While excellent customer service is a must for both businesses with online and physical stores, there’s more emphasis placed on it for the latter given the direct contact these stores have with customers. If your business has a brick-and-mortar store, then you have the opportunity to engage customers in person and more directly influence their shopping experiences. This can be done in multiple ways, such as having well-trained staff, maintaining visually pleasing premises, and endeavoring to have genuine interactions with customers.
By delivering excellent customer service in your physical store, you can then reap numerous benefits that significantly impact your business. Top-quality customer service not only improves the overall shopping experience of your customers but also helps build loyalty and encourage repeat visits. Moreover, happy customers are more likely to recommend your store to others, thus strengthening your reputation by word-of-mouth promotion.
To guide you in consistently providing top-notch customer service in your brick-and-mortar store, here are several principles that you should always keep in mind.
1. Create a Welcoming Atmosphere
First impressions are important for physical stores. If a customer didn’t feel welcome or at ease during their first visit, then there’s a possibility that they wouldn’t return. Thus, creating a welcoming environment is crucial so that customers are encouraged to stay longer and become return visitors.
To achieve this, have your staff greet customers warmly as soon as they enter the store. Ensure your store is well-lit, and clean, and that products are organized in easy-to-browse shelves. A soft background music can also help create a soothing experience as customers browse and shop.
2. Ensure Staff Are Knowledgeable and Approachable
Your employees are an extension of how your business will be perceived by your customers. Therefore, knowledgeable, approachable, and courteous staff are a must to ensure customers feel valued and cared for each visit. If they know they can rely on your staff for helpful recommendations and kind assistance, then they are more likely to stay loyal to your store.
Train your staff to be thoroughly knowledgeable about product details and shop policies. Also encourage them to be attentive so they can quickly spot any customer in need of assistance. However, do caution them against hovering around customers as most people prefer to not be tailed by a staff while shopping.
3. Prioritize Customer Comfort and Convenience
Your customers’ comfort and convenience should always be a priority. One of the most effective ways to deliver on this front is by streamlining your store’s checkout process. After all, no customer wants to be stuck in a slow-moving cashier line. Ensuring that you’re able to accept modern payment methods, including EMV- and NFC-enabled cards, e-wallets, and QR Ph, is a great way to facilitate faster checkouts.
With Maya QR, for instance, you can set up a unique static QR code for your store that will allow your customers to pay using their Maya Wallet or any other QR Ph-ready digital payment platform. Setting up a payment QR code is also fast and easy, thanks to Maya’s free QR kit. After generating your unique QR code, you’ll be able to display it at the point of sale or at the checkout counter for customers to simply scan when paying for their transactions. This removes the need for change and reduces cash handling, which helps prevent bottlenecks at the cashier.
In addition to efficient checkout counters, you may also consider offering amenities such as seating areas, clean restrooms, and accessible parking to make your customers’ shopping experience more pleasant and hassle-free.
4. Deliver Personalized Service
Personalized service makes customers feel appreciated and recognized, which immensely helps in fostering loyalty. Strive to remember your regular customers’ preferences so you can give tailored recommendations for them. For instance, if a regular in your cafe is a fan of sweet coffee in particular, then you may recommend items on your menu such as pastries or other sweet drinks that’ll complement their preference for such products.
5. Address Problems Proactively
Identifying problems and addressing them proactively turns a potential bad customer experience into a positive one. Doing so also positions your store as a business that looks out for its customers. Train your staff to be polite and calm when handling customer complaints to resolve matters without escalation.
For example, if a visibly upset customer comes to return a product they just bought after noticing a defect, then your staff should extend an apology for the inconvenience and provide the customer with a replacement right away. On top of that, you may also authorize staff to offer a discount coupon in such cases as a gesture of goodwill.
6. Actively Encourage Customer Feedback
Being open to customer feedback allows you to pinpoint exactly which areas you should improve on while also making your customers feel heard and appreciated. When conducting surveys, make sure they’re quick and easy to accomplish. For instance, many businesses nowadays simply add a survey link at the end of their receipts. This allows customers to accomplish the survey on their own time. You may also offer small discounts to those who complete the survey to incentivize customers to answer them.
7. Go the Extra Mile
Your business is more likely to leave a lasting impression on customers if they feel like you’ve exceeded their expectations. This can then encourage repeat business and generate word-of-mouth referrals, both of which are invaluable for driving business growth. Go the extra mile by offering complementary services, such as gift wrapping or free delivery for bulky items, or provide loyal customers with gifts or discounts. Even small gestures can create a positive impact so long as they convey your appreciation and add value to your customers’ shopping experience.
Streamline Your Checkout Process and Improve Customer Service with the Help of Maya Business Solutions
Having a hassle-free checkout process is integral to providing excellent customer service. Sign up for Maya Business to get access to Maya QR and set up your own unique QR Ph code that’ll make your customers’ checkout experience much more seamless.
Setting up a Maya Business account also lets you open a Maya Business Deposit account that you can use as a settlement account. Our industry-leading 2.5% per annum interest rate means that your PHP 1 million deposit can earn PHP 25,000 in interest per year. You’ll also be able to send money to partners and suppliers for free via InstaPay and PESONet, giving you additional savings
Signing up also qualifies you for a no-collateral Maya Flexi Loan offer of up to PHP 2 million in just 3 months, which you can invest back into improving your brick-and-mortar store to serve customers better. Simply use Maya as your primary processor for all wallet and card payments. The more you use our solutions, the better the loan offer will be.
Sign up for Maya Business today to enjoy Maya Business’s in-store solutions, thus elevating the level of your customer service.
