Urine the Money: A PetSmart Moment

Do you like cats?  I find people either like them or they don’t.  This is my oldest, Maya, big, furry and a little bit mean.  She’ll purr while she bites into you.

The baby is Callie…

I love cats because they are independent.  Put out food, water and litter box and they are good to go.  Until they decide not to go….in the litter box.

That happened to a friend of mine recently.  She also has two cats and her littlest (however, big enough to know better) has decided to use the wood floors and living room carpet as her litter box, much to my friend’s dismay.  My friend tried several things to solve the problem, none of which worked.  So she went to PetSmart.

She was waited on by Bobbi (Canton, Ohio PetSmart).  Bobbi listened to my friend’s story.  She offered a few basic ideas, all of which my friend had already tried.  Then Bobbi took the moment to a new level.

“Tell me about what is going on in your cat’s life. Is she stressed about something?  Could there be a stray animal outside that is making her too nervous to use the bathroom appropriately?”

Bobbi didn’t dismiss my friend and say “you’ll find a solution in aisle five” she actually was interested in helping resolve the issue.  It turns out there is a stray black cat and a misplaced chicken living outside the house.  The chicken is a story for another time, but the black cat had been taunting Mia (my friend’s cat).  The litter box is by the window outside of which the stray cat paces and hisses. 

Bobbi didn’t stop there, she asked further questions about Mia’s likes and dislikes.  You might be saying “it’s a cat for crying out loud” but that’s not how my friend feels and clearly Bobbi understood that.  She hooked my friend up with a series of products including two new litter boxes that will help solve the problem. 

When all was said and done Bobbi said “Please call me and let me know how it is going. If these don’t work, let me know and we’ll figure something else out.”

My friend left feeling cared for, valued and empowered to solve the problem.  She also left $155 poorer, for that is what she spent at  Pet Smart.

Would she go back to PetSmart the next time she has a problem?  Yes.  Will she refer PetSmart to other pet owners – you betcha, that’s how I learned about the story.

Did it take Bobbi a lot of time?  Not really.  It just took a desire to help, a willingness to listen, the smarts to ask great questions and the knowledge of her product to match the right products with the right need.  I asked my friend if she thought she’d spent too much money.  “No.  I was happy to spend the money because I feel confident that this will fix the problem.”  So even in this economy – when a value is shown, it isn’t about finding the cheapest solution.

All good stuff.

Now think of your employees.  Do they offer the same level of attention to every customer?  What would happen to your business if they did?  What’s stopping them?