World Class Customer Service
From A Local Family Owned Business.
By Jeff Wasserman
In today's competitive world, you seldom encounter a business that exceeds your expectations. I had the pleasure of meeting and doing business with one such company. A few years ago I was setting up an office in Dahlonega and was in need of a new desk and other office furniture.
Every time I take my vehicle to Hardy Chevrolet in Gainesville for service, I can't help but notice the bright and cheerful building next door. The name on the building says it all, Office Pro's. Inside you will find a large two level showroom of new and used desks, chairs, book cases and supplies. The building also houses the school supply division, School Tools.
As a Life & Business Coach, I work with individuals and business owners who are looking to clarify their companies mission statement and connect with their customers. These business owners are searching for a method to improve the company culture, motivate their employees in order to offer their customers a excellent shopping experience. If you can offer your customers a memorable, hassle free shopping experience, you have developed a customer for life.
The owner's of Office Pro's have found the recipe for success. This family owned business, started by John & Marsha Jones, and their sons, Bill, Bobby, John IV and Tim. The Jones's family along with 30 other wonderful and dedicated staff members offer the most unique, relaxed and memorable shopping experience I have ever encountered.
As a Life & Business Coach, I often speak to groups of business owners, corporate managers and professional sales people. I stress the fact that little things make the sale, not the amount a business spends on advertising. Office Pro's is a great example of this theory.
When you walk through the door, you are always greeted by a caring and professional employee. Not a high pressure sales tactic, so often seen in furniture stores, but more like a welcome to our home greeting. The warm greeting is always followed up by an offer of a hot cup of coffee, individually brewed for freshness. On warm days, a cooler filled with ice cold bottles of water are yours for the taking.
The sales staff is always there to help and suggest, but there is no high pressure at Office Pro's. After viewing the new and used inventory in this large 45,000 square foot showroom, the sales staff is there to answer any questions. John Jones is always walking the showroom making sure the customers are being helped by his staff.
Mr. Jones has a talent for closing the sale. On the day I visited Office Pro's with my wife to buy a desk, I was overwhelmed with choices. New, used, wood, metal, just so many choices. I decided I would leave and visit the other national office supply stores located in Gainesville Georgia. Mr. Jones and his son Bill offered us a option never before offered to me by any retail store. If we leave and need time to think, we can go to lunch and if we return the same day, he would deduct our lunch off the bill. This was unique and a terrific offer of good will and smart business.
As you start to leave Office Pro's, even if you do not buy anything, they offer free newspapers to their customers with " Compliments of Office Pro's" stickers on each one. What a wonderful free inexpensive marketing tool. They even have free phone books for customers who need an additional phone book.
The Jones family and their staff have created a wonderful business and leave customers with a memorable shopping experience. I often speak to small business owners who complain that they can no longer compete with the large national chains. I make suggestions and offer advice on how to build customer loyalty, but many business owners prefer to spend a great deal on finding new customers instead of focusing on retaining the ones they have.
If you visit Office Pro's in Gainesville, be sure to check out their large selection of school supplies in their School Tools section and if you need a sign, talk to Tim Jones at Promotion Signs in the front of the building. From desks, to signs, the Jones family will take great care of you. And if you are not happy after the sale, they will make it right.
As you can see from the example at Office Pro's, if you own or manage a business, you can offer World Class Customer Service for little or no money. It does not take a huge advertising campaign to compete with the national chains and large corporations. In fact, you are doing yourself an injustice if you try to compete with these large companies on marketing. The secret is with the extras, paying attention to the little things in life.
I have worked with clients who put their business cards on a packet of flower seeds. Most perspective clients will not throw away a packet of seeds, but they might throw away a business card. I once worked with a client who sells his product to the construction trade. He was at a loss on how to get his message out to prospective clients. I suggested he buy a few dozen donuts, put his business card on the box and deliver them to the job sites. No one will pass up a fresh box of donuts.
If you have a unique business marketing idea you would like to share, please e mail me or call. I am always looking for successful businesses to spotlight. My theory is simple, do something for the customer above and beyond what they were expecting and you have a customer for life. I call this theory, Under Promise - Over Deliver (UPOD).
