Customer Service: As Simple as Having Fun!

Yesterday’s post about my experience at Wal-Mart led Justin Flitter (writer of a great help desk customer service blog) to have this comment, in part:

“What would happen if Walmart just told their staff, “go out there today and have some fun, we’re not measuring anything.”

It reminded me of my early years with Pearle Vision.  I was a new store manager – new to the optical industry.  In the 80s (and in many locations still today) it was a very medically oriented business.  My staff were all licensed opticians but I was a sales person brought in to learn the optical industry.  They wanted to see if my background would have an impact on our business.

My first Saturday it was jam packed with customers.  My employees were carefully handling one person at a time.  They focused on each person, giving each person the same speech about lens and frame materials.  It was taking TOO LONG.  Customers were lined up and getting impatient.

So I took the women’s section and grouped the women customers together and said – let’s have a fashion show!   I talked about the lens and frame material once so all could hear.  We all learned each other’s names – they helped each other pick out the best looking frames.  When one said yes to a lens add-on – they all said yes.  Average sales soared and we had a total and complete BLAST!

From then on – when we were busy – I stationed one associate in each section and they “group sold.”  When a new customer came in we’d holler over “come on in and welcome to the party!” 

In less than a year we doubled sales and I was promoted.  How?  We had fun.

Justin – I think you’ve got something there.  If we relax and just have a good time with our customers – isn’t that what customer service is all about?

Speaking of having fun:  I wrote a workbook called It’s a Party:  Planning a Successful Retail Sales Event.  It doesn’t get much more fun than having a party!