In these challenging economic times when business people look for ways to keep afloat most start with cutting costs, saving money on everything associated with the operation of the business and looking for ways to lean out and maintain some semblance of profitability. There are a number of ways to save, most of which all of us should have been doing long before if we weren’t so busy operating the business. This means doing things right the first time.
Claims and complaints drain away profits from the bottom line faster than a speeding bullet. Even answering the phone to take a complaint takes time away from doing something more productive. Consider first impressions of your store. If it looks dirty messy and uninviting you’ve got reason number one for business being down. If you and your sales people look like you’re ready for a summer picnic rather than looking sharp that’s reason number two. If your product selection is all over the place and not laid out with the female shopper in mind, that’s another one.
If you fail to qualify the customer as to what her wants and needs are – that being a beautiful home, that’s another. If you sell a product that is doomed to fail because you didn’t qualify the customer or the type of use the product would get – another reason. If the product is installed incorrectly because you didn’t take the time to learn how it actually should be installed and what has to be done to insure it – another one. If you think your ignorance is the reason someone else should pay for a claim because you think the products failure to perform is a manufacturing defect, you’re speeding up your losses. If you’re beating up your installer to get him to lower his rates because your business is off, you’ve just sabotaged yourself. Do you actually think he’s going to do more for less and care? That’s ludicrous. If you think you’re going to make more money selling a cheaper cushion for the same price as a better one, you’re crazy – you actually spent more, not less. How about the money spent on gas going to look at a complaint, sending out the installer to make a repair that shouldn’t be one. Think about what that ads to your cost of doing business.
The reason you’re in business, and all of us for that matter, is to serve the customer. As Peter F. Drucker wrote in his book, “Tasks, Responsibilities and Practices,” “You have to know what business you’re in and who your customer is.” You’re in the business of making homes and businesses beautiful and your customer is, 9 out of 10 times, a woman. The industry is mostly run by men who have no fashion sense and none of us really understand women. So the first thing to do right is hire women with fashion sense. Clean up the store which includes that filthy bathroom that also serves as a storage closet – clean it and keep it clean. Learn what your store should look like and how the products should be arranged. If you need help with this call Beaulieu and ask for Patricia Flavin, she knows how you should market and sell to women. Learn more about the products you sell and how to install them correctly. Understand that warranties are marketing hype that never cover what the complaint is for and their words don’t change the fact that ALL cut pile carpet will mat, crush, show traffic lanes and compress in front of the favorite chair. That if you become the expert you’re believed to be by the consumer and sell the right products into the right place installed correctly, you’ll have very few claims. If you take this slack time to learn more you’ll earn more. You have to know more than your customer so go on line and read what they’re reading before they shop for floor covering.
If you do things right the first time, you won’t waste time, effort and money – you’ll actually increase profits. It costs nothing to do these, it’s an attitude change. I’ve written about this many times in the past, this is nothing new. Be unique, be different, coddle the customer and grow when others wither. There will always be those who are successful in business during slow times. Adapt and thrive. Success Tip: read Mike Hernacki’s books, simple and easy but all you’ll need.
Author: Lewis G. Migliore
LGM and Associates – The Floorcovering Experts