Personal Service Is a Small Business Advantage

Good personal service in retail establishments is difficult for many firms to achieve. This is especially true in larger department stores and retail chains, where the overhead costs of adding sufficient service personnel can be prohibitive. Increasingly self-service is the mode of service today.

The gap between full-service and self-service provides entrepreneurs with the opportunity to deliver personalized service. Know you customers, their wants, needs, preferences and price point. Your knowledge can provide them with a better shopping experience and your store with more loyal customers. The small business owner has the opportunity to order a select line of merchandise or offer a customized line of services. The level of customization and targeting a small business can achieve will draw a specialized audience loyal to a particular product or service category. The personal service that accompany such offerings close provide value-added benefits to the consumer.

Keep in mind that exceptional customer service doesn’t just happen. Your small sales force should walk in the door well-skilled, well paid and well motivated to perform. If personalized service and strong product knowledge are part of your marketing and sales strategy, you may be paying a more premium price for your sales agents. If you are paying those key staffers above average wages, be sure that you incorporate sales and service goals into an incentive plan. Get a return on the staff investment, that helps grow the business.

One aspect of good personal service is matching the customer’s needs with the business’s products or services. The better this match, the better the personal service. Another aspect is customer relations. Each buyer should be made to feel important and valued. Only when both aspects of the relationship have been fulfilled can a profitable, long-term relationship be forged between the patron and the business. Conduct period role-playing or training sessions. Keep your skills and your employees skills keen in three areas: demonstrating a sincere interest in the customer; listening to the customer to ascertain his or her true needs; and building product and service knowledge to offer customers informed suggestions.