Wednesday, April 04, 2007
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Changes are happening everyday in business, especially in retailing and marketing. After 35 years in the marketing business, I'm convinced that a lot of companies talk about branding but few really understand the importance of developing a brand both with the consumer and with your employees. This site will give those of us who watch the retail and advertising business an opportunity to share our views on why some companies succeed while others struggle to survive.
Ken's blog has moved.
You should be automatically redirected in 10 seconds. If not, visit
http://www.kenbanks.com/blog/
and update your bookmarks.
4 comments:
Nice article Mr. Banks. I would like to know more about the difference between a "buyer" and a "shopper" perhaps in a future blog. Congrats to your Gators. They deserved to win and are actually a great brand too!
Todd Alexander
I have never forgotten your brief relationship with Circuit City and have been loath to shop there in retaliation for you not getting the proper treatment as an executive there – by that I mean the freedom to exercise your professional judgment in pursuit of corporate goals. Anyway, I ended up at a local CC store here about a year ago to make a camera purchase for my son. We followed an ad in the Sunday paper with a camera he thought he wanted. We were getting excellent service from a knowledgeable salesman. The salesman reviewed features and options of similar cameras, and my son chose one different than in the ad. Unfortunately, the one he chose was out of stock. The store manager was asked by the salesman about when new stock would be available, and the manager then offered the next better camera of the same brand at the sale price of the one sought. Needless to say, we accepted that offer, and my son has been very pleased with his camera.
Subsequently, I have had other occasions to shop the digital camera department of that CC and received excellent technical advice and service. I’ve bought four digital cameras and a digital movie camera from them. Service has been excellent. Accessory stock has always been plentiful. But it is knowledgeable sales help that has brought me back time and again.
All this validates your point. Service and a knowledgeable sales force drives sales…assuming reasonably competitive prices.
As an executive, I look at the question from another angle. Part of the boss’s job is to protect the assets of the organization. So, what is the most valuable asset of CC? (or most other businesses?) The employees. Your story about one excellent employee being worth more than three average employees is true. And as you retain employees, you have great savings in reducing the costs of turnover, costs which can be exceedingly high. These are savings not measured by compensation.
Can you remember Soapy Williams, Governor of the Great State of Michigan in the 1950? He was governor when State payroll checks bounced. Can you imagine the havoc that created? Rent payments missed. Mortgage payments missed. Car payments missed? Difficulty in buying food and paying for utilities for some people. A nightmare. That’s something I’ve never forgotten. I’ve always known from that debacle to put taking care of the employees as the number one priority of a business (and never, ever miss a payday). Without that, nothing else can be accomplished on a long term basis.
If service is enhanced by employing knowledgeable staff and treating them well (of which compensation levels is only a part – go back to Theory X v. Theory Y for employee motivation), that will inevitably lead to goal achievement. It’s really a simple concept, but far too many executives and managers just don’t get it. Many are too wrapped up in showing that they can exert power.
That should bring you to ask questions about management education, both in colleges and on-the-job training. What is being taught? What are admissions/employment criteria? Are too many people without any common sense and compassion about employees getting into schools and jobs?
If you learned your BS in business and MBA (or Thunderbird equivalent) well, you know that all of that classroom stuff really is applicable to day to day management. It takes a thoughtful exec to apply those concepts and it takes leadership with compassion toward others to implement successfully. It’s not always easy, but it’s usually doable.
Enough.
I think this is happening in many aspects of the Big Box World. Home Depot has put a Salary freeze on its existing employees. Both JoAnn and I have noticed a decrease in Customer service at both HD and Lowes. In Oregon the Min.Wage is now $7.80 per hr. And that's what they are hiring at. At many levels. You ain't gonna get good people to help you at those wages. We needed a garbage disposer this past week. I couldn't go and get it..JoAnn was off work and went to get one at Lowes. She had a terrible experience there. No One could take her to the Dept, where they sell them. After asking 3 sales people. 2 of which were in the appliance dept. DUH! She found it on her own and bought a good one. Thank God. It's about Customer Service...Knowledgeable people in the specific areas. Pay them what they are worth.. Praise them for what they know and se ll. It will profit you for it. This is why I left HD in 1996. They didn't respect my knowledge of what I was selling. Just were concerned about there bonuses. A bunch of "Pencil Whipping": assholes. Here in Oregon there is a company called G.I. Joes. Now called "Joes" They started back in the 70's selling Army/Govt' Surplus. Now they are a big Sports Store. They have the best customer service I've ever experienced, You might check out their web site. www.joessports.com. I think that's it now. Very helpful people. Not the most inexpensive overall..But their service is worth the extra $$$. A great shopping experience
Post a Comment