.

Loyal customer retention helps the bottom line as well.

According to a recent U.S. Department of Agriculture report, an average family of four spends anywhere from $9,932 to more than $15,000 annually on groceries. It’s everyone’s single-largest bill, behind a mortgage or rent. 

Every face you see in your store represents this range. Customer retention was so important that anytime we received a complaint card, it had to be answered with a phone call, to apologize and resolve.

Sometimes we took it a step further and paid a visit to the affected customer. We offered not only an apology, but a gift card or fruit basket and a sincere gesture to make things right. 

Don’t spend five times more attracting new customers, nurture the existing ones. — Forbes Magazine.

Armand Lobato works for the Idaho Potato Commission. His 40 years’ experience in the produce business span a range of foodservice and retail positions. E-mail him at lobatoarmand@gmail.com.

More from Armand Lobato:
So much to be thankful for
How to balance labor caps and experience needs
The art of the produce manager transfer