Recently a coffee shop I really enjoyed opened a second location closer to my office. Yay. As a result, I have started taking meetings there and looking to help them build traffic. And then I noticed something. This was not the same experience.
Photo by Ahmed Rabea on Flickr / CC BY-SA
A few weeks ago, I was getting ready for a Focus Group at 7:30 AM and I stopped by for a growler of Coffee at 6:30 when they opened up for business. The challenge…The employee opening up didn’t show until 6:30 AM. There was no way I was going to walk out with a growler of coffee at 6:35 AM. These cost about $29.00 US. A revenue opportunity missed. My good friend is often at the coffee shops in his neighborhood when they open. He is up by 4:00 AM. If coffee is not ready he moves on to another shop.
Recently I have been there in the afternoon and as I am waiting for my meeting I tend to watch. I saw the owner and his staff leaning over the coffee counter scrolling on their phones. No big deal, right? Except I am comparing this to another coffee shop. Even on Sunday morning when they are not pouring coffee, the staff is dusting, cleaning or preparing food for when the crowds do come.
My last observation. I have had three meetings in the late afternoon here, And the sign says they close at 4:00. So, at 3:30 the staff starts cleaning. AND they use a very astringent cleaner. I know that their goal is to be able to walk out of the door at 4:00 so they start their process earlier. And in that process scurry customers away.
So riddle me this?
- If Your store opens at 8:00 AM are you ready for business or are you getting set up for business at 8:30? And how much business did you miss because you could not deliver at 8:00 AM?
- If your store “closes” at 5:00. Is that when you finalize the day or do you finalize before then so that the customer that walks in at 4:55 doesn’t get served as the books are done?
- Which store would you like to buy from the screen scrollers or the busy staff?
It is your business. What are your intentions for what your customer experiences? Is your staff aware of these standards? When was the last time you had a conversation? It is never one and done.
If you would like to talk about how your business can stand out and dominate your market, let’s schedule a call. https://calendly.com/john-gies
