On my last trip to Fry’s electronics, as I was paying for my purchase, the cashier asked if I wanted to apply for a Fry’s credit card.

You’ve probably heard that request before at numerous retail locations and it rarely sounds compelling enough to take action.

I asked the cashier how often people take him up on the offer for the credit card. He replied, “Not many.”

“Do you get in trouble if you don’t ask?” He mumbled, “Yes.”

Obviously there is no incentive for this employee to get people to sign up for the service other than fear of punishment. This reduces the employee to the bare minimum steps required to not get fired.

It doesn’t get people to sign up for the service.

I always thought that the cashier should ask me the “do you want to sign up for our credit card?” question before I hand over the cash or swipe my credit card.

Sometimes this question is given with a preface: “Would you like to save 10% today by…”

This, unfortunately, can easily be answered with a “No.”

If you want to be truly effective, try tweaking your thinking just a little.

Why not hook the customer with an offer like “Would you like to save 10% off your XYZ today?” where XYZ is personalized to what they are buying.

In this case, more customers are likely to say “yes.” Then you can explain how they can save 10%.

Lead off with what is in it for the customer and you’ll be more clear with the benefits of your offer. Additionally, you can give incentives to your employees to make them more more convincing in their selling.

Frankenstein

Frankenstein is the classic monster built from a bunch of different parts. The result was a hideous creation that didn’t really work so well.

Your business is a Frankenstein if, to the customer, you appear as a hodge-podge collection of independent departments and divisions.

Your customers expect a unified experience with your company, regardless of your internal org chart and departments.

Don’t be Frankenstein.

Witch

Think of the wicked witch from Wizard of Oz. She had her signature cackle and always seemed to torment those around her.

Your company is a witch if, from the customer’s perspective, you are never giving them what they want.

You may be hiding behind company policies, or draconian procedures that make your customers’ lives miserable.

Don’t be a witch.

Dracula

The vampire Dracula could literally suck his victims dry. Are you sucking your customers dry?

Hidden charges, fees, penalties, unbreakable contracts, restocking fees, etc. can easily eat up all of your customer’s money.

Determine what is a fair price and stick to it.

You can upsell your customers but remember there is a difference between offering them something and forcing them to do something.

Don’t be Dracula.

Ghost

Ghosts are mysterious in that you don’t always see them. They come and they go without any rhyme or reason.

You are a ghost to your customers if you are an absentee business. If you never answer the phone, can’t be found behind the counter, and are almost impossible to reach, you might as well be a ghost.

Don’t be a ghost.

Who Should You Be?

Instead of being a monster or an evil creature to your customers, be something positive.

Perhaps you could be a:

• Transformer: changing to meet the needs of the customer.
• Fairy Godmother: helpful, making your customers’ wishes come true
• Buzz Lightyear: fighting for what is right and defending the galaxy from bad customer service

Remember, customers hate getting tricked and love treats, so act accordingly.

Happy Halloween!

When you make a mistake, you may be tempted to hide it, ignore it, or even deny it.

Don’t run from your mistake.

You need to be proactive in addressing the issue and resolving the problem with the customer.

How you handle mistakes speaks volumes about you as a business.

The last time we had to get a battery for our van, we went to the nearest Sears auto center. They installed a new battery and about 30 minutes after we had gotten home, they called us on the phone.

Apparently, the mechanic had forgotten to tighten a bracket during the installation and they told us we should go back in and they would take care of it.

I took the van back, the mechanic apologized for his mistake, tightened the bracket, and I was on my way.

If Sears hadn’t been proactive in notifying me of the problem, I would have found out about it later.

The same is true of mistakes you make with customers. The mistake will be discovered eventually.

It is to your advantage to identify it, confess it, and fix it before the customer realizes there is a mistake.

This will show your customers that you actually care about them after they pay and have left your store or business and will help build a long-term relationship with them.

Once the issue is resolved, take a look at why the mistake happened and learn how you can prevent that mistake from happening again.

This may seem obvious, but unfortunately, we live in a day where people and companies don’t always live up to their commitments.

When you honor a quote you’ve given customers, it is an important step in building a solid relationship with them.

We recently stayed at a beach condo on the Texas coast. When we made our reservations, the condo’s website had stated a certain price for the days of our trip.

By the time we checked into the condo several months later, their rates had increased. We realized this when we saw that upon check in, they had charged us more than we were expecting.

Armed with our original confirmation and quoted amounts, I returned and spoke with the manager to correct the problem.

After explaining the situation, she immediately (without argument or question) refunded the difference to me.

This was a huge relief.

You Can Diffuse the Situation

When your customers notice a difference between the quoted price and the actual sale price, they will get on edge or even angry.

The customer will come to you ready to fight, argue, and will probably be expecting the worse.

You can immediately diffuse any worries and conflict by honoring the original price.

Problem solved.

Remember: even though there was an error to begin with, the customer will remember the positive outcome and leave with a good impression of your business.

We recently took our van into the dealership for a manufacturer’s recall. We scheduled an appointment and showed up promptly on time.

As I was checking into the dealership, I asked if they could take a look at the vehicle’s alignment.

This extra request was greeted with disdain and I was told “we can do that but it will take a lot longer to get your car ready.” The message I got was clear: you don’t want that alignment service.

So I got the recall service taken care of and then drove to another shop to get the alignment fixed even though the dealership could have fixed the problem and had my money.

In your business, you’ll find times when your customers realize they need more from you than originally planned.

This is a great opportunity for you since they will thus be spending more money with you.

Instead of a terse response like the dealership, you should say “Yes! We can do that for you.”

The extra work may take longer. The request may even mean higher costs to the customer.

However, your customer asked for it!

Respond positively. Yes! You can meet the customer need.

Once you identify that yes, you can deliver what the customer needs, you’ll need to then set expectations on how that changes what you need from the customer.

For example: “Yes, we can fix the alignment on your car. Alignments typically take an extra hour to service, is that OK?”

If you can meet the customer’s need, do it! Acknowledge it positively and with enthusiasm. After all, your customer wants to spend that money to fix the problem. Make sure that money is with you.

If left alone or uninformed, customers may walk away even when they were ready to buy.

Last week I had to get our car’s alignment fixed. As I was waiting in the lobby, I observed several customers enter the shop and look around confused, not knowing who to talk to or how to request service.

This mechanic shop had a counter where you’d expect to see an employee, but no one was there.

The customers would stand around, looking into the garage bay or oddly around the room. After several minutes, one of them walked out into the garage and tracked an employee down.

This was too much work for a customer.

Don’t Make Customers Work to Buy from You

You need to make it extremely easy for customers to place their order, request service, and buy your product.

Contrast the mechanic shop with the bakery down the street. This bakery had a sign on the counter with a bell that informed the customers to make a choice and then ring the bell for service.

Just like the mechanic’s shop, the bakery will have employees actively engaged in performing work and may be out of the customers’ sight.

Nevertheless, the bakery made it very clear how to proceed.

Show Customers How to Proceed

Give your customers a way to say “I’m here” or “I’m ready to buy.”

Without the clear path to a sale or checkout, you are losing frustrated customers that simply give up instead of going through the effort of figuring out the quirks of doing business with you.

Don’t be quirky. Be obvious. Your customers and bottom line will thank you.

Wired magazine’s editor-in-chief Chris Anderson tackles the changing landscape of pricing in his book
Free: The Future of a Radical Price.

Having read Anderson’s original article in Wired magazine, I was skeptical that a full-length book would be able to elaborate on his claims.

I was pleasantly surprised that the book kept my attention and was actually entertaining and informative.

What is in Free?

Anderson covers the history of “free” and how it has evolved in commerce to what it is today. As I enjoy history, this was an interesting component of the book.

The main premise of the book is that the cost of digital goods is decreasing so rapidly that the incremental cost of one more customer is essentially zero. Thus you see that companies are able to offer their products and services online for free to millions of users.

Anderson explains how many web-based services survive while appearing to charge their customers nothing.

Free pulls back the curtain of the business models of many companies that leverage the zero dollar price point to their profit. You’ll learn how companies defy common paradigms and essentially turn pricing models upside down.

Free is Free

I was intrigued by how this book was marketed. Since it is called Free and talks about making lots of things “free” the book should be, well, free. Right?

Well, the book is free. Really.

At its initial launch, the book was offered in many formats for free. I listened to a free audio book version of Free read by the author.

While many of the free versions have disappeared after the initial hype, you can still listen to the free audio version on audible.com.

Recommendation: Read it

If you are selling any product or service, this book will help you think through your options on what to charge customers. Don’t be scared by giving something away for free, just be sure you know how you will monetize that transaction with the customer. This book will show you how.

Prefer a tangible, physical copy of the book? Order a copy of Free: The Future of a Radical Price on Amazon.com.

For example, a hotel site will show available hotels on a Google map. This mashes up the hotel information with a third party map service.

Mashups don’t just exist in the online world.

You have the opportunity to make something new out of components you already have.

For example, I recently ate at a restaurant called Moonshine. One of their appetizers is a corn dog shrimp.

Like the name implies, this is a shrimp skewered on a stick, battered, then fried just like a corn dog.

The outcome was a unique and delicious experience.

The chef took components that were already within his reach and created something noteworthy, remarkable, or as author Seth Godin would say, a purple cow.

Your business is in a similar situation. You sell products or services to your customers.

What would happen if you start combining those, mixing them up, and offering them to customers?

Can you deliver on an unmet need and open up more revenue opportunities for your business?

Try mashing up what you have at your fingertips and see what you can make.

With the passage of time, a couple of things are inevitable: new technology will emerge and new business practices will hit the market.

While some of these may add great value to your company and customers, they can too easily be a distraction that takes you off your core focus.

I was at a conference recently where the design and the layout of the stage completely distracted from the speakers and demonstrations.

Behind the keynote podium was a large bank of bright LED lights that slowly changed colors during the presentations.

These lights were too bright and since they were positioned right behind the speaker, they were downright annoying.

This was the first year I had seen these lights at this conference and I wonder why the sponsors used them. Perhaps this new technology came along and everyone thought “Wouldn’t it be cool if…?”

Unfortunately, whenever someone says “Wouldn’t it be cool if…?” you need to put on your analytical and rational thinking cap and see it this new gizmo merits the attention and implementation.

Progress is inevitable. However, it must be implemented on your terms in your business. Perhaps your customers aren’t ready for the latest and greatest widget. Maybe it’s just what they need.

Try to remove the emotion as you think through chasing that new, shiny object before you actually make the leap. Your business and customers will thank you.

Customers expect you to have that product whenever they interact with you.

What happens if you’re not ready? Customers will be disappointed.

This exact thing happened on my last trip to Kentucky Fried Chicken.

I ordered my meal, a drink, and a side of fries.

When I ordered my drink via the drive-in speaker box, they said, “Sorry, we’re out. Do you want something else instead?”

I agreed.

Then when I drove through the drive-in and up to the window, they said, “Sorry, it will be a 5-minute wait for the french fries. Do you want another side dish instead?”

Are you kidding me? It is lunch time and you don’t have fries ready?

Needless to say this experience was less than pleasant. My expectations were completely destroyed and I was left with disappointment before I even got my food.

This didn’t set a good stage for a satisfying meal.

Your business may be likewise disappointing customers. Do you have the products customers need in stock?

Are you able to deliver on the promises and expectations you have made with them?

If not, maybe you need to rethink your supply chain, or even cut out the distracting products that are getting in the way of your core products and services.